Phischy's Project-3days to start

[Phischy]

I also don't think the outflow from the skimmer is going to be fast enough to feed my return pump.

I see what you're saying about drilling the holes, I hadn't thought of that, but it would work peachy! Plus I wouldn't need the ball valves either then, right?

This weekend I'm going to get the hardware done and hopefully next weekend get some LS and LR in it to start cycling the tank. I'll take pics and do a write up on everything.

 

[incysor]

It would still be handy to have the ball valves. That way during maintenance you could turn the pump off. Shut the ball valves, and your sump wouldn't be as full of water when you're tryin to detach the pump/lines whatever. When you're talking about plumbing pieces they are some of the most expensive parts, but at $5-$6 a piece, $10-$20 really isn't that bad for the convenience. It can make things easier in ways you might not think about....With my aquascaping, my clam has to be right at the top of the tank to get enough lighting. When I do a water change if I just let the water drain back into the sump when I turn the pumps off, the level in the tank drops below the level of the clam. If I just shut the return off at the ball valve, and drain the sump, and put my new water back into the sump, my clam never gets dry. Silly thing that I wasn't thinking about when I put the valves in, but it's a little perk now.

 

[Phischy]

Hardware!

So today I went to Aquaticware House to get all the hardware I need for my tank. While I was there two of their guys talked me into a different setup that will hopefully work very well.

I did sump the tank, and we went with a SeaClear 15 gallon which just fits into my stand. In the sump will be the BakPak 2 protein skimmer, titanium heater, QuietOne 4000 (1000gph, 800gph @ 4' head height for my tank) and the return will feature a polybag to clean the water prior to skimming.

The main tank is a 40gallon custom acrylic tank (too big for this site but I'm good friends with the owner). Origionally my return was going to feature a SCWD but several of the guys there said they just aren't up to snuff. So they sold me other return hardware for a ton less than what I was going to buy. As it is I have one bulkhead for outflow. The water return will be hooked over the rear of the tank, thus preventing opprotunities for leaks.

My lighting will consist of 2x55watt CPF, 1 acitinic and 1 10K. They're hooked up and I'll install a moonlight shortly, just not sure just yet where it's going to go in the canopy. and so here are some pics of my build:

Stand:

Display tank:

Sump with componets prior to assembly:

Sump setup(almost):

Canopy with lights mounted:

Shot of components:

Tank:

Tank w/ lights on:

I still need to buy a few more plumbing parts to get the return setup right, it's a 1 1/2" drain down and I need to get a few 45d joins. Then by next weekend I'll be filling it, adding 30lbs of sand, 20lbs of live sand and 40lbs of live rock to begin the curing process.

 

[djconn]

Let the good times roll...
:beers:

 

[Phischy]

Cost to date:

My costs to-date:

Stand/Canopy - gift from my dad. He estimates the stand/canopy setup would run about $1,000 if he were to sell it on the market.

Lights: I got the ballasts for free, spent $44 on two bulbs today

Pump:
Quiet One 4,000: 103.99

Sump:
Sea Clear 15gallon acrylic: 62.99

Display tank:
Sea Clear custom 40gallon: 135

Heater/skimmer/heater:
Christmas gifts

Plumbing:
Misc: 80

Home depot:
GFI/Surge/2 timers/wood/screws etc.... 66

Still got another 20 in parts needed then it's time to fill...then the real expense begins!

 

[incysor]

Everythings looking really good. Can't wait to see the pics as you get it set up.

 

[Phischy]

I just wish I had more time after work but this fall is crazy. Ok, life is crazy in general. Right now I need two 45d PVC elbows, get two extensions of flex hose for the skimmer so I don't have a waterfall and so the pump will be resting on the bottom of the sump, mount all the electronic equipment in the stand and to buy an extension cord so I'm not running my crap off an outlet that's both twitchy and controlled by a switch. About an hours worth of work left to get things to the point I can fill. I'm hoping to get sand and rock in this Saturday.

I'm already thinking of the 10gal fuge/planted tank I want to use as well. That is down the line, but still...so much fun. I'm also doing a ton of reading right now on chem levels etc... I know I shouldn't have issues for awhile due to the low stocking of the tank and water changes should take care of my needs. And I'm looking into dosing for calc and alk, again, not needed right away...but just doing research since I can't physically work on the tank.

That and the temps out here are finally dropping so I can start making beer again. woo hoo, fishes and beer!

 

[Phischy]

Almost ready to fill. I mounted a bunch of the electronic stuff today and I thank my pops he made the sides out of 1" stock...makes it heavy as hell but takes alot of the worry out of drilling into it.

Before:

After:

And then I modded my HOB skimmer to sit inside the sump, had to extend the powerhead so it'll be below the waterline since the sump will only be 1/2 full:

Last things to do are an extension cord, two 45d elbows for the drain, an extension hose for the skimmer so it dumps right in front of the return and some airline hose to so the Skimmer works without worry.

Folks, I"m filling this thing up tomorrow and loading it with rock and sand! Woot Woot!

of course that's IF nate can hook me up with liverock at cost....

 

[Phischy]

Hit a few snags this weekend. The tank is full and specific gravity is 1.023 but the plumbing may have to be re-examined. First, I drilled holes to break the suckion on the return line from the sump in case the power goes out. Only problem is that I drilled before I knew where hte water line was and the holes are above the water line which means it makes a mess when the pump is on. No worries there.

The big problem is attempting to put the HOB in the sump...the water level is too low and it's no skimming properly. So I may have to put the HOB on the main tank, which is cool simply b/c it's more water flow up top and makes no difference to me. But...I may have to cut part of the canopy so the thing will sit right... I'm really loath to do that but I think I don't have a choice, so I'll just remove the rear support on the canopy, it shouldn't change it's structural integreity at all. I think everything will sit better afterwards.

And I've got to get all these changes made in an hour after Aikido tonight b/c Nate is brining by 50lbs of live rock and 15lbs of live sand. I've got a mixture of sand I was going to put in last night but I got distracted.

So tonight is going to be really busy and I should have some great photo's posted!

 

[djconn]

Sounds awesome. Man the anticipation of getting a 50lb delivery of live rock would drive me nuts! I would literally sit there all night with a flashlight and a 12 pack of beer. Might even call in sick the next day if things were interesting enough.
:beers:

 

[Phischy]

September 27, 2004

Ok, good news and bad news. Bad news is that I didn't get a shipment of liverock today. Good news is Nate told this weeks buyer (they switch weeks) to get an extra 50lbs (for me) but only buy what Matt himself would put in his tanks. So he drove to the airport and didn't see anything good enough for him, ergo not good enough for me. So some consolation I'll have to wait another 4 days till Friday when the store gets in their shipment of Tonga rock.

Other news is in talking with a different Matt at the store he pointed out a few things about my setup. The number one thing being the HOB skimmer would not work well in a sump. The reason being in a sump your water level is about 1/2 way up and therefor you have to lower the pump for the skimmer. These pumps are positioned at an ideal height for effiency, once it's lowered you lose that edge. So he recomended either purchasing an in sump skimmer or simply relocated the HOB Skimmer to the rear of the tank. Not having an extra $200 handy I decided to work with what I have. Plus the return from the skimmer is just more water flow into my tank.

But...putting it on the rear of the tank would require removing a brace from the rear of the canopy so it'll fit right. Hello Mr. Handsaw. It took all of 5 mins to remove it and since Pops likes to build my furniture to withstand Cat 5 Hurricanes the canopy did not lose any structural stability.

I also got in 40lbs of sand tonight. I've got half Tideline Coral Sand which is 100% Calcium Carbonate and the other 1/2 is CaribSea Aragonite. Plus I'll be putting in another 15lbs of livesand on Friday with the LR. And now some photo's of the now fully operational aquarium:

Sump:

Aquarium:

 

[incysor]

Sweet... Sorry to hear about the delays, but everything is finally coming together. It's a beautiful tank.

 

[Phischy]

I'm not sweating the live rock, it actually works out better for me if I get it on Friday so I can play around and aquascape all day long (I don't work on Friday's). Plus I didn't finish making this round of improvements until 10pm last night, then I would have had to start working with the rock, so it's all working out.

Plus it gives me more time to think of how I want to set things up. I don't think my DSB is deep enough and another 15lbs probably won't be enough. So I'm thinking I may add more sand, but after the rock is in.

So, I'm thinking of making more changes. The downpipe gurgles alot and is kind of distracting since it's about 3 feet from my TV. Since I've already pulled the skimmer out of the sump, the only thing in there is the return pump, biobag and heater. I'm thinking of scrapping the entire idea of the sump and just having a closed loop water line. Relocating the pump from the stand to behind the tank to reduce headheight and then re-plumbing the 2" return down to a 1 or 3/4" via reducers.

That way I can use my 15gal tank as a bigass 'fuge and run it off the main water in the big tank. Plumbing is cheap and on my return line I can branch it off and have waterflow to the 'fuge, and then use a gravity feed return from the 'fuge to main tank.

Anyway, I've got time to play around with this before the rock gets in and it b/c a real pain in the buttocks. Plus it'd be nice to have room in the stand to actually put supplies like salt etc...

Thoughts?

 

[Phischy]

Hmmm...bummer. Now I've got to wait till sunday to get the live rock. My tank has just been circulating water for awhile now, kinda sucks! But Sunday it's all set to go and again, it'll work better so I have the full day to play with it.

 

[Sugar Magnolia]

THat is a really nice set up! Can't wait to see how it looks after your grueling hours of aquascaping. (I loathe aquascaping)

 

[Phischy]

I'll probably enjoy it since it'll be the first time I've done it in a good 7 years. I'll just be happy to actually be working on the thank, but I'll have to be hella extra careful since my tank is made of acrylic. Thinking back I wish I had explored the cost of a glass custom tank, thought never crossed my mind, oh well. I may get some sheets of acrylics from Home Depot and place them inside the tank against the walls to prevent any slip ups, I really do not want to scratch this tank.

My dad made the stand so I'll pass on to him that others find it as cool as myself. Thanks for the complements, it's his first one!

 

[Phischy]

Picked up 23lbs of live rock today, put it in and it is not enough. I knew it wouldn't be but what I got was the best they had. Apparently I should have gone in yesterday. So....I'll wait till next Sat, do a 5gal water change and add 30lbs of rock and see how things look then. But at least there's something in the tank now! I'd post a pic but it's pretty plain at the moment.

 

[Sugar Magnolia]

I know what you mean about scratching the acrylic. my first nano was an Eclipse 6 and I ended up with tons of scratches in the acrylic. That's a great idea about putting another couple of sheets of acrylic in there until you're done aquascaping.

 

[Phischy]

Another week of waiting....sheesch!!! But my buddy nate called me from the store today to say he cherry picked me some great liverock from the wholesaler and was goign to bring it by tonight. He has 43lbs but it's way too much for what I've got so I think I'll add another 20-25lbs to put me near 50 total, plus another 15lbs of livesand I never added.

Otherwise I'm just staring at a 1/2 full tank of liverock as it cures, watching the skimmer skim and yea...real exciting stuff. Hopefully I'll at least have more rock tonight to check out. Project is moving along but way too slowly....

 

[Phischy]

Wow, Nate delievered some awesome rock to my house last night, makes the stuff I bought earlier look horrible! I took a b unch of pics but am having issues with my home PC. I spent about 2hrs last night aquascaping and making a mess. I may or may not change the setup.

Tell ya what though, fresh rock stinks to high heaven. And now so does my apartment. Smells like a cannery...ugh! Real pain to to have to be so careful with the rock as to not touch the sides for fear of scraping/scratching the acrylic.

At least now the tank is full of stuff!