Phuzzykins' 300 gallon AGE Build Extravaganza

[phuzzykins]

Well, here we go... and I may as well start off with the obligatory equipment list.

Display Tank:
300 gallon Marineland Deep Dimension (72x36x27), Starphire 3 sides.
DIY custom steel stand

Sump Tank:
90 gallon Glass Cages acrylic sump

Skimmer:
Reeflo Orca 250

Return Pump:
Reeflo Snapper

Water Motion:
2x Vortech MP40W (Probably inadequate long-term)

Lighting:
3 x 250w 10k MH, Lumen Bright reflectors with IceCap ballasts
8 x 39w T5 actinics on two IceCap 660 ballasts
Neptune Lunar Sim

Controller:
Neptune AquaController 3
Misc. PC-based automation

This will be a basement build, with the majority of the equipment located in a separate utility room. The goal is to strike a balance between performance, sound, energy efficiency, and cost.

The only item I haven't actually sourced yet is the display tank itself - if you know of a Marineland reseller who can arrange delivery, please PM me.

Please stay tuned for photos of the location, as well as the equipment so far.

 

[sly fox]

i think it will have to be from a lfs...

 

[mflamb]

You will like the Marineland 300 with Starphire.

 

[SPStoner]

That will have to be a special order tank. The stock ones only come with Starphire fronts. Sounds good though. You are probably right that you will need more than the two MP40's. I just setup the 4 foot 200 gallon version of this tank with an MP40 and two Tunze Stream 6060's and it is barely enough.


T

 

[mflamb]

I currently have 2 Tunze 6105, and will be adding 2 more.

 

[phuzzykins]

I guess I'll just start calling around for the display tank until I find an LFS willing to do a special order. The tank will be viewable from the front and left side, so I at least want Starphire on those two panels. The right side won't be visible, but having Starphire on it might make sense if I ever resell the tank.

I may also have the holes enlarged, but my understanding is that the warranty is reduced to 90 days with that option - probably not a huge deal since it's already shortened drastically by not using the stock stand. Ultimately the cost of replacing the tank would seem pretty minimal compared to the cost of replacing my carpet and livestock if the tank were to fail.

Placed the order for my sump yesterday... it'll be arriving on the 24th. Contrary to all the bad reports, I didn't find the lady at GC to be at all rude or difficult to work with. We exchanged a couple of emails, one phone call, and it was done.

The skimmer (from Premium Aquatics) arrived last week, and is a VERY serious piece of equipment. Getting it for $250 off the normal price due to their holiday sale was a very nice bonus, as was the assistance they offered to help make sure I set it up correctly. It's a shame that such a nice skimmer comes with such poor instructions.

 

[SPStoner]

If you have Perfecto drill the holes, it won't effect the warranty, but not using their stand will.

Try Tropic Isle Aquarium. They are the largest marineland dealer in the area. They are at 4 Pierce Street in Framingham- 508-875-5303.

HTH,

Tony

 

[phuzzykins]

Thanks, Tony... they were going to be first on my list.

I suppose another thing to consider would be putting their stand on a steel or wood box to raise it a bit, and then just skinning it. I don't plan to have any equipment in my stand anyway, so I'm not concerned about losing some space. It seems like an ugly solution, but maybe a pragmatic one.

 

[phuzzykins]

Pics? Of course.

Pics? Of course.

First, the area of my basement where the tank will go, prior to finishing:

In the center of the frame, you can see the pump-out laundry sink I added, as well as my Melev's Reef RO/DI.

In the middle of refinishing the basement, an ice storm knocked out my power for over four days, and I lost nearly everything in my current tank, a 34 gallon Solana. This is what it looked like at the end of those four days:

I had them install a tiled area for the display tank... the tiled area is approximately 6'8 by 4'4

The sump and equipment will be behind this wall. For those of you counting ceiling tiles, YES, that light fixture is too close... it (and the pool table underneath it) will be moved.

 

[phuzzykins]

More pics? Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you.

More pics? Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you.

The skimmer is an absolute beast. The original review I read complained about two thing: the lousy instructions, and the lack of a drain valve. You can clearly see which one they decided to fix.

Less beastly but still very nice, the return pump:

And ballasts, mounted to a piece of Star Board:

The Vortech wins the award for Prettiest Packaging. Most equipment in this hobby seems to come in very drab, utilitarian boxes. Not the Vortech.

And finally, a trio of Lumen Brights:

 

[phuzzykins]

Not a tremendous amount of progress to report, but I did some major cleaning of my sump / utility room.

I also installed IEC-C14 sockets on the lamp cords from the Lumen Brights, and fired up a bulb. The Ice Cap ballasts are -silent-, and the Ushio 10k is a nice, crisp white. No complaints so far.

I did have two issues with one of my Vortechs, but Ecotech Marine has replacement parts on the way. One driver housing had some minor damage, and one of the power supplies quit after running for about three days on my Solana.

I have more Star Board on the way to use as the top of my sump stand, and mounting panels for my Aquacontroller, DC4/DC8 modules, Vortech drivers, etc etc.

More goodies from Marine Depot should be arriving tomorrow.

 

[stunreefer]

Equipment looks great, this will be awesome! :thumbsup:

Make sure to get a generator before filling up the new tank too... maybe the VT batery back-up as well.

 

[phuzzykins]

Oh yeah... 5700 watt generator is already on site and full of gas.

I'm not sure if I want to go with the Vortech battery backup, or just get a fairly substantial UPS to keep critical functions going. I'd really like to keep my AquaController running, and have the option of running the return pump intermittently as well as the Vortechs.

It would also be preferable to put a line interactive true-sinewave UPS in between the generator and skimmer / return pump. My understanding is that 1/8hp motors are right on the edge of needing a true sine wave power source to function without damage.

 

[Bax]

phuzzykins

I am planning a similar 46x36 200g tank. Luv'n your equipment selections so far.

I'll be watch'n

 

[phuzzykins]

Well, this is no longer a Marineland build... I just got a quote for an AGE tank with the same dimensions, but with a PVC bottom and external overflows.

There's a long lead time for the AGE tank, but this wasn't shaping up to be a fast build anyway.

 

[jt48]

I too am strongly considering the MarineLand DD but something to consider if you want something other than front only viewing-the corner overflows would be visible as opposed to say an Oceanic with overflows several inches from the corner.

 

[phuzzykins]

The overflows and trim are two of the major reasons I'm going with AGE instead of the Marineland DD.

Ultimately it came down to a significant amount of money to get trim, overflows, and a stand that I didn't really care for.

I'm definitely paying more for AGE, but getting exactly what I wanted - steel stand, no trim, external overflows, PVC bottom, and clear eurobracing.

 

[jt48]

I am familiar with the old AGA but who is AGE?

 

[phuzzykins]

AGE == Acrylic and Glass Exhibits, http://www.acrylicandglassexhibits.com/

 

[FiSHy sAy HeY]

nice...