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Unread 03/27/2015, 06:01 AM   #1
karsco
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In Wall 300 Build

Hey all, well I pulled the trigger on a deal I got on a 300 DD Marineland Aquarium. I had a 150 Cube, before I moved to the new house now everything is housed in Rubbermaid stock tanks. In the new house my basement has a bump out in the foundation 8' deep by 15' wide, this is where the new set up will be installed. It looks pretty rough right now.

[IMG]Bsmt photo IMG_20150326_184030_844_zpsidecnnzo.jpg[/IMG]


When we were building I had floor drain installed in the center of the room, along with rough ins for a mop sink. I will also have two stock tanks that will hold extra rock, frags, protein skimmer & ATS. I also plan on having two (2) 50 gallon cylinders for RO/DI water and a mixing station. The existing foundation walls will be painted in a commercial epoxy, along with the floor for easy clean up! The room with also have a humidistat connected to an exhaust fan, and will also have a passive wall air vent with damper that will allow fresh air to be pulled into the room when the damper is not closed. By doing all this I hope to avoid any humidity issues in this room. One last thing I am adding on this build is a concrete curb that will run under the new wall so if I have any overflows or disasters the majority of the water will flow to the drain.

Unfortunately my large SPS colonies all perished right after the move, I do have some frags of the colonies but I will almost be starting from scratch with my SPS which really sucks! All my fish made the move I currently have a mated pair of Bellus Angels along with many other fish. I plan on adding a couple of specimen fish like a Golden Flake Angel, multiple Anthias, and some different types of Tangs & Wrasses. The corals will be a mix of SPS, LPS, softies and some larger clams. I also plan buy another 100 lbs of Pukani dry rock to cure over the next month.

Equipment:

Gyre 150 & a Vortech MP40W for water flow along with a large DC return pump, will see how this works out.

Lighting: Two lumenbright reclectors along with 250 MH Radiums, the center will be T-5's (I know it's old school) possibly supplemented by LED strips. All lights will be suspended by rolling light rack (see above pic)

Controllers: Apex on the main tank and I will use my old Reefkeeper on the stock tanks

Filtration: Skimmer not sure yet, possibly a Vertex Alpha or Reef Octo Regal, suggestions??? Experimenting with an L4 Turbo Algae Scrubber in lieu of a planted refugium. Will probably still run my dual stage media reactor carbon/ GFO.

Calcium/Alk/Mag - For now I am staying with Two Part since I have a ton of it, may switch to reactor as the tank matures.

I plan on staying with a more open concept with my rock work having three larger mounds of rock centered under each separate light. I want to grow larger colonies and have more swimming space for the larger fish. That's it for now I will post as I progress!

Thanks,
Scott


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Unread 03/30/2015, 07:03 PM   #2
karsco
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So a little update, the tank has been ordered and this is scheduled to arrive this week:

[IMG]ATS photo Turbo_HF_Scrubber_zpsha4rytqn.jpg[/IMG]

Next up, ordering Pukani rock, moving stock tanks out of the way for some framing....



Last edited by karsco; 03/30/2015 at 07:10 PM.
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Unread 04/12/2015, 08:53 PM   #3
karsco
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So some news! The aquarium arrived about three weeks ahead of schedule and I am not ready! So the plan for now is just have it delivered to the basement while I epoxy paint my walls/floors and the start framing & building a stand. The L4 Scrubber arrived last week and it is sweet. I hope it performs as good as it looks.

I also picked up some real nice fish today from a fellow reefer which I had not planned on but they were all on my list as they were some of my favorite fish from the past: Flame Angel, Green (male) Mandarin & a Pink Spotted Goby.

[IMG]300DD photo 300 DD_zpsf90morsk.jpg[/IMG]


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Unread 04/12/2015, 08:57 PM   #4
karsco
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Not really tank build related, but I put in all new T-5 bulbs today and thought I would post a pic of one of my favorites. I bought this clam a few years ago from a reefer in town and this thing has gotten huge. I would compare it to the size of a basketball Looking forward to finding a good spot for him in the bigger tank!

[IMG]Clam photo IMG_20150412_185447_172_zpsfzlmznak.jpg[/IMG]


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Unread 04/25/2015, 07:37 AM   #5
Jason G
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Nice looking clam and I thought my Squamosa was huge. How's the new build coming along?


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Unread 05/06/2015, 02:20 PM   #6
karsco
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Thanks Jason, more updates coming soon I have been traveling for work and still doing work on the new house. It's been raining like every other day here so I am trying to get the tank delivered next week but they have to come across my lawn and into a large window well to the basement. I just picked up some nice new base cabinets and utility sink for the fish room off of one of my construction projects, the sub made the wrong size so I picked them up for next to nothing.


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Unread 05/07/2015, 07:21 AM   #7
MarlinHooker
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I've just started planned a 300g corner in wall system, moving from my 150g peninsula I've had for 3 years. I'll be really interested in your equipment selection as I doubt very much of the systems I have now will be big enough, except I'll be keeping my 4 AI Sols and adding a few more.
I got rid of my fuge last year as it turned into a huge red algae factory and I could never rid the tank of it until I got rid of it .... now I just have GFO & carbon dose every other day and I don't have a peck of algae anywhere.
Don't know much about algae scrubbers so I'll have to start getting smart about them ...

One thing I would highly recommend is a CaRx! Best investment you'll ever make. They are not as hard to dial in as people think and once set you're good for 6 months at a time ... I have a GeoReef 628 which I think is only rated to about 250g so I may not be able to keep that either.

I also have Vortechs - great choice as well ... just heard about the Gyro ... need to look into those as well although I love the Vortechs ...

What are you doing for overflows? I need to research the whole external overflow thing as well .... good luck and I'll keep watching ...


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Unread 05/07/2015, 08:27 AM   #8
coral102
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Great job mate!

Please keep the updates coming.

Happy Reefing!!!


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Unread 05/08/2015, 07:07 AM   #9
karimwassef
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I have an in wall 380 - very similar setup.

What are you planning for ventilation?
Which DC pump are you going with?


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Unread 05/12/2015, 09:02 AM   #10
karsco
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Good morning, well at has stopped raining at least for today. Aiming for the end of the week to move the tank weather permitting. To answer some questions:

Overflows - As for now plan on just using the stock (Marineland) overflows that come with the aquarium. I may modify if needed, I tend to run the water a little slower through my sumps and allow the Gyre & Vortech to push the water. Plan on using "Herbie" method as it worked well on the last setup.

CaRx - For now just using Two Part since I already have a bunch of it including dosing pumps, controller etc.

Ventilation - Plan on using a Panasonic 290 CFM Exhaust Fan, with a Leviton Humidity Sensor/Switch. For fresh air I am using a Panasonic Passive Inlet vent (w. damper) to allow fresh air to be pulled in to help with PH, humidity, and the "Fish Room" smell my wife loves so much.

DC Pump - Not sure yet, but leaning towards a Waveline pump since my LFS has good things to say about them. They use them on their large (200+) display & even larger frag holding tanks.


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Unread 07/29/2015, 12:28 PM   #11
karsco
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Well I had a big setback, I went on vacation for a week and I guess we had a power outage sometime when I was gone which in turn tripped the GFI. Well I lost all my fish & most of my corals some I had been taking care of for over 12 years. It is my fault for having a temporary ghetto system setup and not having any control measures set up for monitoring. I saved a few acans and some softies that were in the connected sump but it's pretty much a total loss.

I will rebuild and plan on buying a few upgrades UPS backup with small generator for long outages, & a better controller with WIFI capability. I am really bummed about the whole deal and felt real bad for the fish & corals that I had so long. I will rebuild and hopefully avoid this type of disaster in the next setup. The whole build has been delayed since I have been so busy with work, but when Fall sets in l will be framing, building the stand.


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Unread 08/06/2015, 12:42 PM   #12
karsco
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So I have been looking quite a bit at some new equipment as part of the fresh start. Here is what I am looking at:

Advanced Acrylic Sump - Bubble King Concept 60" x 16" x 16" with 25 Gallon ATO top off

Skimmer - Lifereef SVS3-30 IN-SUMP with Mazzei Venturi, going back Old School

Controller - still either Apex or Reef AI (if they ever release it)

Lighting I am going to re-use my lumenbrite 250W MH Radium 20K, my 36" T-5 fixture, and for the third slot (between the supports of the 300DD) maybe another MH, T-5, LED hybrid have not figured it out yet. Whatever I do it will be sitting on another DIY rolling light rack like my last tank


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Unread 09/16/2015, 06:35 PM   #13
karsco
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Small update I have continued to buy things in preparation of starting this thing one of these years! I purchased some large Pukani (one piece is like 24" across and about 40 lbs by itself!) The old dead rock has started to cook and will for several months as I get everything else ready. Once stable I plan to dose Seaklear (LC) to eliminate any phosphate issues. I have allot of this rock for over 15 years, so it will need a long soak to get it cleaned up. I also plan to add 50 lbs of Tampa Bay Saltwater Rock to aid in seeding all the old rock.

I also just bought a lightly used Build my LED actinic (72") and the build quality and light output look to be great. This will supplement the center MH along with whatever T-5/LED combo I come up with. Still looking at controllers and will be ordering a sump from Advanced Acrylics once the stand & fish room is built. Will probably be framing & building the stand once it's to cold to work outside, that's it for now.

Pukani photo Pukani_zpszbb9riyd.jpg


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Unread 09/16/2015, 06:36 PM   #14
karsco
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LED photo LED_zpse1gwqh3i.jpg


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Unread 09/17/2015, 09:17 AM   #15
kruse47
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Glad to see a fellow Nebraskan on here, I'll be tagging along to get ideas for when I get a 300.


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Unread 09/17/2015, 11:57 AM   #16
nuxx
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Tagging along


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470G Display - Build Thread

Current Tank Info: Retired - 470 Gallon Mixed Reef (120x29x31")
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Unread 02/02/2016, 07:39 PM   #17
karsco
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Hey all, it's been a while it seems time just keeps moving! I have bought some equipment and have laid out the outline of where the tank will sit. Excuse the mess but here is the rough layout:
 photo IMG_20160202_181546_084_zpsudasnoa8.jpg

I am going to bump the new wall out a bit to allow another 18" width in the equipment room so this will be give me a wider space between the main display, and the frag tank/mop sink and water change station. So the next step is to frame the walls and I am going to sawcut the floor to allow for two (2) floor sinks/drains one for the mop sink drain and the other for water changes and emergency floor drain. I have an Elite Aquatics sump arriving this week which should be nice, I will have four (4) bulkheads going into the sump two (2) for the main drains and two (2) for the emergency drains. (Herbie style)

 photo RS-40-1500x1500_zpsxo2zndsx.jpg

After the two (2) floor sinks are installed I am going to pour a 4" concrete curb around the tanks stand. In case of overflow, tank leak whatever hopefully this will keep the water in the fishroom and divert to the drains. I am also going to use a commercial floor epoxy for the entire floor with a solid flake which will give it a little texture so the floor is not to slippery. I also just ordered a new DBP 60 gallon frag tank, which should be a nice addition.
DBP 60 photo adb18060_zpsobsfcmye.png



Last edited by karsco; 02/02/2016 at 08:01 PM.
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Unread 02/02/2016, 07:58 PM   #18
karsco
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For my rock, I have a bunch of things going on. I saved about 50 lbs of true live rock from the crash this last summer. I have been running a turbo L4 scrubber on my 55G Rubbermaid Stock tank. This rock is older so I have been amazed the phosphate that has been drawn out of the rock by running the scrubber. The rock is finally clearing up and the hair algae is pretty much dying off this rock now. I also did vinegar baths on another 100+ lbs of dry rock and some of my dead rock pictured here:

 photo Pukani_zpsogmbqukb.jpg

Once this dry rock has been added to the main tank and cured. I will add my old living rock plus another 50 - 75 lbs of live TBS rock to the main tank, sump & frag tank. I have also settled on a skimmer which will be a LifeReef
SVS3-36 IN-SUMP. That's it for now next time I will talk about my lighting...


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Unread 02/03/2016, 04:16 AM   #19
EagleI
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Looking good! Will follow this one. Sorry to hear about your power outage, use it as a learning experience to build an even better system.


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Unread 02/03/2016, 12:30 PM   #20
karsco
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Thanks Eagle, yes the whole power outage thing really sucked. It was the first time in 20+ years I have been doing this that it happened to me!

I found some nice tanks locally that are about 70 gallons each and are stackable should be great for my water change station.

storage tank photo rtFS0070xl-Bulk-Storage-Tank_zpsowf7rsrr.jpg


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Unread 02/04/2016, 10:44 AM   #21
WaReefer458
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that tank is rad!!! never seen stackable cylinder tanks like that... you should post the link where you found those... im sure a lot of reefers here would find a good use for those


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Unread 02/04/2016, 11:22 AM   #22
karsco
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I bought these tanks locally, but I would google Ace Roto-Mold 70 gallon and see if you can find a vendor nearby your area that may carry them. Here is a link of a larger vendor that carries them:

http://www.ruralking.com/ace-roto-mo...fs0070-24.html



Last edited by karsco; 02/04/2016 at 11:32 AM.
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Unread 02/04/2016, 04:02 PM   #23
druzzelle
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I like your idea about the 4" concrete leak fail safe... i've been developing my plans for my fish room once we get the new house built.... instead of the concrete... I was thinking of having the whole room built recessed 4-6 inches...that will create the concrete barrier around the entire room (kind of like garages are done... and possibly coating the floor and maybe a foot up the wall with some form of water proofing/ slip proofing... i'll have a large drain centered in the room... I'm thinking peace of mind and catastrophe avoidance


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Unread 02/06/2016, 11:02 AM   #24
karsco
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Thanks Druzzelle, yes I had a 150G in wall cube at my last house. The ATO stuck open overflowed the sump and went into my finished basement and brand new carpet, trying to avoid that scenario again!

So new sump arrived last night and it is sweet. I have never in my 20+ years of having a reef tank bought a sump. Usually it is just a "ghettofide" 30 or 40 breeder and it worked just fine. Well I wanted to finally have a nice sump and this fits the bill. Some of the features I liked about the EA sumps, were the built in probe holders, baffle adjustment on the water depth, pre-drilled holes for flex line for dosing, built in sock holders and the etched in numbers for sump depth to name a few.

 photo sump1_zps0zy4cmqx.jpg
 photo sump4_zpsdbwyhyxd.jpg
 photo sump3_zpspf3qlpjc.jpg
 photo sump2_zpsre5srmei.jpg


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Unread 02/24/2016, 09:00 PM   #25
plyr58
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Where did you get the algae scrubber? I've been looking for that exact one after seeing it in a youtube video but I can't find a website selling it since I don't know the name.


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