View Full Version : My Perc90 Setup
After 3 months 11 days of owning my perc90 and 197 posts later i've finally got my tank started :dance: :dance:
Now that i comply to post in the members tank forum i'm gonna make it long with plenty of pics from day one :D
After i bought the tank there was a few things going on in my life that held my tank up for a while, mainly redecoration in my livingroom but also seemed that work was full on and i had a 2 week holiday as well, OH yeah i also got married last month :lol:
But now my tank is finally positioned
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture006.jpg
As you'll see Anna from the big build 3 had big influences in my mods on the tank so all you newbies out there this was not my idea!! there are a few modest changes but not much
Theres a PH2000 pump connected to those 2 outlets
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture001.jpg
And a PH3000 connected to those 3 at the front there
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture002.jpg
After a bit of debate on here i decided to leave this spray bar with the supplied PF1000
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture003.jpg
Theres also a tunze 6000 stream on a controller thats running at about 30% - 50%( i know what you guys mean about sand storms now!!!! :lol: )
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture004.jpg
After adding 35kg of LR there is exactly 190ltr of water in my tank, with my calculations i've got upto 13000 ltr per hour (not including skimmer) if my maths is right ive got upto 68x turnover( JEEZ thats loads!!!) Maybe i got that wrong??
Anyway i added my aragonite
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture016.jpg
and in less than 24 hr it was clear :D
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture019.jpg
Today i've just added my 35kg of LR so this is as far as i've got
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/004.jpg
bit cloudy at the moment, might have to get a canister filter to clear the crap from the LR but i'm well happy :D
Well thats it for now, i will update when theres changes and i dont lose the post
Before i finnish i'd like to thank each and everyone who posts on here :thumbsup: and also the owners of the site that make this info at finger tips
Theres a special few who have helped me out a little more, you know who you are guys ;) :bow:
Matt
Just a little tip for NEW perc owners
I noticed when i had my trial fills with fresh water there was a lot of vibration transfered through the cabinet to the floor so i stuck 3 strips of rubber on the bottom of the cabinet directly under the 3 vertical pieces of wood
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture.jpg
I know its too late for you people that have already filled but for new perc owners it did make a difference if its situated on hard floors ;)
Looking good Matt :thumbsup:
I really like the pipework, that should work well. Did you add an extra pump to feed the rear pipe run, or just move the upper pump down?
I'm looking forward to watching your progress.
Tony
ps I like the idea of the rubber anti-vibration strips under the stand. Bit late for me now. <_<
Originally posted by ~Tony~@Sep 18 2005, 17:21
Looking good Matt :thumbsup:
I really like the pipework, that should work well. Did you add an extra pump to feed the rear pipe run, or just move the upper pump down?
I'm looking forward to watching your progress.
Tony
ps I like the idea of the rubber anti-vibration strips under the stand. Bit late for me now. <_<
Had to go into the next inlet up Tony to get the pumps next to each other, must be a bit tight in the perc90 circulation chamber,theres no pump outlet at the top now just the stream
Just cut away enough to get the pipe through the grill then bought another grill the cover to top outlet
Matt
Did you design the pipework buy yourself?
It's pretty impressive, good idea. :D
Originally posted by Kitsune@Sep 18 2005, 17:46
Did you design the pipework buy yourself?
It's pretty impressive, good idea. :D
Nope it was all Anna's idea
http://www.fponline.f9.co.uk/html/index2.html
Wish it was :D
plenty work went into that Matt
looks great,good luck with it all
small tip with the stream - you can put one half of the magnet inside the return pump chamber then angle stream to middle of front glass,looks bit neater
:thumbsup:
Mark
Originally posted by mark-c-@Sep 18 2005, 18:07
plenty work went into that Matt
looks great,good luck with it all
small tip with the stream - you can put one half of the magnet inside the return pump chamber then angle stream to middle of front glass,looks bit neater
:thumbsup:
Mark
Thanks Mark never thought of that
since i've added the rock and turned my stream back on its not blowing the sand about, but i'm still on about 50%
when i wind it right up and it still blows it about i'll try that, cheers mate :thumbsup:
Had my stream on for a good few hours pulsing at full power and the sand is staying put :D seems the rock has deflected the stream away from the sand :dance:
Back to critter watch :D
I like the rubber strips underneath. When I Setup my perc 90 tank and Stand I put it on cardboard to slide it into position and the cardboard has been there ever since. I notice you have laminate flooring as well, I was a bit worried that during the summer with the heat the flooring wouldn't be able to expand properly because of the tank weight on top but the floors been OK.
Good luck with it
Cheers
Sid
Looking really nice, keep the pics coming. :thumbsup:
Hi Matt
Thanks for the pm mate - nice of you to say
And as I said 'The Job's a guud un'
Well done mate - very impressed with yer pipes :lol: :lol:
But one thing we will need it loads more pics - anything moves take a pic from 10 different angles, if it doesnt move taken a pic anyway - just incase
:D :D :D
Thanks Del
I have been trying out my macro skills already, not sure if these are anything but i dont think they was there yesterday!
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Pic014.jpg
Waiting to see what comes out of the rock is keeping me occupied so the month wait for the cycle is going to be easy :D
I just want to say well done matt, as you know ive just set my tank up and like you I know how hard and sometimes how overwelming it can be, a few times I thought about just giving up on the idea but im sure you agree its worth it in the long run.
I know what you mean about critter watch, I keep having a look myself every 5 minutes and so far all ive spotted is some type of snail and a few fan worms.
Do you have any idea what you are going to stock it with?
Theres a few fish that i'd like to keep in my tank, i've got to have a pair of clowns and definatly a scooter blenny,i've got a few ideas of other fish i wanna keep
Instead of going for a couple of bigger fish i think i'll try and stock with whats classed as 'nano' fish
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/scateg.cfm?pCatId=2124
The clowns are the main fish as they just say MARINE to me :D
The critter watch is going to keep me occupied for ages then its the clean up crew, not even sure if i need any fish yet!! :lol:
I'm having a little trouble keeping my temperature below 27 at the moment :(
i'm gonna raise my light a little to see what happens but i might sort this problem out properly n get some kind of chiller
Keep updating you post Maestro as its good to hear from someone who's in the same boat
Matt
Tanks starting to clear up nicely now after adding the rock
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/fullshot.jpg
Bit of surface scum but gonna get a net today and scoop it off,also got my moonlights fitted last nite
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/moonlight.jpg
The pic dont do them justice as they look loads better than that but u get the idea
Also finally got the switching of my metal halide sorted out
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/contactor.jpg
After a long chat with an electrician i was working with today anyone who is not using one of those on a domestic timer is mad!!! for £20 its gotta be worth the piece of mind ;) easy to wire up as well
bluemoon280
20-09-05, 14:53
What gizmo is that you recommend for the MH lights.
Is it some kind of circuit protector for the time?
ta
Originally posted by bluemoon280@Sep 20 2005, 14:53
What gizmo is that you recommend for the MH lights.
Is it some kind of circuit protector for the time?
ta
They are seperate contactors, instead of the timer's contactors switching the lights those do and are rated way higher than the striking current the bulbs use
I'm not a sparky so hopefully someone else will give you more info
Aha found this thread :)
Looking good matt. Further to the bioballs convo, have you removed the sponges as well?
Chris
ref the scum, netting it ain't a good long term solution.
to fix it IMHO, turn the tube from the top return pump to the surface, so it agitates the surface, then lift your tunze higher.
The surface of your water should be permanently "disturbed" if that makes sense?
regards,
greg
Hi Matt, progressing well I see :thumbsup:
I agree with greg, you need all the surface to be rippled to give good oxygen exchange and to agitate the scum. If not, you are relying on the skimmer to oxygenate the water and if that fails for any reason then your fish are in danger. Also have you enough surface skim from the weir. The first weir adjusts the ratio of surface water to main tank water that enters the skimmer chamber.
I found with the warm weather this summer my oxygen levels were reduced so I improved my surface agitation which brought the levels up again. I did this two ways. I twisted the Tunze magnet slightly so that the stream was horizontal rather than drooping slightly, and consequently got ripples over the majority of the tank. Experiment and you will see what I mean.
This left the area behind the stream without ripples. I fixed that by pushing a Marley overflow pipe right angle bend onto the outlet pipe of the top pump and angling it up at about 45 degrees until it rippled the back right hand section of the tank surface. One of your grey bends might fit and will look prettier.
This was why I was asking whether you still had the upper pump. It may be worth putting the upper PH1000 back for this purpose. There again you already have plenty of turnover :) .
Tony
You could always use one of these from one of our sponsors, marine lighting
www.marine-lighting.co.uk
http://www.fastlight.co.uk/shop/en-gb/dept_23.html
Thanks for all the advice :thumbsup:
Will be reinstating the top pf1000 asap and putting an elbow on the to agitate the surface more
There is quite a bit of movement up there but gentle ripples and small whirlpools
Really appreciate all the comments so keep em comming ;)
As you can see it's made loads of difference
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture04.jpg
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Picture07.jpg
The light from the halide looks even better now sparkling through the water
Another 1000lph to add to my turnover :lol:
Once again thanks guys :bow:
Originally posted by Publican@Sep 20 2005, 21:21
Aha found this thread :)
Looking good matt. Further to the bioballs convo, have you removed the sponges as well?
Chris
SHHHHHHHH
Dont mention castration on here!!!! :lol:
Sponge still there ;)
Originally posted by matt_b@Sep 21 2005, 13:48
As you can see it's made loads of difference
Yep, that is the rippling that you need :thumbsup:
I find that a fan, controlled by the tank temperature, blowing across this rippled surface is all the cooling that I need. It also has the advantage of giving even better oxygen exchange when it is hot weather.
Tony
Originally posted by ~Tony~+Sep 21 2005, 14:13--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (~Tony~ @ Sep 21 2005, 14:13)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-matt_b@Sep 21 2005, 13:48
As you can see it's made loads of difference
Yep, that is the rippling that you need :thumbsup:
I find that a fan, controlled by the tank temperature, blowing across this rippled surface is all the cooling that I need. It also has the advantage of giving even better oxygen exchange when it is hot weather.
Tony [/b][/quote]
I'm going to homebase today to have a look at there fans, my temp is 27.8 at the moment, bit higher than my notes!!
How high is your halide above the water Tony? from the glass on mine its 270mm
Originally posted by matt_b+Sep 21 2005, 14:16--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (matt_b @ Sep 21 2005, 14:16)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Originally posted by ~Tony~@Sep 21 2005, 14:13
<!--QuoteBegin-matt_b@Sep 21 2005, 13:48
As you can see it's made loads of difference
Yep, that is the rippling that you need :thumbsup:
I find that a fan, controlled by the tank temperature, blowing across this rippled surface is all the cooling that I need. It also has the advantage of giving even better oxygen exchange when it is hot weather.
Tony
I'm going to homebase today to have a look at there fans, my temp is 27.8 at the moment, bit higher than my notes!!
How high is your halide above the water Tony? from the glass on mine its 270mm [/b][/quote]
Got two clip on fans from Homebase about a fiver each, do the job well.
I have a clip-on fan. I tried it clipped onto the side of the tank, but when I came back 10 mins later it had tipped into the water. Fortunately I hadn't plugged it in yet! I now have it clipped onto my camera tripod - temporary measure - where it has been all summer :rolleyes: . Makes taking tank piccies tricky. The bearings on the clip-on are rumbling a bit now but it still works ok. I have an IKS so use to to turn the fan on at 26.5c. According to the IKS log, it has kept the tank between 26.3 and 26.5 all summer despite room temperatures up to 31c. Need that auto-topup though. The IKS turns my heater on at 26.0c.
I have bought a couple of quiet PC fans (http://www.puresilence.co.uk/catalog/pure-silence-60mm-15dba-p-53.html) but never got round to mounting them - winter project I think.
I have recently lowered my MH lights again slightly to help my Acros. I can't remember exactly what height they are at now, but I think I lowered them from 260 to 250 mm. I'll measure it tonight.
Tony
:thumbsup:
Sounds like these IKS thingys are cool gadgets, will have to read up on them, i do like toys :lol:
Great info Tony cheers mate :cheers:
Expensive toys. But like auto-topup, I wouldn't be without it.
Also have a look at the Aquatronica (http://www.aquatronica.com/eng/products/acq_products.htm) product. It is a new product and no reviews yet, but if I was starting again I think I would go this way.
Have a look at this thread (http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=47673&view=findpost&p=381475) of mine.
Tony
For the Aquatronica chat also see this thread (http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=48836&view=findpost&p=391337)
and this thread (http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=47558&view=findpost&p=380373)
Will look at all the threads ;)
Looks a bit complicated at first glance but most things are!
Since adding the PF1000 and pointing to the surface theres no scum on the surface, anything on the top is going straight to the first comb and dissapearing :dance:
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/Pict.jpg
Originally posted by matt_b@Sep 21 2005, 14:16
How high is your halide above the water Tony? from the glass on mine its 270mm
Well I have just measured mine. I remembered wrong. It is now set at 220mm above the water. I have been lowering it steadily to help give my acros as much light as possible from a 150w MH. Without Acros you may not need to go that low, but I haven't had any problems now I have the cooling fan.
Tony
Just tested my water
Ammonia - 0
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - less than 2.5 ( test kit only goes down to 2.5)
Also tested my Phosphate and it was 0.2
i've bought 2 lots of ro from different shops and my redsea kit always shows 0.1
Are these kits any good at detecting phosphate?? i get a 0.1 reading after adding the first of the two chemicals!!
Get the Deltec high sensitivity test kit for measuring below 0.2P Phosphate - you really need to be below 0.03 for corals. Expensive kit, but measures down to 0.008 and IMO essential.
hth
Tony
Small update on how my tanks going
Going through a serious diatom stage at the moment
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/algae1.jpg
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/algae2.jpg
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/algae3.jpg
Can't wait till it starves itself!!
Finally found some life in my tank :dance:
I spotted these tiny white circles on my rock and after closer inspection they look like tubeworms, there must be 10 of them, also seen a few long thin worms emerging from the rock at night
hows the tank coming along matt b?
Hi ya Matty
Hows it going
Thats some serious Alges you got there - you cultivating it or something :lol:
Hows you reading looking now mate
:thumbsup:
Hi Maestro n Dell
Tanks getting better day by day :D
:lol: My readings are all zero now i'm using my test kits properly, probably have been for a while!!!
I know what you mean about me cultivating algae Dell :P
when i was reading up on starting a new tank there was advice on not having the halide on for too long to keep the algae down but i opted for keeping it on for 10 hrs a day to get it over a bit quicker, maybe thats why i had so much?
Heres what it looks like today
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/tnk1.jpg
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/tnk2.jpg
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/tnk.jpg
Loads better i'll think you'll agree
Got my first snails yesterday :dance: from CGA and they are doing a fine job
Heres a pic of how good they are cleaning the algae, they love the stuff, you can see where the snail has crawled across the top edge of the rock leaving a nice clean trail, just cant wait till the other one catches up!!
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/cleaner.jpg
EDIT heres a pic of the same rock that i've just taken
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/after.jpg
Theres only 10 turbo's in there at the moment, i'll see how they get on then add some more
Thanks for asking guys ;)
Matt
Looking a lot better now Matt
When you thinkingof adding the 1st fishie
:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
We've decided to wait till January to add any fish, we are away for christmas so it will be hard for me to show anyone how to feed fish if i dont really know myself
To tell you the truth Dell i'm in no rush for fish yet as what pops its head out of the LR and now my new snails is entertaining enough :D
Matt
January
Bloody hell now that is Patience Pal
:o :o :o
Originally posted by hamagogo@Oct 11 2005, 14:30
January
Bloody hell now that is Patience Pal
:o :o :o
I'm spending christmas in the caribbean so i might be able to stock it for free :lol:
Where about in the Carib you going Matt
Barbados
Dominica
Nassau
Princess Cays
Tortola
Antigua
St Kitts
St Lucia
Grenada
Tobago
:lol: :lol:
We're flying to Barbados and meeting the p&O ship Oceana
Already booked my snorkling trips in Nassau and Antigua ;)
Originally posted by matt_b@Oct 11 2005, 14:18
We've decided to wait till January to add any fish
I waited 10 weeks before adding fish, the last few weeks because I too was going on holiday. I haven't regretted the delay - I think my tank is better for it. At least I was more in control of my tank before adding those nasty polluters :lol: .
Mind you, 16 weeks is being patient.
To keep you entertained, hermit crabs are even more watchable - unless you have decided not to have hermits at all. I have both red & blue legged.
You could also add some different types of snails to add diversity.
I presume you will still have plenty of algae growth to keep them fed.
That will be quite a caribbean tour. Prefer my feet on terra firma myself, unless I'm controlling some sails myself :P .
Great time of the year to go though.
Tony
Thanks Tony
I have been thinking of hermit crabs, i was talking to a bloke at work the other day who has a reef tank and he said he can give me a few blue legged hermits, i'm working at the same place tomorrow so i'll see what comes of it
As for other types of snail Sue at CGA did show me some snails that live in the sand bed that have a tube poking out but i dont think my 25mm sand is deep enough, what other types do not burry themselves?
Must admit the 8 hr flight to barbados has got me a bit worried :unsure: i've only ever flown 4 hrs to tenerife, but i spose if we dont take these long haul flights we are limited to what wonders are out there
Maybe its being on a ship that you dont like? at 77.000 tonnes it seems like your on terra firma :lol: unless your going through the bay of biscay!!!
I have 2 different species of Nessarius snails, which bury them selves in the sand. They seem quite content in my shallow sand bed. Of course I don't see much of them, but when they do decide to come out it is all the more exciting :lol: . They do add to the bio-diversity of the cleanup crew though.
There are also Astraea, Nerite, and Cerith snails. Cerith are also bury themselves and Astraea cannot right themselves.
8 hour flights aren't that bad. Take off, eat, watch a film, snooze a bit, eat again and you are there :) . 10 hours or more is when it starts to get tedious. The jet lag is another matter :P .
Ships don't worry me. I just like to explore my own way and I don't mean exploring 77000 tonnes :lol: . There again I don't do packages either, maybe I just like to be independent. However going to sleep and waking up the next day with a new place to explore must be fun.
Originally posted by matt_b@Oct 11 2005, 15:38
Must admit the 8 hr flight to barbados has got me a bit worried :unsure: i've only ever flown 4 hrs to tenerife, but i spose if we dont take these long haul flights we are limited to what wonders are out there
Nah thats Eay Matt
We have done it 3 times to Mexico where the Diving is amazing & the Fishing aint bad either, envy you doing the cruise thought sounds like some good times ahead & you will have an empty (ish) tank to come home to
:thumbsup:
For the select few that are interested here's a few updated pics
Finally after near on 5 months i've started to stock my tank
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/gramma.jpg
He's been in there a 2 weeks now and already know when i'm going to feed!!
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/anyfin001.jpg
I love these guys to bits :wub: i read so much before i purchased them that they are shy and prolly never seen in the day but i must have bought a sociable pair as they are always at the front of the tank in daylight, they make it hard work cleaning the glass as they are always in the way
First coral
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/corals005.jpg
Prolly doubled in size already, i know peeps are gonna say thats because its a weed but i love the look of it and its welcome in my tank!
Also my polyp, i was amazed when i bought it when the actinic turned on , never expected this!!!!!
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/matt_jb/act001.jpg
Matt
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