Chad's Simultaneous 225 SPS & 180 FOWLR Office Build

Thanks Itay!! Good to hear from you.

Well I got quite a bit done today. My impellers arrived. Swapped them both out in about an hour. The Barracuda is almost silent with the Goby impeller, and the now "Super" Dart is pushing a bit more water than it was. Kinda hard to tell though. I don't have nozzles on the outputs yet so it's hard to gauge how much flow I'm actually getting.

I drained the tap water which was quite a job in itself. I siphoned most of it with a 1" tube straight to the toilet. Then I pumped the water in the sump into a trash can and carted it outside.

I got started on my auto top off RO/DI line.

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild080.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild080.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

These are super powerfull magnets that stick to the screws in the drywall. They're used as stud finders. A friend "invented" and makes them. He wanted me to help market them for him. We couldn't agree on a couple things so it didn't work out. But I still use them!

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild081.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild081.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

You can kinda see the white RO/DI line going to my saltwater mixing station.

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild082.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild082.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

Found out I was going to need to drill a hole to get the line between the walls. Luckily I had a hole saw lying around lol.

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild085.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild085.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

Didn't expect to see this:

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild087.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild087.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

I used a part from one of the tools I sell. It's an 8' aluminum pole. I used it to clear a path through the insulation.

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild088.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild088.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

It worked! Fished the line through. Easy enough. My dog decided to get in the picture..

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild089.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild089.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

The finished product:

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild090.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild090.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

And now I wait..

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild092.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild092.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

I ordered 3 buckets of Tropic Marin salt, a JBJ auto top off for the QT, some 2" strainers and some black tubing to hook up the chiller and media reactors. Everything should get here right about the same time the tank is done filling up with RO/DI water.

Thanks for tagging along guys!
 
Oh, BTW, the white foam under the tank idea didn't work. It leveled it out nicely, but you can't see it when the tank has water in it. There's a mirror effect so all you see is a reflection.
 
Hey! You're really moving along!
Good thing you have a four legged assisant!

My landlord always cringes when he sees my tank and the pipes running thru the walls. :D
 
Quick question for you guys. I don't really like how the closed loop and return outputs are "floating" and resting above the tank. I'm thinking about drilling 6 holes for 1" bulkheads along the bracing. What do you think? is this safe to do? I think it would look a lot better and would make it super stable. I've built everything else like a tank (pun intended), the way I have my output set up just seems flimsy in comparison. Also, I plumbed them too far into the tank. When it's filled with water I'll see the white pvc just above the omniflex nozzles. So I kinda want to redo the outputs anyway. Only down side, other than possible strength issues, is if I want to move things around in the future. I'll be stuck with the output positions I've chosen.

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=puffer027.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/puffer027.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=puffer026.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/puffer026.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild003.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild003.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13471672#post13471672 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Bax
Hey! You're really moving along!
Good thing you have a four legged assisant!

My landlord always cringes when he sees my tank and the pipes running thru the walls. :D
Click to expand...

Good thing I'm my own landlord. ;)
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13474506#post13474506 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by thechad21
Good thing I'm my own landlord. ;)
Click to expand...

Sweet!

Mine wants too much for my building, maybe he'll come to his senses.

Being an acrylic tank, I am guessing you can drill it on the braces, you have to add a reinforcing piece around the hole, can you go back to the builder to confirm that?

Where it comes over the back a piece of sealed wood or acrylic could be made to support the pipes as needed along the back edge.

On my 75 g I used a strip of wood at one height across the back and used those plastic electrical conduit hold downs to secure the pipes to it.
 
I think I'll try resting them on a piece of rubber. See if that helps. I think I've talked myself out of drilling holes. I don't want to risk affecting the integrity of the tank.

Bax,

I have a feeling your going to be in your building for a loooong time to come. Your landlord's going to have a rough time selling. I bought mine while prices were going up. It gained 100k in equity before I even moved in. It's still worth quite a bit but no one's buying ANYTHING these days.
 
It's been a while since my last post. I had a set back and decided to take a break for a while.

It took about five days or so to fill the tank with RO/DI water. I randomly decided to do an "earthquake" test. The stand failed. Not completely, as in total collapse, but it didn't leave me feeling very confident. Front to back it was solid, but side to side it was creaking and moving way more than I would've liked. There simply wasn't enough left to right shear support built into the stand. Jeff suggested I use metal bracing on all eight corners and offered to pay for them. Instead I decided to drain the tank and install a sheet of plywood on the back of the stand. This should give me the shear needed to make it more solid in an earthquake.

I'm kinda bummed about this fix as it's not going to look as good as before. In this case though I felt it was better to be safe than sorry. I cut a sheet of plywood today and painted it with some oil based satin black paint I had on hand. I also painted the skimmer stand and the inside of the 180 stand to help protect it a bit (it's made of MDF or particle board). It'll take a while for the paint to dry. I'd like to mention that I HATE oil based paint. Such a pain. I also wish I'd used a flat finish. I'm not digging the satin.

Once the sheet is installed I'm going to adjust my return and closed loop plumbing a bit. The white pvc outputs sit too far under the water line. I'm going to re-do some of them so they sit just above the water line. I'll use omniflex nozzles and loc-line below the water line.

I decided to take this opportunity to have an electrician come in and install two dedicated circuits behind the tank. I figured I'm probably going to end up needing them, better to put them in now while the tank is off the wall.

I'll be running three 400 watt metal halides. Any suggestions on what I'll need electricity wise? Should I have him drop a 30 amp circuit? For a guy that sells construction products you'd think I'd know a little more about this kinda stuff..

I hadn't mentioned it but the last time I tried to install a GFI outlet I failed miserably. I've been running my 135 for the last two years on a regular outlet. I tried many many times but couldn't figure out how to install a GFI correctly. I'm going to have the electrician install GFI outlets. Hopefully he'll have better luck than I did. Again, better safe than sorry.

Quick question for you guys. I bought four 60 gallon brute trash cans to hold the RO/DI water that took five days to make. They were sitting next to the house hold cleaner and weed poison section at home depot. I rinsed them out but they still smell a little funky. Do you guys think the water is safe to use? Or do you think it may be contaminated from poisons that may have gotten inside the trash cans. I'd hate to make all this effort to start out with clean water only to find out later that I added trace amounts of POISON to my tank lol. Might be worth another five days and dirtier filters.

I went to my first "reef event". Reefapalooza in Orange County California. I talked to a rep from Deltec for a while which was cool. Also listened to a lecture by Bob Fenner for a bit. All in all though I wasn't very impressed. Definitely not worth the two hour drive. It was mostly an event for picking up frags. Which I can't do yet, My tanks are still dry. I'm sure I'll enjoy it more next year if I go.

I picked up a used sump/refugium for the 180 while I was there. Found the guy on Reef Central a couple weeks ago. The picture the guy sent showed a brand new looking setup. The picture was clearly taken long ago. It's not in the condition I expected. Nor did it come with the sock holder he said it did. I felt awkward not buying it after making such a long drive. Lesson learned. I'm done buying used equipment for a while.
 
looks like your doing the right thing....better to slow down and do it right....and i am the same way with used stuff i just like the peace of mind buying it new. Can't wait to see it....and i wish i could answer some of your questions you asked but i do not want to steer you wrong others know a lot better then i do.

-matt
 
Thanks Matt! I just wish doing it right didn't take so long! lol.

This set back really got to me. After doing as much planning as I did I thought I was all set. You really can't plan for everything. Especially when doing it for the first time and learning as you go.

You know, I'd had a lot of luck going used in the past. It just didn't work out this time. I'm over it at this point. Stuff on RC usually isn't that cheap anyway. If I buy used again it's going to have to be a STEAL for me to consider it. At least on ebay you have some recourse with negative feedback and such.
 
yeah thats the way i am...i was going to buy a used om 4way but it was like 300 bucks...might as well buy the new one for 389 and have the warranty and the customer service. But i know about set backs too lol i am sure you have seen all mine on my build lol i even switched tanks. Oh and good thing your plumbing went well...thats a major step forward!
 
Sorry for your delays Chad...But in my opinion a good delay...I am really glad that you had the for site to check for the inevitable earthquake...Its better now than later, when you have a full tank with critters...
also YGPM
 
Way better to go thru this now then in a 6.5 EQ!

I bet the stand will still look great too once it pushed backl, the ply full across the back is way stronger then any stock metal L's too.
 
Looks awesome Chad!

I'm glad you decided against drilling returns through the top...gives you more options if need be. If your worried about seeing th white PVC, you can always use gray fittings no the ends, or you can paint them black with Krylon spray paint...it doesn't hurt anything.

For those trash bins, I'd use some Vinegar and/or a light bleach solution to clean them out. Can never be too carefull with that kind of thing. Worst part is they are ususally the toughest to figuire out if overlooked to.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13535916#post13535916 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Bax
Way better to go thru this now then in a 6.5 EQ!

I bet the stand will still look great too once it pushed backl, the ply full across the back is way stronger then any stock metal L's too.
Click to expand...

I thought so too. Plus the four brackets in the front would've really gotten in the way.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13536230#post13536230 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by stunreefer
Looks awesome Chad!

I'm glad you decided against drilling returns through the top...gives you more options if need be. If your worried about seeing th white PVC, you can always use gray fittings no the ends, or you can paint them black with Krylon spray paint...it doesn't hurt anything.

For those trash bins, I'd use some Vinegar and/or a light bleach solution to clean them out. Can never be too carefull with that kind of thing. Worst part is they are ususally the toughest to figuire out if overlooked to.
Click to expand...

Haha I wish I'd thought of that before I filled them with RO/DI water. Kind've missed the boat on that one. I wish there was a way to find out if this water is good or not. Seems like such a waste!
 
Here's my earthquake fix:

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild096.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild096.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild094.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild094.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view&current=FishTankBuild097.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/FishTankBuild097.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
 
Last edited:
Now you have something to deflect the ambient heat from the pump, AND, attach plumbing to ,,, it's all good! :D
 
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