View Full Version : Yakdrivers New Tank
Ok guys, my new tank is in planning and underway
Is going to be a 6ft x 2ft x 2ft glass tank built into a false wall, with a bookcase at one end. The base of the tank sits approx 40" from the floor.
There will be a Titan 1500 chiller located out in the garage. The chiller piping run will require approx 12ft of 25mm PVC piping there and back, making a total run I guess of approx 24ft of 25mm PVC piping.
The wall 'void' will be ventillated via a through-wall extrator fan (high volume, variable speed xpelair unit, controlled via a thermostat and humidistat). there will also be a clip on type AC fan blowing air accross the surface of the water, controlled via a thermostat.
Have marked up the lighting as 3 x 250w MH, but may opt for 1 x 400w MH and 2 x 250w MH... we'll see,
The wooden floor in the room is being lifted and strengthened to bear the weight of new tank/stand/sump.
Stand is now partly built, made out of 4x2 planned timber and 9mm ply.
Basic diagrams/pics as below, any comments feedback welcome.
As a starting point is doing the sump to tank return via the chiller as shown a good idea?
Basic idea of what it will look like when finished, the false wall facia will be supported by a frame (inc tank stand) and made out of acrylic stained pine by a local cabinet maker, to match rest of house.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tank%202%20cg.jpg
basic diagram on plumbing/layout...any comments/ideas?
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tank3cg.jpg
Side view of sump, there will also be a seperate glass water tank for RO and salt mix.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/sump1cg.jpg
Piccie of stand, built out of 4x2 designed to survive a thermo nuclear attack.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankstandcg.jpg
An interesting project, be keeping our eye on this one.
Looks well thought out mate, gonna be good watching your project progress.... :thumbsup:
Still got a dodgy taste in cars though!!! :P
Yak...
I dont think your skimmer will keep up... possibly depends on stocking.... and what you intend to keep.... if you want pure sps - an 850 min or 702/703 IMO
Also - a 1060 return? I think you need more - 8-10 x tank volume per hour.
Make sure you ball valve each important section - e.g. chiller...
e
I think your intank flow is ok... but on the lower side for sps :)
I personally would not run my skimmer from the downpipe... as it is variable and turbulent... my preference entirely....
I think a skimmer should have a constant flow, discharging into a constant water level for optimum skimming.
elliot
Looks like a great tank in the making.
One thing I would say is that the stand is very similar to the one I built. The two small panels you have at either end mau not be enough to stop the stand "twisting". I would double this at least.
JMHO
Mode
Thanks for the feedback guys :thumbsup: , I've been Ill for a few days hence the delay in replying.
Mode - Although the stand appears to be rock solid when I throw my (ahhem) 13 1/2 stone about on it I can imagine you are right. I was planning to put another piece of 4x2 accross each end at the base as a cross support, but will take your advice and add another cross panel as well.
Elliot - thanks for the advice on the skimmer, this is uncharted territory for me so thansk. I could go for a AP850. Question - the AP850 is quoted as being 800mm high, I have 950mm of free height in my stand (taking into account polystyrene sheet and sump glass). This would give me approx 150mm height free above the skimmer. Looking at the drawing on the deltec website it looks like the skimmer only needs a couple of Cm's above the skimemr to remove the cup, meaning with 95cm of total height I'd be OK... am I right, or do you need a higher stand for a AP850??
Ref flow, I agree, I would probably end up putting more streams in.
Tank to sump flow, OK, so if I added another 1060 to feed directly from the sump to the tank would that be OK? (total of approx 4400lt/hr = approx x7.5 tank turnover)
Bulldog - where the stand was built is the beast's lair.... it had to spend a whole day out in the cold whilst I built the stand :P
Chris.
Originally posted by Yakdriver@Mar 17 2005, 19:32
Thanks for the feedback guys :thumbsup: , I've been Ill for a few days hence the delay in replying.
Mode - Although the stand appears to be rock solid when I throw my (ahhem) 13 1/2 stone about on it I can imagine you are right. I was planning to put another piece of 4x2 accross each end at the base as a cross support, but will take your advice and add another cross panel as well.
Elliot - thanks for the advice on the skimmer, this is uncharted territory for me so thansk. I could go for a AP850. Question - the AP850 is quoted as being 800mm high, I have 950mm of free height in my stand (taking into account polystyrene sheet and sump glass). This would give me approx 150mm height free above the skimmer. Looking at the drawing on the deltec website it looks like the skimmer only needs a couple of Cm's above the skimemr to remove the cup, meaning with 95cm of total height I'd be OK... am I right, or do you need a higher stand for a AP850??
Ref flow, I agree, I would probably end up putting more streams in.
Tank to sump flow, OK, so if I added another 1060 to feed directly from the sump to the tank would that be OK? (total of approx 4400lt/hr = approx x7.5 tank turnover)
Bulldog - where the stand was built is the beast's lair.... it had to spend a whole day out in the cold whilst I built the stand :P
Chris.
Yup I would think you are ok.. the clearance for removal is very little.
e
Ok, so today was floor strengthening day. Eric (aka Iskeman) very kindly came along and did most of the work and made sure the job was done properly, rather than bodged as it would have been had I been left to my own devices. Thanks Eric, much appreciated.
We took up some of the floorboards where the tank will be sited only to find that there was already a brick pier supporting the joists at that point and also that the joists were 6x2 ie. bigger than we expected, due to it being a new house.
We could have probably got away with leaving the floor as it was, but since we'd already lifted some boards we decide to make 100% sure and packed up two points either side of the brick pier with bricks and wood, making sure we laid damproof membrane under both supports. This was achieved by using a car jack to lift each joist by 3 - 4 mm, then slipping the support underneath and then lowering the joist back down. One things for sure...It ain't going to move.
The floor is now very strong and will definately bear the tank and some... it should also now be pretty resistant to vibration, when people walk accross the floor near the tank.
Photos of the job.
Lifting the floor.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/floorcg1.jpg
Shot showing existing brick pier, poured concrete foundation of house and void.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/floorcg2.jpg
Shot showing new support added (there are two in total), using bricks, wood post and packing pieces.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/floorcg3.jpg
Hi Chris. Nice piccys they have come out ok, thanks for bacon buttys and good strong Yorkshire tea. Catch you later m8 Eric. :thumbsup:
sowerby reef
19-03-05, 21:55
nice one Eric.
Kev
Started on the aquascaping, ok, so the tanks months off being filled but it's a good time to start doing these jobs IMHO :D
Bought some 15mm acrylic rod and a 15mm drill bit, a box of 'reef bones' and went to work.
I'm realy impressed with the reef bones (thanks Neil at Essential) they are really nice pieces, very porous and quite light (approx 40lb in total in this piccie). one thing that attracts me to the Reef Bones is there is no risk of crabs, mantis etc and also it should be easier also to avoid undesirable macro algaes.
I will alos have some 'real live rock' in the main tank to seed everything with critters, worms, etc, but that will only be added after the tank has cycled with the reef bones in, which jusging by some of the dead growth on some of the rocks will take a month or two.
I want the tank's rockwork to be very open with lots of space for fish to swin in and out of and more importantly lots of mounting places for SPS.
I've decided the tank is now going to be BB (bottom covered with starboard) so want a 'clean' open look. I also want the rockwork to be stable and not just pilled up hence the acrylic rod structure, which feels suprisingly strong. When the rock structures have been reassembled in the tank finally (before filling with salt water) I'll reinforce all joints etc with a combination of tiewraps and milliput.
There will be two other rock structures like this plus approx 20Kg of LR in the sump, which will make for approx 80Kg LR in total, which for 130ish gallons of water and a modest fish load should be fine.
heres' the first rock structure, apart from the 'top cap', every rock has been drilled with an acrylic rod fed into it.
(re-edited piccie below as I've done some more work re-arranging and have also milliputted some of the joints)
Chris.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/rockscg5.jpg
MaidstoneMarine
01-04-05, 22:35
Looking good so far - keep the pics coming!
Chris
Hi Chris. Looks good mate for a first try, will have a look tommorrow. Cheers Eric. :thumbsup:
Ok, latest thought on setup, feedback welcome pls.
The skimmer is now a APF850 following Elliots' advice and is now fed from a in-sump pump.
The sand bed/algae has now gone and will be replaced with a section filled with LR rubble.
There are now two sump return pumps, one 1060 to feed the chiller, which returns to the tank and a new second one to feed dtraight from the sump to the tank.
The tank will be BB with a starboard base sheet.
Regarding the first set of glass baffles shown on the sump drawing (on left) do you think I'll need two baffles as shown or should I just have a single baffle with a 2" gap at the bottom to let water flow through and up the LR rubble?
thanks,
Chris.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tank%203%20cg.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/sump2cg.jpg
Bump....
Can anyone pls give advice on the sump baffles etc.
Thanks,
Chris.
MaidstoneMarine
06-04-05, 08:01
Chris,
I think I'd be tempted to remove the first baffle. Have you thought about removing both baffles and having a larger first section with the return straight into the live rock section?
When I first drew up my plans I had the 850 in the sump too but after drawing a full size plan of the tank, stand and sump on lining paper (it was a big drawing!) I could see how that I'd never be able to remove it once all the sump plumbing and lighting were complete, and if it was possible to get it out, because it was in the sump, it would be dripping water to where ever you needed to take it!
You've already built the stand, so as an experiment, cut a couple of bits of wood to the size of the skimmer and sump and then try removing the skimmer from the sump whilst in the stand!
Hope this helps.
Chris
I had thought about having no baffles, but want to ensure the water flows through the LR rubble not just over it. I'm erring towards a single baffle, directing the water under the LR.
I've had a re-check on getting an 850 in and out of the sump and it will fit (famous last words....). i won't be having any lighting for the sump nor cross tank piping so it shouldn't be an issue although it obviously something to bear in mind.
I would always want to have the skimmer in the sump, purely for when it overflows or leaks at some point (and it will) it will just flow into the sump, rather than the floor.
Thanks,
Chris.
nice one yak... about to start a similar project myself..
how many floorboards is your tank gonna sit on..
where i want my tank it will sit on only 2 so i think im gonna have to fill it up with concrete
The tank will sit accross approx 12 floorboards, with these floorboards supported down to the concrete footings at three points along the tanks length.
The reef plates arrived from Germany today, very impressed with the quality, the rock is very light and porous and 'chimes' when tapped it's so light/rigid.
The plates are essentially very old, dead plating corals (acros by the look of it?), the top plate in the photo below is covered in dead finger-like milli acro type growth and all pieces have plate corals, shells, tube worm casings etc embedded in them.
Anyway, out with the drill and acrylic rod again, this time to make a pillar of two plates (third plate underneath as support/base).
Detail shot of plating rock (top one in stack)
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankrock3.jpg
twin plate stack, with plate as base
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankrock.jpg
and shot showing what the middle and right hand side of the tank will look like (long way to go yet, need a tank before long!)
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankrock2.jpg
Comments/feedback welcome
Chris.
Not the most exciting development.... but a true test of the wife's tollerance to having the house altered for the sake of a fish tank :D :D
Today we fitted the 9" extractor fan through the outside wall. A very dirty, noisy job... again thanks to Eric (isekeman) for doing a great job and without who's help I'd probably be looking at a knackered wall/fan !
The fan is a high volume commercial job, running on a speed controller and running at low speed and therefore low noise, even on this setting it is shifting quite a bit of air.
The speed contoller will be eventually fed from a thermostat and humidistat wired in parallel so if the above tank void gets too warm or damp the fan will kick in.
Eric starting to cut the hole
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/fancg1.jpg
the finished job
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/fancg2.jpg
Nice one Chris it looks better than it did this afternoon. Regards Eric. :thumbsup:
I'll watch this with interest as I have an eye on one side of my dining room which I'd like to do a similar thing with! Just at the stage of dropping gentle hints to the otehr half at the momnet ;)
What made you decide against an air con unit and use an extractor fan plus a chiller?
Moisture issues?
Awesome Yah...
Like the rockwork.. definately the way I would go....
I have heard Bare Bottom.. but bare tank is taking the p!ss
I wish I had a handy man with those skills near me :(
e
Thanks for the comments guys.
Elliot - yes, I'm lucky having someone like Eric to help out. I definately have DIY skill limitations and Eric knows what he's doing (or puts on a good act :D )
>>What made you decide against an air con unit and use an extractor fan plus a chiller?<<
I did think about an aircon unit as the tank is in a fairly small study sized room and I could have quite easily plumbed one in and on the face of it it's an easier solution. The main factor was cost in terms of running cost, once you've got over a Kw of heat to dispel, you need a fairly serious aircon unit... and that cost £££ to run, especially when you view it over 3 - 4 years. In addition the room would still need some ventilation to enable decent gas exchange and also reduce humidity - and ventilation would just make the aircon to have to work even harder, meaning more ££.
In saying that, I'm sure there are some people who have mid sized (large?) tanks and who soley rely on aircon successfully.
Chris.
Thanks - looks like you've considered it well and made a good choice! :thumbsup:
I think you are right about the single baffle before the LR in the sump.
hi chris.
have you got a link to the site where you got the plating rock from in germany?
cheers wayne
www.aquaristic.net (http://www.aquaristic.net)
Look under aquarium and under 'decoration' and then 'rocks' section. they are described as 'Marine reef plates'
Shipping for under 32Kg is approx 12 euors or about £8, my delivery took 5 working days. (amazing but true...).
The stack of plates on the right of the photo is 25Kg's to give you an idea of size/weight. The middle structure is 20Kg's of reef bones.
Chris.
hmmm now IF id have know about Erics skills way back when, id have collared him into helping me when I did my teeny tiny DIY room mod b4 I could get my new bigger tank ;) hehehehe......
Hi Mark. How are you doing m8 its been a while since iv'e heard from you, hows your tank doing hope its ok and no probs. Some one told me Steve C has moved wheres he gone do you know i have not been over for ages, i have been off work with a bad knee for 6 month waiting for an operation for the last 4 month and god knows how much longer i will have to wait. Its a pity you did not get in touch i would have liked a week in Cleethorpes when you did your tank. Regards Eric. :thumbsup:
Originally posted by Yakdriver@Apr 21 2005, 18:58
www.aquaristic.net (http://www.aquaristic.net)
Look under aquarium and under 'decoration' and then 'rocks' section. they are described as 'Marine reef plates'
Shipping for under 32Kg is approx 12 euors or about £8, my delivery took 5 working days. (amazing but true...).
The stack of plates on the right of the photo is 25Kg's to give you an idea of size/weight. The middle structure is 20Kg's of reef bones.
Chris.
cheers chris :cheers: ,just bit the bullet and bought 30kgs of the white stuff....hope customs understand!
:lol:
i've wanted this stuff for ages for my new tank,good site that!!
:thumbsup:
More reef bones... :D
Took delivery of another 20Kg of Reef bones from essential aquatics :thumbsup: . Diffeent type of rocks arrived this time, two BIG rocks, lovely pieces encrusted with old corals etc... just what I wanted to make a rock tower.
Our with the drill and acrylic rod again.
The rock tower
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/towercg1.jpg
shot of complete tank layout with approx 65Kg of calcerous rock, will add approx 10Kg or 'real' live rock when tank has cycled. In addition there will be approx 20Kg of LR in the sump. makes for a total of approx 95Kg of rock (approx 195lb) which for 132 gallons of water should be fine.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/rockshotcg1.jpg
Hi Chris. If you keep going with this artistic talent you will exhibiting at the Tate before long m8. Nice shapes m8 it will look brill when it gets some water and more rock around it :thumbsup: See you Sunday 7-45am sharp. Eric. :cheers:
bank holiday weekend... time to do more work for the new tank :D
Eric came over again and laid the 25mm piping from the house to the garage, which will carry water from the sump to the chiller in the garage and then back to the tank. We made sure the piping was as well insulated as we could to reduce heating bill in winter. Used both pipe lagging and expanding foam spray(Big thank you to Eric, aka Isekeman again :thumbsup: )
the trench with piping in
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/piprcg1.jpg
The finished job (like my box-work Eric?)
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/pipecg2.jpg
My mate Scott, who just happens to be a plumber then helped me fit a 40mm drain pipe to the room, draining to an outside drain through a U-bend. The RO waste and tank drain pump will be plumbed into this. We then moved the tank stand into the room and I started on the electrics.
Won't be long now...
You can see the pipe drain in the right hand side of the photo.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/undertankcg2.jpg
start of the electrics
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/undertankcg1.jpg
hi Yakdriver that looks like a great job youve done there :thumbsup: carnt wait for you to set it up :dance: keep them pics comeing :wave:
jamie reefer
02-05-05, 19:26
Hi Yakdriver
Cant wait to see this project up and running,very impress with your so far mate very well thought out....Keep up the work and keep them pictures rolling in mate...
ps Eric is a top bloke met him in essential one day had good bit crack :thumbsup:
cheers Jamie
Looking extremely good Chris.
Neat job of the piping under the path, and very imaginative use of your rock/coral.
I am still waitng for my tank to come, so am pretty much at a standstill at the moment.
Won't be long now mate!! Bet you can't wait to actually see some fish !!
Have you got a "wish list" of fish/inverts?
Hi Chris.Who's been a busy lad then, that looks excellent the stand and pipe work and electrics are looking good as well. Was it coincidence that Scott came or had you planned it :lol: :lol: I like the boxing in of the pipes m8 very pro. I hope you all have had a good weekend, iv'e been over towards Skipton and Malham Tarn today we had lunch at Grassington then came back to Anne's. I will catch you later m8 hope you have a good week at work if thats possible. Regards Eric. :thumbsup:
Thanks for the comments guys.
One day there will be a tank there containing some fish ! :D I don't think I've spent as much time preparing for something as this - i've got to the point bI just want to get it done now.
Stocking wise, I'm still building a list but will probably comprise of tangs and some shoaling fish (Antias?) plus some goby and pistol shrimp combos. When the tank is fully matur I'll also add a manderin in too.
Eric, I only thought of getting Scott roped into this after you'd left on Sat :lol: He's a cargo pilot now , having been a plumber in the distant past. He arrived in his new Porsche and I thought... what could bring pilot boy down to earth :D a bit of plumbing... yippeee
Glad he helped actually it wasn't too easy tapping into the existing waste pipe.
Chris.
Hi Chris,
Nice to see it all taking shape. Good job on the plumbing, I've got a similar job to do as the washing m/c has to be moved to the garage. How deep is the trench & how did you cover the pipes before putting the slab back on. Also I'm thinking of using the blue plastic water pipe will this be ok?
Sorry for all the dumb questions!
:)
This looks like its gonna be one awesome tank! I really like the aquascape, I think I will copy that when I start my new tank :blush:
Suk - if it's for plumbing a washing machine then I guess blue pipe is OK.
My piping is approx 4" below the slab, so about 6" deep in total. It is heavily insulated as you can see from pics - but bear in mind it will have 26 degC water flowing through it 24/7 so will not be subject to freezing, the insulation is there mainly to reduce the tank heater load in winter.
If you are laying piping for occassional cold water use (washing machine) I'd try and lay it a bit deeper and insulate a bit more near the walls, otherwise you risk freezing, with associated pipe burst in winter, if we have a really cold winter.
We just lifted the slab and channelled a trough using a hammer and chisel. You can see from the top photo how the slab is still supported either side, when laid back down (we infilled with gravel/sand and then dry sand/concrete mix for the top 1/2").
Chris
hi Yakdriver looks a nice job the only thing i can see is that in a two or three years there could be a build up of silt in that pipe but i bet you allready coverd that problem with a pre-filter on your feed pump :o
No haven't covered that one, no filter planned... I'd be pushing 2400 lt/hr through and thought a fine filter would be impractical at those flow rates (??).
Was planning to disconnect the chiller every other year (every year?), flush with pressure washer! fill with several pints of hot vinegar, then flush again thoroughly after a few hours.
Hopefully that would keep pipework clear, although it would be something to keep an eye on.
Chris.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/sump2cg.jpg [/QUOTE]
Looking good.
What was the reasoning behind getting shut of the macro algae/dsb in favour of just LR rubble?
I'm lazy :D
... and want the simplest solution that works well and that I can control.
Will be using fluidised carbon and Rowa 24/7 hopefully getting rid of PO4, some organics and other nasties. The AP850 skimmer and high in-tank flow, will hopefully get rid of most organics before they can break down, along with regular BB crud syphoning.
The tank will rely on LR rubble (large chunks) and in-tank LR, coral growth and regular waterchanges for nitrate reduction. As an aside I don't intend to make the tank's bioload high. I'd lift the LR rubble out every 3 - 4 months and wash off in a bucket of old tankwater before replacing.
Using a DSB with macro algae would mean I'd have to harvest and light the algae and feed the DSB....I want to keep the sump in the dark to avoid any algae growth in sump and on gear/piping/flaot switches etc (which i then have to clean off). There is a small risk of the DSB not working or going bad or the macro crashing. I'm not bothered about not having a DSB adding to my tank's critter population... as the LR will probably have enough critters after a year anyway.
In short a DSB/macro in my sump would not do anything for my tank that won't be done by the systems already highlighted IMHO.... I could be wrong though!
.... If I am wrong, it won't take much effort to take out the LR rubble and use that section for a DSB.
Chris.
Originally posted by Yakdriver@May 20 2005, 14:40
I'm lazy :D
Chris.
And there was me thinking I'd missed some new fangled technique for sumos :D
MaidstoneMarine
23-05-05, 23:51
Chris,
Looking good. I've been umming and arring as to whether or not replace my dsb section with a live rock rubble section as you've got but decided to stick with the DSB and see what a happens!
Keep the pics coming.
Chris
Yippeeee! :D
My new tank and sump + water tank arrrived today. A few teething problems, but we got them sorted in the end (many thanks to Neil at Essential with getting hold of some new tank connectors very quickly, you're a star :thumbsup: )
Bit busy to post details, but piccies below give some idea of progress.
Busy weekend ahead plumbing and wiring.... will post more piccies later.
Tank having had first coat of paint
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankcgnew2.jpg
water tank (on left) and sump. RO/DI plumbed in with DIY float switch/latching relay, RO tank auto top-up system working great
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankcgnew1.jpg
Chris
jamie reefer
17-06-05, 21:01
Hi Chris
Looking good mate,keep them coming there.....
cheers Jamie
RedevanceUK
17-06-05, 21:40
Looks great, that shade of blue looks good too :thumbsup:
Look forward to updates
MaidstoneMarine
18-06-05, 00:04
Here we go... bring on the pics!!
How many coats of paint are you going to give your tank and how are you applying it? Brush or roller?
Cheers
Chris
looks fantastic mate ,will be good to see how it developes!! :thumbsup:
Hurray!
Been looking forward to this one.
Have lots of fun mate. Post loads of pics when you get time.
Thanks for the kind comments guy/gals.
Also a big thank you (again) to Eric (aka isekiman) for helping me today lift the tank on the stand (yes Eric I am a weak whimp but that tank is damn heavy :rolleyes: :D ), do the plumbing etc. Cheers mate.
Well, it's filling with water now! at long last.
All main plumbing finished, the 2 x 1260's are plumbed in and the durso is finished.
quite pleased with the tank colour (B&Q 'true bue' gloss, took two thick coats with a brush, MM)).
I've decided to go for a variation on the BB theme. I wanted a robust, reef safe material to cover the tank's base with, but after much thought didn't really want to use starboard/acrylic etc as I wanted a more 'natural' look. So... I'm doing a 'rock bottom' tank. I don't know if anyone has done this before (I'm sure they have) but here we go.
I've cast four plates out of white cement/sand/grit which will fully cover the base of the tank ie. as a rock bottom. They have been curing for a couple of weeks in a vat of fresh water and will probably take another 3 - 4 weeks more until they are cured fully. The concrete plates are approx 12 - 15mm thick.
I made the top surface of the plates quite rough/textured so they don't just look like sheets of cement and will be adding lot of small chunks of LR etc onto them with milliput, making caves etc in the process for gobies/shrimps to hide in. The plates will be joined with milliput, the idea is it will look like one big sheet of reef rock.
I've also pressured washed all the reef bones and reef plates rock I had (lots of crud came off/out of them). They will be cycled in the main tank as I'm waiting for the rock bottom plates to cure in the water vat outside. When it's all ready I'll then lay the bottom plates in the base of the main tank and aquascape the reef bones/reeef plates rock, then I'll leave for a while to check all initial cycling has completed.
A few piccies.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/takcgnew4.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/takcgnew5.jpg
Cheers,
Chris.
More of an update and a few more piccies for you.
Tank is now full of water and the salt is added. Thanks to eric (Isekiman) for loaning me his RO unit, I found that mine was taking a long to time to fill the tank so I used two RO units for the filling process.
I've added the reef bones/plates in the tank to mature and cycle. When they are ready I'll lift them out, add the artificial rock base plates that I've made and which are curing in a vat of fresh water outside as we speak. Then I'll aquascape.. I'm guessing that will be in approx 4 weeks time.
I've fired the Deltec AP851 skimmer up, right from switch on it started skimming. What a beast! It is also a lot quieter than I thought it would be which is good.
I've put the two 6100 streams in on mag mounts and they seem to put a good level of flow in the tank.
Only fly in the ointment so far is the Durso, although it is working in terms of water transfer it's very noisy. So I'm going to replace the ball valve on the downpipe with a gate valve (to alllow finer adjustment) and then I'll restrict the flow down a bit, to back the water up in the weir and hopefully reduce the noise. I've had it working like this so I know it works, but the ball valve doesn't allow me to fine tune it.
Here's a few pics, comments welcome.
Shot of whole tank setup, with sump pumps to right of stand. Sides and top of stand will be not seen when the false wall is built.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankcgnew8.jpg
Piccie of RO storage tank with two position float switch for RO solonoid control via a latching relay
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankcgnew9.jpg
Shot looking down the sump, showing AP851
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankcgnew10.jpg
Cheers,
Chris.
Hi Chris. Its looking good m8,i will see it all tommorrow when i come over. See you then m8. Eric. :thumbsup:
5061litres
01-07-05, 09:17
chris..
the bit that helps to fine tune the durso with the water backed up in the pipe is..... how deep the end of the pipe is under the water in the sump. u ideally want it no more then an inch under the surface of the water.
tony.
ugghh - Waiting for rock to cure is boring... :rolleyes: :D
Here's a piccie showing what my rockwork should look like. Ignore the left hand side of the tank for now, the centre and right should look something like the piccie below.
Some of the rock that is currently in the tank in pile on the left will end up in the sump.
I had to stitch 3 photos together with software to get the shot, as the lens isn't wide enough angle on my camera, this causes the disjointed lines... but it gives you the basic idea.
Only the centre 250w MH was on when this piccie was taken. The tank base is lined with 2mm acrylic sheet currently, but that will be replaced in 3 weeks or so with my 'rock plates'.
Comments/feedback?
Cheers,
Chris.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankmerge1cg.jpg
wow defo getting there m8! everything is so tidy and organised ;) i realy like the outside durso idea :thumbsup: nick
Hi Chris. Its starting to look the part m8, hows the params is there any show of any thing or as it cycled yet. I like the rock formation you have made it will be looking good when you get the corals on them out of the other tank. Regards Eric. :thumbsup:
The parameters are going OK, I'm expecting it to take another 3 - 4 weeks to go through the initial cycle.
Ammonia is undetectable, despite a large festering dead prawn in the tank, meaning ammonia must be being converted into Nitrite.
Nitrite is about 2ppm and rising
Nitrate is approx 50ppm
Hopefully in a week or so the Nitrite will start reducing.
Chris,
This is the bit where every day seems like a fortnight mate!!
Have you done the looking around after dark with the torch trick yet? Spent many a long hour on that one a few weeks ago.
Gonna be nice when it's all finished. Can't wait to see it when it starts to mature
Have you done the looking around after dark with the torch trick yet?
... you been looking in through my windows again... :rolleyes: :lol: :lol:
MaidstoneMarine
04-07-05, 22:27
Looking good chris.
I do like the look of the rock formations that you've made. I'm thinking of having a lone column like you've got in the centre.
Wheres the festering prawn in your latest pic? :lol:
you staying bare bottomed or just waiting till you figure out the aquascaping?
Thanks for the comments.
you staying bare bottomed or just waiting till you figure out the aquascaping?
I want to have a BB tank, but don't want a bare glass or plastic finish if that makes sense.
I've made up a set of 'rock plates' out of concrete (like man made LR) which are currently curing in a water tank out in the garden. I'm waiting till they do not raise the PH of the water... which should hopefully be the case in 2 - 3 weeks time...
With a few small pieces of LR milliputted them, it should look just like a 'rock bottom'.
... if the curing does not work (which it might not, as you hear variable stories about curing man made LR and there is no way I'm going to risk messing up the tanks' PH) then it's over to plan B.
What's plan B you ask ... I don't know yet :rolleyes: :D probably a shallow sand bed. In saying that with the in tank flow, I want to avoid a sandstorm.
Cheers,
Chris
Hi Yakdriver,
just reading about ya tank looks good so far. Theres some other options other than BB or sand. In my tank i had a concrete base, totally flat on the underside and textured on the top. Made it to fit in sections and milliputted the joins to stop sh** getting under. You can make depressions as well for clams etc etc. U end up with a very natural looking effect. After time it looks just like LR and u can clean v easy by just syphoning off any detritus to reaveal the purple and red corralline.
jonathan
Theres some other options other than BB or sand. In my tank i had a concrete base, totally flat on the underside and textured on the top. Made it to fit in sections and milliputted the joins to stop sh** getting under.
and I thought I was the first to do this... :rolleyes: :D :D
That's exactly what I'm doing at the moment, the base plates are curing as we speak.
And here's me thinking no-one had done this yet in a reef tank! I guess great minds think alike and all that.
:thumbsup:
Chris.
Looking good this will be an awesome tank when finished. Keep the pics coming.
Had a long hard think about the concrete plates I'm trying to cure... and which don't seem to be curing very much :D . Decided I don't want to take the risk of screwing up my tank's PH so I've scrapped that idea of using them :( .
Instead... continuing with the 'rock bottom' theme I've lined the bottom of the tank with 3/4" thick quaried sandstone slabs (courtesy of B&Q). They are resting on a few sheets of 2mm acrylic to protect the tank base.
I've muliputted the main joints together and done some aquascaping using acrylic rod and milliput.
The dark brown sandstone isn't my ideal colour for the tank base, it also makes the milliputted areas really stand out at the moment, but I guess give it 3 - 4 months or so and it will all get covered with coralline algae etc anyway. The surface of the slabs is quite textured/rough so it looks fairly natural, or at least will do once some algaes start growing on it.
I've milliputted a few small pieces of LR to break up the flat sheet and made some small caves for gobies etc.
Here's a few piccies to show the general effect (piccies are taken with only one MH fitted). I my still add a few bits in here and there but as a starting point for an open base for adding SPS onto I'm fairly happy.
Comments/feedback welcome. :thumbsup: Chris.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/rocktankcg1.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/rocktankcg2.jpg
looks great so far keep up the good work :thumbsup:
The_Creeper
10-07-05, 23:54
Exciting, just set up my tank a couple of months back.
I really like watching other peoples ideas go into their tank...
....wish me luck :wacko: :unsure:
The move has started....
Water parameters are now good, so I've started emptying the nano reef and aclimatising stock into the new 6x2x2.
I never realised how big the SPS had grown. if you look at all those bags of acros they were all in a 20G tank :D
Clowns are aclimatised and in their new home. What a laugh getting them out the nano tank :lol: bearing in mind they would both hand feed in the nano, after I had removed about half the SPS i tried to move the rock next to where the clowns live... yep you've guessed it, bang!" nip, nip! the female was having none of it :lol: She nipped and nipped every time I put my hands anywhere that end of the tank.
That was her downfall really because all I had to do was stick my fingers inside a ploy bag and she swam straight in. :rolleyes:
Anyway now I'm really bricking it. It's taken me months to grow all those SPS, mainly from frags and it could all go sadly wrong very quickly. Some of them are really nice small colonies now and I'll be gutted if I loose any.
Wish me luck guys :thumbsup:
Chris.
piccie of SPS hanging in bags aclimatising. Bear in mind it's a 6x2x2 and they all came out a 20G tank!
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankmovecg.jpg
:bow: looking good ,great work in putting it all together and seeing it take shape .
hope all goes well with the sps.will stayed glued :thumbsup:
Hi Chris. I see you have finally done it, hope it all goes well for you m8. Iwill have to get over and have a look. Regards Eric. :thumbsup:
BlankFrank
26-07-05, 21:53
Looks really good - hope everything settles in to the new tank well :D
Thanks guys.
Eric, yes finally there at last (or at least actually getting there). in no small part thanks to all your help and assistance :thumbsup: Will goive you a bell over next few days.
:thumbsup:
Chris,.
Looking great Chris, can't wait to see it when it is all done
:thumbsup:
RedevanceUK
27-07-05, 10:30
Hi Chris,
This is looking really good, love the base that's gonna look great when it's matured a bit, post some more pics I want to see those corals in place.
Great work :bow:
Well here's the existing SPS now in place. I've tried to position them with a view to how they will grow out over the next year rather than just put the in the best places for now.
fairly happy with the results so far, when I get a few more fish in (tangs and a school of anthias it sould look even better).
Finally got the 3 x 250w MH (10K BLV's) wired up and working, so heres a shot of the tank under the 3 main lights. Will be adding dimmable actinics (controlled by IKS) tomorrow. Will post more piccies of sump etc when I get some more time.
Cheers
Chris.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankcgshot1.jpg
i like the way this is going chris!
is everything ok after the move in to the new tank?
i do like the rock work but one thing i would do is put a very small layer of gravel on the bottom! it will cover the milliput look better! im also thinking of the mantance side of things(imagine trying to syphon the muck of the bottom when the acros are quite big)
looking good m8 :thumbsup: Nick
RedevanceUK
28-07-05, 16:40
:o :wub: looking really good Chris, what colour blue did you use for the background, like it much better than my tacky backing....i'm gonna paint mine now ;) What tangs & anthias ???
:wub: :wub: :wub: :wub:
:bow: :bow: :bow: :bow:
.......exactly as i expected....well worth the wait.
bloody superb chris!!
Thanks for the comments and feedback.
i would do is put a very small layer of gravel on the bottom! it will cover the milliput look better
I agree until it gets covered over the milliput on the base looks naff, but my hope is the base will become encrusted with algae, sponges etc in 3 - 6 months so you then won't see it. I purposely don't want a sand bottom and I think if I put a very shallow layer it will just get blown all over. i'm hoping with the flow i have that I won't have to syphon the bottom much (at all?). you are right in that access will be difficult once the SPS have grown and I don't want to have to be hands in tank all the time, we'll see what happens I guess. If there is a bit of crap/mulm blowing around the bottom it won't bother me too much, at the end of the day it's either sand and crap... or just crap, as the options. As long as the water parameters don't suffer I'm sure it'll be OK. In saying that, If I end up having to put a thin layer of sand in the future, I guess I could.
Paint wise I used B&Q pool blue gloss.
A couple of my acros have suffered in the move by showing signs of bleaching at the base. One didn't look too good before the move, the other was fine but seems to have been affected by the changes. I'm now wishing I hadn't used as much milliput when I transfered the SPS (not when I did the rockwork) as I think this has casued some of the bleaching problems (could be wrong tho'). I guess it's a compromise between sticking all the SPS in one go and causing potential problems or doing several sessions spread over a few days and causing a problem by sustained pollution by milliput.
Anyway got loads of carbon and rowa on the go to try and help, along with water changes.
Cheers,
Chris.
Hi Chris. Looking good m8 how are the clowns doing, and have your pistols gone into the caves you made for them. Maybe your sps are suffering because the light as to go through more water in this tank compared to the nano tank, just a thought see you soon m8. Regards Eric. :thumbsup:
MaidstoneMarine
28-07-05, 23:35
Looking sweet!! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
when those acros starting growing and branching out it'll be awesome - I feel a road trip coming on to see it in person!
looking good mate, very clean and well organised.
i too like the idea of an external durso, leaves more room in the tank for the good stuff.
any tips or 'wont do that again' warnings that you could pass on now you've completed the bulk of your project.
Ok guys, there's been a slight change.... :rolleyes: :D :D
After numerous comments by familly and pistol shrimps alike.... sand has now been added :o
70lbs of agramax sugar fine later, we now have a 1" sand bed on top of the rock plates.
The rock plates are still there and provide a base for the main rock, protection for the tank base as well as an escape route if I ever decide to syphon the sand out at some point in the future.
In the meantime a host of snails, starfish, cukes and crabs will be added to make sure the SSB gets turned over frequently and stays clean(ish).
I have also added another stream (a 6000) as although the floe at the back of the tank was ahhemm 'strong' the front wasn't. I'm now very happy with the flow in tank with 2 x 6100, 1 x 6000 and 5000 lt/hr sump return. The good news is after a bit of rock positioning, the sand bed is staying put and not blowing about as I feared it would.
I've also transfered some more rock from the sump to the main tank to add to the aquascaping and stop sand getting blown about.
Getting a touch of brown cyno on some of the rocks now, although I've been expecting this with it being a new tank.... roll on the hair algae! :whistling: :D
Have added in pair of false Perc clowns, red bar goby and pistol shrimps from other tank plus pincushion urchin, all doing well. SPS have all now settled down with polyps fully open and looking good. Had a couple of branch/base bleachings (one due to being blasted by steam, duhhh) but haven't lost any full corals (yet...).
Added 24 red legged hermits and a dozen turbos in as new stock (as well as assorted snails from old tank). Need to add more though over next few weeks.
Next addition will be a yellow eye kole tang, then later a yellow watchman goby with pistol shrimp.
Cheers,
Chris.
Here's a few new piccies for you.
Main tank with new 1" sandbed (it looks deeper than 1" due to rock plates being underneath), extra rock and extra stream. When the false wall is built around the tank, complete with tank 'picture frame' you will only see the top few mm of the sand bed
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tanknewcg1.jpg
Shot of under tank, showing RO tank, salt mix tank and sump, as well as all the 'gubbins. Still have to plumb in Ca reactor and Kalk stirrer (over next week).
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tanknewcg2.jpg
Left hand side of under tank (Ro tank and salt mix tank. You can see IKS aquastar with Simmod controller here, as well as RO unit with solenoid controller.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tanknewcg3.jpg
Right hand side of under tank, plugs, more plugs :rolleyes: deltec AP851 skimmer, Rowa fluidiser reactor, carbon fluidiser reactor, aquamaster auto top up and extractor fan controller.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tanknewcg4.jpg
Houston, this is Discovery.......
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tanknewcg4.jpg
:D Go on, tell me you have more plugs Matty... :rolleyes: :lol: ;)
Originally posted by Yakdriver@Aug 1 2005, 17:53
:D Go on, tell me you have more plugs Matty... :rolleyes: :lol: ;)
I got more plugs Chris :D :D :D
Gimme me 6 months I might have the same :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
with all those plugs hovering above the sump so close are you not worried about splashing?????
thats a crazy amount of plugs, please tell me that half of them run your hifi system :lol: :lol:
with all those plugs hovering above the sump so close are you not worried about splashing ????
thats a crazy amount of plugs, please tell me that half of them run your hifi system
I don't think they will get splashed.
You've got to bear in mind it also includes pumps to drain and fill the sump, heat the salt mix, control the RO system, control extarctor fan, etc.
Chris.
be honest, you just love gadgets do you not :lol: :lol: :lol:
there's no shame mate stand proud and say it aloud, I AM A REEFING GEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MaidstoneMarine
01-08-05, 23:19
Holy c**p - you've got more plugs than I have!!
The sand in the tank just finishes it! Looks awesome!
There are times when I could have a miniature version of me to swim around some tanks and this is one of those times and tanks!
Hi Chris. The tanks looking good m8, to be honest i like it with the sand it looks softer. Hopefully see you tonight m8. PS You will have to change your setup details to the new system. Regards Eric. :thumbsup:
The Escaped Ape
03-08-05, 09:11
Looking very good. I reckon it's going to grow in wonderfully!
Seems I just admire other people's dream tanks right now. Maybe I should start saving... :huh:
Great Tank. Sandbed makes it look awesome!
Quick Question, where did you get the RO Solenoid controller and how did yo set it up? via Float Switches?
Thanks
TiTAN
Thanks for the comments.
Titan, I made up a RO control system myself as I couldn't find anything on the market which would do the job.
Namely - a controller to reliably fill a RO reservoir up when a pre- defined low RO reservoir water level has been reached and to also incorporate contact 'de-bouncing' so the RO solenoid isn't turned on/off repeatedly as the hi/low levels are reached. I also wanted a system that turned the water off 100% with little chance of leaking or valve failure. (I tried some mechanical RO float switches beforehand and wasn't too impressed).
Reason I wanted this specifically is that (like many people) I use a DI resin filter on the output of my RO unit to ensure I get very low TDS.
If you are repeatedly turning the RO unit on/off with small amounts of water being produced at each 'on' cycle, with significant time gaps in between, the DI resin quickly gets expired due to TDS 'spikes' being produced by the RO unit whilst it's turned off for each interval.
Therfore it's better to let the RO level drop down a long way in the rservoir and then fill back up in one single operation.
Hope that makes sense.
Anyway to answer your question - have a look here DIY level controller with latching (http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=41291&hl=float) and this shows how I did it. It's not as complicated as it sounds and takes about an hour to knock up. Works a treat.
HTH
Chris.
On, and on a different subject I've syphoned out some of the sand last night to reduce the depth to about 3/4". Thought it best to have as shallow a sand bed as possible whilst still covering the base adaquately.
In addition, the good news is due to the flow from the streams - behind the rockwork which you can't see from the front of the tank, there is no sand now!
Chris.
Great Thanks. Very well done I must say, bit Complicated but I could get my head around it.....
Can you give me details on the Solenoid? I had a look at the UA Website with no Luck.
Thanks
TiTAN
Do a search under 'solenoid', it's described as
RO water shut off solenoid 240v
Price £36
It's the standard aquamedic RO solenoid which you can get from various LFS.
Note - although it does say this is the instructions, it is important that you connect the solenoid between the pre-filter and the membrane. ie. connect the solenoid just before the membrane housing NOT at the input to the RO unit. This is so that the water flowing through the solenoid has been filtered, due to the narrow bore of the solenoid it may/will clog up eventually if you don't do this.
HTh
Chris.
Quick update, tank is going well, water parameters all now spot on with undetecatble Nitrate and Phosphate.
I have now finished wiring up all the lighting so as welll as the 3 x 250w MH's I've now also got 2 x 39w T5 actinics on dimmable ballasts controlled by the IKS (via a Simmod unit). this gives fantastic sunrise/sunset effects, which I'm really happy about.
The dimmable (DIY) moonlight is working well, just as the actinics dim to zero the moonlight fades in giving a great effect.
I've now fitted the Korrallin 1501 Ca reactor and ratz kalk stirrer and am slowly getting the Alk and Ca params higher.
The IKS is now controlling all 3 streams with good wave affects being produced courtesy of the Simmod unit again.
Stocking wise the tank has now got
1 x small Yellow tang
1x small kole tang
1 x small Indian ocean sailfin tang
2 x false perc clowns
5 x anthias
1 x algae blenny
1 x cleaner wrasse
1 x pink bar goby with pistol shrimp
That's now probably all the fish stock I will put in this tank apart from a few small gobys/pistol shrimp I may add over the coming months.
Planning to add a few more SPS over the coming weeks, courtesy of another reefer.
In another month or 2 I'll start building the false wall around th tank, but for now it's still an open frame.
Anyway heres a piccie taken today.
Cheers
Chris.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/cgtankaug05.jpg
mariusz621
21-08-05, 19:19
Aquascape superb :thumbsup:
Hi Chris. The tanks coming on now m8, t he anthia's look good do they all stick together and shoal. I have moved my tank over today i am hoping to get some pics done tommorrow and post up. Got myself a 6 in sailfin tang this morning really nice fish and very placid. Regards Eric. :thumbsup:
Thanks for the comments.
Yes Eric the Anthia shoal nicely, there are 4 females and a male. They spend quite a lot of time hiding in a cave so far (just settling in) but when they come out they do stick together and look great. The kole tang seems to not like them too much and keeps chasing them back into the cave but give it a week and it hopefully will leave them alone.
Did you get a brown sailfin or an Indian ocean sailfin?
Sorry I haven't been in touch lately, but I was made redundant this week (not much fun). Keen to see this new tank of yours. Start a thread up and show us some pics, come on! See you soon.
Cheers,
Chris.
chronic2005
21-08-05, 21:17
Your aqua scapeing and water clarity is simply incredable
Hi Chris. Sorry to hear about your redundancy m8, have you got some thing else or are you just picking and choosing. I took severance pay from my work last week because of the knackered knee being my age and not getting back to work before i retire. I have got the desjardines one about 6inch he's a super fish really tame he takes seaweed out of my hand. I had thought about getting some anthias but i think i have enough fish for now. Yes get yourself over and have a look at the new tank it will be nice to see you again. Take care and i hope the job front looks up and you get another position soon. Regards Eric. :thumbsup:
Coming towards the end of the tank setup now (thank g*d ! :rolleyes: :D )
The bit I don't enjoy (cos I'm no good at it) .... the woodwork... aggghhh.
I've now built and fitted the frontage to the tank stand and sump, complete with doors. Quite happy with the end result considering my DIY skills, even the missus thinks it looks good :lol:
Next there will be a access panel added above the tank to cover the above tank area and the halides and there will be a removable panel added either side of the tank to blank off the tank ends but still allow access. When all finished the tank will be effectively walled in. I'll be adding a few large louvered ventillation panels in the end panels to allow air to flow freely and let the extractor fan draw air through the void.
I was planning to have a small bookcase to one side of the tank, but it looks as that will be omitted due to lack of space.
Also added ten new SPS frags last week, courtesy of LisaP, they are settling in nicely and hopefully will grow out well over the coming months.
Stock wise everything seems to be doing well, the SPS are growing well and the water parameters are spot on - I've even got the Ca/Alk in balnce, with the Ca at 420 which is an achievement for me.
Cheers,
Chris.
Here's a piccie of the wood facia and tank.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tankcgsept05.jpg
Hi Chris, It's lookng very impressive now. Well worth the hard work you've put in. Look forward to seeing how the corals grow out in a few months time...
Keep up the good work & happy reefing.
:thumbsup:
ps. Have you found another job yet? It's not very nice being out of work & looks like I'll be in the same boat end of the month too....
Regards
julesandsand
10-09-05, 16:43
I've followed this thread from the beginning and am mightily impressed :bow:
I wish I was as bad as that at woodwork!!! :lol:
I'd be interested to see the lighting and how you have enclosed the pipework to the LHS of the tank.
Quite superb.
yak driver i fell in love with your old tank
and this will be even better
Thanks for the kind words.
Suk, will find out on Mon/tues whether I have got a job again (3 meetings with same company ref a new job) however it's hard to figure out whether the company wants to employ me... or just meet me for info/new ideas... I guess we'll see next week. Hope your job situation is OK and if you do have to move that it works out rapidly..
I will try and post a picie of the lighting in the next day or so.
:thumbsup:
chris.
Hi Chris Looking good m8 your beating me i have not got any doors on yet, still messing with sump etc so doors would be in the way. Hope to see you soon m8 take care. Eric. :thumbsup:
MaidstoneMarine
10-09-05, 23:25
Chris,
Looks great - why are saying that you're no good at wood working? Doesn't look anything out of place from here - I'd say 'a job to be well proud of'.
I trust you've taken plenty of pictures so we can have some growth comparison shots in a few months time!
Cheers
Chris
looks fantastic mate :thumbsup:
Scooby_uk
5061litres
11-09-05, 01:00
now if that 'marine' guy was to look at this post he'd say.. ooh i don't like the look of that. the way u aint paid any attention to detail on the rockwork.. how it looks so un-natural..
i think it looks good.!!
why does it have to look natural.??
mr 'marine'.. show us ur tank!!!
all he has done since he came on here is have a go at people.. i'd love him to come round so i can show him what a real reef tank looks like.
sorryfor the hi-jack of the thread.
yak! ur tank looks great.
keep up the good work.
tony.
:cheers:
instantsquid
11-09-05, 08:32
Wow, love it! :thumbsup:
This is the same position/set up I am planning for my winter project, so I've been interested to see how the finishing off would be done. Once those end pieces are in place it's gonna look spot-on.
How are you finding maintenance on the tank with just the one side to get at everything?
Oh, and some pics of the lighting set up would be good ;)
Cheers,
Ian.
As requested, here's some pics/details on the lighting.
I'm using a mishmash of 250w MH lights, an arcadia luminaire, a lowbay unit and a STM compact. The arcadia and STM are double ended BLV 10k 250w MH bulbs, the lowbay is a single ended BLV 10k 250w MH bulb.
All are positioned approx 10" (26cm) from the water surface. The MH's are switched on/off via some DIY contactors I made, and are controlled via plug in timers. They are switched on for 10 and a half hours a day.
I am also running two 39w actinic T5 tubes with clip on reflectors, each powered by an osram quicktronic dimmable ballast. These ballasts are controlled by my IKS and a Simmod unit. The IKS creates sunrise and sunset effects with the T5's by starting off on a morning at 1% power and dimming the tubes up to full power over half an hour. The reverse happens each evening. The t5 tubes on low powers (eg. 5%) give a lovely warm blue glow through the tank which looks fantastic on a night and quite different from a moonlight. I started by using Deltec actinic tubes, but ended up with Arcadia (!!) T5 actinics, because the pink/purple hue of the arcadia's which I would normally not want on my tank look fantastic on the sunrise/sunset effects.
I also have a DIY moonlight ( a warm white Luxeon LED emitter array), which is again controlled by the IKS.
The lights currently look a bit of mess IMHO with the different sizes etc, but will soon be hidden from view by a hinged access panel/door, which will completely fill the void above the tank.
Maintenance wise, it's fine just having access from the front. I wouldn't want to try this with a tank much wider than 24" or so though.
HTH
chris.
View from front showing above tank void and 3 x 250w MH's. In case you wonder what the control box and probe are mounted on the back wall to the right - they are the humidistat and thermostat probes which control the through-wall extractor fan at the extreeme right of the pic.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/cgtanklights1.jpg
View along the top of tank, you can just see the T5 actinic reflectors running along the front of the tank.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/cgtanklights2.jpg
instantsquid
11-09-05, 13:10
What service! Thanks for the prompt reply :thumbsup:
Really like this sunrise/sunset/moonrise idea. I've got a 1001 things to sort out first, but it's something I will bear in mind for later.
Cheers,
Ian.
Really like this sunrise/sunset/moonrise idea. I've got a 1001 things to sort out first, but it's something I will bear in mind for later
Believe me, it's well worth considering. When I first added this onto my tank I did it 'because I could'. Now I would have it on any tank I owned, it adds such an extra dimension to a tank and once you've seen it in operation it isn't a gimmick it's a different way of lighting your tank which adds a whole new dimension to how it looks..
It's lovely sitting having a drink on an evening, watcing the tank as the 'sun' slowly sets and all the colours change.
Just wish I could dim the MH's as well (i know you can but it's big £££)
Chris.
Finally got round to building the panel/door to cover the lighting area.
I'm quite pleased with the results, it's amazing how much better the tank looks when you are not having to squint your eyes against light spill from the MH's.
Just need to make/fit the two end panels to fill in the gap either side of the tank and that's it finished (at least for now).
Tank is going well at the moment with some of the SPS starting to really colour up again. Only problem has been that the 5 Anthias I bought last month have all died one by one :unsure: Still don't know the cause but all other stock is doing well.
A few piccies for you
New door to cover lighting area now fitted at last.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/cgtoptank1.jpg
Shot with door open (temporarily held open with a stick - I need to find a suitable latch/slider type system to hold the door open, bearing in mind it's fairly heavy.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/cgtoptank2.jpg
Shot of nice blue tipped acro
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/cgacrosep05.jpg
Shot of nice green acro with resident tube snail
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/cgacrosep05-2.jpg
MaidstoneMarine
21-09-05, 12:38
Looks good chris! :thumbsup: Love that blue tipped acro.
Wouldn't worry about the door prop being a piece of wood - thats what mine are and I've got no intention of changing them! I looked into the latches and props and couldn't find anything suitable for my setup given the construct above the tank but I'm sure you'll find something that'll support the weight.
Cheers
Chris
instantsquid
21-09-05, 12:39
Excellent work there! When those end-panels are done it's gonna finish it off so well.
Acros definitely look healthy - nothing wrong there!
Ian :thumbsup:
I looked into the latches and props and couldn't find anything suitable for my setup
Damn, I was relying on you to have sourced a decent solution... :rolleyes: :D :lol: :lol:
MaidstoneMarine
21-09-05, 12:59
:lol: Sorry to disppoint! I did give it some thought but given the structure above the tank there is nothing to fix a hinge/support to.
However... there's a hinge on my sons toy box which I thought was pretty good. It had an opening angle of about 100 degrees from the closed position. It could be easily opened but to close it meant you had to physically push it shut (stops it slamming on little fingers), the level of exertion could be changed quite easily by tightening or loosening a nut on the hinge. I liked this feature as the having the canopy side slam shut on the tank was, and still is, one of my concerns.
Chris
What about an hydrualic bonnet / boot ram from a car. The two securing pegs would be fairly easy to fasten to your frames.
They would look well showy on your tanks :P .
Would cost about £5 - £10 from a scrap yard as well :thumbsup:
Nick
Good idea batman, will look into it pronto.
thanks,
chris,
Quick update guys and gals.
It's approx 4 months now since I first added salt water to the tank and everything is going well. Water params are spot on and after a bit of fiddling with the Ca reactor to increase flow and gas rate, my Ca and dKH are where I now want them.
After the rapid demise of the first shoal of Anthias (I'm convinced there was something wrong with them when i bought them) I added another shoal (this time Lyretail Anthias) they appear to be doing really well.
All SPS are growing at a good rate and I'm really pleased with things. A few new frags from Fishman frags have been added approx a month ago and are growing in nicely.
I altered the rockwork on the right hand side of the tank and disassembled the 'rock table'. Although I liked the look of it, I found it blocked out too much light from that side of the tank lower down, something I hadn't counted on when I built it. Anyway I'm pleased with the overall look now. The reef bones I originally added are now indistingishable from the LR and are covered in coralline algae and infested with pods, worms, snails etc. I can really recommend reef bones to anyone building a new tank.
No major dramas so far, except a compact MH failing (2nd hand one I bought last year) and being replaced with a new 250w Aquabay. Whilst fitting it I accidentally broke the cover glass on the aquabay, whilst it was on the edge of the tank.... believe me it takes hours to pick all the bits of glass out of the tank and to clean the blood off the carpets!
I've decided to stop cleaning the back glass on the tank as it is a pain to do and if I'm away on work for a few days I can't expecxt missus yakdriver to do that. In time it will get covered in coralline and should look Ok.
Heres a piccie taken today.
All the best,
Chris.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/cgtankoct05.jpg
Nice one! Looks fantastic :thumbsup: but I think it would look best if you kept the back glass clean rather than letting it get covered in coralline. Personal preference of course! ;)
I'll PM you my address and buy you a new scraper for Xmas then, Ok?
:D :D :D :D :D
Chris.
bristlebasher
28-10-05, 12:53
That realy is looking well nice !!!! :wub: :thumbsup:
Kudo's to you . :bow:
I would 'nt change anything if it were mine
Cept maybe hiding those streams a bit.
Cheers
H :D
Well, the tank is approx 6 months old now, so time for a quick update.
well... there isn't much to update on...
Things have been going well, with good growth on the SPS and other stock doing nicely. I seem to have had a population explosion of turbo snails which is nice.
The tankd' systems (IKS, main tank auto top up, RO tank top up system, fans, chiller, etc) have been behaving themselves so far. I won't say anymore in case I tempt fate.
Added a powder blue tang which seems to have settled in after a bit of barging about with the Indian Ocean sailfin tang. Coral wise not much added apart from a branching hammer coral.
I've been pretty busy with work, so not a lot has been altered/changed, which is probably to the tanks' benefit.
I'm due to have a spring clean over the next week, as well as doing some long overdue sump maintenance and cleaning. Planning to take the streams out and give them a soak in vinegar, as they are now totally encrusted in calcerous algae.
Here's a piccie taken today.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/tank%20dec05%20cg.jpg
anything new ?
Looking good anyway :D
Tank is now being broken down and sold for financial reasons :-(
Please see classifieds section for details of sale items.
Gutted for you Chris.... :eek: After all that hard work too!
I hope it all works out well for you & hopefully in the future you'll be tempted back again.
Good luck
Suk
Gutted! I just read this thread looking forward to the final update then i read this! i feel for you mate, any chance of a final pic?
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