Tylers ~300Gal System Build. *The epic failure*

[zum14]

So not sure exactly how many gallons this system is going to be as I not found a tank yet for this. Im looking used and am going to try to pick something up when im in edmonton here in 2 weeks. Basically what I have been thinking about lately is the closed loop system and return system, really trying to figure out a good flow pattern to eliminate powerheads and provide as close to nature as possible. This is basically a test tank scaled down to try things before I invest in the large tank for the living room. I thought I knew a bit about saltwater and started a tank but we all know how that goes. Ideally I would like an external coast to coast overflow. Im more or less looking for opinions on the closed loop system and return system. Please keep in mind this is still on paper and is in pencil for corrections. Other systems are basically going to be the same as others. Metal Halides (preferably the tank will be large enough to use one of my 400W pendants I picked up from a fellow canreefer) and T5HO for actinics and purples if I want. Another thing I would like to play with before the big build. Large skimmer. Reactors and such for carbon, gfo. I think I will be trying the Apex controller. Tunze auto top off. Ill get more into those details later. So this is basically what I was thinking of trying to pull off.

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/ClosedLoopSystem.jpg

So this does not show exact placement of plumbing as I will need to orient them so they will actuate properly to change the flow pattern and the upper spray bar will have to be just under water for when it is used as the suction side (another beauty of an overflow as DT water level will not vary. I will use 1 or 2 electric actuators with brackets to attach the valves together and timers and such. Haven't sorted out the electrical side exactly yet. I imagine it will be pretty fun. I also have not sorted out flow yet till I know tank size. That will also dictate pump size as well which will also be variable to be able to simulate the slowing and speeding up of tidal flow. Im also thinking of adding in another pipe for introduction of plankton, rotifers, other food and such but will get to that later if the idea is not scrapped. Im going to use slip bulkheads inside the tank so that I can pull the pipe out and apart for easy cleaning as I am sure a snail or something will manage to work there way through the spray bars and well im sure the spray holes will clog over time so ease of cleaning or even replacement is key. The box you see before the pump is going to be a sponge or filter sock basically to stop any foreign items from hitting the pump. Also since im sure everyones wondering why I would want to look at an ugly spray bar in the front of my tank Im actually planning on having a 30 or 36" tank for the big tank and will use a piece of trim along the bottom of the tank. It wont show the sandbed directly but I think will be an ok compromise. Usually there is just algae there that I cant get as im afraid of picking up a piece of sand and scratching the glass. (not a big deal with this tank but will be in the big tank)

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/FlowPatternofClosedLoop.jpg

This is kind of what im thinking the tidal flow will look like in the tank. The large black area should be the main flow of water. Im using a low spraybar in the back which im thinking will be mostly hidden by the reef so an ok comprimise with lighter flow to eliminate a dead zone behind the rock. It will be reduced flow but enough to keep water moving. I am a little concerned about the turbulence that may be created in the zone in question. Might be nothing too.

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/wavepattern.jpg

This is what im thinking of using for my return plumbing. It will be directed at the top of the rock for an sps area (simulated waves). Tidal flow more for the lps and softies. What I have been wondering is with the tidal flow in a high to low tide flow, (water going from upper spray bar to lower bar) and having the water rise up and hit the overflow that is behind the upper spray bar from the return plumbing system. Not too sure what that water flow would look like to the overflow and the only thing im concerned about is that it may not be the best for grabbing that ideal upper column of water for better skimming. Well thats all I can type for now got to go take the puppies for there walk.

[zum14]

Well update. So I was able to pick up a tank while in edmonton. It was close though. Long story. It was advertised as a 120gal-4'X2'X2' but when I got down there it was actually a 90Gal-48"X18"X24". I got some money off and well lets just say if fit the weekend. So I wont be able to run T5's unless I get different pendant holders. Although it seems a lot of people dont run actinics with halides anyways so we will see how it goes.

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01079.jpg

The helper in the backround there.

This is what I did today for the coast to coast overflow. Going to get a diamond coated burr and clean up the corners and edges.

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01081.jpg

I think im just going to cut grooves in the trim as it runs down to the bottom of the cuts. I dont really see much different then getting some acrylic fingers and glueing them in. Both will be a pain to clean and will need it often. That or Im going to just cut out where the overflow is and maybe use something else. Still thinking about it.


http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01082.jpg

Soo. The other thing I have come up with is another possibility for the closed loop plumbing since I found that controlling shutoffs will be very expensive and rigging some manual shutoffs with actuators would also be pricey. My only issue with the setup im thinking now is that I need to know if there will be less restriction going through the spray bars then the pump and filterbox. Otherwise it will just loop below the tank. Im still working on it as well. Other issue is varying the flow. Not such a huge deal id rather try to figure out flow switching first. Anyways heres the pic of that.

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/newclosedloop.jpg


So what im working on now is figuring out what size bulkheads I should be getting. Flow rate and all that. Also anyone think I should be adding a glass brace across the top as there is a plastic one on the trim and I realize they dont always do much but with me cutting the tank for the overflows im kinda on the fence. I probably will for the cost of it. Also does anyone think there is a problem with drilling two holes in the back of the tank near the bottom and two holes in the bottom front corners of the tank? I was kind of thinking of drilling 4 in the back (one in all corners) but was thinking it may be a little excessive. Still thinking. Or maybe four holes in the bottom? One in each corner? That sounds better. I probably wont do the two in the back at the top still as it would probably be too close to the overflows and being at the top its not a huge deal to plumb and I wont have to pay for a couple of extra overflows. Already going to be like 7 in there with the overflow box.

[whatcaneyedo]

Center braces are a real pain to keep clean and work around. Maybe add some euro bracing for piece of mind though.

What tool did you use to cut the coast to coast overflows? Got a picture? Great job by the way. I wish I had more experience with glass so that I could contribute but so far I've mostly only played with acrylic and wood.

[zum14]

Center braces are a real pain to keep clean and work around. Maybe add some euro bracing for piece of mind though.

What tool did you use to cut the coast to coast overflows? Got a picture? Great job by the way. I wish I had more experience with glass so that I could contribute but so far I've mostly only played with acrylic and wood.


Thanks. I just went to princess auto and in the carbide burr/diamond hole saw/diamond burr bits isle in the back near the air fittings there are diamond blades for your dremel. They were a whopping $8.99 for 4. I used the pencil attatchment as I had the wife holding the hose for constant water flushing and cooling and well a dremel wont handle the water. Didnt take long. I need to get the diamond burr set too for $10 to round the corners and clean up the edges. If i do anymore Id suggest going almost the whole way through and then meeting on the other side as I had a little bit of chipping happening when I went all the way through one side. Ill snap a few pics of the tools and such here tonight.

[whatcaneyedo]

Cool. I already have that set of four 1" diamond wheels. I used to use them for fragging before I got my other saws.

[zum14]

Brick wall! No plumbing shops in town have slip fit bulkhead fittings. All threaded. Looks like an online order to delay me. Damn. Going to try for the glass for the overflow. That shouldnt be too bad. Haha.....shouldnt.

[whatcaneyedo]

Karen has two extra 1-1/2" bulkheads from J&L http://www.jlaquatics.com/product/pl-bhs15/Standard+Threaded+Bulkhead+Fitting+%281-1+2%22%29.html that she doesnt need and will probably sell. If you want her contact information I can find it for you. While you're ordering bulkheads you might want to grab some gate valves if you're going to need any of those... as no one in town sells them either. I think you can at least get true union ball valves at Andrew Sherrit. If you think I might have any plumbing bits leftover that you could use you're welcome to come scavenge through my extras. Actually I'm probably going to bring most of those up to Allans if he will take them for his store.

[whatcaneyedo]

I was just visiting Allan to see how his new project is coming along and he has a small selection of bulkheads including 1".

[zum14]

I was just visiting Allan to see how his new project is coming along and he has a small selection of bulkheads including 1".


Thanks. Ill have to email him. Do you happen to know if either karens or allans are threaded on the inside? There are lots in town at corestock or andrew sherrit but all they have is inside threaded. I need inside slip so I can remove the spray bars and clean/replace them as they get algaed up. They suggested adapters but if I go that route the spray bars will be 4" off the bottom. Ill probably end up ordering them from bulkreefsupply as they have the mesh for the top I want to build and have valves and such as well (thanks for that reminder, there really is nothing in this town for that stuff. Its fun to watch people look at you funny when you tell them what your building) The other thing is in town they will be like 10-15$ each bulkhead too vs 5$ on brs.

[whatcaneyedo]

Karen's two are the ones shown in the link that I posted and you'll have to ask Allan what he has because I didn't see them all.

[zum14]

Update. So I got some glass for my euro bracing and coast to coast. I now know why people in prince don't build tanks. It was $150 for the glass. Overflow on bottom and euro on top.


http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01086.jpg


So I started to clean the top of the tank with the plastic trim off and i found something interesting. Can anyone else see the problem???

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01083.jpg
http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01084.jpg


Yaa.... not so impressed. Good thing its not the show tank. He said it was a hagen. I don't know. He didn't look like he had the ability to do this to the tank and he said it held water. Good thing its in a basement and I WILL be water testing first now with a little more discomfort. But what am I going to do now. Not much. I need to get this tank set up as were renoing the room my current tank is in and its holding up work. No kitchen and dirty reno'd house makes wife something something....... So pressed on with work. Got the diamond coated burrs and cleaned up the overflows. No sharp edges and corners now. (please dont mind the sharpie marks. not sure what happend there. too many before starting that job.)

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01085.jpg

And then glued up the overflow box.

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01088.jpg

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01089.jpg


I realized the glass braces are probably overkill but I dont do too many things underkill so in they went. They were only like $10 in the end. Plan is for eurobracing to be glued in tomorrow and seal up the overflow box. Then its just a matter of waiting on the bulkheads. No one seems to use full inside slip bulkheads, or even a slip on the tank side. Oh well. Im getting used to things going sideways on this project.

[zum14]

So.... a little bit of bad news. Had to throw the closed loop system back to the drawing board for now. Just too many things to still figure out with it and due to time constraints I had to get the tank setup so I can move my current one. Sucks but oh well. I told my wife I would have to set up another tank between this one and my big ones and shes ok with that so who can complain. I got the overflow sealed up and got the tank sitting in my basement in my fishroom. Sorry please dont mind the walls and the little dirty feeder tank for my freshwater gar. Everything is in the middle of the room so I can work on the walls around them.
http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01093.jpg
http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01094.jpg

I know lots of guys dont like hardlines to the pumps but this its not noisy and I will tweek everything later. Same with the valves on the drains for the herbie. Ill get them and I have a way of shutting water off to one pipe at a time and plumb the valve in later. One of my concerns was that there is a center brace on the plastic trim (I know what your thinking. What happend to the euro bracing. Well lets just say there were some select words used and we will be buying a tank with that already done. Probably not as complicated as I was making it but it just wasnt working) Anywho. I figured I would use two of the pendants. I hung them quite high as I really dont want to nuke my tank and im also worried about the shock from going from T5's to 400W metal halides. So I will run them high and one on at first then work to both then work at finding a good height from the tank. Please again dont mind the wires. I plan on taking care of that too. Here is one pendant on with no water.
http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01095.jpg

Here is both pendants on with no water.
http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01096.jpg


So then today I filled er up and tested for leaks. None so far. Going to let it run for a night then if all good. Drain, quick wipe down, and fill with salt. Heres the tank with water in it both pendants on. Still a bit of condensation from cold water.
http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01098.jpg

Overflow height. Will tweek this when I get the valves in so it will be running probably about 2" higher when im done.
http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01100.jpg


Then heres with the night lights. Might be a bit bright. Not sure yet.

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01104.jpg

Oh and please excuse the nice heart on the front. I didnt catch that my wife had done that till I had loaded the pics on the computer. Funny thing is when I showed her this all excited she just shrugged and walked away. Totally doesnt care. In her words its a tub full of water with an ugly light over it and a bunch of ugly pipes. Oh well she still lets me do it so.

[zum14]

Just a few pics of the corals that woke up early. Some are still pretty ****ed either with the new tank shock or lighting change. The awesome open brain I got from whatcaneyedo got picked on pretty hard by the shrimps and crabs. I tried to shelf it but they found a way up there. It looks a lot better now but time will tell.
http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01117.jpg

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01114.jpg

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01112.jpg

[zum14]

So not a whole heck of a lot has changed. Got my ASM G3 running and its skimming beautifully now. I lost my Firefish recently *pout* but its my fault. Netting for the screen top didnt get here quick enough. Well this was taken when the tank originally set up but not much has changed. Got a couple of corals but nothing really else.

http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01127.jpg

So ive been pondering for quite a while now on what fish to get. Current inhabitants are 6 line wrasse, Longnose Hawk and Bengaii Cardinal. Id love a copperband and I think the tank is big enough now but I have two open brain corals and an acan that would most likely meet there dooms eventually. Id love to get a tang but am unsure of enough swimming room/ current flow. I dont have any shrimps (not sure I will ever again due to a couple of peppermints picking on corals) so im not sure about triggers either. I like the huma and clown but attitudes may be issues there. One of my absolute faves is the Emperor but well there is just soo much wrong with me even mentioning that, this is as far as im going with it. Lawnmower would probably be functional but im just not a fan of them. Dwarf lion or fu man chu's look pretty awesome. Anyone have any input??

[kien]

Coming along nicely! Your plumbing is quite sophisticated!

[zum14]

Coming along nicely! Your plumbing is quite sophisticated!

Woooowww. Kien commented on my tank! Neat. Thanks anyways but I think I just seem to have a nack for making things that are simple look overly complicated. Its a skill I picked up early in my life according to my father.

[whatcaneyedo]

Looks like an interesting build. I'd like to come by and check it out sometime.

[zum14]

Update: Well my freshwater got shut down last weekend, wasnt happy but I think it was necessary. So I had a 125 drilled and ready to go. Well with the recent discovery of more hitch hiker crabs in the 90 and well just not happy with how I went about setting this tank up (did research but ive always found it to never be enough) Ive decided to start into a new process. Ive set up some fishstore like racks in the 125 plumbed it in to my system and am in the process of moving all the corals over. Fragging some and what I can and moving others directly over. Not quite done as of yet but getting there. I think the basic idea im shooting for now is to get some eco reefer rock (no pests!) Build it into a nice solid structure like Ive watched a lot of talented reefers on here do. Mine now is not much of a structure so much as a pile of teetering rocks that really have little shape. Id like more up and like to be able to get all around the rocks for cleaning purposes and general look. The rock that is in the tank now will most likely migrate to the sump or scrutinized heavily before going into a display. Once one tank is done I can move the corals around and the other will follow so naturally the reef will be first. Question is do I want a 90Gal Reef and a 125Gal FOWLR or other way around... Theres lots I would like to do with the tanks now but Im thinking this is top of the list for now.


http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz303/zum14/DSC01229.jpg

[zum14]

Well that was quick. Got our electricity bill for the last month......not good. Started crunching numbers..... not good. Wife wasnt happy. Im not happy. darn...need to figure something out quick.

[Madreefer]

Lookin good. I tried talkin my wife in to letting me spend 3K on a LED fixture by sayin it would pay for itself after a year of use. She would'nt go for it. Maybe yours will.

[zum14]

Lookin good. I tried talkin my wife in to letting me spend 3K on a LED fixture by sayin it would pay for itself after a year of use. She would'nt go for it. Maybe yours will.


Hahaha that was my first though as well. Not a chance. She said she wants her car first.

[Madreefer]

I pick a random day once a week and don't have my MH's come on for the day. Only run them 6hrs a day as well. Does'nt hurt anything and it's not sunny everyday in the ocean. Every little bit helps.

[zum14]

I pick a random day once a week and don't have my MH's come on for the day. Only run them 6hrs a day as well. Does'nt hurt anything and it's not sunny everyday in the ocean. Every little bit helps.


I was playing with that as well but well purchasing when not knowing what your doing, you end up with a bunch of 400W halides and a softie/lps tank with more light then you know what to do with. That and trying to keep 300Gal of water warm in a 65* basement isnt helping. The more and more I look im getting closer to the reality of probably setting up just one tank upstairs with an undertank or basement sump, im still crunching the numbers. Probably a T5 fixture (that kien guy has nice tanks and one is T5 lit) Its really tought to do this as its kinda dampering the dreams, but I just cant handle a $220+ electricity bill.

[Madreefer]

If you go that route you should'nt have a heat problem and it's great for summer months. It makes my wife alot happier having all my equipment and sump in the basement. No more mess upstairs. I'm no expert but I think T5's need to be changed more often. And you know how it is in this town to get anything SW related.

[zum14]

For sure, Ive kind of gotten used to the thinking of whatever i need i order. I thought t5's and metal halides were the same in a yearly replacement??

[Madreefer]

I was told every 6-8 months. Nedco had some nice good priced fixtures in the summer. Not sure how many bulbs it held but much cheaper if the words fish, reef, aquarium or marine is'nt on it. The cheap Coralife T5 bulbs at our LFS are only $90 each.

[zum14]

I was told every 6-8 months. Nedco had some nice good priced fixtures in the summer. Not sure how many bulbs it held but much cheaper if the words fish, reef, aquarium or marine is'nt on it. The cheap Coralife T5 bulbs at our LFS are only $90 each.


I make regular orders to JL so Id be going there. Its hard to decide and have to crunch numbers on bulb replacement vs energy consumpsion between metal halide and t5. Do you have 150s or 250s on your tank?

[Madreefer]

I have two 250MH's with four 54w T5's

[zum14]

This is it. The white flag is waving. Ill do a thread up, going to give away the livestock (its not nice enough to sell) I tried so hard but life is really trying me right now and tonight tipped me over the edge. Im not selling hardware. Ill be back, do it properly. Damn I wish life was more like Star Trek. No more money problems.

[Madreefer]

Dude, what the hell?

[zum14]

Well..... where to start.......I guess it was a while back now we were doing our kitchen in aug. We found water in our newly reno'd walls. Found a vent on the exterior wall was located slightly above the roof line of the carport. It was rotten so down the roof came, still need to pull structure down. Then as im driving up to the dump my jeep started acting up. Cost me $500 in electronics (long story) to find out the oil pump has a stiff spot and took the distributor and cam out. To do the cam I have to pull the engine and head, so might as well rebuild it. Its still sitting at work... Were down to one car. About a day after parking my jeep my car started acting up. Its teetering on the brink of disaster as I havent found the problem yet. So moving forward with life, started putting our kitchen back together. Water on the floor. %#^$. Found that our dishwashers back corner of the inside tub has turned into swiss cheeze from steak knives and such poking it when closing the door. Its ok I can run without a dishwasher. Wife does some laundry, we hear a BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG, go down, The drum is seperating from the tray on top and bangs around on spin. Screw it, it can bang, no money for it right now. So halloween rolls around. Wife runs downstairs for something. Asks me why theres water in a box. Look up. Oh joy the toilet is leaking upstairs through the floor and through the cieling downstairs. Neat. OK well we still have a toilet downstairs. Ha. That jammed up and required a call out from roto rooter. $160 later the toilets out in the carport and the upstairs one comes downstairs. Ill fix the floor upstairs later. Ok so tanks still ok. Corals kinda up and down. Waters good. Figured everything can just sort of hold out till all this gets wrapped up and we can come back. Well then we got a bill this month for electricity. $240. I cant afford that every month right now. I figured oh we must of been playing catch up from the last couple months. Crunched some numbers, nope. Looks like with the extra energy from the cold and well it being dark at 4 its going to be steady all month. So I have been racking my brain for the last week or so trying to figure out what to do. My first thought was major downsizing. My problem is all routes require new lighting to help with energy consumption and other various peices needed with the downsizing. The wife even suggested moving the tank upstairs to help with not having to heat so much ( shes doesnt like this hobby which really doesnt help as im sure many know ) So I figured ok sure we can do this. Should be spending the money elsewhere where its needed but we will do this and get to the other stuff. Well tonight were sitting watching tv. Hear a DRIP, DRIP, DRIP. *Sigh* Get up and walk out to the living room. Well it turns out the attic isnt vented well enough and being that my attic isnt insulated really well (ive known about this so its partially my fault) with all the excess moisture from the tanks my attic looks like the frost buildup in an old freezer. Yay...... Its really not my houses fault. Its not a piece of junk, nor is anything inside it. I just have that kind of luck. Most dont belive me at first but soon they all come around and realize I am really, really unlucky. So ya, I hit the brakes, I tried, but it won. Itll get shut down to reduce humidity (oh and we spent $300 on a dehumidifier to try to get the humidity down already) to stop attic frosting and try to catch up on some other problems. It would sure be nice to have 2 vehicles again. Ill be back, Im not selling any hardware or rock(not sure how to treat and store but i havent asked the search function yet) Ill store it all and start up again one day. Just doesnt seem like it was ment to be right now. OH and I forgot that I found 2 more coral crunching crabs in the tank too, robyn said he hasnt heard of anyone having soo many pests in one single batch of liverock. Ya everything was good for like 6 months. I should of known.....theres a few more but well we will leave it at that.

[Madreefer]

Wow! What a story. You sure have had alot of bad luck lately. I feel for you dude. I hope things turn around for you and quick. Have you thought of maybe setting up a nano for the time being? At least it would be something to keep you interested in the hobby until you get things sorted out. When your ready you know theres a couple of us in town that are constantly fragging all the time. I'm bad as I trim and throw away. It's that or take it to our LFS to watch them slowly kill it. I hope you can find good homes for your livestock as the LFS is really not in the best conditions right now with the SW guy only workin 3 days a week now. If you want I can help you find homes for your stuff as I know a few SW in town guys that don't want any part of the internet stuff. I could also babysit some of your stuff until you want it back. Take care of yourself and don't abandon us here.

[zum14]

Wow! What a story. You sure have had alot of bad luck lately. I feel for you dude. I hope things turn around for you and quick. Have you thought of maybe setting up a nano for the time being? At least it would be something to keep you interested in the hobby until you get things sorted out. When your ready you know theres a couple of us in town that are constantly fragging all the time. I'm bad as I trim and throw away. It's that or take it to our LFS to watch them slowly kill it. I hope you can find good homes for your livestock as the LFS is really not in the best conditions right now with the SW guy only workin 3 days a week now. If you want I can help you find homes for your stuff as I know a few SW in town guys that don't want any part of the internet stuff. I could also babysit some of your stuff until you want it back. Take care of yourself and don't abandon us here.


Hey thanks, you get used to the luck really. Hahaha go up after typeing that and grab a slice of pizza, threw it in the nuker, light comes on, no turn or buzz, hahaha figured its a timer or something, nooo noo its busted. haha Oh and christmas coming too. My dad was 24 when he had his first heart attack. This years my year. haha. Its better I just get right out for a while. Take a rest. Ill be back for sure. Going to do it smarter next time. I learned a lot and have to thank everyone that helped me learn.

[lastlight]

Sorry to hear about your bad luck or whatever you want to call it. 2009 in its entirety was like that for my family and 2010 has been a move in the positive direction so chin up you can turn it around just takes time.

[paddyob]

Well..... where to start.......I guess it was a while back now we were doing our kitchen in aug. We found water in our newly reno'd walls. Found a vent on the exterior wall was located slightly above the roof line of the carport. It was rotten so down the roof came, still need to pull structure down. Then as im driving up to the dump my jeep started acting up. Cost me $500 in electronics (long story) to find out the oil pump has a stiff spot and took the distributor and cam out. To do the cam I have to pull the engine and head, so might as well rebuild it. Its still sitting at work... Were down to one car. About a day after parking my jeep my car started acting up. Its teetering on the brink of disaster as I havent found the problem yet. So moving forward with life, started putting our kitchen back together. Water on the floor. %#^$. Found that our dishwashers back corner of the inside tub has turned into swiss cheeze from steak knives and such poking it when closing the door. Its ok I can run without a dishwasher. Wife does some laundry, we hear a BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG, go down, The drum is seperating from the tray on top and bangs around on spin. Screw it, it can bang, no money for it right now. So halloween rolls around. Wife runs downstairs for something. Asks me why theres water in a box. Look up. Oh joy the toilet is leaking upstairs through the floor and through the cieling downstairs. Neat. OK well we still have a toilet downstairs. Ha. That jammed up and required a call out from roto rooter. $160 later the toilets out in the carport and the upstairs one comes downstairs. Ill fix the floor upstairs later. Ok so tanks still ok. Corals kinda up and down. Waters good. Figured everything can just sort of hold out till all this gets wrapped up and we can come back. Well then we got a bill this month for electricity. $240. I cant afford that every month right now. I figured oh we must of been playing catch up from the last couple months. Crunched some numbers, nope. Looks like with the extra energy from the cold and well it being dark at 4 its going to be steady all month. So I have been racking my brain for the last week or so trying to figure out what to do. My first thought was major downsizing. My problem is all routes require new lighting to help with energy consumption and other various peices needed with the downsizing. The wife even suggested moving the tank upstairs to help with not having to heat so much ( shes doesnt like this hobby which really doesnt help as im sure many know ) So I figured ok sure we can do this. Should be spending the money elsewhere where its needed but we will do this and get to the other stuff. Well tonight were sitting watching tv. Hear a DRIP, DRIP, DRIP. *Sigh* Get up and walk out to the living room. Well it turns out the attic isnt vented well enough and being that my attic isnt insulated really well (ive known about this so its partially my fault) with all the excess moisture from the tanks my attic looks like the frost buildup in an old freezer. Yay...... Its really not my houses fault. Its not a piece of junk, nor is anything inside it. I just have that kind of luck. Most dont belive me at first but soon they all come around and realize I am really, really unlucky. So ya, I hit the brakes, I tried, but it won. Itll get shut down to reduce humidity (oh and we spent $300 on a dehumidifier to try to get the humidity down already) to stop attic frosting and try to catch up on some other problems. It would sure be nice to have 2 vehicles again. Ill be back, Im not selling any hardware or rock(not sure how to treat and store but i havent asked the search function yet) Ill store it all and start up again one day. Just doesnt seem like it was ment to be right now. OH and I forgot that I found 2 more coral crunching crabs in the tank too, robyn said he hasnt heard of anyone having soo many pests in one single batch of liverock. Ya everything was good for like 6 months. I should of known.....theres a few more but well we will leave it at that.



F***. Hope things turn around. My house has had its own share of moisture and mold issues from my tank this year. Joyous times.

[whatcaneyedo]

Wow you and Chris should talk (if he was still in the country). This sounds just like his life when he had a tank running. Crappy.

[zum14]

YAY!!! eeeeeeeeeeeeee. Hahaha. So all is not lost! The wife finally got tired of me dragging my feet and mopeing around this last week. She asked me to set up a small tank upstairs. We talked about it and she actually said she wanted me to. Thats big for her as my tanks have pretty much been money she doesnt want to spend. Now its not really huge as not much is going to change as far as the downsizing. Its only going to be a 24" tank. 15 or 20 gal depends whats available. So any fish I had was too big for this nano so that doesnt change, and im still good with the coral downsize, just might want a few frags of some stuff if thats cool. I think im going to keep it fishless for a bit, keep just a few corals. I want to make sure I can keep up with the demands for a nano before investing in any livestock. The only thing I really need is going to be a light. Anyone think a 150W halide pendant will be too much for a 12" or 15" deep tank?? Ill go flourecent, I gots no problem with that but just really like the look of the phoenix 14K. Im just stoked its still alive.

[Madreefer]

Well that did'nt last long. Haha Right on, good to hear. That guy that runs the home business has some used tanks. Don't forget to call me when you need some stuff to put in your nano.

[zum14]

Well that did'nt last long. Haha Right on, good to hear. That guy that runs the home business has some used tanks. Don't forget to call me when you need some stuff to put in your nano.

Ya I know. haha. I guess the wife was tired of seeing a dirty lower lip. It was hanging pretty low last week. haha. Its going to be interesting. Ill start a new tank journal.