Drop off reef design - Starphire

That's a nice build! Like the bottom!

I would really consider going acrylic! You over the bond have really good builders and was to get rid of bad scratches. In Austria you can't really get an acrylic tank...
 
I hate acrylic with a passion. I would only use it on a bare bottom tank.

I love sand. It's a key element for me. I would make a 6" deep tank with 2" of sand only as an ecosystem with corals on the sand.

I love high flow. The only reason my tank is 24" deep is so I can combine the high flow and the sand.

Acrylic is a disaster for sand + high flow in my experience. The scratches continue to build over years until it looks like garbage or requires massive maintenance.

The transportation and positioning of such a massive glass tank is a project of its own. I may ask the builder to assemble in place and buy him tickets to fly to TX. LOL!
 
Okay...
Assembly on site is in my opinion the only way to do it...

What are your plans for the flow management
That's simething I would change on my tank. Would make the drop full closed loop!! But the space in my sump area is pretty narrow, but seeing it now I would make it work.
Don't get me wrong the vortech is working fine but it would be better with a CL
 
ooo flow. That's a whole other thread...

There's multiple flow types. The first is a circulating current flow in a loop that alternates between the left and right backs against the wall. That's what's in that 12" section in the back.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2519480&page=26

Next is a surge/refugium section over the tank.

Third is a three directional wavebox at the end of the overflow wall sections.

Fourth is the overflow to the dedicated sump (other room) with returns flowing through the surge tank and then gravity fed into the rockwork from under the tank. Two dedicated 2" gravity lines feed the drop. Each outlet has a controlled actuator to determine flow out of each outlet. This allows me to control zone flow that changes over time.

There may be a need for localized powerheads, but I hope I can minimize those things.

Those are the main flow elements. There's other loops for the chiller/ATS/WC/etc...

I'll try to take a pic that shows them.

I also have another thread about using sunlight in a special greenhouse...

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2537919&page=2
 
<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/0_zpshlgnjqvq.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/0_zpshlgnjqvq.png" border="0" alt=" photo 0_zpshlgnjqvq.png"/></a>

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/1_zpshpnognvo.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/1_zpshpnognvo.png" border="0" alt=" photo 1_zpshpnognvo.png"/></a>

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/3_zpsqxqrqjm5.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/3_zpsqxqrqjm5.png" border="0" alt=" photo 3_zpsqxqrqjm5.png"/></a>

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/4_zps3tguswd5.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/4_zps3tguswd5.png" border="0" alt=" photo 4_zps3tguswd5.png"/></a>

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/5_zpskgqy9b6r.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/5_zpskgqy9b6r.png" border="0" alt=" photo 5_zpskgqy9b6r.png"/></a>
 
here's one of the sunroom concepts before I introduced the drop-off.

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/0_zpshpfc0ixe.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/0_zpshpfc0ixe.png" border="0" alt=" photo 0_zpshpfc0ixe.png"/></a>

-or-

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/0_zpsvmlqbeec.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/0_zpsvmlqbeec.png" border="0" alt=" photo 0_zpsvmlqbeec.png"/></a>

I combined them and added the drop-off to this...

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/2_zpsxp5krsgt.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/2_zpsxp5krsgt.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2_zpsxp5krsgt.png"/></a>
 
I build most systems myself... and I can buy the raw material. It's because I look for ways to save $$ that I can attempt something like this.
 
Have you priced the sunroom yet? I would bet that those curved panes on the end will be WAY more expensive then straight slanted panes to the tops of the doors.
 
karimwassef said:
It varies between $15K ans $20K based on the options, etc...
Click to expand...

Wow that actually seems pretty reasonable.... I was expecting at least 30K. Since you are in Texas will you be able to temp regulate just by keeping the doors open or will you need additional cooling?
 
The choice of glass will help but it will need cool air ducted from the main HVAC. It'll also draw air back to help with the humidity.

This is part of the hidden cost where I need to oversize the HVAC cooling by another $1-$2K to handle the load.

When the doors open, the HVAC would be off to conserve energy.
 
Are you worried at all about having too much light? Lots of our corals look better in our tanks than they do in the wild because of the lighting conditions.
 
Too much light? Having snorkeled on the reefs - I don't understand what that would be...

The blue content in our tanks does create color pop and the UV can enhance actual color. That's why I have the two LED strips. These will each be 1200W - 2000W and water cooled to keep their cross-section as small as possible to avoid interference with the sunlight. There's a dedicated cold water loop that runs into the aquarium room. This is a new DIY I'm working on with a 1" cross-section.

I'm going to start a dedicated thread on the supplemental lighting design.

For this thread, I want to know if the mechanical tank construction is viable.

I like the PVC bottom but I've never done it. Does anyone have experience doing an L bottom with PVC and starphire sides?

Thanks,
 
I have heard of people doing PVC bottoms in general on their own, however no one ever says what they used to bond the glass to the PVC. I know AGE in Texas does and I think MRC does now too. I don't know if you could pick their brain or not. I remember I was looking at a "regular tank" with a PVC bottom and it was sort of proprietary to AGE & MRC said they did it different. I don't know as I went with acrylic instead. Not sure if they would share details with you but it's worth a try. Unless someone on here knows what is used to bond the two together.

Corey
 
The link I posted earlier showed the DIY where they used a groove in the PVC for the glass to seat into the base.

This makes sense since a glass/non-glass interface usually only works if the mechanical strength is achieved by seating the glass and using the silicone as a sealant, not an adhesive.

I don't think anyone has ever use mixed-mode construction in an L shape?
 
You could use a plywood bottom as thick as you want. Then just use pond shield to waterproof it.
With wood for the bottom, at least for the middle of the tank, it would not even need to be at a right angle. ;)
You could slope it a little or create a trench. Silicone will bond very well to the pond shield so that is not an issue.

Daniel. :wildone:
 
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