300 gallon tank, 96*48*15

[mwood]

Here is my first big tank. I hope I make it a good one. It's an acrylic 96*48*15 inch 300 gallon. It will be a mixed reef with several tangs. It's in the garage till we get into our new house. My first mission is to clean it. Then I need to buff it and water test it. If we aren't in the new house yet I may hook up plumming and start designing the flow system. I'll try to use this thread through the whole process. Just want to share. I feel like a kid in toys r us.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076300.JPG

[capt. insano]

just wondering....do you plan on putting any sort of cross bracing on the stand? I have a 240 with a wood braced stand and would be very nervous filling it without adequate stabilization

Just a thought

[mwood]

This is the way it was set up for 5+ years. I'll add paneling or drywall to the outside of the stand before it is set up. That will help stabalize it.

Marcus

[Mr.Lloyd]

You should get really good light penetration and have a great look from the sides.I wish my tank was wider.

[JR719]

That would make a great mixed reef and clam tank. Put about 50 clams in there. Keep us posted on the progression.

[fred says]

I agree, that will make an awesome clam tank. You might have some problems with all the heat from the MH's though.

[overanalyzer]

sweet - Very excited for you and my kids want to know if you kept the sting ray that used to be in it!!!

[mwood]

The shark and ray are both in the lagoon in the shop.

PS, I heard there my be some more good stuff going into that shop. If all I heard is true, that shop is going to kick a**.

Marcus

[mwood]

OK, now for the first of many questions.

How to clean up the tank and remove scratches? I was going to drag it out to the driveway and hose it down. Then I was going to use a mix of bleach and water, based on something I read on the tenecore website.

Then how do I remove the scratches? All thoughts and comments welcome.

Marcus

[atram]

Awsome, keep us posted on the progress.:)

[fred says]

Originally posted by mwood
OK, now for the first of many questions.

How to clean up the tank and remove scratches? I was going to drag it out to the driveway and hose it down. Then I was going to use a mix of bleach and water, based on something I read on the tenecore website.

Then how do I remove the scratches? All thoughts and comments welcome.

Marcus
Their are lots of kits out where you go through a multiple stage process to get rid of scratches. I couldn't suggest one because i have been far too lazy to empty my tank to get rid of the scratches.

[stealyourhouse]

I believe Micromesh is what most people use to buff out scratches on acrylic.

[CPT. MURPHY]

looking forward to updates

[hdtvguy]

One word clam tank! :D

[mwood]

I promise to reserve a section for clams! :strooper: :D

[Jeremy Blaze]

That looks a lot like my 320! It is 96"x48"x18".

I am lighting mine with 2 400 watt and one 250 watt DE.

Good tank for propagation, but to short imo for a display.

[mwood]

Originally posted by Jeremy Blaze
That looks a lot like my 320! It is 96"x48"x18".

I am lighting mine with 2 400 watt and one 250 watt DE.

Good tank for propagation, but to short imo for a display.

Please describe your setup in detail as it’s very relevant. If you have pics I’d love those to.

PS, It may be a 320. Mathematically 96*48*16/230.4=320. The set up only filled water 15 inches high so far, so it was considered a 300.


Marcus

[Jeremy Blaze]

Well, mine is very basic, going to use it for fragging, maybe. It has a Mag 12, Mag 5 and several Maxi Jet 1200's. Skimmer is a Berlin XL sitting in the tank.

Open top, lights hanging.

[mwood]

Do you have the 250 DE over the center brace? What color are your bulbs?

[Jeremy Blaze]

250 is on the middle, however, my tank does not have typical center brace, instead it has 4 round acrylic 'poles running across the tank in the mid level.

I run all 20 K bulbs.

[mwood]

How's the spread of the light over the tank? Do the lights cover the tank? I'm considering using my 2 400w Iwasaki's combined with 2 400w xm 20k's or 250w DE 20k's.

[Jeremy Blaze]

I am very pleased with the light spread. Lights are horizontal. Spread is goo, the extreme sides of the tank, front and back, are probably not bright enough for sps, but zoas have not problem.

[mwood]

Well, I'm going to the lumber store to pick up a 3/4" sheet of plywood. The tank has sat on a 3/4" sheet of plywood for 5+ years, but I plan to add a couple holes for a closed loop, so I want to add another sheet to be sure I'm ok.

Marcus

[mwood]

Well, I bought the board for extra support and bought some lighting. I am going to have pendants made of wood that will hold my 400w Iwasakis and I just bought some 250w ballasts to run xm20k's or radiums. I may also throw in a couple 24" URI VHO Actinics in each pendant. The Iwasaki's and radiums will share the same reflector so they get a good blend of color. I will need to hang them 18 to 24 inches off the water to get the spread, but with 15 to 16 inches of water, I'm not worried about having enough light.

Marcus

[mwood]

Ok, I need help with the configuration of the new lights in the pendants. The pendants will be made out of wood to fit the reflectors. The question is how to configure a 400w Iwasaki, with a 250 20k, and possibly 2 24” VHO Actinics. They need to cover a 4 by 4 foot area, so the reflector probably needs to be wider, but I don’t know that. I have a set of PFO 24” parabolic reflectors, but they don’t seem very wide. Also is the question of how to fit the two metal halides into one reflector. In a line at opposite ends facing each other? 3-4 inches apart next to each other? Opposite ends facing each other slightly off set?

Any opinions are appreciated.
Marcus

PS, I found this in someone's gallery.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/14643duals-thumb.jpg

[mwood]

Here is a pic after cleaning it up a little.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076300b.JPG

[Bryan89]

Nice tank, its a keeper!

[mwood]

Support: I bought the extra ¾” sheet of plywood and cut out the existing holes and placed it under the tank. That puts my support up to 2 ¾” sheets and I plan on putting 2 2*6 cross members in soon.

Lighting: I have 2 400w Iwasaki’s, 2 250w XM 20k’s and I might put in several VHO strips.

Flow: I have secured an AMP Master 4700 and an AMP Master 3000. I’ll put the 4700 on a closed loop through 4 1” inputs to be split into 8 ¾” loclines. The 3000 I’m going to use for a euro style DIY skimmer and to feed 1 or 2 carlson surges from the sump to the tank.

Home for the Tank: This is the most exciting part. We close on a new house at the end of this month, so I’ll be starting setup soon. Hopefully this tread will get busy with updates then.

Marcus

[raskal311]

dam thats a nice cleanup job, what did you use to buff the acrylic?

[mwood]

Haven't buffed out scratches yet. I just hosed it off really good and dried it off a little with a towel. I did use an acrylic cleaner to get at some of the stubborn junk. For that I used an old cloth diaper. I'm going to contact a local acrylic shop to see what they would do with the scratches.

Marcus

[mwood]

Originally posted by mwood
Support: I bought the extra ¾” sheet of plywood and cut out the existing holes and placed it under the tank. That puts my support up to 2 ¾” sheets and I plan on putting 2 2*6 cross members in soon.

Lighting: I have 2 400w Iwasaki’s, 2 250w XM 20k’s and I might put in several VHO strips.

Flow: I have secured an AMP Master 4700 and an AMP Master 3000. I’ll put the 4700 on a closed loop through 4 1” inputs to be split into 8 ¾” loclines. The 3000 I’m going to use for a euro style DIY skimmer and to feed 1 or 2 carlson surges from the sump to the tank.

Home for the Tank: This is the most exciting part. We close on a new house at the end of this month, so I’ll be starting setup soon. Hopefully this tread will get busy with updates then.

Marcus

Just secured one more addition last night, an Oceans Motions 4-way!!!!

[mwood]

Originally posted by raskal311
dam thats a nice cleanup job, what did you use to buff the acrylic?

PS, I used ProGlow. The plastic shop said to use a polishing compound they sell and a car polisher to get out scratches.

[sixxer]

That is a night and day difference!!!! Looks awesome now that you have polished it.

[BlennyBabe]

Wow. Please keep taking pictures. This looks to be a great tank. I wish my 300 gallon was only 15 inches deep. That would save me from getting saltwater in my nose when I scrape algae near the bottom. (Im only 5'2'')

Have you thought about the luminarcs?
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=560167&highlight=reflector

[mwood]

Thought about luminarcs, but I want the 6500k and 20,000k bulbs to share the same reflector to get a really good blend.

[Bryan89]

mwood:

I just received my Luminarcs last night. You might be able to purchase the reflectors without a cutout for a light socket and then drill your own sockets (one on each side) and fit two lights in, parallel to one another but entering the reflector from opposite sides. However, it would be easier to just put 10k bulbs in a standard Luminarc and supplement VHO actinic, IMHO.

Bryan

[mwood]

Do you have a link to the maker of luminarcs so I could ask him?

[Bryan89]

http://www.pacificgardensupply.com/lighting/lumenarc3.html

When you call ask for Luke.

Bryan

[mwood]

OK, lets get this thread going again! Here is the new house we just moved into. "Let me show you a picture of my deck" blue collar tv. This will be the home of the tank.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076new_house.JPG

Here is a photo of the tank in it's place. I'll be building the room around it once I'm sure of where I want it. Took two large men to get it down here.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076300c.JPG

Here is a pic of the sump with 300 lbs of cured rock from a local getting out for a while, but he'll be back. This addiction is worse than drugs. :bum:
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076rock.JPG


Next thing is to drill and shim. I'm getting help with the shimming from Dan the man. I'll post more soon.

Marcus

[overanalyzer]

looking sweet - who's rock did you buy??

[mwood]

lllosingit. It's good lookin stuff. Plus, I shouldn't have much of a cycle so I can get it going quicker.

[TheCoralReef731]

looks good

[palabok]

nice lookin tank... man I wouldnt mind trying to set up a tank like that. nice dimensions also

[mwood]

I finally got the guts up to drilling 3 more holes in the tank two nights ago and put in a $250 plumbing order to MD last night. I still need to drill the holes in the stand and put in extra bracing before shimming the stand.

[TheCoralReef731]

to drill the holes, don't you just use a normal drill that would be used for wood, etc??

[mwood]

I used hole saws from Menards. They turned out to be fairly aggressive bits and the cuts weren't as smooth as I hoped. The end product was fine, but the drill got stuck easy. I would recommend hole saws with smaller teeth if you can find one.

Marcus

[mwood]

Picked up some spa flex last night. Can't wait to plumb the closed loop! Things go well and I'll be water testing in a week or two.

[hawaiianwargod]

mwood,

that is awesome dude! nice house and nice tank....what else do you need? cheers!

[Herbert T. Kornfeld]

Reminds me of stores I saw in Atlanta where they had 1" thick plexi 'vats'...6'x3'x14"high with 1000watt 20,000K bulbs overhead. Looked really nice.

[mwood]

A local store had a 4'*4'*~15" tank with a 1000w radium over it. It looked good, but had a large fan blowing on it all day to keep the temp in check. I'm planing bathroom vent fans for the room, but have high hopes of not having a fan over the tank.

Finished making the bottom of my tank look like swiss chees last night. I still have more bracing to add. I'll try to post more pics when I can.

[mwood]

Here is a pic to show the 6 holes in the bottom. One in the center for the drain, on center left for input to the OM 4way, and 4 outputs in the 4 corners.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076holes_in_tank2.JPG

Here is a pic of the 2*6 bracing I added for extra support.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076bracing.JPG

Here is a pic of the shims leveling the tank. Dan the Man has been helping my out with all this. He brought over a $300 level and showed off how good he is. Got to have the right friends in this hobbie.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076shims.JPG

Expecting plumbing on wednesday. I'll post when I have more. Also, wife secured the first fish. She decided to get a sohol for her tank, which is ok for temporary quarters for the sohol, but after my tank is established, he's mine!!!:thumbsup:

[overanalyzer]

looking good man!!! Drilling that first hole is always spne chilling!!

[mwood]

The first hole was rough.

Well, here is the first of the plumbing pics.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076plumbing1.JPG

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076plumbing2.JPG



:cool:

[overanalyzer]

do you have a durso or stockman as the over flow there??

[mwood]

I'm going to sound ignorant, but I don’t know about those terms. It’s just a pvc pipe sticking straight up in the center. A durso would have a 180 degree bend at the top with a hole for air, right? What is a stockman?

Marcus

[overanalyzer]

Originally posted by mwood
What is a stockman?


The only way to sound ignorant is to sound like you know it all!!

Stockman is similar but it has a round cap and has holes drilled in it. Both help quiet the wooshing water fall sound. I'd suggest one or the the other (though I've only used durso's).

Very easy to build and easy to tune

[mwood]

When in IA Pet, it just had the pvc as a drain. I never noticed noise, but maybe I wounldn't in a LFS. I don't want anythink that would inhibit flow as I thought about 2000 gph if the drain can handle. The only thing I need is a flat screen for the top. Dan had a nice one off his Tunze wave box.

[viggen]

I personally would not trust that stand with 2400 lbs of water/LR/etc

I would do a little work to it before adding water mostly the cross braces!

[Bryan89]

The stand IMHO as an engineer is more than capable of handling 2400 lbs. Each 2x4 can take about a 5000 lbs load on end without splitting, depending on construction techniques.

The ONLY concern I do have is that the cross braces do not have a 2x4 under the ends, so that they must distribute their load through the nails/screws to the vertical 2x4. As viggen stated, you may want to put a second 2x4 under each vertical column to take the load of the 2x6 at the ends. Also, you may want to add another 2x6 cross member where the other vertical 2x4 columns are and do a similiar vertical 2x4 arrangement 9ege two 2x4, one of which is under the 2x6 to take its load). I would be more concerned for long term strength, not on initial fill.

Most people here tend to overbuild their wood stands (myself included). Also, I'd be concerned about preserving the wood. I used an oil based primer and epoxy to completely seal the wood and make it waterproof. Just my 2 cents...

HTH

Bryan

[viggen]

as a funeral director :) LOL

IMHO I wouldn't trust it due to what you stated about the nails supporting the weight. That in itself to me shows it cannot safely hold the weight over the long run. I would also add a 3/4 sheet of plywood to the bottom of the stand to eliminate any shifting/moving of the sides.

Simply screwing in a 2x4 under the cross members would drastically improve the strength of the stand

[mwood]

I put a 2*4 under the ends of the 2*6's several days ago, after the pics on the 15th. I'm also adding 6 diagonals right now, to avoid rocking. Thanks for the replies. Keep them coming.

Marcus

[TheCoralReef731]

wow, looks good

[mwood]

I think I'm stuck for the moment. There is a side of the tank that isn't quite level and straight. I assume the stand has to be perfectly level and straight with an acrylic tank, right?

[Bryan89]

mwood - Perfectly level is relative. You could get away with some degree of out of level if you put foam between the tank and stand. Is the stand 'wavy' or just out of level at one corner? From what you posted, I am believe you are trying to say that the stand is level but the tank is not. is that correct? If that is the issue, make the stand level and accept the tank as it is.

viggen - I guess funeral directors have higher standards than engineers. :D

Bryan

[mwood]

I know the tank is wavy. The tank sat on just the perimeter 2*4's and one 3/4 inch plywood for years. It bowed about an inch in the middle. Now when I put the braces to make the plywood straight, the tank sits a 1/4 inch off the stand in places. Some is the tank. But I can't tell if some may be stand. I'm tempted to finish plumbing the tank, fill with enough water to let the tank settle, then adjust the level. How fragile are acrylic tanks?

[Bryan89]

mwood - put some foam material between the stand and tank. It 'should' make up for the wavy part of the tank. While the tank will flex to make it level, that puts a lot of stress on the tank. Better to do the foam, it helps dissipate some of the stress. You can get 3/4" foam cheap at Lowes/Menards/Home Depot in the insulation section.

[viggen]

the foam is required on acrylic tanks. It helps even things out & also covers up irregularities in the top of the stand

When you fill it, I would do it slowly over a week or so

[TheCoralReef731]

Yes, it needs to be perfectly level, especially with a tank that big.

[mwood]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076bracing_and_plumbing3.JPG

Here is a pic of the plumbing and extra bracing. I adjusted the shims a little. I also put the rodi output line in to the tank. At 30 to 50 gpd it will be slow. I plan to watch the areas of consern and make small adjustments to the shims as the tank settles. Got about 3/8" of water and not leaks so far. All bulkheads are hand tight only.

Wish me luck or say a prayer. Which ever you wish.
Marcus

[qwuintus]

if you are testing for leaks, then maybe you should use tap water.

wouldnt want to waste all the ro water on a test.

[mwood]

Up to 1.75" and no leaks. Tank isn't settling much yet, but it was pot-bellied for 7 years. I'm hoping if I get a leak, I can just tighten things a little. If no leaks, since I used RO, I can just add salt. Besides, using RO was an easy way to slowly add the water and watch the stand and tank settle.

[mwood]

I had my first leak. I thought it was the bulkhead but now I think it’s the pipe threaded into it. I tried to fix it twice. I’ll see if the second fix took tonight.

Say a prayer for me, Marcus

[mwood]

6 inches, no leaks, tank and stand are slowly coming together. I'll start pluming in the pump soon.

[phoenix_princess]

Originally posted by stealyourhouse
I believe Micromesh is what most people use to buff out scratches on acrylic.

Only use the micromesh kit for deep scratches and only sparingly on your viewing panel, because it will cause distortion. Try the Novus products #2 and #3. They should take out any superficial scratches and hazing.
:p

[qwuintus]

very fine micro mesh in combination should make it extremely clear.
you will only get distortion if you did it wrong ie used the wrong grit, or didnt polish.

but if you use enough novus, it should do the job by itself.
all you need is lots of elbow grease ;D

[mwood]

What grit of micro mech should I use? Do I do it by hand or can I use a palm sander?

[mwood]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076pump_and_om_4_way.JPG

I have the OM 4way hooked to a Ampmaster 4700 and running. I put my heater in the tank and am adding salt and crushed coral. The Ampmaster leaks a little. I'm trying to figure out where. I'll post more updates soon.

Marcus

[Herbert T. Kornfeld]

you should put unions and ball valves on the pump's inlet/outlets for easy maint in the future...or at least the unions.

[mwood]

As far as unions, the pump has a union of sort where the pvc hooks to the pump. I can just unscrew it. I agree on the ball valve. If I had to remove the pump, about 2 gallons of water would come out from the lines to the ball valves under the bulkheads. I'm just not sure a ball valve would fit between the om 4way and pump.

Marcus

[mwood]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076rock2.JPG

[Kent E]

Looking real nice. Very interesting dimensions! Is is fairly easy to look down into?

[mwood]

A friend has a table tank as a frag tank and the top down view is the best. It's soo clear, you never want to look through acrylic or glass again. It's all in how you do the water movement.

Marcus

[willra]

Thats sweet. Does the overflow make any noise?

[mwood]

Don't know yet. I don't have the sump plumbed in. I just have a ball valve shut for now. The center pvc overflow comes out so I can adjust it or replace it with something different if needed.

[mwood]

Originally posted by Kent E
Looking real nice. Very interesting dimensions! Is is fairly easy to look down into?

Here is a couple top down pics. I'm going to add a step up around the back of the tank for better top down viewing.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076top_down_view_1.JPG

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076top_down_view_2.JPG

[mwood]

Here is one of the two 3' light pendants drying in the sun. Dan the man put them together for me,

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076pendant1.JPG

here is the surge tank in the making,

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076surgetank1.JPG

and here is the is the sump in it's place, just under the surge tank.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076sump1.JPG

[keefsama2003]

nice i have my 300 going also i had a thread but all the pics posted got blocked from photobucket as using too much bandwidth so i have my own domain now and i am going to start a new thread. but congrats so far.

[mwood]

Let me know when you have some pics up. I'd love to see what you are doing with yours.

[Gwalker]

Looks nice! One thing that might be a good idea is to support the flex lines under the tank. One way is to use a staple gun to attach zipties to the underside of the stand and zip up the lines for a little support. It might give some relief to the fittings the flex goes into. After years of water weight it could pull loose a little. Only a suggestion, better safe than sorry. Again looks great!!

[keefsama2003]

Here is one tank. To see the rest of what i have goto keithandpam.net


http://keithandpam.net/PICS/100_0890.jpg

[paulpp187]

i have 2 kinds of scratch removers one is the one with the sandpaper you can use this one in and out of the tank the second one i have is a liquid based remover only can use it on the out side it is a 3 part system they both work really well be prepared to do alot bof work it takes time but in the end it is nice looking

[Bumzyman]

mwood,
I like your tank, mine is the same footprint (96"x48") but 30" tall. I had a couple friends come over to help me build the stand for it because I wasn't sure how tough to make it. We used all 2x8's and 2x6's I thought my friend was nuts when he was putting it together, I thought he was expecting NASA to come over and certify it as a launch pad.

Anyway, after seeing your setup it looks like your going to have a much easier time accessing every inch of the tank whereas I need to make up some kind of portable platform to bring out and set up in order to get myself high enough to reach anything in it.

As Herbert and Gwalker said, use unions & ball valves and be sure to support the spa flex and fittings under the tank. I'm using 100% spa flex in my setup and didn’t want any hanging weight on the tank bulkheads or glued fittings. Taking that little bit of precaution now could prevent a major problem down the road if one of those connections lets loose.

[mwood]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076lights.JPG

Well, the lights are up, but the pump is down. I should recieve the new seals for the pump in a day or two. Anyway, here is what Iwasaki's and xm20k's look like.

[shouldabenacowboy]

I like you lights....Very nice setup!

Tagging along

[tigerarmy40]

dude with those dimentions you can do several little communites of different types of coral and the aquascaping options are unlimited! I think I have seen this tank before!? maybe on ebay?

[mwood]

Originally posted by tigerarmy40
dude with those dimentions you can do several little communites of different types of coral and the aquascaping options are unlimited! I think I have seen this tank before!? maybe on ebay?

Probably saw one like it. This one came from a LFS here in Des Moines. I plan on having small biotopes. An island of zoas, an island of star polyps, an island if SPS, a cluster of clams, and so on.

[hsvtoolfool]

Metal halide light fixtures made of...pine?!

This is extremely troubling. I can't tell from your photos, but I
hope there is an air gap of several inches between the bulbs and
the wood. I fear these light fixtures are a genuine fire hazard.

One 400W bulb and one 250W bulb per fixture. 650W per fixture.
Yikes! Double yikes! The temperature inside those boxes must be
approaching the ignition point for wood. Softwoods like pine ignite
at even lower temperatures than hardwoods like oak or man-
made plywoods (not that I wouldn't use those materials either).
After a few days, heated wood of any type loses all moisture
content and becomes flammable as cardboard.

The following excerpt is from a US Forest Service Study (http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/pdf1977/holme77a.pdf) named
Effect of Fire-Retardant Treatments on Performance Properties
of Wood. The bold emphasis is mine...

With convective heating of wood under laboratory conditions,
spontaneous ignition is reported as low as 270°C and as high as
470°C. Spontaneous ignition of wood charcoal, which has
excellent absorption of oxygen and radiant heat, occurs between
150°C and 250°C...

...Many field reports collected by Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc.
show ignition occurring at or near 212°F (100°C) on wood next to
steam pipes or other hot materials. Laboratory experiments have
not been able to confirm these low ignition temperatures. To
provide a margin of safety, Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc.
suggests that wood not be exposed for long periods of time at
temperatures greater than 90°F (32°C) above room temperature
or 170°F (77°C). The National Fire Protection Association
handbook gives 200°C as the ignition temperature of wood most
commonly quoted, but gives 66°C (150°F) is the highest
temperature to which wood can be continually exposed
without risk of ignition. McGuire of the National Research
Council of Canada suggests that 100°C would be a satisfactory
choice of an upper limiting temperature for wood exposure.

150°F to 200°F is the highest temperature wood can be
safely exposed for long periods. Unfortunately I can't find hard
information defining the ambient temps created by MH bulbs. But
I'm pretty sure they get MUCH hotter than 150°F. Anecdotal
evidence here at ReefCentral shows that MH bulbs can weaken
1/2" arcylic from several inches away. Acrylic softens around 180°F.
Serious food for thought.

Please build aluminum light fixtures as soon as possible. Pop-rivet
tools, tin-snips, and light-gauge aluminum sheets are not very
expensive. It's not difficult to cut and bend a nice aluminum box
that won't burst into flames and burn down your house.

[mwood]

There was a thread on this in the DIY forum. Here are the details.

I use high temp paint on the inside of the pendant.
I have parabolic reflectors inside the pendant.
Most lighting vendors sell flat reflectors to be mounted to wood.
I do have a gap between the top of the reflector and wood where the reflector is closest to the bulb, where I have several holes drilled in the wood.


I've seen several cheep mh pendants where a flat reflector is mounted straight to plywood. If mounting mh reflectors to wood were such a concern, wouldn't there be stories on RC about fires and warnings from light manufacturers and dealers?

[shaw]

well, are there any fans in the hoods? thay may help

also, what was the drain sizing to the the ampmaster? did you have one drain or two.

thanks
shawn

[mwood]

No fans. Open bottom and holes in top.

One 1 1/2 inch drain to the ampmaster. I assume you are speaking about the closed loop? All ampmasters use 1 1/2" I think.

[mwood]

Well after speaking with sever dealers, mods, and such, I think the pendants would be ok the way they are. However, I'm not willing to bet the house on it. So I'm going to add 1000 degree insulation between the reflector and the wood.

[leeweber85]

Marcus your tank is awesome. I think you need to turn it into a pool table :D

[mwood]

Well, the Carlson Surge Device is working. It is a 29 gallon tank with a bulkhead in the side. The small line feeds it from a rio 3100. My guess is about 500 gph. It breaks consistantly thanks to stepping up the 1.5" line to a 4" in the 29. The line to the tank is 1.5" pvc. It fills in about 4 minutes and drains in 1.5 minutes. My guess would be about 20-25 gallons of surge.

The return to the sump is a 2" line seen lower right of the picture. I put the return line high enough so if the drain is ever knocked out in the tank, the tank will only drain 20-40 gallons. I did this because the drain line is a peace of 2" pvc stuck in the bulkhead, not glued. It is water tight, but I'd rather be carefull.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076CSD.JPG

Here is a pic of the surge. Not sure how strong it is, but it gently moves the zoas 7' away.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076csd2.JPG

Next thing is to build a skimmer out of a 10' 6" peace of pvc and a ampmaster 3000.

[sonofgaladriel]

This is very nice! I am jealous. I love this set up you've got going. Keep up the great work. This is going to be a beauty, well, it actually already is, but you know what I mean ;)

[tigerarmy40]

are the bubbles always there? by the way ooking good! lets see a full tank shot now!

[mwood]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076300_d.JPG

Thanks guys.

My wife is getting pumped about the room. I'm going to try to do a rainforest cafe theme.

PS, bubbles are there for 10 secs of the 90 sec surge. Then the surge takes 4 mins to recharge. So they're not bad. I'm just happy it worked. I couldn't find a long distance surge on RC. It's not that long distance, but the pvc does run to the floor and back up. I wasn't sure it would even run.

[tigerarmy40]

Looks GOOD!!!!!


you could always try enductors for the surge! that would increase the distance the flow travels.... I saw a thread on diy enductors not too long ago!

[Alphabet]

Looking very nice, love the tank dimensions. Cannot wait to see the room when done.

[downset]

Wow I love this tank, the dimensions are very cool.

[mwood]

Originally posted by tigerarmy40
Looks GOOD!!!!!


you could always try enductors for the surge! that would increase the distance the flow travels.... I saw a thread on diy enductors not too long ago!

What would eductors do to the CSD flow rate? Is it the same as a preasure rated pump? I don't think it would be.

PS, my CSD water volume estimates may be wrong. Some alternative estimates say it may be a 40+ gallon surge. I'll have to do more research.

[Red Sea Purple Tang]

I'm going to try to do a rainforest cafe theme.

That would be sweet. Any ideas yet?

[mwood]

I'm thinking about finishing the stand and lower walls with some kind of tile or stone. The door into the stand would be bamboo. The upper walls would be chicken wire covered with fake plants. The ceiling would be painted like a sky with clouds. The top of the walls would have hidden floesent lights lighting the ceiling. I was thinking of a large temple door near the left end of the tank where sump is. The floor would be painted with a multi brown floor and deck epoxy. That is what I've come up with so far, but not sure when it will happen. Probably over the next year or so. I want the tank to be solid first.

[mwood]

Well, I got the DIY pvc skimmer running last night. I'll post a pic of the ugly thing later tonight. It's about 7-8 feet tall, with a 5-6 foot 6 inch main body. It's a euro style powered by an ampaster 3000. I put a T just before the pump for air intake with a valve to control the air intake. Worked like a charm. Something about pulling air in before the pump, churning it though the impeller, and slamming the water against the inside wall of the pvc body that produces very small micro bubbles. I say it's ugly as a had a leak or two that I had to slop rain or shine on to fix. I guess I'm not great at gluing large pvc. Well, I'm going to run it over the weekend while I can moniter it to make sure all goes ok. Don't want an overflow while I'm not home to stop it.

Marcus

[Bryan89]

Marcus:

There is not enough pressure in your CSD to run eductors, atleast not at any real flow rate. It 'may' even cause enough backpressure to result in overflowing your CSD.

Bryan

[mwood]

I didn't think so. I assume eductors are rather for a pressure rated pump.

[eugimon]

gotta love this tank... the dimensions are just awesome.. I love the way you have smaller rock groupings with lots of space in between.

[DeeZeal]

Great looking tank! I would like to see pics of the DIY skimmer you built, sounds like a beast. Can't wait to see those "islands or corals" you are talking about, alot of cool ideas there... Keep up the good work!

[mwood]

Give me some opinions on the islands of corals idea. I could...
1. have islands of just one coral type, all zoas or all shrooms
2. have islands of mixures of corals, an island of zoas and shrooms, an island of LPS, and island of montipora
3. have isands of mixures of all corals that could each be their own tank, each isand has a different type of shroom, zoa, lps mixure with keeping the sps separate for obvious reasons.
4. other?

The second and third examples are where I'm at right now. I can kind mix compatiable corals on each island and keep special needs corals separated from the pack do to the islands. I do have an open spot reserved clams so that will happen when I am ready to try / spend.

PS here is an updated pic. I have a couple types of zoas and shrooms, 4 euphillia, 2 star polyps, encrusting gergonia, ...

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076300e.JPG

[tigerarmy40]

I think a muxture of softies with softies and lps on another and sps on another and then maybe like a clam alley! or maybe you could line the sps island with clams to soften up the edges and the lps with ricordia!?

[mwood]

[i]...like a clam alley! ... [/B]

Clam alley will be to the right if the big donut of rock in the center, just behind that torch.

[mwood]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076skimmer.JPG

Here is the skimmer. A real PITA to adjust, but I'm getting a gate valve to fix that.

[DeeZeal]

Man that thing is nutso! Very cool!

[tomviolence]

Originally posted by mwood
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076skimmer.JPG

Here is the skimmer. A real PITA to adjust, but I'm getting a gate valve to fix that.


What is all that stuff against the wall to the left?

[overanalyzer]

Originally posted by tomviolence
What is all that stuff against the wall to the left?

I'd hazard a guess at his internal water pipe control center for all the hot and cold water in his house!

MARCUS - man how did the build go?? I am going to be looking for some skimmer build pointers!

[mwood]

The red and blue pipe to the left is my house water system. I have almost no copper.
As for tips for building a skimmer, I have a few. The intake and output you see in the pic were holes drilled and glued in place with two part epoxy. Don’t try this. The output pipe came loose and water was everywhere. I redid it with a couple 6*6*4 sanitary T’s. Then I used bushings to reduce them down to 1 ½. Tips I would give are:
1. Glue everything up right. Don’t cut corners or cost.
2. Use precise valves for both air and water, like gate valves. You want precision control on both air and water, and ball valves don’t cut it.
3. Don’t under power the skimmer. Even a bad skimmer can do a little better with a good pump and a great skimmer can be crap with a weak pump.
4. Give the skimmer 12-24 hours if you are using glue on the skimmer or have your hands in the tank. I noticed that the skimmer wasn’t doing much the first day. I was getting no head. Well, after a good 12 hours of running without my hands in the tank it really started to take off.

I'll post a new pic tonight.
Marcus

[eugimon]

... wow... amazing skimmer you got there... I would be so paranoid of it tipping over...

[mwood]

It's a good thought. I may look into securing it, but for now the plumbing keeps it in place. The only worry I have is my kids.

[paulpp187]

how do you tell where the water line is

[mwood]

I don't. I adjust it consevatively for now till I get a feal for where the adjustments should be based on the foam head that appears at the top of the skimmer and the skimmate output. If the skimmate is comming out too clear, I adjust it down. Right now the air is at the max input without repriming the pump.

[sagekoala]

I hope you don't mind me asking ... but roughly how much did they let this tank go for? When they moved into the new shop i was wondering what they were going to do with it after the lagoon was set up.

Anyways it is a much better looking tank in your hands. how did you end up placing your lights in the reflectors? I may have to steal your pendant design. :)

[mwood]

Sent you a pm on the price. The lights are pine, coated on the outside with spar varnish, coated on the inside with high temp paint, with 1000 degree insulation, then the reflector screwed in. This is risky at best. You may choose to make yours bigger and put more space between the bulbs and the wood.

[mwood]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076skimmer2.JPG

Here's the updated skimmer. You can see I redid it right this time. Notice the gate valve, expensive but worth it. Also notice the skimmer cup and what happens when you aren't careful with adjusting.

Marcus

[Herbert T. Kornfeld]

so mwood...how's the overflow problem going?

[mwood]

Haven't done anything yet. Got the parts to lower my pvc drain near the sump, but haven't had the time. I'll get to it soon.

Marcus

[mwood]

Updated pics.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076300f.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076left_side.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076right_side.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076around_corner.JPG

[saurus]

Looks great man. Are you happy with it? How about some updates. It has been a few months.

[tigerarmy40]

i love that the fish dont have to be right on top of eachother! they can be seperate of all the others if they feel...its lookin good man keep the pics comin!

[mwood]

I’ll try to hit both positives and negatives from as objective point of view as I can.

Positives
- Cheep to set up, I have around $2000 in it.
- No heat issues, I’m actually nervous the 800w heater won’t keep up this winter.
- Plenty of room for corals.
- A wide range of conditions. I can find variations of high and low light as well as high and low flow.
- Easy to work in. I can get in and out of the tank quick without worrying about wet shirt sleeves.
- Corals are doing great. I haven’t had the best success with some corals in the past. I took on some free not lookin’ so good corals from a friend. They are doing very well now.
- Good blend of light. The Iwasaki XM 20k blend comes out white. I don’t know if the corals do any better because of it though.
- Intermittent water flow. Between the OM 4way and the CSD, water movement is always changing.
- 3-5 gallons of skimmate a week.
- A large area to keep a fish that don’t normally get along. I have pair of tomato clowns and a maroon clown that don’t mind each other.
- CSD is adjustable. The plumbing in the CSD is threaded to the bulkhead. That gives some adjustment.

Negatives
- Nervous about a blowout on the closed loop. Such an event would result in a loss of all water in the tank.
- Nervous about light pendants. I used reflectors, 1000 degree insulation, and 1200 degree paint, but it’s still halides in pine boxes. If I leave for a day or two, I may turn off the 400w halides while I’m gone.
- Have had to tinker with the CSD to keep it consistant.
- Ran out of funds for corals. Most of the corals you see aren’t as colorfull as the expensive ones as I ran low on funds. Welcome to the club, right?
- Wish the tank was a little taller. The best view is sitting down or from above, but the light overflow into the room makes the sitting and looking difficult. I may have a way to work with this. I give an update later.
- Can’t have powerheads. I wish I could add some tunzes or a tunze wave box, but don’t want a cord hanging over the top of the tank.
- Should have drilled the return. I wish I drilled another hole in the bottom for the return.
- Flow out of OM 4way is hard and linier. I may add flairs to the outputs to spread out the flow.
- Don’t really like the crushed coral substraight, but I don’t want sand storms.

Things left to do.
- Add breakers and wiring dedicated to the tank.
- Finish the room to look like the rainforest.
- Add clams and other pretty corals.
- Add a small sting ray?
- Find a way to create a weekly storm in the tank. This would require a dramatic increase in flow for a couple hours.
- Maybe update lighting. I might get away from the Iwasaki’s and have 10k’s and 15k’s.

[Herbert T. Kornfeld]

Try a 'collar' to help with light. I have an open top with pendants as well, and so I ended up making a 'rim' for the tank that goes around all the edges and just sits on the tank. Its made of 3/4" ply that has been stained & sealed, and is 7" tall. No more fish jumping out, and no more glare.

[trmiv]

Wow, what an interesting tank. I really love how that looks, great job!

[cmulawka]

yep nice tank but a little shallow

[Herbert T. Kornfeld]

I like the shallow part. I have a tank similar to that that a few friends and I made...and made 3 at once. 96x48x18. Still sitting in my folks basement...like alot of other empty tanks from my african cichlid days.

[mwood]

Here's kind of a cool photo.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/47076100_2071c.JPG

[tigerarmy40]

you know what I was picturing! what would it look like if yo took rock and sawed it flat on the bottom and then covered most of the bottom of the tank in it so that you are almost entirely coverd in rock with verry little lanes through the entire thing! I think if it were done right it could look pretty awesome....

[True Percula]

very nice may i ask how much you spent on that?

[mwood]

tigerarmy40, I may need more explaination as I'm not sure I get it.

vi3tb0i, I have about $2500 in the whole thing.

[True Percula]

wow that is alot nice tank very nice i love how you do the rock work keep up the great work!!

[tigerarmy40]

yeah! its gonna be hard to explain but I was thinking a rock bed instead of a sand bed. if you took all your neatly shaped rock and sawed off the very bottoms of them so that they lay almost flat and just peiced them together so that from front to back(48") there was nothing but rock then in just two or three areas make small clearings. I have never seen it done but I think for a down view tank it would be awesome. you wouldnt have to stack at all so this would give you more swimmng room for the fish and lots of area for livestock. you could saw some rocks shorter then others put some together to make caves! I think it could be awesome!!! I hope Im making sense!?

[mwood]

So my rock is spread out on the bottom rather than islands, right? One issue to be addressed would be plumbing, but it would give more space for corals. In the end it would look like wall to wall corals. I've seen a tank like that. I'll see if I can get the guy to send a pic.

[Lord Voldemort]

Nice tank :thumbsup: Really shallow though :D