Biggestfish
New member
My first tag along... Soaking up all I can before I upgrade my tank. Looks great
Echoreef 250 Entry Way
- Thread starter echoreef
- Start date
The Pacific Sun Pandora S2 light arrived. This is the 65" long fixture with 4 x 75w LED + 4 x 80w T5. The fixture is made of stainless steel construction. It is heavy around 50 lbs. I have not turned on the light yet and it already looks great. I plan to use the latest software to simulate the shallow reefs of Bali. The T5 bulbs will be on for about 5 hours a day while the rest of the daylight time will be using LED as the main light source. There are three power cables coming out of the center back of the fixture. I plan to route that straight through the wall and down into the garage so that the cords will be hidden from view.
This is the T5 bulb combination I am putting in from front to back:
ATI Blue +
KZ Fiji Purple
ATI True Actinic
ATI Blue +
This is the T5 bulb combination I am putting in from front to back:
ATI Blue +
KZ Fiji Purple
ATI True Actinic
ATI Blue +
I was finally able to mount the light after having it sit on my floor for 3 weeks. I am using the Bali program to simulate the light environment in the Bali shallow reef. Cosmetically, I want it to look clean with no wire hanging down. The firmware upgrade and software installation was a breeze. Great support from Yorgos at pacificsunusa. The 9 LED channels are very customizable as you can build your own PAR table. I chose to go with Bali and was able to get everything programmed in a matter of minutes. T5 goes on for 6 hours a day. The LEDs are controlled by the Bali program and comes on at 8 AM and set at 8:20 PM. This cannot be changed unless I choose my own customization. There is a feature to set the time backward or forward so that the lamp can start at different time in the day for say a weekend viewing when you are up later than usual. I like how the light looks natural compares to other LED fixtures I have seen. Not too blue which is more to my liking.
Drilling hole to put wires through the wall.
Toggles for mounting to ceiling. The height adjustment is actually at the ceiling instead of down where the lamp is. I thought this was strange but it actually worked out better. I can hide the extra steel cable inside the ceiling.
Here is the finished product. I need to clean the mess up on the ceiling from previous installations.
Drilling hole to put wires through the wall.
Toggles for mounting to ceiling. The height adjustment is actually at the ceiling instead of down where the lamp is. I thought this was strange but it actually worked out better. I can hide the extra steel cable inside the ceiling.
Here is the finished product. I need to clean the mess up on the ceiling from previous installations.
Last edited:
IAO-Pacific Sun USA
.Registered Member
Very nice! 
Finished the water change station. I had problem with leaks where the 1/2 " hose barb connects as well as from the seal of the input on the eheim 1262. Caused some water mess in the garage but not a big deal. It's all fixed and running dry now.
The 3rd barrel will be used to store waste water from the Genesis Renew auto water change. I need to install that next.
Inside of the salt water mixing bin.
The 3rd barrel will be used to store waste water from the Genesis Renew auto water change. I need to install that next.
Inside of the salt water mixing bin.
I took the plumbing apart from the dry fit and glued them all together. Made plenty of mistakes along the way. At one point the manifold which was pointing down were angled at 45 degree when I glued the 2 return pipes together. I did not realized this till I looked under the cabinet but it was too late. Had to order more schedule 80 couplings online, cut the pipes on both end to re-position the manifold. All in all, I made 3 online orders to get the job done. Each time I was missing something it delayed the project by 3-4 days.
Taking apart for final gluing.
Sump going back into the stand:
Left side:
Right side:
Doors are back on ready to fill the tank with water.
Taking apart for final gluing.
Sump going back into the stand:
Left side:
Right side:
Doors are back on ready to fill the tank with water.
My old tank is a standard 120 gallon, 4x2x2.
I added 280 lbs of Ocean Direct live sand last week. Chose this over the Reef Floor Special grade sand that I have used in the past because I do not want to have to rinse all the sand. Bad mistake. With a full SPS tank using 3 Vortech Mp40w and a Reeflo Super Dart/Snapper return pump, I will have sand blowing everywhere.
Instead of living with my mistake, I ordered new sand, drained out all 250 gallon of water from the DT, and removed all 280 lbs of sand. It's not fun.
Instead of living with my mistake, I ordered new sand, drained out all 250 gallon of water from the DT, and removed all 280 lbs of sand. It's not fun.
Aquascaping has been completed. I am trying for an open look with lots of room for fish to swim. There are a few arches and caves. Water is finally in. the beananimal overflow is super quiet. The only gripe I have is with the sump design. The oxygen tower enables easy filter socks changing but at the cost of more noise. Water dropping through the filter socks causes minor spash and makes a water fall sound.
