My new 80g tank and plans (pics)

[HBtank]

Now my fun starts and my addiction grows .

I just bought a new 80g RR tank (my first RR tank) to transfer all the contents of my old 50g standard into. The 50g has been living at my old house for the last 4 months while I was saving for this new tank and now I finally get to have my tank at home. It's been a hassle stopping by my old house all the time to keep it up, so I have been working extra hard to plan the new tank so it goes quickly and smoothly.

This will be my first tank with a sump, so I have been going off what I have been able to grab from here and off of the net. My main goal is simplicity, over-engineering = problems IMO.

I chose soft plumbing so I can replace it easily if I want to cut down on resistance and so I do not have to build any major supports. I plan on only mounting the SCWD to the stand and suction cupping the pump and initial part of the hose to the sump.

As for the rest, I only assume it will work. Any help would be appreciated. I tried to make it so I could disassemble it easily for cleaning, with the appropriate valves for safety and cleaning, and with as little restriction points as possible considering it will have a SCWD.

I will be adding the baffle setup to the sump myself. I am still unsure about its design, so if anyone sees a problem please point it out.

I did not include all of the smaller plumbing pieces in the plans I made (adapters, couplers and bushings) as I have a good idea how to plumb that.

Tank will have soft coral, LPS, clams. 3-5 fish eventually.

But for now it will receive all 90 lbs of rock and inhabitants from my 50g that is established with a few corals and clown that are growing well. Some pics of them are in my profile.

Equipment:

Ocean Runner 3500 (900g/hour)
2 SEIO powerheads
CSS220
EBO 250w heater (plus a cheap backup)
SCWD
4 Bulb icecap retro
Fluval 204 with carbon and phosphate remover.

Sump is 30.5L x 13W x 16.5H (around 30g) I plan to use around 22.5 g of it.

Here's the plan I made for it and some pictures I took:

THis is looking at the back of the tank. Some things are turned around for visibility.

Please, if anyone has advice on any problems they see or some improvements I could make it would be appreciated.

 

[Pico Keeper]

Looks awesome actually.

I have to totally agree with your thinking. I always think K.I.S.S. (keep it simple stupid), all the extra stuff usually makes things so much more difficult.

The only thing I would do differently, is your sump resign. I would move the skimmer into the first section where the water drains into, move that baffle a little further towards the middle, so that you can fit the skimmer in there and use the middle section as a refugium so you can grow macro and keep food for the display.


Also, that tank stand and hood is awesome, its so elegant and its exactly what im looking for. Where did you get, how much did you pay? I love it!! I have a 180 gallon glass tank im trying to sell, to buy something in that size/shape..

 

[TKByrnes]

the only thing i would change is instead of a t in the return to the tank try a y less resistance. you will get a little more flow out of it. other than that it looks good!

 

[HBtank]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7818583#post7818583 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Pico Keeper
Looks awesome actually.

I have to totally agree with your thinking. I always think K.I.S.S. (keep it simple stupid), all the extra stuff usually makes things so much more difficult.

The only thing I would do differently, is your sump resign. I would move the skimmer into the first section where the water drains into, move that baffle a little further towards the middle, so that you can fit the skimmer in there and use the middle section as a refugium so you can grow macro and keep food for the display.


Also, that tank stand and hood is awesome, its so elegant and its exactly what im looking for. Where did you get, how much did you pay? I love it!! I have a 180 gallon glass tank im trying to sell, to buy something in that size/shape..

That is a good idea. Either way I can move the skimmer to that section (hob or inside) and it will be getting the overflow water directly and more baffling. Wat is the maximum flow for a refugium?

I got the setup at a LFS for $900. It was an impulse, on the spot buy, but I really liked the stand (tall, open back, the doors) and the canopy design. The tank just fit the stand They were pretty bummed when I did not buy one piece of equipment though..um no thanks......

 

[HBtank]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7818688#post7818688 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TKByrnes
the only thing i would change is instead of a t in the return to the tank try a y less resistance. you will get a little more flow out of it. other than that it looks good!

Thats actually a SCWD waveamathingy and I have planned on it cutting the return by 20% at least...

But yeh, if I dislike it I will definately put on a Y.

 

[Pico Keeper]

I agree with the Y thing. It will help flow.

Also if you want, consider modifying the SCWD. You can drill the inlet and outlets, to make them bigger and it decreases the flow loss by a substantial amount.

 

[FishyBiz]

I say keep the SCWD, but ditch the Fluval 204 and just run carbon in the sump.

 

[HBtank]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7819482#post7819482 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FishyBiz
I say keep the SCWD, but ditch the Fluval 204 and just run carbon in the sump.

True, that's even simpler. I'll save it for certian occasions if I need to run something specific.

That will save me on power and heat. Thanks.

 

[Rijinals]

Nice diagrams, a dab hand at the old CAD / AutoCAD programmes me thinks!!

 

[HBtank]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7819840#post7819840 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Rijinals
Nice diagrams, a dab hand at the old CAD / AutoCAD programmes me thinks!!

heh, I used good ol' "paint".

I got an A in geometry though!

 

[six.line]

It was my understanding that SCWD's by their very nature reduced flow? Have you looked into that to see if it's a problem or not? I'm curious to see your overall turnover rate from the return pump.

 

[HBtank]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7820222#post7820222 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by six.line
It was my understanding that SCWD's by their very nature reduced flow? Have you looked into that to see if it's a problem or not? I'm curious to see your overall turnover rate from the return pump.

I think that may be an issue and I plan on upgrading the pump to an external one and removing the powerheads to reduce wattage and heat, and increase flow to over 1000 gph. I am hoping to get over 500gph with the ocean runner right now.

I'll use the ocean runner for maintenance.

 

[HBtank]

I finally got around to plumbing my new tank and running a test on it before I transfer all my 55's livestock. Here are some pics.

The SCWD is running awesome with the Ocean Runner 3500 and switching about every 5-6 seconds, meaning I made my target of 500-600 gallons per hour.

Additionally I decided on the NaturalWave timer and 3 Maxi-Jet 900's with the simple switching mod and will ditch the SEIO's. They are working great as well, and seem much more powerfull than the standard configuration andx the switching action is great!

I am pretty happy with my budget/efficient minded 5 output alternating wavemaker. Not only do 5 sources of current switch on/off, but 3 of them switch directions every time they do.

Tonight I am finishing the initial cleanup, and then draining. Tommorow I will put the baffles in the sump, and I plan on filling the tank with sand/saltwater on Wed.

Then I finally get to fill it up with my long lost buddies.

Here are some pics of the finished plumbing.

Notice the sky-light above the tank. It is small but adds a perfect amount of natural light.