A Golden Reef Tank

[halmus]

Subscribed. One of the most well planned systems out there!!!

Thank you. No matter how much you try to plan something, there's always something you forget. I'm trying to keep things flexible and modular to allow for the unexpected.

It will be a long, slow ride from here. Probably another month of plumbing, figure out lighting, build the hood, build the rock, water mixing station, cycle everything.... The list never seems to end.

Um....holy cow!!!!! That's awesome

Thanks. The pool table should be in within a month. The furniture is arriving within the next two weeks. Nice couch in front of the aquarium and bar stools to sit up at the aquarium bar top.

 

[halmus]

Here's a small update. The filtration room is in complete chaos right now. I'm making slow progress on the plumbing.

The refugium (to the left) is cycling right now. I built some rockwork in the refugium that is held together with portland cement as an experiment. It was built in place and needed to soak to leach out all of the crud. I coated the inside of the tank with a protective layer of plastic. That's why it has that green look. I've decided that I'll probably use epoxy on the main tank after seeing how this worked out.

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[CrayolaViolence]

I find your organizational skills disturbing.

 

[vair]

That a badass fish room! Well done and also some kick *** hardware.

 

[worm5406]

What are these for?

 

[halmus]

I find your organizational skills disturbing.

Thank you?

That a badass fish room! Well done and also some kick *** hardware.

Thanks. I haven't used MRC before but the build quality seems to be pretty high. I'm trying to build this to last.

What are these for?

Short answer, carbon and phosphate reactors not completely plumbed in yet for the frag system.




Long answer:

I didn't do a great job of describing what the big picture is in this room. I'm going to have four major systems that can be run entirely separate if needed.

-main display system (kalkwaser, carbon reactor, phosphate reactor, calcium reactor, skimmer, refugium)
-frag system (carbon reactor, phosphate reactor, skimmer)
-coral QT (carbon reactor, phosphate reactor, skimmer)
-fish QT (carbon reactor, phosphate reactor, skimmer)

The main display will have the potential to be run in conjunction with the frag system by turning a few valves. They could share water for stability. That's probably how they will run a majority of the time, as one. I just wanted to put in the extra effort in the beginning in case I need to isolate things in an emergency. In the event of a major crash (my tank or a friends), I can always turn the frag system into a significant holding system and not have to do a lot of emergency plumbing.

The coral and fish QT will have the potential to be run in conjunction by tuning a valve. Similar mindset. I won't be treating the QT tanks with any chemicals that can harm the coral. If that needs to be done, a hospital tank will need to go up.

 

[rygar]

You're a freak show. Welcome to the club.

Something to think about because I just went thru it. Not matter how you quarantine, you may get a parasite...somehow and you will have no idea how. Do what I didn't do. Plan how you will catch your fish. I cemented nearly all my rockwork together. It was a fun project and ended up looking really cool, but made it a royal pain in the butt to catch my coral beauty. Not sure if you read the story, but took me close to a month to get it.

Love the washing machine in there...and the fridge...and all the shelving...and the flooring...and how neat and clean it all is....and ....and....and....and....

Oh...and think about drilling your rocks for frag plugs. One thing I found out is that all frag plugs are NOT the same size. I had one so used that to make sure I was using the correct size drill bit and going deep enough. It was shorter than most other frag plugs. Some were also fatter. So oversize the holes. You can use reef putty to fill the gaps so they fit tight.

These are 2 things I never see advice on in this forum.

 

[CrayolaViolence]

Thank you?

Considering I can't organize the alphabet, that was a big compliment.

 

[dlp211]

This build looks amazing. I wish you the best of luck on getting this complete and I look forward to seeing the final product.

 

[halmus]

It's about that time of day on a weekend.

I've been set up for mandatory fun by my wife in a few months. We're running a half marathon up in the Grand Tetons. It's not that big of a distance compared to some past events, but I've been a little hyper-focused on the basement/aquarium and have been just maintaining a baseline fitness. I'm not all that excited about getting in miles so that I'm not a complete disgrace when I show up to the race.

I went on a 8 mile run up the mountain behind my house today before starting plumbing again. I'm a little pooped.



I remember reading a build thread where someone (I think it was Ching Chai's tank in Thailand) had a frosted glass door that said something like, "Life is too short to drink cheep wine."

My sign needs to say, "Life is too short to drink cheep beer."

 

[VGT]

Excellent choice in beer... and just about everything else.

 

[worm5406]

Short answer, carbon and phosphate reactors not completely plumbed in yet for the frag system.

Ahh ok thanks. I was just wondering why there is not a shutoff valve to keep things from going one way or the other. So I figure it will only to into the sump after it goes in. No way that side will be full, right?

 

[halmus]

Excellent choice in beer... and just about everything else.

Thanks. I've been drinking barley wine once in a while also when it's available. I don't really chase labels but there are a few breweries that consistently impress me.

Considering I can't organize the alphabet, that was a big compliment.

I'm glad I can be disturbing in a good way. I do go overboard with being organized. I think there's a medical term for that.....I try to keep a healthy balance of chaos and organized.

You're a freak show. Welcome to the club.



Something to think about because I just went thru it. Not matter how you quarantine, you may get a parasite...somehow and you will have no idea how. Do what I didn't do. Plan how you will catch your fish. I cemented nearly all my rockwork together. It was a fun project and ended up looking really cool, but made it a royal pain in the butt to catch my coral beauty. Not sure if you read the story, but took me close to a month to get it.



Love the washing machine in there...and the fridge...and all the shelving...and the flooring...and how neat and clean it all is....and ....and....and....and....



Oh...and think about drilling your rocks for frag plugs. One thing I found out is that all frag plugs are NOT the same size. I had one so used that to make sure I was using the correct size drill bit and going deep enough. It was shorter than most other frag plugs. Some were also fatter. So oversize the holes. You can use reef putty to fill the gaps so they fit tight.



These are 2 things I never see advice on in this forum.

Thanks for the detailed advice. I will try to keep the rock manageable but there's only so much I can do considering the type of rock formations I'd like to build. They will need to be made secure in the tank which means not easy to remove. I may have to get creative with a fish trap if the worst happens.

As far as frag disk prep, that's excellent advice.

This build looks amazing. I wish you the best of luck on getting this complete and I look forward to seeing the final product.

Thank you for the kind wishes. I'm just keeping my head down and moving forward at this point. There's so much work left to do, I have a hard time picturing water running.

 

[halmus]

Ahh ok thanks. I was just wondering why there is not a shutoff valve to keep things from going one way or the other. So I figure it will only to into the sump after it goes in. No way that side will be full, right?

I'll have to post up pics soon to show what I'm doing. You're right in wondering about shutoff valves. I just couldn't fit them in with the space.

What you saw in that picture was the outlets returning to the sump. Those outlets should be above the water line during normal operation. The highest internal baffle in that sump is lower than the outlets of the rectors.

Even if the water raises above the outlet level when the pump is off, the reactors will be sealed and it won't be an issue.

The inlet sides have gate valves that are attached to a manifold supplied by the pump. That wasn't built yet when I took the picture you referenced.

I am plumbing in the pump tomorrow and should have the frag system 90% done minus the parts I'm short.

 

[worm5406]

I'll have to post up pics soon to show what I'm doing. You're right in wondering about shutoff valves. I just couldn't fit them in with the space.
.....
I am plumbing in the pump tomorrow and should have the frag system 90% done minus the parts I'm short.

Thanks, was just trying to help out, incase they were forgotten.

Yeah aren't we all short parts when we need them the most. I hate starting a plumbing job at 7 at night. NO MORE. HAHA. 7am works best, even if I have to get up early.

 

[ADVRESOURCE]

Nice job. Your attention to details and craftsmanship are unmatched

I have a question about your simp. I noticed you raised the filter socks. Is there a bypass if the socks get filled without flowing onto the floor? I couldn't see the detail of your sump very well.

 

[halmus]

Thanks, was just trying to help out, incase they were forgotten.



Yeah aren't we all short parts when we need them the most. I hate starting a plumbing job at 7 at night. NO MORE. HAHA. 7am works best, even if I have to get up early.

Thanks for checking. It's always possible I'm overlooking something along the way. I appreciate the questions.

Deciding to go with sch80 was a tough choice because I can't just run down to the hardware store unless I want to mix in sch40. You can tell by my OCD that mixing plumbing isn't acceptable.

I have to do an inventory every weekend and plan out next week's goals to make sure I have the materials. That's pretty much been the story throughout the entire remodel. I work 4-10s which makes it nice having a Friday off but I have to make the most of my weekends rather than chasing materials.

 

[halmus]

Nice job. Your attention to details and craftsmanship are unmatched

I have a question about your simp. I noticed you raised the filter socks. Is there a bypass if the socks get filled without flowing onto the floor? I couldn't see the detail of your sump very well.

Thank you for the compliments.

That's a good point to consider. I did leave a significant gap as a failsafe.

Looking down on that part of the sump, the far left section is where the water flows into from the tank's overflow. The water flows into the socks and the far right is a 2-3" gap. The filter sock tray is removable so I can service that section down inside.

The bulkheads are just staged because return lines from the reactors, skimmer, fuge, and frag tanks will be directed back into this first stage below the water line. I want all of the bubbles to have the opportunity to disperse a little before flowing through the bubble trap and return to the tank.

 

[halmus]

This is a fuzzy picture looking at the floor of that first section. The elevated box in the upper left hand corner is the previously mentioned box where water flows into the sump from the tanks overflow before going through the filter socks. You can see the bottoms of the filter socks hanging down.

I elevated that box to maximize the sidewalk access for all of those bulkheads below the waterline.

 

[ADVRESOURCE]

The micro fiber socks seem to clog very quickly. The mesh socks clog but, not as quickly. How much space is between filter sock and top of bypass?

Also, if you 45 the drains to the entry of your sump, the water will have less bubbles. Air gets trapped in your drains as it travels down the PVC. If you have the 45 half above and half below the water line, then the bubbles should be significantly reduced before entering sock chamber and downstream.

I tried both ways and have no bubbles getting into my skimmer compartment or dsb.