Thanks Kien, ideas are meant to be shared! God knows I stole a few from Greg!

Yeah. That is one cool ATO. :)


Its going so slow its painful. I haven't done much in the last week or so, been way too busy at work. Ordered a couple new poly tanks for a bigger mixing station though... :)

Nice! I look forward to more updates of the progress! I wish I had the space for an 'Ichthyology Laboratory'!

Finished job looks great Warren. :first:

Thanks Laurie!

You must be close to putting water in soon eh!

I wish! There are still 4 big ticket items I want/need before start up.

1) Dosing pump. Thinking about a Libra, just because it matches the black/red/white theme. Alternative choice is a BM or a Kamoer. Single dosing pumps are out of the question.
2) Controller: Decided on the Apex
3) Chiller: Need a 1/5 or 1/4 minimum.
4) Lighting: Still can't decide LED or T5. I want the best of both worlds, but ATI's hybrid's are so expensive, and they don't come in black. Considering a DIY hybrid.

Those four items equal big $$$. Plus I still need consumables and test kits, not to mention rock from Eli, substrate, salt, etc. I may need to get a second job, lol.

Might not be salty until Christmas. If that's the case then the chiller can wait until next summer.

Why do we choose this hobby again?! I'm just thankful my wife is supportive!

I'm wondering why you want such a big chiller ?

My system is 105G total and I use a 1/10HP
It's only 280 watts and I run it with an Eheim Compact+ 2000

My old 1/4HP was 480 watts and required a minimum 600+ GPH so more power and money on a bigger, noisier pump

Good question Greg. Let me ask you this, on a very hot day how long does your chiller run?

Ya ya, it runs longer

When it's hot enough in the house for me to be uncomfortable and can't sleep, I turn on our whole house air and the chiller then doesn't run
So 1800 watts of 24/7 power saves me 300 watts of tank hardware power :lol:

My old 1/4HP used to run for 4 mins and this one probably runs for 10, so there goes all my power savings

But, I like using my 1/10HP as it's very quiet. I leave the pump running and never hear it (no stale water in the chiller)
And the setup takes up considerably less space
Plus it and the pump were about $250 less

With a 1/4HP unit at least you won't have to worry about working it too hard
Just be sure it's setup properly so it doesn't short-cycle and burn itself out
I initially had trouble setting up my old one and it would run for about 45 seconds every 4 mins :surprise:

Oh, plus I had to put the old chiller in my office as we couldn't sleep with it running beside the tank

Yeah, my logic behind the 1/4 was that it would have to run less to bring the temp down which is less wear and tear on the unit, and less exhausted heat into the room.
As mentioned before my house can get pretty hot and the a/c unit will continue to stay in the bedroom (non-negotiable).
I hear ya on the noise and cost. These are major factors.
Do you know if anyone makes a 1/6 or 1/8 unit?

I'm thinking it'll be the same amount of heat regardless of the unit size
You're converting tank water temp into room air temp

I do recall seeing a 1/5 once but nothing local

Correction

J&L sells Aqualogic 1/5HP in either a drop-in or inline, but they're a grand

They have the Ecoplus on sale right now, but you can always buy it Boxing Day

I know nothing about chillers, but what burns out motors and compressors is the amount they turn on and off more so than the amount of time they run. If you have to choose, choose longer run time than more cycles.

I've seen those, they look nice, but I'd have to hook myself to afford that. Sadly I'd make no money, lol.

Good to know... thanks daplatapus, and gregzz4 for all the info! It was suggested to me, by an 'expert', that I should be using a 1/4hp minimum.
That being said, I always thought I could get away with a 1/10. Glad to have my conceptions corrected on this forum!

You're welcome for the input
Hope it helps

A 1/4HP is good for 180G with a 10 degree drop
A 1/10HP is good for 110G with the same
I am finding today, with the house being 81F with all the windows open, that my 1/10HP runs for about 15mins to keep the tank between 79.3 and 79.1, so yes it's working hard
I'm sure if I hadn't sold my 1/4HP unit I would have found a way to incorporate it, but it was really noisy

I guess you'll just have to decide what you want to spend and how much noise you can deal with

Needed some more holes for wiring and decided to paint the back.

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5595/...5d07026d_b.jpg

Got a fancy powerbar with surge protection. Funny how every powerbar says 'not for use with an aquarium' on the package. :crazy:
Here is a good detail of the tabs I had welded to the stand to mount the cabinetry to.
They also provide some seismic support I suppose, Lol.

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3902/...15fcd68c_b.jpg

Finally got around to installing the exhaust fan. Bgears 80mm with LED temp display. http://bgears.com/b-cool.html

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3909/...60b1d5c7_b.jpg

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5585/...746aa44c_b.jpg

Might have an acrylic deflector fabbed up for the back so as not to get salt creep on the wall.

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5559/...6e0405c7_b.jpg

Build is slowly picking up speed, slowly. Picked up 12 feet of Panduit, guess I can start some wiring! http://www.panduit.com/wcs/Satellite...Search_Wrapper

Thanks for looking.

Looking real nice Warren, you can tell your a fitter looks great. :smile:

Thanks Laurie! Having a slight case of OCD helps with the building part, but once the livestock is in, I'm not too sure how that's going to work out, lol.


Just as things were gaining speed with the build, 'normal' life got in the way. The wife and I have been spending a lot of time working on our yard reno before the weather turns sour.
Leaving me far too spent to work on the tank. I was able to do a bit of work today by putting the cabinets on the stand. Here are the results.

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3931/...13d031c0_c.jpg

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3931/...d9ac9922_c.jpg

https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2945/...76f0af11_c.jpg https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3927/...20a3291b_c.jpg

Contacted Eli in regards to some rock, hoping to do some sculpting soon!

Trying to find a used triple doser... sigh.

Thanks for looking.

Trying to work some magic with LED's tonight. Getting inspiration from Harry Potter... although he looks worried.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7555/...758662f1_b.jpg

LED build failed. Those stab connectors aren't very good at making contact. Going to have to try to find my 25 year old soldering iron and do it like a boss.

Rock came today from Eli. Can't say I've ever been excited to receive a box of rocks before!

22 lbs Pukani, 35 lbs Branch, Thanks Eli!

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8619/...418565e9_b.jpg

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8570/...28f8446e_b.jpg

Glad you received it well.Now have fun putting it all back together like the video or close to remember don't get frustrated just enjoy it as I told you earlier your setup is the most elaborate aquascape...the heat is on:biggrin:
How did the FijiCrete make it hope with no punctures.

Dem's some wild lookin' rocks

Fijicrete survived unscathed. Actually I was very happy with the condition of the whole package. No rubble to speak of and all the branches were intact. Great pack job Eli!
Do you think it would be possible to use a Dremmel to shape the pukani, or just a chisel and mallet?

I know right? I hope I can bring my vision to life! Stay tuned, probably going to cook it this weekend. Lots of rainy day projects for this guy! Woot woot!

You can use any tool with a sharp end but to do a precise job and a dremel is available I would say yes its the tool for the job.

All in all I think the baths went quite well as all the rock came out very white!

Bleach:

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7463/...eec55b69_b.jpg

Acid:

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7562/...2e3f5cb9_b.jpg

Soaking it in freshwater overnight and will begin drying tomorrow.

Rocks are drying but I can still smell a little bleach. Is this normal? Should I rinse them again? Any insight would be helpful.

Met tang daddy at J&L and picked up a Vertex Libra from him. Deal included 3 dosing vessels that I was sure would not fit in my stand.
Got home and lo and behold they just squeezed in... Yay!
Thanks Chris!

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7564/...e006683d_b.jpg

Seems I can't stop in at J&L without buying something... ended up coming home with an Apex Lab grade system.

Need to do a leak test on the entire system next. Been dreading it, but I'm sure everything will turn out ok.

Thanks for looking.

Warren, system is coming along nice man. Glad to see the doser actually fit!

Thanks Chris, I'm really happy that it did!

Finally got around to finishing the LED utility lighting properly.

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8598/...3ac4838e_c.jpg

Here's tang daddy's Libra doser installed along with the LED lights.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7543/...fa3cc310_b.jpg

Colours don't show up great on my camera (Nikon Coolpix L120) but you get the idea. I should try playing around with the white balance I guess.
Wire management is one of the next jobs. Also, a full leak test is scheduled for this coming weekend then it's on to aquascaping with the rock.
The only major purchase left is the lighting. Still undecided on 2 Kessil A360's, or a Hamilton Tech 6x39w T5.

Thanks for looking. Comments/input welcome!

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7476/...fce1dfa8_b.jpg

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7509/...dd8b62f4_b.jpg

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7546/...587ec862_b.jpg

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7503/...b7f461f8_b.jpg

Whoa. I want!

I don't know of many people that have a color choice in the sump area,"very cool"
Getting closer bud! Looks awesome.

The sump cabinet lighting looks cool.... As for lights you can't go wrong with T5, and later on if you're feeling frisky add a couple led strips to get that pop and shimmer.

What are your coral stocking plans?

I almost caved and bought a radion for my 38g but decided to try some T5 fixtures I had laying around and couldn't be happier with the colouration. Then I had some led strips laying around aswell so I tried them out and the combo is spectacular. Lucky I have so much equiptment laying around lol.

You are more than welcome to stop by and see what it looks like if you want.... Let me know!

kien, your tank is awesome sauce. Definitely one of the premier set-ups here on Canreef. It's been an inspiration to me!

Laurie, I'm actually looking forward to the next party we throw so I can put the lights on 'disco disco' mode!

Chris, as a salty noob I may be aiming a little high with the stocking plans but I'm planning SPS dominant. I have decades of experience with fresh water so I'm confident I can adapt my husbandry skills accordingly.
Very interested in Chalices, palys and zoas as well. Just need to experiment with proper placement in the tank once it's up and running. Not too keen on softies, but I'm sure I will acquire some.
All in all it will be a mixed reef, with the emphasis on SPS and zoas. You can view a video of my proposed aquascape that Eli made here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPie...iTyeOHxntsrufQ and here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtRq...iTyeOHxntsrufQ
The challenge will be proper placement for all non-SPS corals as I am planning wicked flow across the top half of the structure.

Thanks for the invite, I'd love to stop by your place some time, check out your set up and talk shop. I'll text you buds.

System leak test underway. I don't think I could be any more nervous. Almost 2 years of preparation riding on what happens in the next little bit.
Tank slightly off the wall for access to unions and such.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7525/...5ed0f538_b.jpg

Leak test passed with flying colours. Bulkheads good, PVC glue good, unions good, floor and stand survived.
Took about half an hour to get the Herbie dialed in. Stupid quiet. Plugged in the heater and will probably add some vinegar once it heats up.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7525/...585989ff_b.jpg

Here is the power failure test, water level only rises about 3 inches.

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8140/...5f0ab8c6_b.jpg

One slight problem. The vibration from the Eheim compact+ 5000 is transferring to the stand through the plumbing and is being amplified.
The wife pretty much told me to fix it or move out, lol.
The clear tubing off the return is only 5 and a 1/4" long before joining the PVC and I think is too rigid.
The pump has suction cup feet and is sitting on a OXO silicone sink mat.
I'm going to try to find some 1" ID silicone tubing and perhaps shorten the PVC on the return riser by several inches.
Anyone else had this problem? Any advice?
Thanks for looking.

:thumb:What can I say a fitter did the piping, everything looks so tidy & new.
The silicone tubing and shorten the return riser should help a lot with the vibration issue.

I have sourced some medical tubing here: http://www.new-line.com/hose/tubing/...medical-tubing, hoping this reduces the transfer of vibration to the plumbing.
I'm a little disappointed it's taken me 2 weeks to find the time to get out to Langley to pick it up. Every little hiccup pushes this build behind. It's like 2 steps forward, 1 step back.
Ram3500 graciously invited me to see his Kessil A360's in action. I've pretty much decided those are the fixtures I'm going with. Thanks Ian!
I have 3 1/2 weeks off from work at Christmas (thank-you baby Jesus). If I can pry myself away from the wifey and I playing Lego Hobbit, I'm sure this build can get finished!
Hopefully more updates this week and rock sculpting next weekend.

Love the planning going into this build, really inspires me to not just have ass my plumbing on my 200 gallon build over Christmas. I've gotten 3 of the Eheim Compact+ 5000 and hope the Latex tubing solves your vibration issues, as with 3 of them and a Waterblaster HY7000 I'm really trying to keep vibrations to a minimum

Nice and clean build, bravo brotha! Hope mine turns out as nice (although I doubt it as I'm not using pretty coloured piping :( )

Thanks daplatapus! The only reason for the coloured piping is because all the equipment is in the stand. If I had a fish room downstairs I'd be using white sched40 as well. The extra cost would not be justified IMO. Plus, the fittings have really been a nightmare to find locally. Probably won't go that route again.

No updates on your build lately, what's going on?

theokie, the tweaking I did today has solved all the issues I had... and when I say 'I', that really means my wife, Lol.

Replaced the OXO silicone mat with an inch of foam filter media. Shortened the PVC riser (had to use a coupling), and replaced the vinyl tubing with latex medical tubing from New Line Hose & Fittings: http://www.new-line.com/hose/tubing/...medical-tubing
It looks ugly as hell, IMO, but has made it completely silent! I would highly recommend it.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7564/...54089e47_b.jpg

Now that the plumbing is all sorted I can focus my attention on the rockwork. Might be PM'ing a few of you guys for some tips!

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8593/...4fcc2ee3_b.jpg

Thanks for looking.