A Great Way to ruin a perfect wall; My 400 Gallon Project

[tigerarmy40]

you have a beutiful home!!

 

[ReeferMonkey]

Hey Ryan,

My fiance' and I are planning on being in Keller on Monday - the firm we work for designed the town center and the lakes around it so we were going to go check it out, take some pictures and whatnot.

You guys going to be around on Monday?

 

[steve68]

That looks awesome from the front, great job.

 

[Cathy8424]

Nice idea on the, wedged out at 45 degrees, on the canopy lid. How about a few more close up pictures of the lid closed? Is it like a 1 X 8 dowel pinned into the crown molding? Or is it custom made from one piece of wood? And what is the height of the wood used for the lid, 12 inches or so?

 

[UnderwaterExotic]

Very nice job, looks elegant!!!

 

[trblmkr]

Hey.... real nice job. It looks like it came with the house.:beer:

 

[jakano]

"JUXTAPOSES" thats a triple word score for using that one. 50 points. jk

 

[SaveOurReefs]

Hey servo, nice I just noticed this post from dfwmas.com, hey who needs a basment when you can make a nice little room in your garage. LOOKING good, keep us updated with the pictures!

 

[SERVO]

Cathy, I'll post more pictures of the lid closed once I have all the wrap and other objects that are protecting the inside of the tank from construction debris. Construction continues......

The "header" is custom made from one piece of wood hooked to a large piano hinge.


We finally have the electricity all complete. I am REALLY happy with it. I don't think that you will need any explainations, pictures tell the whole story.

First the 8 20 Amp circuits

Now here is the good stuff.

As you see, There is a non GFI for the sequence pumps and GFI for the rest of the electricity under the tank.

 

[tigerarmy40]

what is gfi?

 

[DrHarryLopez]

Ground fault interuptor? Basically it detects a short in the curcuit and cuts the electricity.

Harry

 

[melev]

None of those look like GFCI breakers to me, nor are the outlets.

 

[Karl K]

A GFI will detect a small (under 15mA, usually 5mA) amount of current not returning through the proper circuit. This will trip the GFI. A normal circuit breaker will trip at the ampere rating of the breaker. This will always be a fatal current if it is travelling through your body. Remember, a circuit breaker protects the wiring it feeds, a GFI protects the people that use the wiring it feeds.

I like the fact that you are not using a GFI on your main circ pump. Sometimes you will get minimal current leaks internally on water pumps, especialy with salt water. I suspect that after a few years or so of the pump running in the salty, humid environments we demand them to run in, you would start to have problems with the GFI nuisance tripping.

Other than the fact that I prefer to use all pvc conduit and boxes on wiring for aquariums, good job on the wiring. (This is coming from a certified A electrician (a Canadian one, so I am trained in it all))

Karl

 

[Karl K]

Melev, there are 2 GFI outlets that I can spot right off the bat, and you can sub-feed other outlets with those GFI's, so a GFI breaker is not needed. Iam also sure that, based on the number of circuits, there are other GFI plugs that he has not taken pictures of.

 

[tsquad]

Wow, that setup is magnificent! Great job, I'm waiting for livestock to get in there :thumbsup:

 

[melev]

Melev, there are 2 GFI outlets that I can spot right off the bat, and you can sub-feed other outlets with those GFI's, so a GFI breaker is not needed. Iam also sure that, based on the number of circuits, there are other GFI plugs that he has not taken pictures of.

I must be blind. Mine (the breakers) have a yellow button on them. They stand out typically.

 

[Tazzmacd]

I am surprised that since it will be around water that the electrician didn't tell you you needed GFI plugs or breakers. That really shocks me

Cheers!!

Pat

 

[Muligan]

not gfi breakers but there are a few gfi plugs I can see in the pics.

 

[melev]

You're right. I didn't see them because they are all beige. Mine have a red and black button on them for test and reset.

 

[Karl K]

The main pump can be run without a GFI as long as proper cable routing is done. (Drip loops, plugs elevated, etc...) Current leaks in the mA range will not typically cause a problem. The motor is thermally protected anyways. I'm just saying that if you use a GFI on your main pump, the chances of it shutting down and not coming back on when you go away for the weekend is increased. The tank can do without the lights for a couple days as long as the water is moving.

Karl