CADlights 39g Pro build thread

[RealReef]

I thought the same thing. Heck I'm California so just a few truck transfers from their Southern California shipper, the box says glass on the side . . . It'll be OK my tank won't get broken

I bought my tank directly from Cadlights and Eddie was really quick to tell me they would ship out another tank ASAP. Hopefully that means I'll get a complete tank early next week. At least this time they won't have cram all of the accessories inside the tank, just a new sump, which was also broken, and the tank.

Sorry to hear but I guess I'm not alone. Everything else was receive in good condition. Even the cheery cabinet can without a scratch. New tank is enroute so I should receive it by week's end. We shall see. We will just have to keep our fingers crossed but I will say Ken is very responsive.

 

[reeftivo]

Cherry Cabinet? Very Nice!

I'm Jealous!

Tivo

 

[RealReef]

Actually I got two cherry cabinets. :lol2: One to hold the main tank and sump and the other to house electrical, ballest, ATO, etc. You guys have done an outstanding job on this thread and there are folks out there like me that actually read this stuff and learn from your experiences. Notice you experience a lot of dampness and condensation in the cabinet so I want to avoild potential problems.

Also looking to install fans in the side of the cabinet like some of the folks here did. Does it really help and what is a good QUIET fan to get?

Thanks again for all your great information! My next issue to attack when the tank arrives is the overflow noise issue you guys have experienced. I have read in here some reference to a Hofer Gurgle Buster. Is it easy to put together and does it work?

E

 

[reeftivo]

Actually I got two cherry cabinets. :lol2: One to hold the main tank and sump and the other to house electrical, ballest, ATO, etc. You guys have done an outstanding job on this thread and there are folks out there like me that actually read this stuff and learn from your experiences. Notice you experience a lot of dampness and condensation in the cabinet so I want to avoild potential problems.

Also looking to install fans in the side of the cabinet like some of the folks here did. Does it really help and what is a good QUIET fan to get?

Thanks again for all your great information! My next issue to attack when the tank arrives is the overflow noise issue you guys have experienced. I have read in here some reference to a Hofer Gurgle Buster. Is it easy to put together and does it work?

E

I use two 4" radio shack fans in my cabinet (hole saw bit from HD helps alot) and have them on adjustable transformer blocks. It gives me 5 different amp speeds. Without the fans on, my cabinet is actually wet inside. On, it's completely dry and my temps stay at 77. During the summer here in california, I bump up the amps on the transformer to compensate for the 100+ days.

I have a chiller hooked up to my neptune controller, but with the fans, it rarely comes on.

I've seen the hofers on the systems at one of my LFS and they are great so it's a matter of preference. Some people have reported to have received short or long pipes with their tanks. The taller Durso standpipe will help a bit with the waterfall effect but will also be a bit less effective at mixing the siphon box and pulling surface junk from the tank. I instaklled a 3 inch taller stand pipe for the durso and the water coming through the weir was not as fast which led to a little surface oils that were noticeable in the main display. Once I put the short piece back on the surface oils went away.

Just my experience!

If you have a shorter pipe and get a lot of noise then that is easy to quiet down. The top of my Durso is six inches down from the top of the siphon box. The water falls in mine about eight inches. I use a clear cd case cover tied to the returns (pictures in this thread) and angled against the wall with some thin mesh batting in between. Works fantastic and doesn't load up and turn into a nitrate factory like the padding.

Happy Reefing!!

Tivo

 

[marinetankdiver]

Received the replacement tank yesterday, and in one piece. Eddie (Cadlights) had it sent out the day after I notified him of the damage.

I will say that Cadlights certainly does a great job of taking care of it's customers. Now if they could just get UPS to be a bit more careful with the tanks and perhaps pack the MH ballast and pump separately.

Tank is set up and running water, now to cram everything from my 120 into it, think college stunt with phone booth and 30 people

Actually I am not going to try to get it all in there but a lot of it.

This thread, along with others, has been immensely helpful in making the setup go easily. Thanks to all!

 

[reeftivo]

awsome! Looking forward to pics!

 

[meinestrasse]

My 39G is on the way...

My 39G is on the way...

I was supposed to have it last Wednesday, so I'm guessing it was redirected to someone with a broken tank. Hope to get it this week. Upgrading from a CAD 12g nano. Eddie was kind enough to negotiate with me on price, as I asked him not to include the stock skimmer and pump. I'm going Tunze all around. Cherry cabinet. He's also including two versions of the Durso, since I told him I was really concerned about all the gurgling reports.

 

[timdanger]

Thanks again for all your great information! My next issue to attack when the tank arrives is the overflow noise issue you guys have experienced. I have read in here some reference to a Hofer Gurgle Buster. Is it easy to put together and does it work?

E

i feel like i've dealt a lot with the noise issue. i don't know whether the hofer would make it louder or quieter. i would personally try to get the durso to work before trying something else.

have you already tried putting a piece of airline tubing in the top-cap of the durso? i found that the best way to deal with that whole situation was to try and approximate the "sweet spot" with the airline tube where the drain was quietest, and then wrap teflon tape around the airline tube such that it lodges the tube in place in the endcap. this, along with switching to the tunze silence 1073.020 return pump, has completely silenced my overflow/drain/return system.

 

[schnitm]

This arrived on my doorstep today:

Sitting more or less in its planned spot. The idea is "Armchair Reef Diving" or some such thing.

Too bad though, another damaged tank:

Sad, but I suppose this one will end up on the trash heap. :sad2:

Haven't heard back from CADlights yet but I just sent the email about an hour ago.

One thing's for sure, I can tell I'm going to like this when I get it together! :fun4:

 

[coolcorals]

I'm glad I was close enough to drive to the NYC shop and pick mine up.

Does anybody have any of their UV sterilizers that they are not using? I want to pick up a few of them for a side project.
Want to have an auto drip of greenwater in a tank of non-photosynthetic animals. (Gregorians, fans, etc.) I know nobody from here uses the sterilizers so thought I could pick up some for cheap. Let me know.

I'm still in early stages of setting up my system, but I'm 75% sure I won't be using UV - still trying to just get my stubborn skimmer to work. Once I decide - which will be soon - will let you know and see if you still need it.

 

[coolcorals]

Wow - it looks like there will be a lot of new CAD systems being set up. I'm still working out kinks in my old-school CAD. Skimmer is still a foaming machine, but Reeftivo has given me an idea to cause of problem - could be a faulty resun pump.

This thread has been very helpful to me - both the original ArtC instructions (that's my system) and the current posts.

I'm still very new, but I'll list a couple things I've done - all are a work in progress.

I received one of those shorty Dursos - my return PVC was just as short. Replaced both. I kept with the Durso (though am interested in HGB experiences). I used flex PVC and made a slight bend to enable it to get around returns. It's 1.25", instead of 1". It's pretty quiet - I'm not using airline tubing in cap and flushing went away once I drilled a 13/64" hole.

I have a Tunze 1073.040, but I think a 1073.020 would be a better choice; cost and flow. I've got mine turned to the lowest setting (300 gph). At highest setting, flow was too much; overflow water level just below teeth and seemed to cause lots of bubbles in drain (still tweaking the pump flow). The pumping head at 4' on .040 is about twice that of the .020.

I too have the cherry cabinet and have heard the stories of dampness inside cabinet. I'm trying a variation of the fans in the sides. The cherry cabinet has a cutout in the back panel for external plumbing. I bought an Azoo 2 fan unit, removed the legs, then used velcro to attach it to back of cabinet - with fan blowing out. My system is too new to tell whether that works, but when my skimmer was making SW spray (foaming/overflowing) and losing a gallon/day, it kept the cabinet dry.

 

[Gillundr]

The fans in my cabinet helped a ton. I used a hole saw and then put in some louvered plugs that made it look more professional. It worked out really great and will do it to any other cabinet if there is any dampness issues.
My drain is short as well. I just put some polyfilter (filter floss) in between the return lines and the return box. Just wedge it in there. I takes a lot of the solids out of my water before they get to the drain and made the drain absolutely silent. I do have to change the filter floss out every 4-6 days though because it starts getting nasty and then water can't flow through it and the waterfall sound comes back. But I don't mind, a big bag costs about 10 bucks and lasts a long time, plus it's a good form of mechanical filtration I feel. I haven't had issues with it trapping Nitrites or trates because I change it so often but I like the idea of the extra filtration so much I'm going to try to incorporate it into the 120 I'm setting up now.
Any extra UVs floating around give me a holler. I'm trying a new project that I'm going to need a few of them.
Have fun guys! New tanks sometimes are frustrating but don't let it become like that. Remember it's a hobby and supposed to relax you haha.

 

[schnitm]

Another excellent customer service report.

Eddie says a new tank is on it's way. All I have to do is box up the cracked tank and he's arranging for UPS to come and get it.

 

[RealReef]

The fans in my cabinet helped a ton. I used a hole saw and then put in some louvered plugs that made it look more professional. It worked out really great and will do it to any other cabinet if there is any dampness issues.
My drain is short as well. I just put some polyfilter (filter floss) in between the return lines and the return box. Just wedge it in there. I takes a lot of the solids out of my water before they get to the drain and made the drain absolutely silent. I do have to change the filter floss out every 4-6 days though because it starts getting nasty and then water can't flow through it and the waterfall sound comes back. But I don't mind, a big bag costs about 10 bucks and lasts a long time, plus it's a good form of mechanical filtration I feel. I haven't had issues with it trapping Nitrites or trates because I change it so often but I like the idea of the extra filtration so much I'm going to try to incorporate it into the 120 I'm setting up now.
Any extra UVs floating around give me a holler. I'm trying a new project that I'm going to need a few of them.
Have fun guys! New tanks sometimes are frustrating but don't let it become like that. Remember it's a hobby and supposed to relax you haha.

I saw you pic and order the same grommets and purchased two fans, one for each side. I hope that will work. Still not received my replacement tank. Now have a possible option to pick one up myself from their distributor in Brooklyn NY. I will take that option instead of UPS if possible since its only a 60 minute drive for me. We shall see.

 

[meinestrasse]

I received one of those shorty Dursos - my return PVC was just as short. Replaced both. I kept with the Durso (though am interested in HGB experiences). I used flex PVC and made a slight bend to enable it to get around returns. It's 1.25", instead of 1". It's pretty quiet - I'm not using airline tubing in cap and flushing went away once I drilled a 13/64" hole.

I have a Tunze 1073.040, but I think a 1073.020 would be a better choice; cost and flow. I've got mine turned to the lowest setting (300 gph). At highest setting, flow was too much; overflow water level just below teeth and seemed to cause lots of bubbles in drain (still tweaking the pump flow). The pumping head at 4' on .040 is about twice that of the .020.

coolcorals, I have the Tunze 1073.040 awaiting arrival of my CAD 39g Pro. The lowest setting is 300 liters per hour -- not 300 gph. I too like the price of the .020 better. 300 lph is only 79 gph which is less than 2x turnover per hour with the CAD pro and sump. Something doesn't sound right if the flow is too much in your tank. Maybe your Durso isn't draining quickly enough.

I too am interested in hearing more about the HGB as compared to the Durso before I assemble the tank.

 

[marinetankdiver]

coolcorals, I have the Tunze 1073.040 awaiting arrival of my CAD 39g Pro. The lowest setting is 300 liters per hour -- not 300 gph. I too like the price of the .020 better. 300 lph is only 79 gph which is less than 2x turnover per hour with the CAD pro and sump. Something doesn't sound right if the flow is too much in your tank. Maybe your Durso isn't draining quickly enough.

I too am interested in hearing more about the HGB as compared to the Durso before I assemble the tank.

I just tried a HGB on my tank and it wasn't any quieter than the Durso, though I did extend the Durso before installing it the first time. Currently the very top of my Durso is about level with the top of the overflow. This gives me about a 1 - 2 in drop for the water flowing from the tank.

One thing I did find out with the HGB is to push the bell down enough to make sure about half of the holes are open, that or be able to turn off your pump quickly when you realize the tank isn't draining. Stupidly I didn't think to turn off the pump only to shove my hands in the overflow to open the HGB. By the time I did that the water was high enough that the addition of me made the tank overflow :eek1:. Anyway, after messing with the HGB I decided that since the sound was the same and I felt safer with the larger draining ability of the Durso that I scrapped the HGB.

Now to work on the micro-bubbles...

 

[coolcorals]

meinestrasse: I'm pretty sure the lowest setting is not 79 gph - where did you find that info? I checked web and manual, and it doesn't give lowest flow at 0'. I called a Tunze rep, and he told me 300 gph. I know the flow out of my returns is more than 79 gph (minus 4' head).

marinetankdiver: Very interesting info on HGB - I'd rather live with noise than flooding. My Durso is fairly quiet - overflow, light fan and return pump are louder. I'm dealing with bubble issue, so would be interested on your progress and what, if anything, works. I've turned my pump to lowest setting, added a filter sock (helped a lot) and put a media bag with LRR in drain chamber. I also made sure my locline was under water. Still seeing bubbles flow from drain flow thru baffles to return. Am looking at building a bubble tower, but am also wondering if they'll go away as tank plumbing breaks in. This is my first overflow/sump, so I'm just making guesses and trying anything!

 

[meinestrasse]

meinestrasse: I'm pretty sure the lowest setting is not 79 gph - where did you find that info? I checked web and manual, and it doesn't give lowest flow at 0'. I called a Tunze rep, and he told me 300 gph. I know the flow out of my returns is more than 79 gph (minus 4' head).

marinetankdiver: Very interesting info on HGB - I'd rather live with noise than flooding. My Durso is fairly quiet - overflow, light fan and return pump are louder. I'm dealing with bubble issue, so would be interested on your progress and what, if anything, works. I've turned my pump to lowest setting, added a filter sock (helped a lot) and put a media bag with LRR in drain chamber. I also made sure my locline was under water. Still seeing bubbles flow from drain flow thru baffles to return. Am looking at building a bubble tower, but am also wondering if they'll go away as tank plumbing breaks in. This is my first overflow/sump, so I'm just making guesses and trying anything!

Here's a photo of the box. Sorry if quality isn't great. Took it with my phone. May need to click on the image to make it full-screen...but the British (English) directions show an adjustable flow rate of 300 to 3000 lph -- or 79 to 792 gph.

 

[marinetankdiver]

Well here are some shots of my tank:

First what I downsized from - Oceanic Tech 120:

Loved that tank but it was just too big for our house.

Now my CAD:

You can see there are still micro-bubbles but not nearly as many as there were. I cut apart the very porous sponge from my mag 12 and put part of it under the drain and two small slices in the overflow from the center portion leading to the return pump. I don't want to use a filter sock because I don't want to have to clean/replace it as often as needed. As the skimmer breaks in more the bubbles should subside even more.

Here is the under the cabinet shot:

I took Clayw's idea and flipped the sump around so I could get to the skimmer easier. I am "required" to keep everything under the tank and out of sight so the shelf, or some form of it has to stay. I plan on changing the light to an LED light that will lay on the top right of the center section and then make a small (2 gallon) ATO tank that will sit on top of the sump. The ATO tank may become my shelf.

I put an exhaust fan in the back of the cabinet to help with humidity as well.

For the tank lights I disconnected the very loud fan and tried to install two silent computer fans. Unfortunately they spun at just the right speed as to make the metal pieces of the light resonate. So I took them out and placed them on top of the fixture where they are very quite and work great.

So nobody beats me up about how I didn't let the tank cycle, I used 25 gallons of water, sand, macro algae and live rock from the 120. I also tested PH, Alk, Salinity, CA and Mag to ensure they matched before moving everything over.

Overall I love this tank and how the transition from a 120 to a 39 worked out. Now to enjoy it for awhile.

Thanks for all the great ideas from prior owners it really made this a fun and fairly frustration free set-up

 

[coolcorals]

Here's a photo of the box. Sorry if quality isn't great. Took it with my phone. May need to click on the image to make it full-screen...but the British (English) directions show an adjustable flow rate of 300 to 3000 lph -- or 79 to 792 gph.

View attachment 105652

You are completely correct - it says it both on the box and in the manual.

I'm interpreting it a little differently: 792 gph (3000 l/h) at 0 m at highest setting and 79 gph (300 l/h) at 3 m at lowest setting? My thought is I'm somplace in between, but on lower end. At least it seems I'm getting more than 79 gph from returns.