New Tank Build

[Jedidad]

their nice and the controller is really easy to use and set up the light timers. they will ramp up through the day and then back down. they have an automatic lunar cycle programmed and storms including lightning. Each color is individually controllable as well. When the new pucks come out I will probably add some true ultraviolet led's.

 

[bobkill]

Yeah 420 nm is needed - that was one of my complaints with my Sols

 

[Jedidad]

AI's spectrum chart shows that it covers the 420nm range but there is some debate about that. Did you put a sheet of plywood on top of the stand to support the bottom of the tank?

 

[Jedidad]

I know my tank is not ready yet but my QT has been sitting there doing nothing and I had a gift card to Wet Pets that I got for Christmas a year ago. I stopped by there to pick up the correct bulk heads and saw these guys and had to have them.
The snowflake is a Black Ice and the other is called a Tangerine Clown. I have never seen the Tangerine before and thought it was cool. Here is a pick of the pair in the QT getting along well.

 

[bobkill]

No I just used the installation foam - good pick up on the clowns

 

[cubiclewarrior]

Nice led setup!

 

[Jedidad]

Thanks, I built the hangers out of some conduit and conduit hangers. The AI EXT rails and hanging kits would have cost me $250. I built this for about $30. I can't wait to see fish and corals under these things.

 

[cubiclewarrior]

Thanks, I built the hangers out of some conduit and conduit hangers. The AI EXT rails and hanging kits would have cost me $250. I built this for about $30. I can't wait to see fish and corals under these things.

If you wouldn't of said that I wouldn't of known! very good idea! Thats one of the things that made me pass on the AI lighting system after you buy the lighting you have to get a mounting system. I never thought about conduit at the time. Conduit thats spray painted should hold up nicley.

Im still very happy so far with my cheapo leds but its only been a few months...
The colors on everything are super bright

 

[Jedidad]

Yea I got the ideal from a thread of AI Vega owners. Those lights you got should be very good. I remember them from your thread. I thought very hard about ordering them myself instead of the vegas. I decided on the vegas only because I wanted the extra controllability.

 

[Jedidad]

Ok, so I finally got some time and some motivation this weekend and got all of the plumbing and wiring done. Here are some pics of the progress.

I can't believe how many trips I had to make to Lowe's or Home Depot to finally get all the right pieces I needed. I have so much stuff left over that I bought and didn't need.
The wiring could be a little neater but for now I am happy with it. I plan on adding an Apex controller and a Bubble Magus dosing system so some rearranging may have to be done at that time. Now I just need to do the aquascaape and make sure the plumbing holds water and then I can finally get it wet and start the cycle.

 

[manitou74]

NICE!! What are you using the jug for?

 

[Jedidad]

I have a Tunze Osmolator that I use for my ATO. The pump fits perfectly into the 5 gallon jugs like that so it is the reservoir for my ATO. Makes it nice and easy. When one gets empty I just put the next in and refill the used one. The big black box next to it is a backup battery power supply that will power the necessities for maybe 30 minutes in case of a power outage. This will give me a little time to get the generator I plan on buying running so I don't have any major losses because of storms.

 

[reefomatix]

Which lights did you end up getting again?

 

[Jedidad]

I got the AI Vega colors

 

[Jedidad]

I need your help with an aquascape decision. I'm pretty much done with it and will be adding water this weekend. I have two different scapes I like that I have to choose from.
The first has just one arch.

The second is exactly the same except that it has a second arch.

I really like the one with two arches but the one with just one arch would allow more room for sps to grow out. Let me know what you all think.

 

[new2SW]

I like the two arches, but what i think would look cool is if that left arch extended forward to that front left rock. Just a thought...

 

[Soggytoes]

Love the first one

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[Jedidad]

Thanks for the input. Gonna make a decision tonight and get the tank wet Saturday.

 

[Jedidad]

THE TANK IS FINALLY WET!!!!!!!
Here's a couple of pics with the sand added.

A shot of the cloudy water.

And a shot of the sump with everything running.

The skimmer is making micro bubbles like crazy and I will have to work on that some but i probably just needs to break in.
The overflow is making a ton of noise so i will have to work on adjusting the flow and the gurgle busters.
I also have an almost non-existent leek on one of the drain pipe bulkheads. I might get one drip every hour or two off of it. I am trying to figure out how to get a tool onto it to tighten it just a tad more, but it is hard to get to it. Hopefully I can get all the kinks worked out of it tomorrow after church.

 

[Jedidad]

Ammonia at .5 and no measurable nitrites yet. I hate this waiting game.