My wood tank build
- Thread starter dsandfort
- Start date
masharp1126
New member
I PM'ed him a week or so ago asking if he would mind updating, but have heard nothing from him.
It sure would be nice to know how these plywood tanks are doing 1, 2, or 5 years down the road.
It sure would be nice to know how these plywood tanks are doing 1, 2, or 5 years down the road.
LOL hoping not... would take a long time to clean up 540 gallons of water .....
dsandfort
Premium Member
I suppose it's time for an update
I suppose it's time for an update
Man oh man, time do fly.
Fill tank: 08/05/07
FTS: 01/06/08
Last post: 01/06/08
Looks like we have a slacker in the forum.
Got some good news, some bad news, some new news and some lessons learned.
Good news first. Tank is performing beautifully. Never a leak, never a bow, and completely covered with coralline. That's coming up 3 years now.
Bad news. Tank is completely empty of rock/sand/critters and filled with fresh water and Clorox. About 18 months ago, Sanjay was by and we were drinking some micros and feeding some LPS and he casually said "I see you've got some dinoflagellates going". And so it began. I've been battling these ****** for over a year. Week long blackouts (no lights whatsoever) for up to 10 days. Raising and holding pH at 8.8 and even higher. Obviously, it took it's toll on the corals but interestingly enough, the fish, clams and bubble anemones did not mind.
I got home from a trip this February (only gone 10 days) and they had exploded again taking out a couple of SPS. The proverbial straw that broke my back. I moved everything to the 300 holding tank seen earlier in the thread. Pitched all the sand~900#, filled her up with tap water, glugged in some Clorox and started the pumps.
New news: Major re-plumbing to correct some mistakes (more on that later). Some new equipment ( I think I was under-skimmered).
Lessons learned: I made some bad choices on certain things and learned over time why they were bad choices. I promise to keep you posted more frequently on these. For example, the ball valve/single union fittings I used were crap. Once calcified, I couldn't get them closed enough to remove pumps for maintenance without big leaks. Stuff like that.
Bottom line-the tank works great and I'm starting over on many fronts.
Del
I suppose it's time for an update
Man oh man, time do fly.
Fill tank: 08/05/07
FTS: 01/06/08
Last post: 01/06/08
Looks like we have a slacker in the forum.
Got some good news, some bad news, some new news and some lessons learned.
Good news first. Tank is performing beautifully. Never a leak, never a bow, and completely covered with coralline. That's coming up 3 years now.
Bad news. Tank is completely empty of rock/sand/critters and filled with fresh water and Clorox. About 18 months ago, Sanjay was by and we were drinking some micros and feeding some LPS and he casually said "I see you've got some dinoflagellates going". And so it began. I've been battling these ****** for over a year. Week long blackouts (no lights whatsoever) for up to 10 days. Raising and holding pH at 8.8 and even higher. Obviously, it took it's toll on the corals but interestingly enough, the fish, clams and bubble anemones did not mind.
I got home from a trip this February (only gone 10 days) and they had exploded again taking out a couple of SPS. The proverbial straw that broke my back. I moved everything to the 300 holding tank seen earlier in the thread. Pitched all the sand~900#, filled her up with tap water, glugged in some Clorox and started the pumps.
New news: Major re-plumbing to correct some mistakes (more on that later). Some new equipment ( I think I was under-skimmered).
Lessons learned: I made some bad choices on certain things and learned over time why they were bad choices. I promise to keep you posted more frequently on these. For example, the ball valve/single union fittings I used were crap. Once calcified, I couldn't get them closed enough to remove pumps for maintenance without big leaks. Stuff like that.
Bottom line-the tank works great and I'm starting over on many fronts.
Del
jnarowe
New member
Wow, they are a tough battle. Sorry to hear about that! I actually got rid of them, and I primarily credit not doing water changes (which seems counter-intuitive), since I believe they thrive on silicate. WHich brings to mind what kind of sand you used!
No doubt on the crap valves. I had a couple 2" valves between my sumps, and figured they wouldn't be used much so I bought the HD ones,. Big mistake! After a year, I couldn't move them without breaking the pipe.
No doubt on the crap valves. I had a couple 2" valves between my sumps, and figured they wouldn't be used much so I bought the HD ones,. Big mistake! After a year, I couldn't move them without breaking the pipe.
dsandfort
Premium Member
I was using Southdown sand. I never really liked the monodispersed particle look. Going with Caribsea Super Reef this time.
I found out over time that anything that moves will require maintenance and might even fail, duh. The 2 sump returns were plumbed to WavySeas. They ended up failing and becoming expensive elbows. The 2 OM 4-ways always seemed to become stuck due to calcification while I was away. This allowed water to flow through the open branches but become stagnant in the closed branches. It also allowed fish/critters to swim up the closed branches.
I'm not saying these are bad products, they just add to the required maintenance of the "system". I replaced the WavySeas with standard PVC joints and I took the drums out of the OM's. No more maintenance issues.
I've read that pests like dinoflagellates, flatworms, etc. don't like high water movement. So, here is the new plumbing (so far).
Main return pump: Reeflo Barracuda. Two returns to the tank and a bypass back to sump #1.
Closed loop #1: Reeflo Dart Gold. OM 4-way with no drum. 4 returns under sand to front of tank firing back towards back of tank.
Closed loop #2: Reeflo Dart Gold. OM 4-way with no drum. 4 returns on top of tank with adjustable outlets for directing flow.
Closed loops #3 and 4 (one on each end of tank): Reeflo Darts. 2 returns on top of tank with adjustable outlets.
All returns are 1.5" thin wall PVC. I estimate conservatively that without any powerheads in the tank, I'm moving about 17,000 GPH. I plan on adding 4 Tunze 6105's which will add another 12,000 or so, although they will be on a controller. Grand total should be about 29,000 GPH or higher if I run full throttle.
What do you think? Sand storm? Probably at first, but the sand will find suitable spots to come to rest and I can throttle things down as needed.
Del
I found out over time that anything that moves will require maintenance and might even fail, duh. The 2 sump returns were plumbed to WavySeas. They ended up failing and becoming expensive elbows. The 2 OM 4-ways always seemed to become stuck due to calcification while I was away. This allowed water to flow through the open branches but become stagnant in the closed branches. It also allowed fish/critters to swim up the closed branches.
I'm not saying these are bad products, they just add to the required maintenance of the "system". I replaced the WavySeas with standard PVC joints and I took the drums out of the OM's. No more maintenance issues.
I've read that pests like dinoflagellates, flatworms, etc. don't like high water movement. So, here is the new plumbing (so far).
Main return pump: Reeflo Barracuda. Two returns to the tank and a bypass back to sump #1.
Closed loop #1: Reeflo Dart Gold. OM 4-way with no drum. 4 returns under sand to front of tank firing back towards back of tank.
Closed loop #2: Reeflo Dart Gold. OM 4-way with no drum. 4 returns on top of tank with adjustable outlets for directing flow.
Closed loops #3 and 4 (one on each end of tank): Reeflo Darts. 2 returns on top of tank with adjustable outlets.
All returns are 1.5" thin wall PVC. I estimate conservatively that without any powerheads in the tank, I'm moving about 17,000 GPH. I plan on adding 4 Tunze 6105's which will add another 12,000 or so, although they will be on a controller. Grand total should be about 29,000 GPH or higher if I run full throttle.
What do you think? Sand storm? Probably at first, but the sand will find suitable spots to come to rest and I can throttle things down as needed.
Del
jnarowe
New member
I wouldn't worry about a sand storm. And I wouldn't use play sand, EVER. This has been hotly debated in virtually every aquarium forum, but I feel it's just too risky. IMO, anything with silica in it is a dino time-bomb.
You're gonna be running some amps with all those pumps!
You're gonna be running some amps with all those pumps!
dsandfort
Premium Member
Live and learn. This one, however was an expensive learn.
10-4 on the amps. The fish room has a sub-panel with 5 dedicated circuits. One is not
GFCI for the main return pump. The other 4 are color coded throughout the room so I can quickly see what's plugged in to any one circuit.
I put the electric bill on auto-pay so "we" don't have to see it.
10-4 on the amps. The fish room has a sub-panel with 5 dedicated circuits. One is not
GFCI for the main return pump. The other 4 are color coded throughout the room so I can quickly see what's plugged in to any one circuit.
I put the electric bill on auto-pay so "we" don't have to see it.
jnarowe
New member
Sweet on the electric bill! 
Regarding the play sand, there are many people that would argue against me on that issue, but my philosophy is that I would only use real reef substrate, or none at all.
In my next build, it will be similar to my last one, only with two pressure-rated return pumps that go over the top and down to the bottom, blowing detritus from under the rocks. The rest of the flow will be via powerheads.
I know OM has a great reputation, and the founder is a great guy with a lot of ingenuity, but I just try to avoid the moving parts, particularly in stuff that's no so easy to get to, remove, and repair. All pumps and valves have some sort of achilles heal, but I prefer the ability to move the flow around/redirect, and remove for cleaning or failure with minimal impact on the system. Because of that, My reef could easily go for a while with no sump online. So for instance, if my return pump failed, I could shut down the sump, still have all the flow I need in the DT, and make do for repairs or replacement. BUT, I always had a spare return pump waiting with fittings already attached in the case of a failure. Anal I know, but I had quite a few "situations" while my tank was running.
I probably won't have any sand in the DT next time either.
Regarding the play sand, there are many people that would argue against me on that issue, but my philosophy is that I would only use real reef substrate, or none at all.
In my next build, it will be similar to my last one, only with two pressure-rated return pumps that go over the top and down to the bottom, blowing detritus from under the rocks. The rest of the flow will be via powerheads.
I know OM has a great reputation, and the founder is a great guy with a lot of ingenuity, but I just try to avoid the moving parts, particularly in stuff that's no so easy to get to, remove, and repair. All pumps and valves have some sort of achilles heal, but I prefer the ability to move the flow around/redirect, and remove for cleaning or failure with minimal impact on the system. Because of that, My reef could easily go for a while with no sump online. So for instance, if my return pump failed, I could shut down the sump, still have all the flow I need in the DT, and make do for repairs or replacement. BUT, I always had a spare return pump waiting with fittings already attached in the case of a failure. Anal I know, but I had quite a few "situations" while my tank was running.
I probably won't have any sand in the DT next time either.
erics3000
Active member
Del. I have had the same stuff happen...
I just removed all my play sand in my display and got the biggest Aragonite sand I could get. I just need the look sand in my tank but I never liked the south down mostly due to the fact it is such a fine size.
My OM4 is stuck too. That port that goes to the pipe under my rocks is the one that hasn't received any flow. I was thinking about the same thing I didn't want that stuff blown into my tank so I came up with a little work around. When I get home I am going to take power head and blow in the outlets after I take off the OM4 to try and get the water out before I try and fix it and fire it up again.
I just removed all my play sand in my display and got the biggest Aragonite sand I could get. I just need the look sand in my tank but I never liked the south down mostly due to the fact it is such a fine size.
My OM4 is stuck too. That port that goes to the pipe under my rocks is the one that hasn't received any flow. I was thinking about the same thing I didn't want that stuff blown into my tank so I came up with a little work around. When I get home I am going to take power head and blow in the outlets after I take off the OM4 to try and get the water out before I try and fix it and fire it up again.
jnarowe
New member
Hey guys, try attaching a PVC pipe to a shop-vac and vacuuming out the detritus. I used to do that on a fairly regular basis. In fact I got about 75' of 1.25" hose between my shop-vac and the PVC. What I did was start a syphon with the shop-vac outside, and then disconnect the hose and allow the water to run out into the yard. It worked great for starting the syphon. Then I would lay over my tank and vacuum until the tank filled with air bubbles. This signaled me that the sumps were empty, and I stopped vacuuming. Then I added my water-change water. It took about 15 minutes total and did not release detritus etc. into the water column. Something to think about anyway!
Fiziksgeek
New member
I used to open and close all valves once a week or so as regular maintenance. Even then, it still got hard over time with the cheaper valves.
Any thought of going away from the closed loops all together and using power heads (tunze) only? You gotta work to hide them, and they are not maintenance free, but when you do have to do maintenance, you don't have to worry about closing any valves.
Any thought of going away from the closed loops all together and using power heads (tunze) only? You gotta work to hide them, and they are not maintenance free, but when you do have to do maintenance, you don't have to worry about closing any valves.
dsandfort
Premium Member
Too late on the closed loops...they are done. Here is the whole new plumbing arrangement.
A little closer look. Note the lack of a motor on the OM's.
I'll still use 4 tunze 6105 but it's a PITA to drag them out for maintenance. I have another Dart and I'll just rotate the pumps on a maintenance schedule AND open and close the valves on a schedule.
A little closer look. Note the lack of a motor on the OM's.
I'll still use 4 tunze 6105 but it's a PITA to drag them out for maintenance. I have another Dart and I'll just rotate the pumps on a maintenance schedule AND open and close the valves on a schedule.
CleveYank
20 Years and Over
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