My 75g Place Under The Sea

[PallidSilversky]

I'm excited to see this tank all put together!!
Lucky you getting all that stuff!!

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

Yeah, very lucky...the biggest addition from this local reefer is possibly still yet to come...he had a 90g that he upgraded to a 220g as I said...well, he had 2 175w MH on the 90g but upgraded to either 250w or 400w (I think 400w but don't remember)...he said he thinks the ballasts are still in his house somewhere and may possibly give them to me...man, what I would do for a free MH setup...man, I can't wait!!

 

[angelscrx]

I'd put some baffles on the return side of your sump too. As the water evaporates this is the area where the water level will drop and as it does it will create a water fall from the refugium to the return area. Thus creating a lot of bubbles. Just me 2 cents.

 

[drummereef]

Looks nice! Keep the pics coming.

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8719601#post8719601 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by angelscrx
I'd put some baffles on the return side of your sump too. As the water evaporates this is the area where the water level will drop and as it does it will create a water fall from the refugium to the return area. Thus creating a lot of bubbles. Just me 2 cents.

Thanks my friend...I had not thought about that, but you make a good point...my sump design has actually changed from what is shown above, because Anthony gave me a free 30g tank that already has a hold drilled for a bulk head on the bottom of one of the sides (about an inch up the side)...so, I won't need the same space for the return...but then again, I'm also considering trying my hand at making a custom acrylic sump based on the plans found on Melev's site...so I'm not 100% sure what I'm gonna do yet...if I can find someone local that can help me with the acrylic that is good at acrylic then I'll go that route and find another use for the 30g...

Thanks for the visit my friend...see ya tonight at Marvin's party...

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8719806#post8719806 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by drummereef
Looks nice! Keep the pics coming.

Don't worry, I like to document everything just in case someone see's something I did that can help them with their stuff...I get most of my inspiration for other peoples photos...

 

[bblair]

Jason, I just check the garage. Can't find the 175 ballasts. I must have unloaded them a while back. Sorry!

I did find a couple more items that I'll bring to you over at Marvin's tonight. A UL Sterilizer and a float switch. The Sterilizer could use a bulb change by now. Not sure how your top off is going to be set up, but what the heck, everyone can use a good float switch for something!

 

[bblair]

TYPO - Should say UV Sterilizer.

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

Thanks Bill...I'm sure I'll find a good use for the stuff you keep finding...(I'm sure it is freeing up space in your garage that you wife keeps yelling at you for it being cluttered!! :lmao: I know that feeling!! )

Anyway...if you do come across them, just give me a quick yell...if not, I've already gotten more from you than I could have ever hoped for...I'll have to dedicate a small corner of my tank to you once I get the corals and such in it...

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

Ok...another small update for you folks...first of all, I aquired some more equipment over the weekend...I got a Corallife UV Sterilizer and a float valve...thanks Bill!! I plan on using the UV Sterilizer in line after my return pump...

I made my first "in tank" purchase today...I bought 50 pounds of lace rock...got it for about $1.66 per pound including shipping...$79.99 total...had I bought 50 pounds of live rock I would have spent in excess of $200 before shipping...so, when I have the tank full of water I can just add about 25 pounds or so of live rock on top of the lace rock and the base rock will also be live rock in about 6 months or so...

Over the next few days, I'll be making a trip to Lowes or HD to buy my lumber for my stand...I'll be starting my stand hopefully in the next week or two...when I have some pics, I'll post them...it may not be skinned right away, but at least I'll have it to set my tank on...

As for other decisions...I've decided to go with T5 lighting...four T5 lights over the tank should give off about as much light as any coral is gonna need...and, it will also give me enough room later that if I decide I still need some MHs over the tank I can space the lights a little bit when I install them to allow for MH to be installed...

And finally, as for my skimmer...I spoke with a fellow Richmond Reef Club member and he pointed me in the right direction for modding my skimmer...he actually already modded an Excalibur for his cousin and from all accounts it kicks butt now...so, once I start working on that mod I'll post some pics...

With that, I'll close for the day...I'll post some pics of the sterilizer when I get home from work (gotta love a job where you can hang out on Reef Central all day!! :lmao: )...I'll also post some pics of my lace rock when I receive it...

 

[Z-Man07]

Nice thread, Jason. Looking forward to seeing your project come to life!!

Thanks for documenting it for us. I am the same way; 99% of what I have learned about reefkeeping is from a picture posted in a build thread!!

Thanks,
Jay

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8737187#post8737187 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Z-Man07
Nice thread, Jason. Looking forward to seeing your project come to life!!

Thanks for documenting it for us. I am the same way; 99% of what I have learned about reefkeeping is from a picture posted in a build thread!!

Thanks,
Jay

Thanks Z-Man...I will definitely be showing pics as they come along...that is how I learned and that is how I like to teach...

Speaking of pics...here are a few more for everyone to look over...

Yeah, I know this is a boring one, but it is the float switch I got...with this version, I am thinking of having a small pump inside of an old salt bucket that this switch will control as a top-off...RO/DI will dump fresh water in through the top of the bucket and the pump will get turned on by the float switch and push fresh water in to the sump...

UV Sterilizer

And finally, the 30g tank I got for free from a local reefer here in Virginia...(thanks twon8 )...I am gonna clean the old silicone out of it and give it either a water/vinegar bath to clean it out and then put in new baffles...notice how it is drilled on one side...

Ok...there are the pics I promised earlier...

Also, I spoke with Dr. Randy Holmes-Farley...the genious of the Chemistry thread...I was asking about my Lace Rock purchase just to make sure (I saw several threads this afternoon advising against Lace Rock)...he said as long as I do a nice RO/DI + Vinegar bath for the rocks rinsed by RO/DI when done the rocks are perfectly safe for reef use...just what I had originally though...

So, that's it for now...I am working on an idea for my electrical box...I'll post a picture of it later...I have the next 2 days off work so I can get some work done...

 

[CaveManNOhio]

You got a real nice project going. I can't wait to see it up and running. It looks like you are on the right track with every thing.
I really like your stand idea.

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

CaveMan,

Thanks for dropping by...thanks for the compliments...

As for the stand idea, it is actually a combination of several different stands that I have seen on here and on various web sites on the net...although, I think your stand does have mine by a little bit... At first, I will probably only have the hood and stand done and then add the outer cabinets later after I have the tank going...

 

[CaveManNOhio]

Yea I saw the different ones that you were talking about. I think those all look really sweet. I love seeing the finished ones in a dark stain.
I will not be able to wrap my stand that the 240 sits on until it is in the house and all the plumbing and electric is complete. Because once it is wrapped up it would be near impossible to do any of it. I will be able to get to the valves to turn them as needed and the bulbs to change them as needed, but to install all of it once the display stand is closed up would not be fun at all.

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8767712#post8767712 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by CaveManNOhio
Yea I saw the different ones that you were talking about. I think those all look really sweet. I love seeing the finished ones in a dark stain.
I will not be able to wrap my stand that the 240 sits on until it is in the house and all the plumbing and electric is complete. Because once it is wrapped up it would be near impossible to do any of it. I will be able to get to the valves to turn them as needed and the bulbs to change them as needed, but to install all of it once the display stand is closed up would not be fun at all.

Yeah, I thought about that as well...I'm going to build the frame for the stand and install my sump and such...then, I'll skin it afterwards as you are planning with your tank...my electrical will be very, VERY basic initially...setup will basically just be timers plugged in to outlet strips that are secured to the top of the inside of the stand...I'm doing it this way because on my plan for the cabinets, I have an entire cabinet dedicated to just electrical...it is the right hand section, middle cabinet in my drawings...it will be sealed as watertight as possible on the tank side...I'm going to have a recessed, DIY panel inside the cabinet...the panel will lock in to place and when unlocked I can swing it open like another door, or I can remove it all together...

This cabinet will be ventilated from the outside (2 fans, top & bottom with vent slots in the center) to keep ballasts from heating up the cabinet...they will be on whenever the lights are on...I may also put a third fan in on an Icecap temperature probe...that way, when the lights/fans are off, if the heat does go up too much the other fan can kick in to keep from frying my electronics...but, putting the cabinets together will take time and more money...something that are both in short supply of for me here of late!! :lmao:

Thanks for stopping by...can't wait for more updates on your tank as well...

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

Quick post...to explain my idea for my (eventual) electrical panel in the cabinet...

Take this idea http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=7887835#post7887835 and cross it with this idea's size http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=7887835#post7887835...and just one more picture similar to my idea http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=7888240#post7888240...

:Edit: - For lighting control, I'm going to use these digital light timers (one timer wired to one outlet) to control my lights...will be up to 3 outlets with these times dedicated only to lights...there will be a 4th outlet with this timer to control my moon light controller...I will also be using this timer...I will mod the internal mechanism so that instead of turning something on when you operate the timer it will turn something off when you operate the timer...this will control all of the outlets that my pumps will be connected to so that I can turn my pumps off during feeding and just walk away...when the timer gets to 0 the pumps will turn back on automatically...:Edit:

I am rethinking my design constantly...I was going to use a 10g as my elevated refugium, but I'm tempted to build a custom size acrylic tank to get as much extra water volume in to the system as I can...we'll see how the money situation is when I get my tax refund after the first of the year...

 

[Z-Man07]

Again, great documentation, Jason. Thanks for including us. I was actually envisioning those same posts when I was reading the description of your panel above. Then you posted the posts' photos!! Keep it up!!

I am designing a stand much like yours in that the left side will be a full size cabinet all the way up to the hood. So I am definitely diggin' on your ideas!!!

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8770047#post8770047 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Z-Man07
Again, great documentation, Jason. Thanks for including us. I was actually envisioning those same posts when I was reading the description of your panel above. Then you posted the posts' photos!! Keep it up!!

I am designing a stand much like yours in that the left side will be a full size cabinet all the way up to the hood. So I am definitely diggin' on your ideas!!!

Thanks Z-Man...I need to get under the house soon so that I can see exactly what is under my tank joist-wise...I live in a modular house, so I know that there is an I-beam somewhere near where the tank will be...I may need to move the tank down a little and put both cabinet sections on the left or right...we'll see what happens...I'll update with pictures if I do that...

Well, I got my first order of lace rock in today...50 pounds from Feller Stone...I spoke with Dr. Randy Holmes-Farley a few days ago and he advised me I'll be ok with the rock as long as I soak it for 24 hours in pure vinegar...here are some pics...

As you can see, some big pieces in there along with normal size pieces...I'll be able to make a few shelves out of a couple of those pieces...now, the one big piece I was looking at I noticed what looked like some old, dried up shrooms or some other softy...I doubt that is what they are but it was interesting to see...

Sorry for the blurry pic, that was the best I could get with my camera...see what I mean though...

Anyway, the tank is moving along very slowly...but hopefully we'll be able to see some decent progress soon when I'm able to get at least the framing materials for my stand...

 

[Hopeful Reefer]

Getting closer to Christmas...can't wait to see what I get for the tank...

I came up with an idea for a closed loop today...I want to use a MJ 1200 pumping in to an SCWD...

Here is my idea...

A is where I need help first of all...I saw Melev's version for a small tank that is a hang-on of sorts...it is a strainer in the tank, going up over the edge down to the MJ 1200...is this a viable option, or should I try to have the tank drilled with a small hole so that I can put the MJ 1200 in the tank and pump out to the SCWD...I'm thinking of doing the out over the top version at this point so I don't have to worry about the hole size...wouldn't want it to be too small and have to redrill later, or too big now and not be able to use it later...

Anyway, B is the MJ 1200...and C is the SCWD...you see a small break after the SCWD...I want to put adapters there and run LocLine from there...I may do PVC up to where I want it to go in to the tank and do LocLine in the tank only to save money...regardless, I want the returns at different parts of the tank so that there flows are different from one another...I also plan on having a Seio 820 in one of the corners pushing towards the front of the tank...

Do you guys think this is too much flow, or is there a better way of doing this while still staying somewhat DIY?

 

[mikeatjac]

I don't think that an MJ1200 is strong enough to work here.