My DIY Rock/Foam Reef

[Kannin]

Here's the sump...

I'm not running any powerheads. I have a Barracuda for my return pump and another one for my closed loop. I'm running both of them at half flow because... I haven't gotten my overflows tuned in right and I only have 2 returns on my CL but, after I get the canopy built... I am going to add a third return on a Wavy Sea. You can see the pumps behind the shelves...

I am going to put the fuge on top of the tank. The return pump will feed it and then it will overflow directly into the tank.

My heaters are two 300 watt Aqua Via heaters.

Here's my top off / dosing system...

They're on a pullout type shelf...

 

[alpine]

Finally got a couple of decent pics of my 16 BF.

This ones a top down view

After a couple of weeks I can still smell the epoxy.

By the way what model of ASM skimmer is that Kannin?

 

[Kannin]

Wow! That looks really good. I'm sorry about the epoxy smell. The stuff I used cured in 6 hours and was odor free the next day.

It's ASM GX4 w/ a Sedra 15000.

 

[yousmellsfishy]

Hey Alpine, that looks great. Is there a separate thread for that build?

 

[alpine]

Kannin

Thanks man,could not have done it without your guidance.How are you liking the sedra 15000 on the skimmer?I have the G4+ with the sedra 9000,and that pump really sucks.It barely pulls 16 scfh.I wanna change the pump,but cannot decide between a modded laguna or a modded eheim.

yousmellsfishy

Glad you like it.No build thread since I decided not to set it up after I made the rock wall.

 

[Kannin]

What do you mean? You decided not to set it up. It looks awesome.

I am very happy with the skimmer and the pump. That's why I went the G4X... because of the pump.

 

[bsmith219]

is there any mods done to the skimmer?

 

[alpine]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12192394#post12192394 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Kannin
What do you mean? You decided not to set it up. It looks awesome.

I am very happy with the skimmer and the pump. That's why I went the G4X... because of the pump.

Well I didnt expect for the epoxy to take so long to finish curing.I needed to get my rock and corals out of the bucket they were in,so I just setup a 20 gallon high instead.

Do you have an air meter by any chance?I would love to know how much air the 15000 is pulling.

 

[alpine]

Hey Kannin

Are you useing that AquaLifter as a dosing pump?If so,how is it working out?I was thinking of picking 1 up to try it out.

 

[Kannin]

The skimmer is not modded... although there are several people that are interested in modding it for me. I am really happy with it. I get some pretty thick skimmate. The G4x was rated for 450 gallons when it had the Sedra 9000. I know that they are notoriously over-rated so I figured that with the 15000... that even if you cut ASM's estimate in half... I'm getting a strong 225 out of it.

Sorry... that all made sense in my head.

I don't have an air meter but, i'll say that you can hear the air being sucked in the tube and there are a lot of bubbles in it.

I am using 2 aqua lifters. There are two buckets for top off and one has calcium and the other has alk supp. They are set to dose for twelve minutes each alternating every 6 hours. It seems to be working well.

 

[jasonh]

Hey Kannin thanks for starting this.

Being inspired by your work, I just started doing this myself. I didn't have any base rock or anything though, so it's just the background. But once I get a much bigger tank (a couple years away) I'll be trying something like what you've done.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1358587

Quick question...did you apply epoxy to the back of the pieces as well? I am planning to. I don't want this stuff coming apart in the water, and I am going to silicone the pieces in place anyway, so it'd be nice for the silicone to have something to adhere to.

Also a quick tip I found...Sprinkle some sand on the foam while it's still wet. Not too much because it can be weighed down by it. But it sticks and holds the sand well. I will still be adding more when I apply the epoxy though.

 

[Kannin]

Thanks.

No... I didn't apply the epoxy to the back of the reef.

I hope it works out well for you.

 

[RedEDGE2k1]

Great thread -- keep the progress photos coming, I'm anxious to see how the coralline grows and how long it takes to make the foam look identical to live rock.

 

[sabbath]

How do you keep foam from floating to the surface. Rocks? If so what is the ratio?

 

[Kannin]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12220102#post12220102 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RedEDGE2k1
Great thread -- keep the progress photos coming, I'm anxious to see how the coralline grows and how long it takes to make the foam look identical to live rock.

Right now... It looks like live rock covered in cyano. I'll post some more pics when it clears up. There is a lot of coralline starting but, it's pretty well covered by the slime.

 

[Kannin]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12220167#post12220167 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sabbath
How do you keep foam from floating to the surface. Rocks? If so what is the ratio?

I suspect that it would have floated but, I designed it so that I could wedge it in under the eurobracing and then I added some horizontal supports that run from the bottom of the pillars to the front glass. Then I syliconed them down for added strength. There are some photos of this earlier in the thread but, I'm not sure at which stage.

 

[Kannin]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12220167#post12220167 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sabbath
How do you keep foam from floating to the surface. Rocks? If so what is the ratio?

Here's a pic of the egg crate brace that is up against the front glass... Look lower right.

Lower right again...

In this pic... the sand covers the brace...

 

[sabbath]

That is awesome. I would have thought it would have taken more then that!

Great looking tank. I want to do something like this next time.

Much better looking than, black glass on the back!

 

[Kannin]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12221726#post12221726 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sabbath
That is awesome. I would have thought it would have taken more then that!

Great looking tank. I want to do something like this next time.

Much better looking than, black glass on the back!

It can't float vertically because the eurobracing stops it and it can't tilt up because the front glass stops it.

 

[sabbath]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12221830#post12221830 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Kannin
It can't float vertically because the eurobracing stops it and it can't tilt up because the front glass stops it.

Oh,,,, The light just came on. Ding,Ding,Ding.
:thumbsup: