Show me your auto top off / holding tanks / saltwater mixing systems on large setups

AquariumObsessed

In Memoriam
Please post any pics of your setup for auto topoff, saltwater mixing tubs, water holding etc on large systems. Please detail how they work and what if anything you would do different if re-designing.

thanks
 
38975waterstorage.jpg


This one is at home. I have a 90 there that I change ~ 10 G a week on. The fresh on hand is great for mixing kalk for my top-off reservoir. The pump for mixing my salt is not pictured above, but it rests on the shelf you see next to the tank.
The 300 at work has a fish room, so these tanks are setup in a similar fashion, except right next to the sump. The FW is converted , with another closed loop for mixing, a kalk top off reservoir.
Overall, the total cost for the one in my garage pictured was $250 with pump. The one at work requires an additional pump, as pictured below.

38975swmixpump.jpg
 
30 gal WC tank.RO/DI unit hooked directly to tank w/ 1/4" tubing...water enters tank until float valve shuts off.Choice of PH or internal pump for circulation.When ready to change water..turn on internal pump..and valve to enter tank,other valve on rt of manifold takes water from tank to sink.
wctank.jpg


manifold

valves.jpg


Valves_copy.jpg
 
Here is my simple set up. The 55g drum is attached to my ro/di unit and shuts off with a float valve. I have a Little Giant pump for circulation/mixing, and a drain on the bottom of the drum that drains into the sump. Very simple, and it makes water changes a piece of cake.


30741Equipment_Room_1-5-05_003.jpg
 
My step dad works for a company that uses them to haul liquids in. I can get them for about $8.00 each. I think if you check around to a Coke or Pepsi plant, you might be able to get some from them. They use them to transport syrup.
 
I was thinking of doing this..

2 x 150 gallon rubbermaid for water changes

2 x 100 gallon for top up and emergency water.

What pump is recomended for mixing saltwater?
 
Here you go:

*Top Off
I have my RO/DI unit plumbed to and split between my 300g storage tank for mixing salt water and the 55g drum for top off. A small valve direct the water to one of the other as needed. I just turn on the RO/DI unit by hand and turn it off when they are full. Try to automate that and you are begging for a flood or disaster at some point. My opinion at least. A litermeter pump takes the water from the 55g drum and pumps it into the kalk reactor, which overflows into the sump. Simple and reliable. It will take 3-4 days to figure out exactly how much to dial the litermeter at, but once done forget it. You could dump the entire 55g into my system and hardly change the salinity. You could dump the 55g of kalk in the system over a day and the alkalinity will increase by 3 dkh at most.

top-off.jpg


*Water changer
RO/DI unit is plumbed directly to the container. Fill and add 2 buckets of 160g of IO and one single 50g bag of IO and you have 1.026 salinity. I have a little giant 4md taking the water from a bulkhead at the bottom and returning it at the top. To fill the sump for a water change, I disconnect the hose at the top and put it in the sump.

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Not a pic but a schematic. If you need anything answered please don't hesitate to ask. Its actually quite simple.

I left off the saltwater circuit to keep it "simple". Its just a repeat of the DI reservoir with no reactor between it and the sump. It Tees at the input to the RO/DI unit and is controlled by a valve.

TopOff.jpg
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Wow, And I thought mine was trick.....
I feel like mine is totally ghetto next to all those.
Thanks for ideas for future tanks people.
 
Um thanks but I'm confused. Why is it I can memorize 150 pages a day of physiological psychology (anatomy and physiology of the brain) and I can't figure out how to set up one of these systems? Does anyone have an extremely simple diagram for non-techno chicks like myself? Heck I would hire someone to come over and set one up for me but unfortunately there are no reef clubs in Hilton Head South Carolina. I'm not sure how to automate my top off water. I understand the concept of the float switch and luckily I have a drain in the floor incase of a flood, but hooking one thing up to another confuses me. Anyway hopefully someone will post a step by step detailed explanation for me so I can get the plans underway.

Amanda
 
The ratchet strap is temp until i can make some brackets:) I have a 1" braided cpvc line with a slip to barb that i run between the sump and the ball valve on the resevoir for water changes...
 
On an unrelated note there AquariumObsessed, when I went to your website and in the forum to check out your controler, this was at the top of your web page:

Defaced By Zulwarn fR0m iLLegaLTeaM [Turkish HackeR]

Yeah, you might want to go fix your web sever......
 
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