SPS In-wall 2.0

[dwolson2]

So I was changing out the water my rocks were sitting in yesterday and I've come to the following conclusions:

1) Waiting on your RO/DI unit to make water is worse than waiting for paint to dry.

2) People who leave the lid off the salt bucket overnight should be shot.

On a side note...the rocks look/smell good. Hopefully this will mean the tank will be up and running a little quicker.

its better than cleaning up X gallons....only at about 6 times now..

 

[javajaws]

OK, got an early start on the weekend's fun today:

• Got around to doing a leak test on the tank with some tapwater - no problems found!
• Put about 1" of sand in the tank and around 6" of water. I put the water in there mostly so I could get my brute emptied to make more.
• Float switches came in yesterday so I redid the float switches in the sump. Much better wiring (and soldering with some new solder). I'm not too happy with the float switches themselves though (aquahub iFloat) - they are hollow floats and just feel cheaper than the blue ones I was using before.
• Got started redoing my latching relay float setup for my RO/DI reservoir. I took 3 float switches and put them into some 3/4" PVC caps that I tapped holes into. After screwing them in (with o-ring seal) I further waterproofed them with some silicone. Gonna let them set overnight then reassemble them into a 3-float relay system (1 low, 2 high). The extra high float is a safety precaution for overflows (float redundancy). This whole thing will then jack into my Reef Fanatic Level Controller in "B mode". Since the RO/DI unit and the reservoir sits in my pantry I can't easily use my Apex for this...maybe someday when it's not 103 outside I'll run some wires through my attic.
• Made yet another hardware run...this time for some fiberglass rods, 3/8" long masonry bit, and some aqua meld. I'm ready for tomorrow to start aquascaping the rocks. On a side note I tested the water I put the rocks in yesterday and its showing slight nitrite but no ammonia. A good sign.

 

[javajaws]

Photo from yesterday...and the secret to my success: child labor!

 

[javajaws]

Here's the beginning of today's fun - a pile of rocks and a mockup of the tank's size:

Because the MP40 on the left side of the tank will have to be lower than that on the right (to fit under the overflow), I had decided that the higher part of the aquascape had to be on the right side. I came up with this "three headed monster" using fiberglass rods and epoxy. It's 1 big rock with 3 smaller rocks attached and it's very stable:

Here's my first attempt at a full layout. Still not too happy with the left side.

And that same layout in the tank:

I'm currently thinking about flipping the left side around such that the higher part of the left side is in the middle adjacent to the right island. Make it almost 1 super island sort of with a gentle slope from right to left and a small gap in the middle that will later be grown in with corals (making an arch almost).


Thoughts???? BTW, I do have a few more rocks I can use...

 

[javajaws]

Some of the inspirations I'm using as guides:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=18139256#post18139256

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=15231327#post15231327

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=18352266&postcount=879

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=18945578&postcount=1170

After looking at those again I think I definitely need to do something to the left...it just looks too busy. Needs more "minimalist"!

 

[fishypets]

Flippin sweet!

Your tank has become my new favorite! Can't wait until it is up and running

 

[Padrino]

I really like all the work you have done so far. Its very well done! Great job! In terms of the minimal aquascapes you posted. I like the first one personally. It looks very similar to how chingchai did his aquascaping.

Cheers
Rob

 

[javajaws]

Here's a second attempt. I still don't feel I'm quite there yet though. The middle island has a large tunnel underneath it running from front to back - kind of hard to see in the pics. It also has another small overhang on the backside (towards the back/middle of the tank). The left island has a small overhang about 1" off the sand.

From here I can try any one of a few things pretty easily:

• I can remove the smallest island on the left altogether (and respace the others as necessary).
• I can merge the left and middle island together by moving them close together.
• Remove left island and replace with another overhang attached to leftmost rock of middle island.
• I can rotate one or more of the islands to give it a different look

On another note I should have enough water by morning to get the sump running, which will hopefully lead to the water clearing up with the use of a sock.

 

[javajaws]

I'm thinking the part I don't like about the latest scape is that it's too orderly height wise...the even increase in height from left to right just doesn't look natural.

 

[Padrino]

If I was doing it, i would leave everything the same with the exception of, I would modify the island on the far right and just change one of the two flats. Perferably lower the left flat so it does look symmetrical. i like the rest
Hope that helps
Rob

 

[javajaws]

Day 1!

Day 1!

It's official, we're up and running! I don't have EVERYTHING 100% online, but I'm not too far from it either. Got the sump, return pump, heater, lights, skimmer, reactor, and Vortechs all running. Got the pH probe calibrated. Got the RO/DI reservoir ATO system finished and plugged in.

Here's the current todo list:

• Fix a minor pinhole leak in one of the return fittings
• Calibrate conductivity probe (waiting on calibration solution)
• Hook up the FW dosing pump, verify it works ok and the programming is working
• Slave the Vortechs to the Apex
• Tune skimmer
• Finish trim on back side of tank
• Wait for the cycle!

I really wanted to post some pictures but the abundance of reflections during the day make it an almost impossibility to get decent pictures. This is made worse since both the front and back get reflections. I promise I'll post some after it gets dark. I will say though that first thing I did this morning was redo the aquascape yet again...moved back to a 2 island setup.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

congrats. that's not too bad of a punch list, you have some time to get it done.

can't wait to see the scaping you ended up with.

 

[Taqpol]

I loved the old tank, but it looks like this tank is going to be improved in every way. I love the "semi" in-wall concept, count me along for the ride!

As far as aquascaping goes, I probably would not try for a true three island look in a four foot tank. I also am not a big fan of arches because I feel that no matter how airy you make the rocks an arch connecting two island will make the rocks look like one island, destroying the effect. As far as your previous picture is concerned, I would have taken the middle island and made it the far left island, and use the rocks from what used to be the far left island to make little outcroppings and mini-islands very close to the remaining two.

I understand that since then you have already re-aquascaped, and I'm looking forward to seeing it!

 

[javajaws]

As far as aquascaping goes, I probably would not try for a true three island look in a four foot tank. I also am not a big fan of arches because I feel that no matter how airy you make the rocks an arch connecting two island will make the rocks look like one island, destroying the effect. As far as your previous picture is concerned, I would have taken the middle island and made it the far left island, and use the rocks from what used to be the far left island to make little outcroppings and mini-islands very close to the remaining two.

That's almost exactly what I did! Pictures in a minute...

 

[javajaws]

Note: All photos in this post were taken with 2 of the Blue+ lights turned off.

OK, first up is a no-flash shot from the front. You can kind of see the tunnel in the left island. There is an overhang on the front/right of the left island as well - doesn't show up too well at this angle (look for the shadow on the sand). Also note the outline of the overflow box on the left glass and placement of the Vortech underneath it. The rectangle in the top/right of the pic is just the glass cleaner...i was too lazy to remove it.

Full frontal shot w/flash. Ignore the really dirty kitchen (hey, I was busy!).

Angled shot from the left. You can see the left overhang better here.

Full rear shot w/flash. Note the missing maple trim on the left. Also missing is a cherry frame trim that will go around the opening the tank is in (refer to mockup earlier in the thread to get the idea).

Slightly different angle:

Here was a shot I took earlier today of the left island from the rear (thus the reflections):

The left side of the cabinet showing the MP40 squeezed in below the overflow. Can anyone spot the leaky pipe?

 

[javajaws]

So to close out the night I'll make a couple more comments:

First, I'm still not 100% set on the aquascape. It's enough for now, but I'll probably change something about it later. Perhaps the first thing to change will be the spacing of the islands...they are too uniformly spaced with the sides currently. Then...who knows.

Second, I've noticed one of my Vortechs is louder than the other (only really noticeable at 100%). The louder Vortech also has the cord slightly frayed where it hooks into the controller. I hope this wasn't some refurb unit or anything.

Last, I'll mention this here before anyone asks. The current bulb setup is:

• 4 - ATI Blue+
• 2 - KZ New Generation
• 1 - KZ Fiji Purple
• 1 - GE 6500k

I have some extra bulbs for most of those as well as some aquablue special bulbs so one day in the next month I'll be playing around with bulb combinations to get the look I want.

 

[javajaws]

Well, got the FW dosing pump hooked up tonight and online with the Apex. I had a "Oh #$%@" moment when I couldn't get it to prime the line though. My FW line from my FW reservoir goes up into the attic, across the doorway, then back down into the pantry where my freshwater reservoir sits. I guess the pump couldn't handle the pressure so I had to resort to "mouth priming it". After hooking it back up to the doser it kept primed so I should be good to go.

At any rate I ran it through a few artificial fill cycles via manipulation of the water level in the sump and I think I'm set. I'll monitor the fill cycles in the Apex log over the next few days to see if anything needs tuning. I also got the low/high alarms enabled so I'll feel a little safer sleeping tonight!

 

[jc-reef]

Very nice build you have there!! Spectacular cabinetry and workmanship....certainly to be proud of!! The latest 2 island set up looks pretty sweet to me I must say...given the minimalist effect you are trying to obtain. I am sure you will still play around with it for a few more weeks while the tank cycles....I know I did with mine.

I will be following along with your build and look forward a year from now with a nice stock of corals & fish.


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[dark8nge1]

It looks like you have a removable cutout to get to you overflow. I have to do the same thing. Mind showing how you did it?

 

[javajaws]

It looks like you have a removable cutout to get to you overflow. I have to do the same thing. Mind showing how you did it?

Do you mean the cabinet part that's removeable over the overflow? That was simple: I made the cutout (with my tablesaw) before I installed the shelf (I consider it a shelf at least). I then just glued some 1/4" pieces of maple on the bottom of the shelf to keep the removeable section from falling through the hole. Then applied a bunch of spar varnish to everything. But because the overflow itself has a removeable acrylic cover it doesn't really get any moisture up there.