Building Big Bertha: 800G
- Thread starter bbrantley
- Start date
Hi all,
I was on the road this last week working like a dog, so I had no time to post updates -- or do much else, really. Anyway, let me follow up with some updates and some responses to the kind comments you've added this week. First, the updates:
I signed the contract with my contractor to do all the construction -- and there is a lot of it, like $20,000 worth. I'll take pictures throughout when we start on Monday the 14th.
The BK500 from Aquarium Specialty is sitting in Denver ready to be delivered by freight. Alas, I am going on vacation this week and so it will be postponed to next week.
I ordered a Generac QuietSource generator for the house (okay, for the tank
) to be delivered shortly. It's 16KW and should be reasonably quiet as well. All the circuits for the tank will be routed through its transfer switch, as well as my well pump, kitchen appliances, and maybe even a light bulb or two. I've been wanting one of these for the house anyway (we live in the middle of no where and the day we have a heavy snowstorm and lose power we will be stuck, literally...), so this was a good excuse. The generator detects outages (we have short ones frequently throughout the summer) and spins up about 60 seconds later to deliver power. I will hook it up to my 500-gallon propane tank (which normally just fuels the furnace) and I should get a good 4 or 5 days of runtime on an average (250-gallon) fill with it running at peak load.
I also got in my sample of Sani-Tred liquid rubber, which I am experimenting with on some metal (thinking of coating the stand in it) and some plywood (for use to make the rubber floor). I finished the third coat tonight and so I'll see what it looks like when I get back next weekend!
I purchased a large stock tank to use to hold all my existing live rock (and a few pieces of coral and my one, lonely blenny) while the construction goes on. I'll pump everything over to it next weekend and drag the rock out.
Speaking of that tank, the topoff sensor failed on last week and slowly dripped the entire topoff container into my bamboo floor.... ruining it. I will take some pictures of the parts I cut into to try to save my subfloor and get things dried out faster. So we will be replacing the living room floor as part of this project as well.
(I kinda wanted to replace the floor, too, so I guess it's just as well. Still -- use redundant sensors or install a waterproof room. Lesson learned.)
Now for your comments:
I will definitely PM you in the future and maybe try to give you a ring. Perhaps I should just take a tour of the northwest and visit all the huge tanks that seem to be up there? Anyway, my biggest concern is noise, so I have to work carefully to get good fans. By the way, my wife suffered two strokes this year, so I am sympathetic. She has different deficits than the ones I've seen you describe, but she is a trooper and hopefully will rebound given time and patience. And lots of therapy and hard work.
The BK500 will definitely merit some pictures; I'm a photographer by hobby, so you'll see a lot of shots once I get going and have interesting things to shoot. I'm wary of the wife-to-wife chat just on the off chance that it backfires and YOUR wife convinces MINE that my idea sucks. Ha, ha!
Ben
I was on the road this last week working like a dog, so I had no time to post updates -- or do much else, really. Anyway, let me follow up with some updates and some responses to the kind comments you've added this week. First, the updates:
I signed the contract with my contractor to do all the construction -- and there is a lot of it, like $20,000 worth. I'll take pictures throughout when we start on Monday the 14th.
The BK500 from Aquarium Specialty is sitting in Denver ready to be delivered by freight. Alas, I am going on vacation this week and so it will be postponed to next week.
I ordered a Generac QuietSource generator for the house (okay, for the tank
) to be delivered shortly. It's 16KW and should be reasonably quiet as well. All the circuits for the tank will be routed through its transfer switch, as well as my well pump, kitchen appliances, and maybe even a light bulb or two. I've been wanting one of these for the house anyway (we live in the middle of no where and the day we have a heavy snowstorm and lose power we will be stuck, literally...), so this was a good excuse. The generator detects outages (we have short ones frequently throughout the summer) and spins up about 60 seconds later to deliver power. I will hook it up to my 500-gallon propane tank (which normally just fuels the furnace) and I should get a good 4 or 5 days of runtime on an average (250-gallon) fill with it running at peak load.I also got in my sample of Sani-Tred liquid rubber, which I am experimenting with on some metal (thinking of coating the stand in it) and some plywood (for use to make the rubber floor). I finished the third coat tonight and so I'll see what it looks like when I get back next weekend!
I purchased a large stock tank to use to hold all my existing live rock (and a few pieces of coral and my one, lonely blenny) while the construction goes on. I'll pump everything over to it next weekend and drag the rock out.
Speaking of that tank, the topoff sensor failed on last week and slowly dripped the entire topoff container into my bamboo floor.... ruining it. I will take some pictures of the parts I cut into to try to save my subfloor and get things dried out faster. So we will be replacing the living room floor as part of this project as well.
(I kinda wanted to replace the floor, too, so I guess it's just as well. Still -- use redundant sensors or install a waterproof room. Lesson learned.)Now for your comments:
Hi Steven, yeah, my contractor has talked me out of redoing the drywall. We think a serious waterproof paint will do the job just fine. The floor will still be a rubber "bathtub" with a 3 or 4 inch curve up the sides of the walls. I will evaluate seepage into the drywall over the course of a year or so by leaving access to a piece of it from the other side of one of the interior walls. If it looks like a problem at that point we'll have to go to a fallback plan.
Jonathan, thanks for the comments. I have read your thread all the way through and really enjoy all your creative "solutions," including the square skimmer.
I will definitely PM you in the future and maybe try to give you a ring. Perhaps I should just take a tour of the northwest and visit all the huge tanks that seem to be up there? Anyway, my biggest concern is noise, so I have to work carefully to get good fans. By the way, my wife suffered two strokes this year, so I am sympathetic. She has different deficits than the ones I've seen you describe, but she is a trooper and hopefully will rebound given time and patience. And lots of therapy and hard work.Thank you, she is truly a blessing.
The BK500 will definitely merit some pictures; I'm a photographer by hobby, so you'll see a lot of shots once I get going and have interesting things to shoot. I'm wary of the wife-to-wife chat just on the off chance that it backfires and YOUR wife convinces MINE that my idea sucks. Ha, ha!Ben
jnarowe
New member
Plenty of cool tanks to see in the NW. Come on by! I'd like to go and see oregonreef in person too. My tank blower fans are extremely quiet and would work well for you. I cannot hear anything in my viewing room unless my ear is up to the glass. I guess there is a slight hum but nothing really noticeable. Keep in mind that sound travels through solid material so in order to get good soundproofing, you have to interupt the solids...I'll explain via PM or phone call. Sound will also readily travel through your household heating system so it is best to completely seal any vents in the tank room.
Strokes are tough because often the victim doesn't look injured, and so it becomes very frustrating to deal with people. No one really knows what is happening inside a stroke victim's head and every case is unique. To be honest, I have been lucky. Many are not.
serenity
Member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7847379#post7847379 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bbrantley
Thank you, she is truly a blessing.
Ben
Haha.. Very true Ben, I look forward to watching this thread grow with photo's. Best of luck and sorry to hear about the floor
.Keep up the great ideas.
ser
Hi Ben,
Glad to hear of the progress
-Sanitred is good stuff!
-Whenever possible, I try to install a standpipe in the sump itself, as a last ditch effort to save the floor in cases like this. I also use dual floats, but Murphy can really kick your butt sometimes...
-I'm sure whoever installs the generator will check this, but be sure to adjust the carburetion for your altitude. (actually this goes for any fuel burning appliance too) When the power goes out is not the time to be trying to get it running right!
Just thought I'd mention it,
Chris
Glad to hear of the progress
-Sanitred is good stuff!
-Whenever possible, I try to install a standpipe in the sump itself, as a last ditch effort to save the floor in cases like this. I also use dual floats, but Murphy can really kick your butt sometimes...
-I'm sure whoever installs the generator will check this, but be sure to adjust the carburetion for your altitude. (actually this goes for any fuel burning appliance too) When the power goes out is not the time to be trying to get it running right!
Just thought I'd mention it,
Chris
JCURRY@WESKETCH
New member
I would reconsider your idea about replacing the drywall at a later date when there is a problem. By the time you see mold on the face of drywall the problem is way beyond serious. Consider using a product like DensArmor® Plus which is a paperless drywall or even concrete board such as Dur-o-Rock and skimcoat it with lime plaster. Mold is nothing to screw around with and will lead to some serious health issues if ignored. Just my .02
Hi all,
I'm back from a wonderful week in Maui. No diving this time, as the wife is still recovering, but I we did get some fun snorkeling in! I wanted to follow up on your latest comments and suggestions:
Chris, I'm very impressed with Sanitred as well. Now I need to call and place the "real" order.
A standpipe in the sump would have be fantastic. Or if my bathtub floor hadn't leaked, that would have worked. Or if I had installed redundant topoff sensors. In the new fish room, the entire floor will be waterproof with a central, and this functionality is part of the contract for the construction work, to boot. You can bet I'll be simulating some serious floods before any saltwater goes in any acrylic boxes in that room!
As for the generator, yes, I have already inquired as the necessary instructions for tuning the engine. Fortunately, I will be testing it thoroughly in the first few weeks as we get the circuits installed/moved over and I verify that it can handle the rated load. Interestingly, they have told me this unit will de-rate only 3 to 5% for my altitude... I presume this is because the fuel is being burned in a compressed setting anyway, unlike a boiler or hot water heater where it's just a flame.
JCurry, thanks for your words of warning. I, too, originally specified something close to what you describe for the room. However, I have had a few conversations with some HVAC and indoor-pool specialists, and they have made me feel pretty comfortable about it. One thing that I think mitigates a lot of the mold concern here is that I will be venting cool, dry air continuously as needed in the room. Hopefully this approach will prevent moisture from accumulating. Low moisture means no water damage and no mold. (Fingers crossed!)
Welp, one more week of slave labor--er, work, and then I'll be home to take pictures of the skimmer and the start of the demolition.
Thanks for all the comments.
I'm back from a wonderful week in Maui. No diving this time, as the wife is still recovering, but I we did get some fun snorkeling in! I wanted to follow up on your latest comments and suggestions:
Chris, I'm very impressed with Sanitred as well. Now I need to call and place the "real" order.
A standpipe in the sump would have be fantastic. Or if my bathtub floor hadn't leaked, that would have worked. Or if I had installed redundant topoff sensors. In the new fish room, the entire floor will be waterproof with a central, and this functionality is part of the contract for the construction work, to boot. You can bet I'll be simulating some serious floods before any saltwater goes in any acrylic boxes in that room!
As for the generator, yes, I have already inquired as the necessary instructions for tuning the engine. Fortunately, I will be testing it thoroughly in the first few weeks as we get the circuits installed/moved over and I verify that it can handle the rated load. Interestingly, they have told me this unit will de-rate only 3 to 5% for my altitude... I presume this is because the fuel is being burned in a compressed setting anyway, unlike a boiler or hot water heater where it's just a flame.
JCurry, thanks for your words of warning. I, too, originally specified something close to what you describe for the room. However, I have had a few conversations with some HVAC and indoor-pool specialists, and they have made me feel pretty comfortable about it. One thing that I think mitigates a lot of the mold concern here is that I will be venting cool, dry air continuously as needed in the room. Hopefully this approach will prevent moisture from accumulating. Low moisture means no water damage and no mold. (Fingers crossed!)
Welp, one more week of slave labor--er, work, and then I'll be home to take pictures of the skimmer and the start of the demolition.
Thanks for all the comments.
AquariumSpecialty
.Registered Member
Ben, Have you looking into a Humidex? I'm considering one. I've spoken to the manufacturer a couple of times but it would be nice to hear if you or anyone else has experience with these units...
Hi Scott,
I've no experience with it, but I'm planning on installing something very similar, if not the actual device made by that company. My room will have two 6" ports to the outside -- one for outbound moist air and one for inbound dry air. I will have fans on both ports and will connect them to a humidistat for activation when the moisture in the air in the fish room rises above the desired level. I need a dual-ported approach because the room is essentially air-tight otherwise.
The hardest thing about my vents, interestingly, is that I will need a way to electronically control the louvres on the outside -- they will be on a wind-facing wall and we get very strong winds here in the wintertime... most walls have to be rated for over 120mph of wind load.
Ben
jnarowe
New member
Ben,
A word of caution on the humidistat control. I installed such a device in my tank room that would control the exhaust fan related to temp. AND humidity. I have the two-port system you describe but ended up having to shut down the humidstat portion of the controller.
Essentially what was happening is that when the humidity outside got higher than in the tank room, the fan would be in a constant loop turning on for a long time, then shutting down, only to turn right back on. Obviously we have higher humidity here in the Seattle area, but I wanted to pass along that lesson learned. It seemed like a great idea until it rained!
A word of caution on the humidistat control. I installed such a device in my tank room that would control the exhaust fan related to temp. AND humidity. I have the two-port system you describe but ended up having to shut down the humidstat portion of the controller.
Essentially what was happening is that when the humidity outside got higher than in the tank room, the fan would be in a constant loop turning on for a long time, then shutting down, only to turn right back on. Obviously we have higher humidity here in the Seattle area, but I wanted to pass along that lesson learned. It seemed like a great idea until it rained!
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7891839#post7891839 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jnarowe
Ben,
A word of caution on the humidistat control. I installed such a device in my tank room that would control the exhaust fan related to temp. AND humidity. I have the two-port system you describe but ended up having to shut down the humidstat portion of the controller.
Essentially what was happening is that when the humidity outside got higher than in the tank room, the fan would be in a constant loop turning on for a long time, then shutting down, only to turn right back on. Obviously we have higher humidity here in the Seattle area, but I wanted to pass along that lesson learned. It seemed like a great idea until it rained!
Great point. The absolute humidity in our area does spike when we get rain. I think what I will do is also expose an external humidity sensor to the controller so that I get a "smarter humidistat" that doesn't do silly things like that.
Fortunately, except when it's raining, we are usually sitting around 10 or 20% relative humidity both inside and out, year round. Yes, I should probably buy stock in Chapstick.
jnarowe
New member
Can you post how you build that dual system? I would be interested in implementing something like that too. As the case seems to be, temp. and humidty within my tank room go hand-in-hand so it is very rare that I am experiencing elevated humidity inside. It does happen though and then the room feels like a steam room at a spa.
WIth my setup, the tank has never been over 81.9F though, even in heat waves, so regardless, I believe the 2-port system to be the most efficient way to cool in my case. I put my "ports" under my deck though, so the intake (12" x 12" attic vent) is shaded all the time.
WIth my setup, the tank has never been over 81.9F though, even in heat waves, so regardless, I believe the 2-port system to be the most efficient way to cool in my case. I put my "ports" under my deck though, so the intake (12" x 12" attic vent) is shaded all the time.
kwl1763
Premium Member
I have thought about this a bunch also living in humidlanta I was going to have 2 humidstats in series one that cuts on when the humidity is below and certain amount and one that cuts on when it's above a certain amount.
I would then put the sensor to the one that cuts on below (a better way to think is cuts off above) a certain humidity outsideand the "normal" one inside. I could set the outside one and inside one on equal humidity's and then it would only cut on if the fish room was to humid and the outside air was less humid!
The propbelm is humidity is different at different temps so 50% humidity at 60 degrees is different then 60% humidity at 80 degrees. While not perfect I think it would be a decent solution.
I ended up just having one on my fan and if the fish room is above 60% it kicks on. I don't have a dual ports though I only have one port as the room is not airtight due to gaps for the viewing sides, etc so it pulls from the rest of the house so I have not had a problem with it kicking on and off to often even though it does it some.
I was going to have 2 humidstats in series one that cuts on when the humidity is below and certain amount and one that cuts on when it's above a certain amount.I would then put the sensor to the one that cuts on below (a better way to think is cuts off above) a certain humidity outsideand the "normal" one inside. I could set the outside one and inside one on equal humidity's and then it would only cut on if the fish room was to humid and the outside air was less humid!
The propbelm is humidity is different at different temps so 50% humidity at 60 degrees is different then 60% humidity at 80 degrees. While not perfect I think it would be a decent solution.
I ended up just having one on my fan and if the fish room is above 60% it kicks on. I don't have a dual ports though I only have one port as the room is not airtight due to gaps for the viewing sides, etc so it pulls from the rest of the house so I have not had a problem with it kicking on and off to often even though it does it some.
Well! A week or so has gone by and things are getting more painful--er, interesting. Let's see, how about a story with pictures:
This is actually old news. What you're seeing is a simulated corner of my fish room, made from poorly-screwed-together pieces of wood. I ordered a sample of Sanitred and made a couple of quick passes at painting some on to get a feel for how it would work. Of course, I made the mistake of leaving it outside to dry under a light all night, and apparently bugs really like the sweet smell of Sanitred! So it acted as a bug trap as well.
In any event, you can see that it holds water. Duh. Anyway, it easily sealed up some very large, intentional cracks I left between the wood panels. I also painted a piece of aluminum and a piece of steel to see if it might be a viable option for coating my tank stand to prevent corrosion. I think it would work there as well, but I may just throw up my hands and have the stand builder take responsibility for having it coated.
Anyway, $900 of Sanitred is now on order for delivery next week.
I started draining my (absolutely not maintained in the last month) tank, pumping half the water into my new storage vat outside in the garage where I then began to transfer....
Live rock! About 250 pounds of it, I think.
Here's the rock's temporary holding station, already plumbed (sorta) so that I can wire in the skimmer. Wait, skimmer, you say?
Yay, in came the skimmer this afternoon by freight, after several confusions and misdeliveries on the part of UPS Freight. Ah well, it came with nary a scratch, and probably thanks to the fine packing of Scott at Aquarium Specialty. We'll be hearing more about Scott, as I have a lot more dry goods to order, and he somehow seems to carry all of the top-quality stuff! (Okay, Scott, free plug over.)
Of course, I have tubing running all over the house and the yard as I drain tanks, fill tanks, reroute hydrostatic test water into my hot tub (gotta top off the important stuff, right?), etc.
And my favorite picture of all... this is me after about 3 hours of digging sand out of my 225G half-bucket by half-bucket. I'm using muscles that I didn't know I had, I guess. Ugh! I almost took this (really nice, by the way) saber saw to the tank just to make it easier to get the gook out. Ha!
Demolition and construction on the tank room starts tomorrow, and as of right now I still have several very fine audio speakers and a couple of amplifiers sitting in that room, so I have to go now and continue lugging, lifting, and moving crap. Next time I will hire some high school kids to come do the hard stuff for $5/hour.
I've been rapidly tearing down the 225G tank to prepare for the
This is actually old news. What you're seeing is a simulated corner of my fish room, made from poorly-screwed-together pieces of wood. I ordered a sample of Sanitred and made a couple of quick passes at painting some on to get a feel for how it would work. Of course, I made the mistake of leaving it outside to dry under a light all night, and apparently bugs really like the sweet smell of Sanitred! So it acted as a bug trap as well.
In any event, you can see that it holds water. Duh. Anyway, it easily sealed up some very large, intentional cracks I left between the wood panels. I also painted a piece of aluminum and a piece of steel to see if it might be a viable option for coating my tank stand to prevent corrosion. I think it would work there as well, but I may just throw up my hands and have the stand builder take responsibility for having it coated.
Anyway, $900 of Sanitred is now on order for delivery next week.
I started draining my (absolutely not maintained in the last month) tank, pumping half the water into my new storage vat outside in the garage where I then began to transfer....
Live rock! About 250 pounds of it, I think.
Here's the rock's temporary holding station, already plumbed (sorta) so that I can wire in the skimmer. Wait, skimmer, you say?
Yay, in came the skimmer this afternoon by freight, after several confusions and misdeliveries on the part of UPS Freight. Ah well, it came with nary a scratch, and probably thanks to the fine packing of Scott at Aquarium Specialty. We'll be hearing more about Scott, as I have a lot more dry goods to order, and he somehow seems to carry all of the top-quality stuff! (Okay, Scott, free plug over.
)
Of course, I have tubing running all over the house and the yard as I drain tanks, fill tanks, reroute hydrostatic test water into my hot tub (gotta top off the important stuff, right?), etc.
And my favorite picture of all... this is me after about 3 hours of digging sand out of my 225G half-bucket by half-bucket. I'm using muscles that I didn't know I had, I guess. Ugh! I almost took this (really nice, by the way) saber saw to the tank just to make it easier to get the gook out. Ha!
Demolition and construction on the tank room starts tomorrow, and as of right now I still have several very fine audio speakers and a couple of amplifiers sitting in that room, so I have to go now and continue lugging, lifting, and moving crap. Next time I will hire some high school kids to come do the hard stuff for $5/hour.
I've been rapidly tearing down the 225G tank to prepare for the
AquariumSpecialty
.Registered Member
Ben, We are very glad to hear the skimmer made it in good shape! Hope your not planning on using that saw on the Bubble King 500
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7943844#post7943844 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by frogguy1
looks like funlol. Thats is a hell of a project. Man your electric bill will be insane, compared to mine anyways.
I hope not! We do have good, cheap electricity here... so with some care, hopefully it will be manageable. <cross fingers>
Ben
