Hutch's 280 Gallon SPS Build

[cshutchinson]

I thought I would share the build progress of my tank. Thanks to everyone whose ideas i have borrowed and replicated in my post, especially GlassReef whose tank build helped me the most.

This isn't my first SPS tank, just getting back into the hobby after several years.

This tank is in my office, which happens to be an older home that is starting to look newer every day. My office happens to be within walking distance of my home, so it is quite convenient and I spend a great deal of time there / here.

So here goes, a new build....

The demolition phase...

That was easy....let's build some new walls :dance:

 

[cshutchinson]

The goal for the reef room as I like to call it was to make my life easy and to help make maintaining the tank easy as well. The first order of business was to take care of water handling.

Everyone needs a sink and ro/di :

This storage unit will house my two 65 gallon tanks for ro/di and salt mixing

Here is the completed tank stand using the DIY thread on building stands

I used 2x10's for the 72" span of my tank, limiting for a sump however!

 

[cshutchinson]

The photographer must have been on vacation, so jumping ahead:

A completed storage / mixing system:

And the water system:

 

[cshutchinson]

Skipping ahead once again... (I need to find a new photographer )

I drove to Nashville and picked up the tank. Boy it was heavy but we muscled it into place and around the tight corners. What a relief to see that it actually fit!!!

Wow I was happy with how this turned out!

 

[cshutchinson]

I wanted complete access to my sump to make things easy and this is what I ended up with:

The sump is 100 gallons and the design was a modified version of Drummereef's. This one is 56 x 30 x 14 and holds a little over 100 gallons.

 

[cshutchinson]

The photographer missed the week or two of plumbing fun... and he missed the leaks and the 'oh craps', but here are the finished results with my take on a reverse Durso in the sump. It works pretty well as I run the Reeflo Dart at about 75% open. I think they look like mini nuclear reactors in there

Those tee fittings are 3" PVC with a drilled cap. I get mini bubbles out of the bottom of these things, but NO noise and the bubbles don't make it to the return. So all is good I guess. Believe it or not the return pump is running in these pics. Not too bad. The big bubbles in the pic were an anomaly and I haven't seen them since.

 

[cshutchinson]

Ok, here is the two week lighting build. I borrowed GlassReef's design here.

These are 3 x 400 Lumen Brite Mini Wides with 8 x 24" T5. Don't ask, I should have used 4 x 48" but I am an idiot sometimes. The only positive thing is that the 24" bulbs are easier to store and ship. But you don't save any $$$ on these things.

 

[cshutchinson]

Hanging this massive fixture was a story in itself. I have tempered glass below each metal halide reflector. The entire unit doesn't weight that much, but you still shouldn't use chain that is too small to hang it (I used smaller chain for leveling and adjustability, a big mistake). I ended up buying that glass twice and cleaning up a huge mess when the flimsy chains broke. Thank goodness nothing but the glass hit the floor. In 'glass take two', I used some silicon adhesive around the glass panel edges to keep them in place. You can see the new hardware used in place of chain, those turnbuckles are really nice, and makes leveling oh so easy.... Did I mention I have a big cut on my head and blood was involved? The glass didn't cut me, but that big rack hurts when it hits you in the head. I am thankful it fell on me and not the tank. All of this hardware you see is aluminum or stainless. I used pop rivets everywhere except attaching the moonlights.

So we are up to date now. As you see, I have to tackle some wire organization on the wall and get these lights turned on. Its going to be fun this weekend.

 

[cshutchinson]

So, while all this work was going on, I have some live rock curing.

Remember, this is my office, I don't live here

I am only going to use the rock with the MH over it in the tank, and likely won't use all of that as I am not going to load up the tank like i used to.

The rock has a diatom bloom right now (not in these pictures) , so I am not sure when it will go into the display tank. I am just not sure how I want to proceed with moving the rock. Wait out the algae cycles or let the algae have fun in the DT. The DT has a better skimmer, but heck I am not sure it even matters when no livestock is involved. I may move it this weekend or early next week.

 

[lucidheights]

really clean and awesome!

 

[cshutchinson]

really clean and awesome!

Thank you!

 

[ptan]

nice and fast progress report.. i like the flow of your thread build... its not boring... you have nice and clean setup... two thumbs up! :thumbsup:

 

[ptan]

btw if i may ask.... is RODI water fit for human consumption? dont have any idea where to ask this question... sorry for the out of topic.

 

[cdeboard]

Beautiful setup. I love in wall tanks with the trim around them. That tank is really nice. Dont know if I missed it. Who made it?

 

[cshutchinson]

Beautiful setup. I love in wall tanks with the trim around them. That tank is really nice. Dont know if I missed it. Who made it?

This is a GlassCages tank. I guess I got lucky or they are getting better.

 

[cshutchinson]

btw if i may ask.... is RODI water fit for human consumption? dont have any idea where to ask this question... sorry for the out of topic.

I thought the answer to this question was NO, but after looking around I am not so sure. There are kits made to store drinking water from the RO side before it hits the DI portion. The RO is great to drink.

 

[Poriferan]

Great start!! Your build looks very well planned.

My research on drinking RO/DI water brought me to the conclusion that it is OK for occasional consumption (Dasani Water is RO/DI), but it lacks electrolytes and will leach them from your body. I think that as long as this is not your only source of liquid you should be fine.

 

[duastina]

Great build! I love all the pictures and the details!

 

[ptan]

I thought the answer to this question was NO, but after looking around I am not so sure. There are kits made to store drinking water from the RO side before it hits the DI portion. The RO is great to drink.

thanks for researching for the answer.... your setup is one of the nicest and cleanest... hope to see a lot of updates soon even if photographer is out of town...

 

[ShellsSD]

Very organized and clean look. I really like it. Keep the photos coming