crvz's hole in the wall

[crvz]

proof of life that the stand is complete.

and I started hanging lights (still need to bolt the light rack to the hoist).

 

[Taqpol]

Thats a slick light rack!

 

[drummereef]

Awesome!!! Now lets cut that hole in the wall.

 

[crvz]

The lights are hot. To summarize, 3 lumatek 250W ballasts, 3 radiums 20kK, and 3 lumenbright mini wide pendants, coupled together with 36 CREE LEDs on meanwell drivers.

 

[drummereef]

The lights are hot. To summarize, 3 lumatek 250W ballasts, 3 radiums 20kK, and 3 lumenbright mini wide pendants, coupled together with 36 CREE LEDs on meanwell drivers.

:bounce3: Looks awesome! Are you noticing any flexing of the light rack from the weight of the pendants?

 

[jdm18honda]

Looks great that is the same setup I am running on my 120 rimless but only 2x250 with no LEDs

 

[crvz]

:bounce3: Looks awesome! Are you noticing any flexing of the light rack from the weight of the pendants?

Nope, but if you notice I do have a 4' pipe running the length to keep it from sagging.

Looks great that is the same setup I am running on my 120 rimless but only 2x250 with no LEDs

Thanks!

 

[crvz]

There is a hole in the wall.

 

[gotfrogs]

But no picture of it!

 

[crvz]

 

[NewMariner]

What happened to having water in it by Christmas?

 

[drummereef]

Nice! And you have it trimmed out already. That's more than I can say for mine. Good job bro! Got any pics of the tank in place from the sump side?

 

[crvz]

What happened to having water in it by Christmas?

Man, tough crowd. 2 days late, I'd take that every day in my line of work. It is currently filling, but at 50 gpd through my RO/DI unit it'll be a little while. I actually wanted to talk to marineland before I started filling it, as there were a few spots on the sides where the tank met the stand that had some gaps. I measured them, and while they were under 1/32", I wanted to discuss it with someone at the manufacturer. The stand itself was completely flat and level (I had a 4 foot professional level that I used inexhaustibly during construction as well as after the tank was in place), so I was confident the discrepancy was in the tank. What I was particularly curious about was whether I should shim that area or not. They told me to fill the tank and to call back if those areas don't close up. What they actually said was, "the four corners need to be supported", and that's not an issue, but all the same I want to be certain I've got a long-term sustainable system.

Nice! And you have it trimmed out already. That's more than I can say for mine. Good job bro! Got any pics of the tank in place from the sump side?

Thanks, Brett! I need to get some. It's still got a lot of work to clean everything up, but we're getting somewhere.

 

[psteeleb]

Looking Good :thumbsup:

but to be a reef tank I think it does need water :frog:

 

[crvz]

We're probably upwards of 250 gallons of water and a pair of Tunze in the tank. Tomorrow I'll probably add salt, and then sand. I've got a handful of bags of seaflor special grade, and I'm aiming for about a 1" bed.

 

[ylchik]

I got to page 5 and just need the short answer to - how did you come to the decision to put sand in the tank?!

I saw some familiar corals in some of those shots- sure hope they make it to the new tank... since I didn't read it, yeah bad friend I know

Looks amazing as always Chris. Ever impressive work!

 

[crvz]

sand is simply aesthetics. I'm going to raise the rocks off the sand a half inch or so, but I didnt want starboard in such a large tank. Also, I'll have some wrasses and other small fish that may do better with the sandbed, but that's an indirect benefit in lieu of a deciding factor of merit.

 

[crvz]

I owe a few other pictures. As already pointed out, I hesitated a few days on filling the tank, as I wanted to speak with marineland first. As you can see (somewhat) in this picture, the tank was level.

Here's a shot of the gap at it's worst (that I took with my 100mm macro lens). Again, not quite 1/32".

The stand itself was flat in that same spot, so I knew it was the tank.

I could have easily shimmed those spots to fill the gap, but marineland told me to fill the tank and call back of the gap persists. So on the 28th, I began filling (at 50gpd). Here's a shot of the tank at that time (I have some coroplast sign material along the back and sides of the tank).

And today, here's the tank with the LEDs on. I need to figure out the white balance with this new light color.

 

[crvz]

I have a blurry tank with 120 pounds of sand in it somewhere. I did rinse the sand, but that always seems futile. I added a little carbon to help clear it, but I have low expectations until later in the week.

 

[NewMariner]

Ooooh now we are getting somewhere. Looking good!

I never rinse my sand, as just like you just realized, it seems futile. I just throw it in with some rocks and let it settle....