Help with new 125 gallon build

[SimonSKL]

You can Jump start the cycle by adding a piece of raw shrimp, urine, or ammonia. For me, I used shrimp. I didn't like the idea of putting pee in my tank

 

[tassod]

Tasso,
As far as hanging the lights, instead of hanging them from inside the canopy, you can hang them from top of the canopy similar to what I did in my post.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=20068908&postcount=108

You will drill four 1/2" holes for each light in the lid directly above the 4 hanging locations and use two wooded blocks to raise the light to a height that you like. The height can be adjusted by varying the height of the blocks. Make sure you cut a slot at the top so the wire won't slip off the block.

Once you put rocks in water, the cycle begins. The low salinity will be fine until you add more salt. Keep the temp at 78-80F and run your skimmer also.

Simon,

What happens when i need to open the lid of the canopy? Wont the blocks fall and the lights swing? I don't have a front opening on this canopy and only access is from the top.

 

[SimonSKL]

I see. Can you split your lid into two sections and put hingers on to make it look like a folding door. The front section is about 5-6" that you can lift off to feed and service your tank. The back section stay put and support your lights. Just a suggestion.

 

[SimonSKL]

For major work to your tank you still have to remove the light for the above suggestion.

 

[tassod]

I'm going to have to find another way, for the skimmer, do i need to be aware of anything or any settings i need to do before i turn it on..or can i just plug it in and walk away?

 

[Beenalongtime79]

I'm going to have to find another way, for the skimmer, do i need to be aware of anything or any settings i need to do before i turn it on..or can i just plug it in and walk away?

Let er rip! Make sure the outlet is wide open at first and then adjust accordingly to provide the desired foam consistency.

Keep your eyes on it for the first couple of hours as you have an unpredictable bioload with all that new rock. If the rock is dry rock and has not been thoroughly cleaned, then it will actually produce a fair amount of skimmate as the dead biomass starts degrading in the tank.

During this stage, keep lights off and just skim. (Keep lights off, this is important to prevent any early nuisance algae growth) The dead matter (on the dry rock) can also start the nitrification/denitrification cycle, add a small piece of liverock to the setup to seed the rest of the rock and sand.

Adding a piece of seed rock should speed things up. In general, it takes up to about 3-4 weeks for the cycle to complete. You have ammonia, nitrite and nitrate test kits?

Cheers,
John

 

[SimonSKL]

FWIW, my skimmer section in the sump is about 11" depth. For my BM Nac7 skimmer, I had to raise it about 1 1/4" off the bottom for best performance. I just cut four 1" PVC about 1 1/4" length and use them as legs to raise the skimmer. You may not have to do that if you are happy with the performance. So this idea is just in case you need to raise it.

 

[tassod]

Let er rip! Make sure the outlet is wide open at first and then adjust accordingly to provide the desired foam consistency.

Keep your eyes on it for the first couple of hours as you have an unpredictable bioload with all that new rock. If the rock is dry rock and has not been thoroughly cleaned, then it will actually produce a fair amount of skimmate as the dead biomass starts degrading in the tank.

During this stage, keep lights off and just skim. (Keep lights off, this is important to prevent any early nuisance algae growth) The dead matter (on the dry rock) can also start the nitrification/denitrification cycle, add a small piece of liverock to the setup to seed the rest of the rock and sand.

Adding a piece of seed rock should speed things up. In general, it takes up to about 3-4 weeks for the cycle to complete. You have ammonia, nitrite and nitrate test kits?

Cheers,
John

John,

Thanks for your comments. So when you mention "your outlet is wide open" I'm assuming you are referring to the dial with the numbers up on top of the skimmer. So does it need to be at the biggest number to start out? I'm going to start it up tonight when i get home and keep an eye on it. It is all dry rock and it has been thoroughly cleaned. I did pick up a test kit from premium aquatics.

 

[tassod]

FWIW, my skimmer section in the sump is about 11" depth. For my BM Nac7 skimmer, I had to raise it about 1 1/4" off the bottom for best performance. I just cut four 1" PVC about 1 1/4" length and use them as legs to raise the skimmer. You may not have to do that if you are happy with the performance. So this idea is just in case you need to raise it.

New to this so how can I tell if it is "performing" as it should?

 

[Beenalongtime79]

The outflow pipe is where the water exits your skimmer so if the numbers are on the outflow pipe or etched into the support structure, then that is the way to control water height in the skimmer.

To make sure just play with it and see what happens to the water level when you twist one way or another.

 

[SimonSKL]

New to this so how can I tell if it is "performing" as it should?

Initially because of the unpredictable bioload of the new rocks, your skimmer may go crazy meaning it will overflow your collection cup in a matter of seconds. If it is the case, turn the blue tube in the direction so more water will flow back into the sump (wide open) and less up to the collection cup. If it is still filling the cup quickly, raise the skimmer as I suggested. Eventually the foam head in the skimmer will settle down and you can turn the blue pipe again in a direction to raise the foam head. The goal is pull brownish skimmate into your cup and not just saltwater. If too much of the saltwater is pulled out of the system, you will need to replenish it to keep the overall volume the same.

Keep in mind, the dial settings is circular meaning as you keep on turning the blue pipe in the same direction, it will change from open to close and to open again. Pull the blue pipe out and look at the bevel cut and you will see what I mean.

 

[tassod]

Ok, i will play with it tonight and report what happens...thanks! Going to have to figure out my lights situation though and I still need to setup my Apex controller and Tunze 3155 auto topoff.

 

[tassod]

Initially because of the unpredictable bioload of the new rocks, your skimmer may go crazy meaning it will overflow your collection cup in a matter of seconds. If it is the case, turn the blue tube in the direction so more water will flow back into the sump (wide open) and less up to the collection cup. If it is still filling the cup quickly, raise the skimmer as I suggested. Eventually the foam head in the skimmer will settle down and you can turn the blue pipe again in a direction to raise the foam head. The goal is pull brownish skimmate into your cup and not just saltwater. If too much of the saltwater is pulled out of the system, you will need to replenish it to keep the overall volume the same.

Keep in mind, the dial settings is circular meaning as you keep on turning the blue pipe in the same direction, it will change from open to close and to open again. Pull the blue pipe out and look at the bevel cut and you will see what I mean.

Ok was able to get lunch at home and started up the skimmer, and you were right it pretty much started overflowing right away. I've turned the adjuster to where the collection cup stays full but doesn't overflow

Should I just leave it like this?

 

[tassod]

I see. Can you split your lid into two sections and put hingers on to make it look like a folding door. The front section is about 5-6" that you can lift off to feed and service your tank. The back section stay put and support your lights. Just a suggestion.

I didn't see your suggestion for this until now but it may work. Never really done anything like this though and don't have table saw to split the lid but I will see what I can do

 

[SimonSKL]

Ok was able to get lunch at home and started up the skimmer, and you were right it pretty much started overflowing right away. I've turned the adjuster to where the collection cup stays full but doesn't overflow

Should I just leave it like this?

Tasso, you want to adjust the the foam head to stay below the neck of the collection cup, not stay full in the collection cup. Anything collected in the cup should be discarded so they don't end up back into your system. You can unplug the tube and drain it into a large container so you don't have to keep emptying the cup.

 

[SimonSKL]

I didn't see your suggestion for this until now but it may work. Never really done anything like this though and don't have table saw to split the lid but I will see what I can do

A table saw will be ideal but you can also use a circular saw as long as you attach a guide to make the cut straight. A long piece of 2x4 or 1x4 can be used as a guide also.

 

[tassod]

I tried adjusting using the control on the skimmer so it could foam below the collection cup but it wouldn't. Does this mean I need to raise it?

 

[SimonSKL]

Yes, that would be my next step.

 

[tassod]

Yes, that would be my next step.

Ok, thanks, i'll do it when i get home.

 

[tassod]

A table saw will be ideal but you can also use a circular saw as long as you attach a guide to make the cut straight. A long piece of 2x4 or 1x4 can be used as a guide also.

Ok, i do have a circular saw...i'll see what i can do and thank you for the suggestions!