dmorel's 220 Round & Shallow reef build - Page 2

dmorel · 01/24/2009, 11:00 AM

So here is the vision for the sump room.

(just in the interest of full disclosure, Skip did the sketchup not me)

The tank will drain from a center overflow into this room and be return fed with an Eheim 1262.
All of that plumbing will be under a false floor (to be installed After the tank is in place actually) going into the sump room.

water will enter the bottom sump on the baffled side.
The "left" side of the sump is the only place in the whole system that will have water levels fluctuate, so this is where the liquid level controller will be installed for top off.

the middle tank above the sump is the frag grow out tank (36x18x12) and above that is the fuge. The fuge drains directly to the frag tank, the frag tank drains to the bottom tank on the other rack. I have been referring to that tank as the "fully isolatable water vessel" which in turn drains back to the sump and the circle is complete as water is returned to the display.

In the corner will sit the skimmer (reeflo orca 250).

There will also be a 55 gallon drum to hold the RO/DI water. A DJ switch will control pumps to add water to the top tank on the second rack which is not plumbed into the system, but can drain into the fully isolatable water vessel.
Yes, this is the water change system.
A valve diverts flow from the frag tanks normal drain flow to the water vessel instead sending water directly to the sump. The water vessel has a drain directly to the sinks drainage system and voila, with a couple of turns I can change 40 gallons of water.

There will also be a chiller plumbed into this system somewhere in the sump room.
Adding a calcium reactor and ozone as well. All functions will be controlled by an RKE (I think, could go with a ACPro, but I think RKE is the move) ---

OK, that's all the news for now.

Off to order some spotlights!

Pescado Racing · 01/24/2009, 11:49 AM

Nice sketch up, will be interesting to follow the build.

JOSHUAB · 01/24/2009, 02:02 PM

This is pretty sweet!!!

4218kris · 01/24/2009, 06:39 PM

that's some pretty serious work put in to it. really looks good when do you think you will open up the store

jk

bigjdotcom01 · 01/25/2009, 09:27 AM

Great looking setup. Oh how I miss my basement from upstate NY

dmorel · 01/26/2009, 06:42 PM

Well there is a box that is covering the outside plumbing and everything is working.
I see a little water in the corner of the sump room though, I need to figure out if I have a leak or if that is just condensation. I think it's a tiny little leak somewhere, something weird is definitely happening there.

The spots are ordered, I have 2 14K and 2 20K on the way, they are being drop shipped from won brothers. I don't mind telling you, these spots are an expensive experiment. I sure hope they are worth it.

Saturday the movable light rack will be installed, so that's good stuff.

Lots of other dry goods are en route too.

I'm still trying to figure out what streams and what controller to go with.

right now the question is RKE or AC 3 Pro.

I also have to decide on the streams I want to go with.
The upside of the AC 3 over the RKE is the ability to control the streams.

Have to decide soon...

dmorel · 01/30/2009, 09:56 AM

Well not much has happened since last weekend except I ordered a BUNCH of equipment. I'm now realizing how expensive it is to build one of these "dream tank" type of systems. But I'm biting the bullet and getting premium equipment and hopefully automated the bejesus out of this thing so it runs like a champ.

I also managed to secure about 140 lbs of cured Live rock from a local who is holding it for me for a short while. That should easily be enough rock, especially if I consider the 80ish or so lbs I already have. I don't want a TON of rock in the display anyway. Aquascaping will be interesting with such a shallow tank.

Anyway... Tomorrow the light rack. I'm excited to see it in action.
Still have to get the main lighting system which should be 2x250 lumenarcs. Probably going SE there...

Controller choice ended up being the RKE, even with having to purchase the multi controller for the tunze 6055's it still was the less expensive option (I don't think it qualifies as cheap though) --- Hopefully the heralded expandability of the unit lends me some value in the future.

So it's progressing. Hopefully this weekend I can put up some pics of the light rack, that will be a pretty exciting step. Need to check out the tank and stand too, I should be able to bring those home shortly.

KRASHPD · 01/30/2009, 02:08 PM

Does the RKE not compare with the AC3? Why were you only comparing it to the AC3 Pro? I have used the aquasurf with the Tunze pumps and it worked great. I went with Vortechs this time and so far I like them. The new Tunze 6105's are very nice and I really considered using them too.

I can't wait to see how the false floor is going to look.

dmorel · 01/30/2009, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Why were you only comparing it to the AC3 Pro?

Ability to control two devices based on PH AND still control on ORP... So it was Pro or RKE.

the false floor is probably the thing that will happen dead last, so you're gonna have to wait a while

Actually, could be a close second to the skin for the stand.

dmorel · 02/04/2009, 10:01 AM

So, as depressing as this is to say, the light didn't go in on Saturday.
Hopefully this Saturday.
ALSO, the tank SHOULD be in the house soon.
The overflow is done. I'm targeting Friday evening for delivery.

I have MH spotlights. 2 15K and 2 20K. They are pretty cool and frankly throw a lot more light than I thought they would.
Looking forward to putting them on the light rack this weekend!

Equipment is starting to arrive almost daily now. The UPS guy is going to hate me

I did go with 2x250 lumenarc 3 mini pendants (SE) with 15K phoenix bulbs to start.
should be a crazy amount of light really between those two fixtures and the 4 spots.

So anyway. I'm hoping to get the tank and the light rack all in place before the of this weekend. That would make for a nice update and be worthy of some actual pics!

dmorel · 02/04/2009, 08:55 PM

Few pictures and a little delivery update.
The tank and stand should be in the house tomorrow!
The overflow is done and in, and the tank should be here tomorrow, I'm so excited.

Mean time... Here are a couple of shots of the spot lights and the very first shots of the light rack which should be installed on Saturday.

The rack mounts to garage door tracks and can be rolled out of the way of the tank.

Hopefully be doing some plumbing not to long from now!

dmorel · 02/05/2009, 04:23 PM

It's Here!

Purple Haze · 02/05/2009, 10:42 PM

In case I missed it, who makes the spotlights?

Jar*Head · 02/05/2009, 10:56 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Purple Haze
In case I missed it, who makes the spotlights?

Won Brothers 150w spotlight pendant using G12 base bulb

dmorel · 02/05/2009, 11:11 PM

Steve is correct, spot on.
I was very nervous about them, especially for how much they cost but I think I'm going to be very happy with them. Of course I won't really know for a few more weeks until I get some actual water in this thing...

At least it's here, that's a big step.
I'll take some proper pics with a real cam this weekend, I'm just getting home from a 14 hour day and the only pic I got was the one my son took with his cell phone to prove to me it was in the house.

Jar*Head · 02/05/2009, 11:19 PM

Dmorel, great build and very very cool tank. You know they have 10k, 14k and 20k bulb right? Ushio also make the bulb with g12 base ...

Untamed12 · 02/05/2009, 11:25 PM

I assume that stand has some sort of support(s) in the middle area? I don't think an acrylic tank should be supported only by the edges. It would want to sag, which would be bad.

Pyrrhus · 02/06/2009, 07:06 AM

There is a 3/4" wood top going between the stand and tank and there will most likely be some sort of support that will enclose the plumbing from the overflow and brace the center of the tank.

With a little bit of luck, everything should be coming in this week and we can start in on the plumbing fun next weekend.

dmorel · 02/06/2009, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jar*Head
Dmorel, great build and very very cool tank. You know they have 10k, 14k and 20k bulb right? Ushio also make the bulb with g12 base ...

Thanks Man, I'm pretty excited about it too.

I got two of the 14K and two of the 20K bulbs right now. I actually did not know that Ushio made the g12 base bulbs though. It would definitely be interesting to get a couple of their bulbs. The Lumenarcs are going to be 15K's so there is a lot of blue in the mix here. I would be really interested to see a few 10K's on there....

I'll be on the prowl for some of those next

Thanks for stopping by the thread Skip (Pyrrhus) ---
The wood top will be round leaving a uniform edge around the whole tank. It will be perfect to put your feet up on as you sit around the tank and chat. All the stuff that is currently around the tank is being moved out by the way, that room will have nothing in it but chairs (tall bar stool like chairs) and the tank.

Anyone know the best way to clean the acrylic a little? Most of the scratches are out, but the tank is filthy!

Jar*Head · 02/06/2009, 08:57 AM

I use Novus 1 to clean the acrylic. Since i decided to go with acrylic, i purchased large container of Novus 1,2, and 3 all in 64oz

Pyrrhus · 02/06/2009, 10:37 AM

Novus #1 and a soft towel or paper towel

dmorel · 02/06/2009, 10:42 AM

thanks guys, I'll pick some up this weekend and make it shiny.
Maybe some #3 too, there is one pretty hefty scratch I saw last night.

Can I use the Novus INSIDE the tank while it is still empty without fear?

(Never owned an acrylic tank before)

thanks!

J's Quiet Reef · 02/06/2009, 01:40 PM

Yes, Novus is non toxic so you can use it safely on the inside. I used it on the inside of my aquarium with no problems.

Untamed12 · 02/06/2009, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Thanks for stopping by the thread Skip (Pyrrhus) ---
The wood top will be round leaving a uniform edge around the whole tank. It will be perfect to put your feet up on as you sit around the tank and chat. All the stuff that is currently around the tank is being moved out by the way, that room will have nothing in it but chairs (tall bar stool like chairs) and the tank.

[/B]

I have a bar running around two sides of my tank and the only way that would be better is having it go all the way around! Awesome idea.

Note that stardard "bar height" is about 40". Ending up at that height will make it easy to find appropriate height bar stools/chairs.

Another tip I would recommend is to plan for lights when you roll the light rack out of the way. If you are doing something in the tank, you'll still want to see what you are doing. Does that ceiling fan have lights? I've also seen MH installed up in the ceiling just for this purpose.

That...or redesign to allow your light rack to move vertically as well....

Untamed12 · 02/06/2009, 04:50 PM

Wouldn't it be cool to make the bar out of acrylic and make it actually part of the tank? I thought about that when I designed, but I chickened out because I couldn't get my head past how I would keep it clean.

01/24/2009, 11:00 AM	#26
dmorel Can I borrow your towel Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Tempe AZ Posts: 3,412	So here is the vision for the sump room. (just in the interest of full disclosure, Skip did the sketchup not me) The tank will drain from a center overflow into this room and be return fed with an Eheim 1262. All of that plumbing will be under a false floor (to be installed After the tank is in place actually) going into the sump room. water will enter the bottom sump on the baffled side. The "left" side of the sump is the only place in the whole system that will have water levels fluctuate, so this is where the liquid level controller will be installed for top off. the middle tank above the sump is the frag grow out tank (36x18x12) and above that is the fuge. The fuge drains directly to the frag tank, the frag tank drains to the bottom tank on the other rack. I have been referring to that tank as the "fully isolatable water vessel" which in turn drains back to the sump and the circle is complete as water is returned to the display. In the corner will sit the skimmer (reeflo orca 250). There will also be a 55 gallon drum to hold the RO/DI water. A DJ switch will control pumps to add water to the top tank on the second rack which is not plumbed into the system, but can drain into the fully isolatable water vessel. Yes, this is the water change system. A valve diverts flow from the frag tanks normal drain flow to the water vessel instead sending water directly to the sump. The water vessel has a drain directly to the sinks drainage system and voila, with a couple of turns I can change 40 gallons of water. There will also be a chiller plumbed into this system somewhere in the sump room. Adding a calcium reactor and ozone as well. All functions will be controlled by an RKE (I think, could go with a ACPro, but I think RKE is the move) --- OK, that's all the news for now. Off to order some spotlights! __________________ The Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, 'A flute with no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is a Danish.' He was a funny guy. Current Tank Info: round and shallow japanese spot light absurdity

01/24/2009, 11:49 AM	#27
Pescado Racing AZ FRAG Club Secretary Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 827	Nice sketch up, will be interesting to follow the build. __________________ So long and thanks for all the Fish. Current Tank Info: 161,000 G. Marine/ 220 G. Reef

01/26/2009, 06:42 PM	#31
dmorel Can I borrow your towel Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Tempe AZ Posts: 3,412	Well there is a box that is covering the outside plumbing and everything is working. I see a little water in the corner of the sump room though, I need to figure out if I have a leak or if that is just condensation. I think it's a tiny little leak somewhere, something weird is definitely happening there. The spots are ordered, I have 2 14K and 2 20K on the way, they are being drop shipped from won brothers. I don't mind telling you, these spots are an expensive experiment. I sure hope they are worth it. Saturday the movable light rack will be installed, so that's good stuff. Lots of other dry goods are en route too. I'm still trying to figure out what streams and what controller to go with. right now the question is RKE or AC 3 Pro. I also have to decide on the streams I want to go with. The upside of the AC 3 over the RKE is the ability to control the streams. Have to decide soon... __________________ The Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, 'A flute with no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is a Danish.' He was a funny guy. Current Tank Info: round and shallow japanese spot light absurdity

01/30/2009, 09:56 AM	#32
dmorel Can I borrow your towel Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Tempe AZ Posts: 3,412	Well not much has happened since last weekend except I ordered a BUNCH of equipment. I'm now realizing how expensive it is to build one of these "dream tank" type of systems. But I'm biting the bullet and getting premium equipment and hopefully automated the bejesus out of this thing so it runs like a champ. I also managed to secure about 140 lbs of cured Live rock from a local who is holding it for me for a short while. That should easily be enough rock, especially if I consider the 80ish or so lbs I already have. I don't want a TON of rock in the display anyway. Aquascaping will be interesting with such a shallow tank. Anyway... Tomorrow the light rack. I'm excited to see it in action. Still have to get the main lighting system which should be 2x250 lumenarcs. Probably going SE there... Controller choice ended up being the RKE, even with having to purchase the multi controller for the tunze 6055's it still was the less expensive option (I don't think it qualifies as cheap though) --- Hopefully the heralded expandability of the unit lends me some value in the future. So it's progressing. Hopefully this weekend I can put up some pics of the light rack, that will be a pretty exciting step. Need to check out the tank and stand too, I should be able to bring those home shortly. __________________ The Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, 'A flute with no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is a Danish.' He was a funny guy. Current Tank Info: round and shallow japanese spot light absurdity

01/30/2009, 02:08 PM	#33
KRASHPD Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Surprise, AZ Posts: 1,279	Does the RKE not compare with the AC3? Why were you only comparing it to the AC3 Pro? I have used the aquasurf with the Tunze pumps and it worked great. I went with Vortechs this time and so far I like them. The new Tunze 6105's are very nice and I really considered using them too. I can't wait to see how the false floor is going to look. __________________ "Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked" - Warren Buffet

01/24/2009, 02:02 PM	#28
JOSHUAB Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Chandler, Az. Posts: 491	This is pretty sweet!!!

01/24/2009, 06:39 PM	#29
4218kris Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: mesa Posts: 1,360	that's some pretty serious work put in to it. really looks good when do you think you will open up the store jk

01/25/2009, 09:27 AM	#30
bigjdotcom01 Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Valley of the Sun Posts: 786	Great looking setup. Oh how I miss my basement from upstate NY

02/04/2009, 10:01 AM	#35
dmorel Can I borrow your towel Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Tempe AZ Posts: 3,412	So, as depressing as this is to say, the light didn't go in on Saturday. Hopefully this Saturday. ALSO, the tank SHOULD be in the house soon. The overflow is done. I'm targeting Friday evening for delivery. I have MH spotlights. 2 15K and 2 20K. They are pretty cool and frankly throw a lot more light than I thought they would. Looking forward to putting them on the light rack this weekend! Equipment is starting to arrive almost daily now. The UPS guy is going to hate me I did go with 2x250 lumenarc 3 mini pendants (SE) with 15K phoenix bulbs to start. should be a crazy amount of light really between those two fixtures and the 4 spots. So anyway. I'm hoping to get the tank and the light rack all in place before the of this weekend. That would make for a nice update and be worthy of some actual pics! __________________ The Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, 'A flute with no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is a Danish.' He was a funny guy. Current Tank Info: round and shallow japanese spot light absurdity

02/04/2009, 08:55 PM	#36
dmorel Can I borrow your towel Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Tempe AZ Posts: 3,412	Few pictures and a little delivery update. The tank and stand should be in the house tomorrow! The overflow is done and in, and the tank should be here tomorrow, I'm so excited. Mean time... Here are a couple of shots of the spot lights and the very first shots of the light rack which should be installed on Saturday. The rack mounts to garage door tracks and can be rolled out of the way of the tank. Hopefully be doing some plumbing not to long from now! __________________ The Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, 'A flute with no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is a Danish.' He was a funny guy. Current Tank Info: round and shallow japanese spot light absurdity

02/05/2009, 04:23 PM	#37
dmorel Can I borrow your towel Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Tempe AZ Posts: 3,412	It's Here! __________________ The Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, 'A flute with no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is a Danish.' He was a funny guy. Current Tank Info: round and shallow japanese spot light absurdity

02/05/2009, 10:42 PM	#38
Purple Haze Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: TX Posts: 1,157	In case I missed it, who makes the spotlights?

02/05/2009, 11:11 PM	#40
dmorel Can I borrow your towel Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Tempe AZ Posts: 3,412	Steve is correct, spot on. I was very nervous about them, especially for how much they cost but I think I'm going to be very happy with them. Of course I won't really know for a few more weeks until I get some actual water in this thing... At least it's here, that's a big step. I'll take some proper pics with a real cam this weekend, I'm just getting home from a 14 hour day and the only pic I got was the one my son took with his cell phone to prove to me it was in the house. __________________ The Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, 'A flute with no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is a Danish.' He was a funny guy. Current Tank Info: round and shallow japanese spot light absurdity

02/05/2009, 11:19 PM	#41
Jar*Head Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Orange County, CA Posts: 8,946	Dmorel, great build and very very cool tank. You know they have 10k, 14k and 20k bulb right? Ushio also make the bulb with g12 base ... __________________ Steve Tankless. Current Tank Info: 480g peninsula

02/05/2009, 11:25 PM	#42
Untamed12 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 1,799	I assume that stand has some sort of support(s) in the middle area? I don't think an acrylic tank should be supported only by the edges. It would want to sag, which would be bad. __________________ Fishlist: Tangs: Yellow, Vlamingi, Blonde Naso, Unicorn, Achilles, Atlantic Blue Others: Orange Spot Goby(s), Xmas Wrasse, Maroon Clown(s), Foxface, Majestic, Rusty & Bicolour Angels Current Tank Info: 400gal Envision Acrylic reef started 04/07

02/06/2009, 07:06 AM	#43
Pyrrhus Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Tempe, AZ Posts: 2,830	There is a 3/4" wood top going between the stand and tank and there will most likely be some sort of support that will enclose the plumbing from the overflow and brace the center of the tank. With a little bit of luck, everything should be coming in this week and we can start in on the plumbing fun next weekend. __________________ Severe Knowledge In Plumbing

02/06/2009, 08:57 AM	#45
Jar*Head Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Orange County, CA Posts: 8,946	I use Novus 1 to clean the acrylic. Since i decided to go with acrylic, i purchased large container of Novus 1,2, and 3 all in 64oz __________________ Steve Tankless. Current Tank Info: 480g peninsula

02/06/2009, 10:37 AM	#46
Pyrrhus Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Tempe, AZ Posts: 2,830	Novus #1 and a soft towel or paper towel __________________ Severe Knowledge In Plumbing

02/06/2009, 10:42 AM	#47
dmorel Can I borrow your towel Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Tempe AZ Posts: 3,412	thanks guys, I'll pick some up this weekend and make it shiny. Maybe some #3 too, there is one pretty hefty scratch I saw last night. Can I use the Novus INSIDE the tank while it is still empty without fear? (Never owned an acrylic tank before) thanks! __________________ The Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, 'A flute with no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is a Danish.' He was a funny guy. Current Tank Info: round and shallow japanese spot light absurdity

02/06/2009, 01:40 PM	#48
J's Quiet Reef Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Tempe AZ Posts: 89	Yes, Novus is non toxic so you can use it safely on the inside. I used it on the inside of my aquarium with no problems.

02/06/2009, 04:50 PM	#50
Untamed12 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 1,799	Wouldn't it be cool to make the bar out of acrylic and make it actually part of the tank? I thought about that when I designed, but I chickened out because I couldn't get my head past how I would keep it clean. __________________ Fishlist: Tangs: Yellow, Vlamingi, Blonde Naso, Unicorn, Achilles, Atlantic Blue Others: Orange Spot Goby(s), Xmas Wrasse, Maroon Clown(s), Foxface, Majestic, Rusty & Bicolour Angels Current Tank Info: 400gal Envision Acrylic reef started 04/07