Not a typical doctor's waiting room... 450 gallon reef

[KingfishJohn]

Deltec Family (Minus FR509 Reactor)

AP902

Lighting Components

Halide Ballasts

 

[KingfishJohn]

10k 400w Coralvue Reeflux 10k's

Lumenarc 3's

VHO Ballasts (Icecap 660)

 

[KingfishJohn]

Saltwater Mixing Pump

RO/DI Unit (AquaFX Dual DI)

Lots and lots of salt

 

[KingfishJohn]

Circulation

Sequence Hammerhead

Group shot of the equipment (200 pounds of sand in the boxes in the back right)

 

[KingfishJohn]

Gratuitous coral shots:

Finally, the reason the tank isn't already in place

 

[jnarowe]

sweet!!! Hey, where did you get the Tropic Marin in 82lb. bags, and is that the "Pro"??

 

[KingfishJohn]

My Tropic Marin supplier carries the 300 gallon bags so wherever you get TM from, they should be able to order the big bags.

They do not come in pro unfortunately. As the tank progresses, we may have to switch back to buckets, depending on what the alkalinity sits at.

 

[fishypets]

Nice thread John and Mike.

I'm thinking about going back to school for another 6 years so I as well can have a 450 gallon tank.

Hey Mike-

Looks like you get my corals after all. Make sure to dip before adding to your system though.

 

[Dudester]

It turns out we were all correct. Marcus used to have 6 MH pendants, but after switching to the Lumenarc reflectors, he's down to just 3.

fishypets - You're such a tease! And don't worry, I'll dip EVERYTHING I get from you .

 

[benf]

Only question is the size of the overflow...what turnover do you expect? I too am using a Hammerhead pump and i expect 10-15x turnover running 3 2" drains and 2 1.5" returns.

 

[Typhon]

Impressive equipment list. The doctor's office must have some deep pockets..

 

[leoskee]

Definitely deep pockets. Thats a lot of high end equipment. Thousands of $

 

[jnarowe]

I use a Hammerhead and have two 2" and one 1.5" drain and that is more than enough. I can shut any of the drains individually with no adverse affect.

 

[swannking]

If you use the hammerhead as a return pump, I don't think the length of your overflow box is long enough to handle that kind of volume and may cause your tank to overflow. I have a 450g tank 78"X36"X36" and I have the overflow occupy the one side of the tank with a length of 36". I run a barracuda pump and the water level rises to about 1.5" above the bottom of the teeth.

 

[KingfishJohn]

The hammerhead is the closed loop pump, not the return. The return is a sequence dart throttled back to 1600-2000 gph.

What that group of doctors wanted is a solid reef system, with a minimum amount of headache and maximum return. Although costs could have been cut here and there, maintenance would increase and the overall project costs would go up. When I go with another skimmer that cannot handle a 450 gallon heavily stocked reef, I end up doing greater water changes. By going with top of the line equipment, maintenance to the tank decreases, and nothing will need to be upgraded.

John

 

[jnarowe]

swannking: Not sure about that. While my overflow box is about 94" long, it is only 6" x 6" and there is only about 3 inches of water in it, so it really depends on more variables.

 

[swannking]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9012587#post9012587 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jnarowe
swannking: Not sure about that. While my overflow box is about 94" long, it is only 6" x 6" and there is only about 3 inches of water in it, so it really depends on more variables.

It is the length of the overflow box that determines the volume of flow that it can handle ie. from the tank to the overflow. How fast the water inside the overflow box drain into the sump is determined by the size of the drain. Since yours is 94", there is no issues. If your length of the overflow is much less, let say 12", then the water in the tank can't get to the overflow box fast enough and the main tank water level will rise until it overflows.

 

[benf]

OK, so you are using the dart for a return....cause i was concerned with the small overflow for using a hammerhead, that is why i brought it up. I decided to run my Hammerhead as return and feed my chiller and refuge as well. My tank is much smaller than your build....72x27x24, but overflow box is ~60" with 3 2" drains.

 

[KingfishJohn]

My rule of thumb on tank/sump turnover is always 5 times the tank volume. This slow flow allows greater contact time with the skimmer, less bubbles and salt creep, and a smaller return pump. It also allows the sump to act as a settling chamber for detritus where it can be easily shop vacced out.

Since the bottom is PVC (and not glass) we elected to not have AGE cut the closed loop holes for us and do it ourselves. The tank stand is already in place and has LOTS of steel cross members and getting the tank and stand to match up would have been near impossible.

Another thing to mention is that when selecting equipment for this tank, we went with manufacturers that were known to be the best on the market.

Sequence offers a three year warranty and excellent customer support. I also stock Sequence in case the pump needs and immediate replacement.

Deltec has the best representative in the market in Doug and nothing cannot be handled quickly. I also have the same model Deltec in store in case a part needs to be robbed in hours.

Tunze's warehouse is located in Austin, they have the BEST powerheads on the market, and Roger Vitko is a first class retailer. Any problems can be taken care of without hassle and wasted time.

Coralife and Icecap have a distributor not 30 minutes from our store.

AquaFX is a brand I personally have been using for over 2 years. We have one of their units in store driving our water and Marianne (president) is ALWAYS willing to do what it takes to help you.

Finally we're using Tropic Marin salt as I use it in store, and on all maintenance accounts and the difference in salts is very evident. Tropic Marin's rep is also an incredibly helpful guy and I encourage anyone who goes to MACNA to meet with him.

 

[clekchau]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9013002#post9013002 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by swannking
It is the length of the overflow box that determines the volume of flow that it can handle ie. from the tank to the overflow. How fast the water inside the overflow box drain into the sump is determined by the size of the drain. Since yours is 94", there is no issues. If your length of the overflow is much less, let say 12", then the water in the tank can't get to the overflow box fast enough and the main tank water level will rise until it overflows.

the width of the teeth in the overflow also plays a factor