Greg's 75g

[Casey8]

If you have 2 air conditioners, you probably don't need the chiller at all. I also run 2 air conditioners in my apartment, but the portables I have are not as strong as yours, because each of mine only cover 600 square feet, that is the biggest size I could get at that time. In the summer time, when both of them are running, my tank only goes up to 1 more degree but that is it. I run 2 metal halides, 1x400W and 1x250W, plus other source of heat adding into the tank like pumps and powerheads, so I get more heat than your T5. On a hot day like today, I had already let 1 of my air conditioners run from 11AM to 5PM on the timer.

[gregzz4]

I wish my tank only rose by 1 degree. The old tank we had usually ran 4 degrees hotter than room temp, so I had to keep the house at around 76 degrees - Brrrrr - the wife was freezing.
It costs too much to chill the whole house continuously. There's 1800 watts of A/C here It was very noticable on the next utility bill.
The chiller is only 280 watts, so it'll have to do the majority of the work.
On the plus side, I run the A/C in my office when I need it while I'm surfing, so it should benefit the tank through the sump.

[Casey8]

Aaahhhh ... I forgot you live in a BIG house I am jealous ! I live in a small 1 bedroom apartment. I hear you, my air conditioner is sucking 1800W for each too. But I can't let the fish enjoy all the cool with the chiller and let us suffer with the heat, so we bought the air conditioners instead
I showed my husband all the pictures from your sump and your electrical boards (because I want him to do it for me the same) and he said he couldn't believe they were built from someone that is just getting into reef hobby. He said you must have done a lot of homework beforehand and must be a very talent handy person too.
Unfortunately, I don't have a husband who has a talent like you

[gregzz4]

Originally Posted by Cugio

Hi Greg, this is amazing. I remember reading the first page and pointing out to my wife that he was able to steal the bathroom for his RODI station. She scolded me on that comment.

I don't know if you answered this or not already, but won't you have a detritius trap underneath that stand for your protein skimmer? It doesn't look like the water flows underneath that first baffle, but rather it goes over top.

As of today, there is no detritus in the return section, just some sand
I'm quite happy with how clean it's staying so far

[gregzz4]

Forgot to post awhile back about the PJs
The one who wouldn't eat had me concerned as it wasn't eating anything live, so I tossed in some NLS pellets and, BAM, holee was he hungry

I've since been feeding both PJs pellets

I've got the Clown and Bangaii eating Blood Worms, Cyclopeeze and Mysis - all fortified with vities, and some garlic for good measure
I'm going to try to spot feed the Clown and Bangaii with some idea in mind to turn them onto pellets
I may try the clam shell trick

All is happy for now

Originally Posted by gregzz4

As of today, there is no detritus in the return section, just some sand
I'm quite happy with how clean it's staying so far

That's awesome. Great design. I wonder what version 7, 8, 9, 10 of your sump design will look like. lol

[gregzz4]

Originally Posted by Cugio

I wonder what version 7, 8, 9, 10 of your sump design will look like. lol

[gregzz4]

I started using some carbon today, so here's both reactors running



I'm going through a LOT of filter socks right now
I currently use 4" x 14" nylon mesh ( not the felt ones ), and the tank is burning through anywhere from 3 to 6 per day, and the skimmer is making lots of brownish-greenish muck that I clean out every few days or so
I hope this daily swap-out routine changes once the algae calms down
I'll do some research on socks - nylon vs felt

Double-checked all params today and, as far as I can tell, there's no reason why anyone should be unhappy
With that said, the GSP hasn't fully opened for 2 days, but I've read that's not uncommon, so I won't worry about it for now
Hammer, Frogspawn, Zoas, Rics, 'Shrooms and SPS are all opening / having PE during the day, and some have major PE after lights out, so I'd say all is good so far ....

Seeing some SPS growth too

Speaking of params;

DT

Free and total NH3 0
NO2 and NO3 0
PH4 such a small trace, may as well be 0
pH 8.2
Sg 1.025
Temp 79 - 79.3F
KH 7.5
Ca 410
Mg 1300

QT

NH3 0
NO2 0
NO3 1.5
PO4 0.03
pH 8.1
Temp 79 - 79.4F
KH, Ca and Mg TBA

With a 10% WC on the DT, I get enough of a bump that it's lasting all week
So, looks like I won't need to drip Kalk yet ... until the SPS start to take off

Next couple of weeks will let me know if I'll need to add Mg, but for now I think the salt mix will be enough

Having to rescue Margarita snails daily. Seems they maybe find themselves in front of the MP10s when the flow patterns change, or something, so they need to be righted here and there
I'll probably replace them with some others soon

Happy tank so far, just waiting out the fuzzy/stringy hair algae phase