Zachtos 300G SPS reef build (Wisconsin)

[zachtos]

Really great build. Thoughtful and original design. Thorough execution. Nice work!!
I'd be paranoid about the vertical rock work being held only with silicone, but I know that stuff is incredibly strong; I would probably fashion some kind of brackets across the top anyway just to help me sleep better. Did you use ball valves for the feeds over to the frag tank? You'll want those to be able to take those things offline when needed.

Yes a 3/4" tru union feeds from one of the returns.

I think the rock work should be fine, others have done the same. It will take a crowbar to get that back off. The entire background is connected together so in that case, it sits like a U on the bottom, so would not fall over anyway. Though maybe a few rocks may fall out in the future if foam does not hold, but I do have the plastic bottom now.

 

[zachtos]

Lot of work this last week.





Yes, it's filling, FW only for testing phase. The HDPE sheet on the bottom floated right up, the silicone did not work, or maybe I did something wrong? oils on surface perhaps? 10lbs of weight held it down no problem, so I'm sure 300lbs of rock will nullify the issue, not worth tearing it all apart for minor issue, I know it may slightly warp anyway, and I worried about the glass feeling pressure from warp/expansion.



I finished the drywalling around the tank. Mud/sand/texture/paint. I still need to add baseboard and trim, and my parents will help with building an oak front access panel.





Lighting is temporary until I build my DIY LED fixtures in a few months.





I had to lower the water level in the tank so the wave maker would stop sloshing onto the floor. Now I have about 1.5" to work with from top, just below the plastic lip on the exterior. This was a LOT of work. I had to cut with a angle grinder through rock/foam/plastic to make a nice U in each corner. Then I drilled small holes and added gutter mesh (not pictured) to block fish from the overflows. I am having trouble with the overflows still, trying to keep them quiet and get the main water level down, because my sump floods a few gallons when I cut power.




I'm working on getting the flow in the dursos figured out. There is always way more flow in one vs the other, with adjustable air holes.



I made my own type of herbie overflow, using a durso and herbie. It is just a pipe with a coupling and cap. The coupling has 1/2" holes drilled around it through coupling/pipe. If you twist the coupling, you can adjust the flow, similar to a ballvalve on the end (which I can no longer add w/o heavy mod). It works pretty well so far, seems reliable, not seeing a drawback here.

 

[zachtos]

Algae turf scrubber setup on one of the overflows. This is a pain in the ***. I can't get the flow figured out to keep it even sheet of water. It also sounds like a bath tub filling up. The tank is nearly silent without this. I am not sure what I will do anymore, I do not like the noise.





Frag tank online, tied to main sump, the top tank is QT only. Skimmer dumps into that bucket excess waste. The white is the return and the grey line is the drain from frag to sump. I love the pool hose w/ 1" adapters from aquacave.







Denim insulation for noise reduction, not showing black plastic stapled over it to waterproof, though it is supposed to be mold/water resistant (it's shredded pants!) Seems to help on the noise, but I really need that 3/4" oak lid to really know the final sound levels, it is OK for now, but the ATS is not making me happy.






LEAKS, I had 3 leaks, one in spaflex return, easy fix but needed a trip to store. Other two were bulkheads in slightly rounded sump and barrel. I had a feeling they would leak, uniseals I think are for more curved, but these were very slight. I opened them up and added silicone and let dry. Seems OK, and they are not under pressure, so hopefully will stand the test of time.

 

[zachtos]

pumps and heater coil in place. Also tempertaure probe for the ranco to control pump to the hot water heater. I love the DCS pumps so far, so quiet you literally can't hear them, so powerful too, the flow curve was too conservative! Can only run them at 60% each or it's madness.



My skimmer, the int5000 reef octopus. Quiet with my HY5000 pump. I like it so far. I also bought the auto neck cleaner, pretty neat. I hated cleaning skimmer neck everyday, worth the $200!!!







All the wiring done. Lot of work. Vortech MP60's, waiting for new Quiet drive controllers to RMA, had issue where press mode button they did not work, cycled power instead. Not sure if a used pump hurt them somehow? Also mp60's are a bit loud w/ old controller to me, had to let the used one break in, it was rattling for a reason? Item on bottom is a float charger, the bottom surge strip is a custom uninteruptible power supply I built, attached to 1 of the returns for now. Also hooked up the 3 part doser, but not tried yet. Wave maker is nice, but need 1 more, 1 not enough for my taste, too weak 1/2" wave, not too loud though really.



3 part doser container in place, but not tested



Drain for sump, or future use for external return pump if need.

 

[zachtos]

The auto top off, I have it dump into the overflow from above rafters, could not figure out how to stop siphon after engaging the top off pump. It's 4' high from ground, so not really a way to stop it flowing into ground level sump. I must dump from above. This was a HUGE pain in *** too, probably 12 hours of labor for just getting the ATO online. Ended up scrapping the 1/4" water line w/ luftpumps, going 1/2" with a maxijet1200 did the trick. Ended up 3' of head with 12' horizontal = 4 to 5' of head loss maybe, but it works OK, comes out good flow. DIY Dual float switch w/ 12V relay setup in the sump, AC cord goes up and over to the return maxijet 12' away.







Oh the custom DIY UPS. This is an older project I did, but basically just a deepcycle battery, true sine wave inverter, float charger and AC power cord w/ relay. Charger and inverter connect to battery always. The inverter has AC out, to a cord which has hot wire broke by NO on relay. Relay has AC input for the switch activated so when power on, keeps relay in closed position, once lose power, it snaps shut, lets power flow on the NO normal open pins, which makes inverter power the AC ouput. So basically this will toggle AC power when power returns to the outlet, or use battery when the outlet loses power. I can plug any device into this under 400 watt total (pumps, maxijets, skimmer, laptop, WIFI, phone charger, whatever). More batteries mean more capacity. No generator planned, I live in the city, so no expectation of natural disaster in Wisconsin pas 8-24 hour tops, which this can keep returns online, and gas water heater keeps tank hot if need, no electric for that one.

 

[McPuff]

Following along intently as I'm building the same tank now. I won't have the frag system but otherwise we're pretty similar.

For the ATS, you might just consider growing some chaeto and adding a marine pure block or two. I think the combo there works quite well actually. For my system, I'll have a 60 gal sump to house the heaters, skimmer (Reef Dynamics INS300), and return pump (dct 15000 which will have manifold). Return will feed the display and a remote fuge/dsb to be placed above the sump in a 75 gal rubbermaid. I may also move the marine pure blocks up there and add whatever leftover liverock I have.

I still need to devise a water change system and I like what you've created. I think two 50 gal barrels is probably the minimum... I may even try to get a 100 gal for the RODI reservoir. For my ATO, I use a 7 gal container with a float switch... then connected directly to RODI reservoir. Reduces the need for a large ATO reservoir and works very well.

Anyway, great build so far!!

 

[JoeTSI]

I noticed what I appear to be firearms on the wall in your family room. Any info on those?

Great build and some serious DIY skills.

 

[zachtos]

... I won't have the frag system but otherwise we're pretty similar.

For the ATS, you might just consider growing some chaeto and adding a marine pure block or two.

I would suggest planning for a frag tank pre-plumb at least. I had none last tank, and left a TON of money sitting on table, as people would visit all the time wanting to buy stuff and taking too long to cut then and there. Plus a great way to backup your system in a way, or be able to quickly get ready for a frag swap (trades or exhibit) without having fresh vulnerable frags.

Yeah, not super happy with how I setup my ATO, but whatever you do make redundancy so if a switch fails you don't flood anything, but 7 gallons is low risk if that is max you ever drop assuming it's not auto filled, then it is 75 gallon/day if stuck. I have parallel switches and 50 gallon max that could ever dump (not auto refilled). Though am vulnerable to a maxijet failing, we shall see.

For the ATS, I am leaving the center of the sump pretty open, so if I change my mind, I can try anything. For now will try heavy lighted growing algae and see how it goes. Seems like a good supplement to a skimmer (remove nutrient skimmer misses). Though sounds like ATS can be a pain to clean each week. I don't mind a bit of maintenance every weekend, but daily maintenance is a problem for me.

 

[zachtos]

I noticed what I appear to be firearms on the wall in your family room. Any info on those?

Great build and some serious DIY skills.

http://lasertagpro.com/the-brx/ - I design laser tag equipment for a living. Those are some of my personal collection from the past. We are actually making a high end laser tag gun that is for the consumer, connects to your phone, download games etc. It's a high end outdoor sport like airsoft/paintball, not a cheap toy. Loud powerful speaker, 600 feet range, simulated explosives on an on I can go.

https://www.facebook.com/ircombat1/photos - some photos of my old gear in action

video of IR combat

 

[CrazyDiamond]

Awesome set-up

Awesome set-up

Nice build u have going - This tank is gonna be great !

 

[skanderson]

enjoying watching another Wisconsin build. also think the new laser tag gear looks like a cool training item for small group tactics training. it would be more realistic than paintball and a lot neater.

 

[McPuff]

I would suggest planning for a frag tank pre-plumb at least. I had none last tank, and left a TON of money sitting on table, as people would visit all the time wanting to buy stuff and taking too long to cut then and there. Plus a great way to backup your system in a way, or be able to quickly get ready for a frag swap (trades or exhibit) without having fresh vulnerable frags.

I'll be doing minimal SPS actually. I sold off almost all of my colonies in my current 120 and am keeping just about 6-8 colonies. These are relatively easy to keep and will get huge... and that is really my goal. If I do sell frags, they'll be more like small colonies. It shouldn't be necessary very often.

 

[zachtos]

Full tank shot to date. I know I am not the most creative with aquascaping, but the background kicks ***. The rocks are mostly just 3 mounds with some shelves. There are plenty of flat surfaces for SPS colonies to take off, and I have several areas where I want montipora caps for some shelf overhangs. Maybe some encrusters on the lower portions. I really want green star polyps again, but it's hard to keep them isolated, they look amazing with wavemaker though.


Side tank view, fish can swim around the entire perimeter of the rock, glass and back wall with around 4-6" clearances.


Right side (2 wavemakers shown, they get a pretty good double wave going, 1 tunze was not enough)
A petri dish of established ruble rock with critters shown in the bottom corner.


Center pile.


Left side.





Frag tank transferred and lighting setup. Small MP10 vortech for extra flow in the frag tank. For now this houses 2 ocelaris clown fish and about 9-10 rose bubble tip anemones. I plan to sell those all off. The top shelf I may use for general storage, a future small tank w/ shared sump, or just a quarantine for frags.


Quarantine tank moved from the shelf and setup. I put excess live rock in there for now, and the small skimmer. I need to do research on how to quarantine, thread suggestions welcome.


I quieted the turf scrubber down by installing a bypass T for the excess flow. I am not sure if I am getting exactly 35gph/inch though, but I suppose I could cut the slot a bit bigger if I need more. I think it's about 1/8", but it's pure gravity feed at this point. The T is required, or it siphons, as mentioned, and no flow goes to the scrubber. I do hear a constant gurgle in the pipe though, not that loud though.

I ordered turf scrubber LEDs yesterday (11"x19" screen 2X sided), planning a 6x20" heatsink w/ T slots, and 42 LED per side (84 total), 72 - 660nm LED and 12 - 410-420nm LED. No lenses, will try to just keep as close as possible. Will be using dimming functions. My bioload will start at 2 cubes/day and slowly ramp up to 15+ cubes/day over the next 2 years as fish are added/grow.



The drain system I am using, in both corner, using a durso standpipe for excess flow, and nearly full siphon for main flow, so basically a herbie without a valve. I just twist the coupling to lower the flow using holes I drilled. Works fine, seems reliable. I raised them up more to keep the sump from overflowing when power out.

//I need a new deepcycle battery, the old one apparently is dead/ruined, won't hold charge. Quiet drives for vortechs on the way. I also ordered parts for ATS LED x2, QT LED x1 and 6x corona fixtures from RapidLED. I need to perform research about how to quarantine coral and fish properly next, then research/decide on fish in budget. At least tank is cycling and the fish room is cleaned up nice.

 

[zachtos]

OK, this is only cool for engineers. Basically a simple code I wrote, with a cluser of relays. It's a feed timer. Push the button, tank stops moving so much water, so food stays in the tank. Then it turns it back on later when done. Why is this special?
-1 button will turn off many devices, and reboot, while lowering flow on others
-it will auto turn back on after 12 minutes
-it shuts off skimmer for longer period of time so it doesn't overflow tank when skimmer comes back online with too high of level still in the sump, so I can have skimmer in non compartmentalized area.
-it also has a timer that when goes off, will toggle feeder A or feeder B (pellets or Nori) automatically, as many times as I want.

*press button
-turn off skimmer
-enable feed mode on vortechs, tunzes and return pumps (6 devices)
-end of 10 minute feed modes devices back on
-+2 minutes at end of feed, skimmer turns back on
-press button to cancel feed mode operation

*digital timer input turn on
-same as a button press
-30 seconds after shutdown, turn on auto feeder A 6 seconds
-on opposite cycles toggle auto feeder A or B (such as pellets, flakes or nori)

Of course I can do more with this, but I have no plans at the moment. Simple to feed, and keeps system safe and automatic while I'm away from home.

 

[McPuff]

Have you been getting any warnings about your tank failing? It's got me a bit nervous but for hopefully no reason. The tank I bought was filled for about 18 months with no issues. And I see NO mistakes in the seams. I'll still be using the ALD module for apex though. :0)

 

[zachtos]

Have you been getting any warnings about your tank failing? It's got me a bit nervous but for hopefully no reason. The tank I bought was filled for about 18 months with no issues. And I see NO mistakes in the seams. I'll still be using the ALD module for apex though. :0)

I have read a bit about failures of marineland deep dimension tanks, but they are popular tanks, so that does not really mean a lot. I don't see any bow in my front panel nor my stand. I built it to the DIY stand calculator thread's recommendation, works great. If the tank were to fail, I would lose the DIY background, which was a lot of work, aside from whatever else I could lose. Let's hope they are built tough. I think mine is a few years old from someone else already.

 

[McPuff]

I have read a bit about failures of marineland deep dimension tanks, but they are popular tanks, so that does not really mean a lot. I don't see any bow in my front panel nor my stand. I built it to the DIY stand calculator thread's recommendation, works great. If the tank were to fail, I would lose the DIY background, which was a lot of work, aside from whatever else I could lose. Let's hope they are built tough. I think mine is a few years old from someone else already.

Well I like to hear other people's success stories... and the popularity is sure to be the reason for so many failure stories. But there are failures with all tank manufacturers. Still, it has me worries so I'm doing everything I can to make sure this stand (which has already held the tank for over 18 mo) will not be the source of any issues. I really like how your tank is coming along!

 

[zachtos]

So over the last few weeks I've been working on minor things. The build phase is coming to an end soon, then on to small projects and livestock. Coral probably won't be until I find a worthy frag swap in Michigan this coming January (4-5 months yet).

I installed the quiet drive motors for the vortechs and connected them to the push button feeder. They are dead silent, worthy of an upgrade PCB.

Ordered all of my test kits and chemicals for quarantine. (photo pending)







I setup 3 quarantine tanks (40G, 20G, 10G) (photos pending). Each has live rock to help them cycle. Sponge filters and temperature controllers for them are in the mail. Probably still 2 weeks until I start buying fish anyways. I also have 3 auto feeders in the mail, and some other secret projects pending.









Built the algae turf scrubber LED fixtures, very bright, extremely high PAR readings and good coverage at short range. I still have to figure out how to hang them under the tank.

The LED fixtures for the display are still on backorder, maybe another week, then I hang those and post photos and PAR readings.

Decided on a fish stock list based on feedback from another thread I made.
Final Order List

• REGAL angel x 2 (mate pair)
• powder blue tang x 1
• Hippo Tang x 1
• pyramid butterfly x 4
• coral beauty dwarf x 3-4 (harem)
• Lyratail Anthias x 6
• royal grammas x 6+
• Harlequin Tusk Wrasse x 1
• Exquisitte Fairy Wrasse x 1
• Solar/Red Head Solomon Fairy Wrasse x 1
• Fine Spotted Fairy Wrasse x 1
• Pink Margin Wrasse x 1
• Blue Head Wrasse x 1
• Perculla Clown x 2 (I own 2 of these now with 9 RBTA)
• Clown Goby x 2 (in a year)
• Mandarin Dragonette x 2 (in a year)
• cleaner goby x 2 (in 6 months)

Maybe in a 6-12 months based on how it goes:

• +anemone (bubble tip or Magnifica or gigantea)
• +kole tang and/or convict tang
  
• +anthias (dispar, bartlett)
• or
• +1-2 flame or cherub or potter dwarf angels (no more than 2 each)

 

[fishguy306]

Very cool build so far! I love all of your planning and thought put into everything.

Any chance at seeing a bit more of how you plumbed the heating coils to the hot water heater? I want to do the same with my system and I'm trying to get an idea of how different people have done it. Most I've seen have the water returned through the drain in the bottom but yours appears to exit the HWH there? Do you return it into the cold water line?

 

[zachtos]

Very cool build so far! I love all of your planning and thought put into everything.

Any chance at seeing a bit more of how you plumbed the heating coils to the hot water heater? I want to do the same with my system and I'm trying to get an idea of how different people have done it. Most I've seen have the water returned through the drain in the bottom but yours appears to exit the HWH there? Do you return it into the cold water line?

try this link for heater info from a past thread when I did this on my last tank.

I pull from the bottom valve and return to the top of the hot water to the house. It does cause a problem if you are in the shower and it kicks on, temperature will change a bit (not ice cold but warm then hot). I can reverse the direction of the pump, but I can't recall if that really fixed the problem or not honestly. I can't remember what direction is correct, but it's a closed loop, so not sure it matters.