The Return of Hans - A 150 Gallon SCA Mixed Reef Build

[hhaase]

My 1" pipe arrived today, and I had already picked up my planned fittings last week, so I mocked up the overflow drains today. They're not glued yet but I'm pretty happy with how it came out so far. I may not have any couplings on there, but if I need to pull the sump I can loosen all of these in the overflow box and lift about two feet vertically. From left to right are my emergency line, secondary drain, and my primary drain.

I have a temptation to reverse the bulkheads going into the overflow box and put the flanges/gaskets on the dry side. This will make any potential maintenance significantly easier since I can then remove the entire pipe section and bulkhead from the overflow, and actually replace the gasket without having to cut any pipe. I can also completely glue and assemble without putting any potential stress on the overflow also.

Since nothing is glued yet I'm going to think that over for a couple days. I need to work out the supports for all this stuff anyway as I do NOT want it just hanging off the overflow box.

 

[hhaase]

I've been learning Blender lately for 3D modelling, which I'm finding in some ways is a lot easier to work with than CAD modelling..... but exact dimensions can be a bit tricky sometimes. I was finally able to get the dimensions nailed down for a particular model I was working on, so I went and printed this little trinket today. Looks a lot cleaner to me than cobbling together some Tee's, elbows, and caps for a durso.

Hard to see inside the overflow box but it fits perfect on the 1" PVC. Due to clearances inside the overflow box I'll be swapping my main and secondary overflows but that's still easy to do at this point. Once I know this design works well I'll upload the model to thingiverse for people to print out.

I also had a box arrive today with my 1/2" gate valves and 3/4" ball valves. Just need the pipe and I can start on my return lines. Pipe should be here Tuesday.

 

[hhaase]

Return manifold is done! I just need to extend the drains a bit further and that will finish up the hard plumbing. This weekend I'll be moving the tank a few feet into the final location and I can start working on the rockscape.

I essentially have two separate return paths for the two pumps that will normally be isolated from each other. Each of the returns will run to one of the bulkheads leading back into the tank. The right side pump also feeds the three gated outputs that I can use for reactors or other needs. If necessary I can turn a couple handles and feed the whole thing from just one of the return pumps.

I still need to get the walls into the sump before I can fill up with water, but it's really stinking close.

 

[hhaase]

This is two boxes of the Natures Ocean rock off of e-bay. About 100lbs or so, since they tend to always be more than the 40lb advertised weight. I've been torn about adding a third box, and wanted to wait until I had it in the tank to see how it all looks. I've done the 'Rock Wall' look beore, and to be honest didn't like it much. It just looked like a big pile of rock.

I wanted something that looks more like an open water reef with room for the corals to grow out nice and large over time. I'm not looking for a high variety frag-happy tank. I'm looking for something with a small variety of well grown corals. Particularly some plate montipora and some long branched acropora. Plus I also like some of the LPS and softies that grow out to a good size.

I'm actually really happy with what I gained from just the two boxes. I may pick up some small pieces in the future to smooth the gaps up in a couple spots, but this is ready to epoxy together and add the substrate. I also put the rocks over 1/2" of egg crate, mainly just to protect the glass, and I trimmed away anything outside the rockwork. It will limit sand sifters a bit but they'll still have plenty of area to work in.

The left side section, which comes up higher, will give me a spot for SPS and other higher light corals toward the top and LPS lower down. The right side will be more for the big softies and some LPS. The center will give me a good location for a big clam or two. It'll also make distinct territorial areas for fish that may get moody about their neighbors and keep the populations of the rock piles more individual from each other.

Now to add the sand!

 

[hhaase]

And 160lbs of Oolitic Aragonite caps it off nicely. I haven't rinsed this stuff yet, which I know means I'll have to fight with it after the initial freshwater fill, but I'm also planning on doing a complete fill and drain anyway to flush out anything that may be leached into the rock.

Very few things right now that keep me from doing a proper fill on this tank. But I will be doing a partial fill the next couple of days to do that freshwater flush.

 

[hhaase]

I also need to figure out my circulation soon too. I'm torn between three choices. Red Sea Gyre, MP40(s), or a pair of Tunze Stream pumps of unknown size. Looking for a rolling gyre like everybody else these days. I particularly have to be careful due to the fine sand that I don't want blowing around.

-Hans

 

[hhaase]

Another day of ordering stuff or waiting for stuff. Right now I'm waiting on a few critical things that are on order. Glass pieces for the sump, aquarium safe silicone, and salt mix should all be here tomorrow. Next week I'll have the 3/4" loc line and biopellets arrive.

I don't have much left to do before I can start cycling this tank. Just need to put in the sump baffle, and paint the plywood that's going under the sump. Then just a couple of minor fittings and we're ready to go.

In the meantime, after work today I'm going to stat the freshwater flush of everything. Just need to run the RO line out to the tank and turn on the water.

 

[hhaase]

Things are sure moving fast now, which is a bit overwhelming after all the delays and having to just sit and wait for things that were LONG overdue. Super exciting and I have to make sure not to cut corners. For instance, I still haven't painted the wood under the sump, and that is a mandatory step.

I ran a temporary line from the RO to the tank today and started doing that freshwater fill. This is about 4.5 hours of run time on the RO and already almost a quarter full. That 2nd membrane add-on sure makes things run a lot quicker. I was expecting much cloudier from other forum discussions on the Petsmart Oolitic Aragonite. Unless something dramatic happens to change my mind, I'm just going to skim off the crud floating on the top of the water, toss in the salt and a power head, and let this start cycling. I won't quite fill it up to the overflow yet though. I'll also fine tune the salinity after things settle and such.

I've also got the first baffle installed in the sump, not that you can see it. I'm going to do a simple 2-chamber. First chamber will be to catch the returns, and also my controlled level for the skimmer. The 2nd larger chamber will house the reactors and return pumps. I'm going to do some oddball expansions later, but this will get me going for now and won't interfere with those expansion plans later. I will need to make a stand for the skimmer but that was already something I planned to do.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Nice job! It's so nice to follow an actual build thread. Pretty quiet around here these days.

I love the scape. How do you plan to run the cycle? Straight ammonia? Ghost feed? Dead shrimp? With dry rock, it'll be very easy to get algae. To avoid it, keep the lights off through the entire cycle. This allows the 'good' nitrifying bacteria to get established before algae-associated bacteria.

Good luck with it!

 

[hhaase]

I've generally always ghost fed for my cycles, no need to change what I know works for me. I'll also be starting the full 1L volume of biopellets right away too. I've found that adding biopellets into a tank with an established cycle can throw things badly off-kilter. I assume that new bacterial strains are growing in the pellets, and not only do those need to stabilize themselves but it also affects the existing denitrifying bacteria population. You have to add the pellets gradually and that could take months for an established system of this size. So I'm going to take a different approach with this tank and include the pellets as part of the initial cycle.

I'm probably not going to power up the lights until I'm almost at the point of adding coral. There's just no need to drive that much PAR into a system that isn't able to utilize it. Right now my focus is getting the filtration and circulation working and starting the cycle.

There's still a huge pile of things I want/need to do anyway before I'm worried about livestock. While the tank is cycling I'll keep doing that work finishing things up. With luck I'll be done with the initial build of the system around the same time the cycle is finishing up. This way I don't spend another couple months just sitting and waiting.

 

[hhaase]

I only have about 4 hours or so per day to run the RO after work, so I think I'm actually making very good progress on filling. About 12 hours so far with the RO running I'd estimate, and well over 100 gallons. My RO is definitely making more than the twin 75 gallon per day membranes had me expecting. I'm JUUUUUUST about to the first point I need to watch for leaking, which is the bulkheads between the tank and overflow box. Assuming those hold ok, I'll pull the weir to get some water into the overflow and check those bulkheads as well. After that it's comparatively smooth sailing, as I'll only have the return bulkheads to watch out for. I've re-checked everything a number of times so I don't expect problems. Still need to be cautious though.

Sump layout is nearly done too. All the hard plumbing is finished, except for making some retainers for the drain lines. I'm waiting on hose clamps to arrive, but otherwise I'd feel perfectly comfortable circulating through the sump once I know I'm leak free. I'm going with a very simple sump on this tank as you can see. Just two chambers, and a simple 2-baffle bubble trap. If I need a refugium later, I have plans for an external 'fuge instead of integrating it into the sump. There's still a lot to do for wiring cleanup and organizing but at least I can circulate water now through the tank and reactors. One of them has the 1L of biopellets. The dosing pump is only dosing RO water so that I can verify the thing works, not that I have any needs to dose anything yet anyway.

Lately, this is SALT WATER! I put in one bag of IO already to get the cycle started. The single tiny powerhead I have right now circulating water isn't enough to mix anything properly, nor did I expect it to be. I'm waiting to kick in the main circulation pumps before adding more salt. As you may notice, I still don't have heaters yet. I want to see what kind of temp I'll be looking at with all the circulation running at the ambient air temp. Then I can figure the heater size I'll want.

 

[hhaase]

I'm going to use this post for some rolling updates during the next couple of days, as the tank fills up and I hit some critical points. I figured this is cleaner for the forum than constant fresh posts. I wanted to put this in as a loose guide for what I'm looking for since this is probably the most critical part of a new tank build.

Overall Status: Had a problem with #3, now fixed. About as full as I'm comfortable doing right now. Waiting on the clamps for my return pumps.

1: Tank water level: As full as I'm comfortable with, without being able to run the pumps and set the water levels.
2: Tank to Overflow Bulkheads: So far no evidence of leaks.
3: Overflow to drain bulkheads: One leak on emergency drain repaired, loose lock-nut. Now looks ok.
4: Tank to return line bulkheads: Water has not yet reached these bulkheads.
5: Sump water level: At approximate operating level. No evidence of leaks.
6: Circulation pumps: Still waiting on the clamps to arrive (Estimated on the 28th).
7: Overflow rates/water level/general status: Not enough water yet to test overflow levels or tune drain gate valve. Pumps not yet running.
8: General manifold and plumbing leaks: Plumbing is basically dry, so too soon to evaluate.

 

[hhaase]

Looks like my time window for edits on the previous post has expired, but that's ok, time for a fresh post giving a rundown of the status anyway. I'm still waiting for my clamps to arrive before turning on the circulation pumps, but the tank is effectively filled and cycling now! All I have for circulation at the moment is a tiny little powerhead, which is comical in how little the water circulates. I'm not really concerned about that however since I've got no livestock and the cycle has just started.

I did have a single leaking bulkhead on the bottom of the overflow box to deal with, which was annoying but not too bad. I'm very glad I planned out the plumbing in a way that allows me to completely access and repair/replace everything on the tank. One of the bulkhead nuts wasn't quite tight enough so I drained about 20 gallons into the sump, pulled the overflow, cleaned all the sealing surfaces, and re-installed. I did have to 3D print a tool that let me tighten the bulkheads a bit better. Two days now with no evidence of leaks on any of the overflow plumbing.

Over the next few days I'll be working to get the salinity and temp stabilized, then I can think about sizing some heaters. I did decide on what to do for circulation in the tank and ordered a Jebao SCP-150 gyre style pump. I actually WANT the Red Sea Reefwave 45, but the dollars are adding up and I need to be cautious. I'll probably buy the ReefWave eventually and keep the Jebao as a backup.

-Hans

 

[hhaase]

I had a brainstorm last night! My pumps are controllable, so why not run them at their lowest setting? Well, I did and it worked! I ran both circulation pumps at their 30% setting without any leaks in the hard plumbing on the tank. This let me find my minimum functioning water level in the sump as well as a good operating level, and the tank is now officially 'filled to operating capacity'. Until the again-delayed clamps arrive I won't be running them unless I'm present, but I still got a lot done yesterday.

The power-off tests also went stellar. With the tank and sump at operating level, and both circulation pumps running, I killed the power completely and watched everything settle down just perfect. The dead water levels for the overflow and returns are pretty much equal, and the sump level only rises an inch and a half on a power failure, with over 6 inches of additional height available in the sump to contain water. A very comfortable margin in there for sure.

I'll have some fresh photos in the next couple of days, and maybe even some video if I'm feeling things are good enough.

-Hans

Really only one minor hiccup at all, I have a leaky o-ring in my biopellet reactor to fix. Since the reactor is completely contained in the sump it's an annoyance at most. Considering all the glue joints and threaded couplings ...
I'm super happy with how the plumbing came out. Couldn't ask for better.

 

[hhaase]

Jebao wave pump arrived today. Build quality was actually better than I expected, and at least so far I think it'll work out nicely for moving water like I need it to. I have it set a bit low right now, and I'll slowly ramp it up as I know how the sand bed will respond. I also got clamps finally, so the soft plumbing is officially finished and the main pumps are all running constantly now at 45%. Only plumbing tweak left to do is fix that leaky reactor with my biopellets in it.

Salinity is currently showing 1.026-1.027 depending on evaporation. I don't have an ATO yet so I need to get that into my routine for sure. After adding the salt mix I did end up with cloudy water. Should clear up over the next couple days. If the cloudy water doesn't clear up I do have a couple of fine mesh filter socks on the way plus a few pounds of carbon. I only had about two cups of carbon in my freshwater stash but I did put that in one of the reactors.

Heaters are on the way, along with a temperature controller. Going to start off with a pair of 200watt heaters and add a third if needed. I like using multiple smaller heaters instead of one big one, for redundancy like my multiple pumps.

Also, I only have one finished right now, but I did fire up that LED unit with the cloudy water. It lets me see the light pattern better. With the lens kit it's obvious how directional the LED's are. I won't actually leave these on yet though, no point to it really with no livestock yet. The cloudy water also made taking a photo an interesting experience.

 

[hhaase]

Heaters and heater controller arrived. Plus a couple filter socks.

Nothing of consequence today at all, nope nope nope

 

[hhaase]

So, yeah, I saved the money on the wave pump in order to free up a few bucks and make the Profilux 4 happen. At the moment I'm mainly using it to monitor the included probes (Ph, Temp, Conductivity, RedOx), plus control the temperature. Next step is going to be sorting out some kind of stand for all of the electronics and getting them off the plywood base inside the stand.
I plan on adding a lot to it over time but I want to get used to the environment first before expanding into more critical elements. That and make I have a stable installation, I don't want to introduce un-necessary risk into the equation. Assuming things go well I'd like to eventually add the full gamut with Ion and Kh directors, Dosing pumps, and so forth. Baby steps though.

I also 3D printed a stand for the skimmer, added a pair of 200 watt heaters, and basically I can declare the filtration up and running at this point. I don't care for the NanoSea media reactor. The O-ring groove is in the lid, which makes it near impossible to get it lined up when closing the lid. I ended up gluing the o-ring to the lid just to get it to stay in place. I'll likely replace it at some point, but biopellets don't involve opening the reactor very often, so it'll be fine for quite some time really. Still a LOT of cleanup and tweaking to do under the cabinet but from a functional standpoint I've got everything running where I need it right now. Dosing containers can come later, as can the GFO.

Another thing I did was add another sheet of plywood across the entire back of the lower cabinet, and bolted it to all 4 off the uprights. I was worried about the lack of gussets on the stand, and wanted something to prevent it from flopping sideways. My own silly fault for forgetting them in the original drawing. All better now, and it gives me more mounting options.

All the numbers are stable, and within acceptable ranges for the basics. I haven't started monitoring calc, alk, and mag yet.

 

[hhaase]

Another big step from this weekend is that I finished up retrofitting the 2nd set of lights with the new royal blue's. Looks pretty good I think, not that I'm able to get an accurate picture of the tank. My camera does NOT do well with the brightness, and I've got to perhaps go with a tripod and HDR. Maybe a bit too blueish/white for my taste but I know these lights can grow corals from my past experience with this set. Plenty of height and PAR options in the tank for high, mid, and low light inverts.

The filter sock also did a stellar job clearing up the cloudiness within just a day. Flow looks great from the Jebao pump. No measurable ammonia or nitrites despite 2x daily feedings.

 

[hhaase]

I know it's early to introduce any livestock with only 2 weeks since I started the cycle, but the daily numbers have been pretty consistently good with very low ammonia and no measurable nitrites, so this Pocillopora Damicornis frag followed me home today. A cheap impulse buy, to be honest. I also haven't started testing Ca,Alk,Mag yet, so I'll get started on that pretty quick.

At least for the short term I'm going to Kalk drip my daily top-off. I felt my PH was a touch lower than I'd like, and even though it's just one frag I do have to worry about calcium consumption. Particularly once the coraline starts to kick off.

Took me forever to get a good photo of this sucker, but finally found settings that worked.

 

[hhaase]

I'm seeing about 1 gallon per day of evaporation right now, but it's also fairly humid too. Come winter I know that will ramp up considerably. I know I'll need to sort out my ATO situation at some point.

Originally I had planned on picking up at Tunze Osmolator, but now that I have the Profilux I'm thinking the existing computer could handle things. Unless there's a system to tie the Osmolator into the Profilux? Decisions, decisions, decisions.