Derek's Aussie 240gal Reef

[DerekR]

G'day from down under!

My name is Derek and with the help of my wife Trish we have started building our second and final reef system. We live in Brisbane in sunny Queensland, Australia.
Our first and current tank is about two and a half years old and is a 120gal mixed reef tank. Not a bad setup considering having no experience at all when we put it together, but from day one I was thinking about ways to improve it. After many months of planning, our new 240gal SPS reef system is starting to take shape.
Here is a link to my full tank build at "œReefing the Australian Way" forums - my username there is Deek.
http://www.masa.asn.au/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=51&t=208704

Tank:
Custom built 240gal tank measuring 78x30x24.
The tank will be euro braced and constructed from 12mm starfire (front/sides/brace) with polished edges.
It will have a total of 65" of overflow weir and an external overflow box with 4 x 1.5" bulkheads - 1 return, 2 siphons taking 99% of the flow to sump and a drain taking 1% of flow.
Tank has been ordered but not here yet"¦

Sump:
48x24x15 glass sump with 3 sections - first will have skimmer, removable DSB in a bucket, heaters, ozone reactor, second will have lots of live rock and third will have a bubble trap, media reactors (phosphate + carbon) and return pump suction.
The third section will also be used to dose supplements, do auto water changes, auto top-off and control the ozone via ORP controller.
Sump has been ordered but not here yet"¦

Stand:
The stand is a custom built from 2" square steel section. It measures 100" in total length so there will be a bench on each side of the tank. It will be clad to match the kitchen so it is part of the furniture.

...

 

[DerekR]

Lighting:
Light is provided by a 6 ft Giesemann Spectra - 3x250W + 4x80W. To start with we will be running 12.5 K megachrome MH, 2 x pure actinic T5 and 2 x aquablue plus T5 and see how they go.
I have hung the fixture from the ceiling and it looks great!

Circulation:
The return pump will be a Reeflo super dart gold which will most like also feed the chiller in the summer months. I will also have a tee and hose off this pump for detritus blow-off in the display tank and sump.
The display tank circulation will be via 3 Reeflo hammerhead gold pumps plumbed in 3 closed loops. Each pump will have one 2" suction and six 1" discharges. There will be a total of 12 outlets on the back of the tank and 6 on the bottom.
I think the little "œMade in the USA" stickers are a nice touch.

Filtration:
Skimmer: ATB medium internal skimmer running the airstar 1500. This skimmer looks great with all white plumbing and is running on our current 120gal tank at the moment.

Removable DSB: We are going to run a DSB in a bucket in the sump as I do not like the risks they have when not removable. Also, if my nitrates are too low I can take it out.
Phosphate media: I will be running phosphate media in a Phosban 150 reactor.
Carbon: I will be running carbon in a Phosban 550 reactor.
Ozone: Sander C200 with an American Marine ORP controller into an old skimmer or DIY reactor.

Maintenance:
Dosing: 3 part dosing (Alk/Ca/Mg) via a GHL 3 pump set with built in controller.
Water Changes: Auto water changes will be performed using a dual head Reef-Filler 15 gpd pump changing about 1% daily.
Salt water: D-D H2Ocean Pro+
Auto top-off: 4 stage RO/DI with Tunze Osmolator
Cooling: Aquamedic Titan 2000 chiller supplemented with 4 x 15w fans.


Thanks for reading everyone.
I hope to update this thread from time to time, but my projects usually take a while to build"¦

Cheers,
Derek. :beer:

 

[reefman66]

looking nice tagging along

 

[gary faulkner]

Looking good!

Any concern over the noise of all those external pumps or do you have a plan for quieting them somehow?

Thanks

 

[DerekR]

Thanks guys

To be honest I have not run these pumps yet or seen any running... so I am not sure.
However, the stand will be fully enclosed and vented outside. If noise is and issue I will insulate the stand with sound insulating foam or something similar, so hopefully that works.

Cheers,
Derek.

 

[DerekR]

double post

 

[tate1]

What do you think about your skimmer compared to others? I have been thinking about changing over to the same style you have for our 265.

 

[DerekR]

The skimmer is great!

Took a long time to get and cost a fair bit but it was well worth it.
The build quality is first rate and it pulls alot of foam.

My first skimmer was terribly undersized and terrible"¦
My second skimmer was a Marine Sources job and cost about 10% of the ATB, it seemed good compared to the first, but once I got an even better one I realised how bad it was.

 

[DerekR]

Bit of an update on this build...

We got our tank just before Easter and we have been doing alot of plumbing over the long weekend. :celeb3:

There has been a few mistakes on my part, but nothing we couldn't fix.
Plumbing is not all that fun, but when you get a pipe run finished, it's much better. :lolspin:

Here are a few pics since the last update.

Every plumber's dream

Sump in position

Ready for lifting

Lifting to balcony

Lifting off forklift

 

[DerekR]

Bulkheads in - all 26 of them!

I love the starfire glass, we also got the eurobrace done in starfire. Looks great!

These are the spa outlet fittings

 

[DerekR]

Plumbing going a fair bit slower than I thought it would, but here are a few pics I took today.

The black basket strainers are 2" and are the intakes for the 3 Hammerhead CLs. They will be hidden best the best we can with the aquascape.
The 6 PVC outlets will be covered with expander foam covered with sand/rock rubble to hide them. They should become part of the aquascape after a while.

The ATB skimmer was taken out of my existing tank about an hour before this shot. It is so easy to take apart to clean and it cleaned up like new, such a great design.

 

[TheSurgeon]

Wow, that is a cool plumbing set up. I'd love to put all that together. Its like a giant puzzle. Nice looking build!

 

[DerekR]

Thanks mate,
My wife thinks it is like a giant puzzle too. It is starting to take shape like a good puzzle as well, I only have the two closed loop outlets on the back of the tank to go. Then the water will flow!!

 

[zaheda]

Very nice build. Massive Closed loop system you have.

 

[DerekR]

Cheers Zaheda!
It is massive... maybe I should have gone with high pressure/low flow pumps and used small bore plumbing... oh well.

I still have two more CL outlets to plumb and then I will never have to plumb again - ever!

 

[nanoreefbro]

Wow great looking setup so far... Keep us posted...

 

[ptan]

nice setup... so clean and looks fantastic... keep us updated with lots and lots of pictures...

 

[DerekR]

Unfortunately, there has been a little setback to getting it wet.
I have been working very hard to get all the plumbing done and I completed it all and started filling the tank at lunchtime today.
However... most of the bulkheads on the base of the tank had a slow leak...

I drained what water I had put in the tank and dried it completely. Then I sealed all the bulkheads on the inside of the tank using LOTS of silicone. It looks like a very good seal so it should be good once fully cured.

So I will let it sit and cure till next weekend then try again and see how it goes.

Cheers,
Derek

 

[DerekR]

nice setup... so clean and looks fantastic... keep us updated with lots and lots of pictures...

Sorry no pictures at the moment
But I will get lots when I fill it next week

 

[ptan]

Sorry no pictures at the moment
But I will get lots when I fill it next week

will definitely wait for your updates... your tank is so neat...