Tank - Sump Build 500 gal +

[+Dogfish]

Thanks Isaac. In my haste to get things rolling I was not thinking about where I mounted that bar.

Thanks Ty. Good info on my unit. I did some googling and found that it can be either mounted flat or vertical but nothing that said upright or sideways. I cant see any problem areas where air might get trapped. We shall see.

[FarmerTy]

Thanks Isaac. In my haste to get things rolling I was not thinking about where I mounted that bar.
Thanks Ty. Good info on my unit. I did some googling and found that it can be either mounted flat or vertical but nothing that said upright or sideways. I cant see any problem areas where air might get trapped. We shall see.

The only place I can see the air being trapped is on the input side where flow may not be quick enough to push the bubble all the way down the left side so that it can be freed going back up on the right side. Either way, running that UV, you wouldn't want to get over 300 - 400 GPH anyways so my fear was the slower flow would allow for air to accumulate in that first chamber. I'm not sure if that would cause an issue with the bulb being exposed to air or not.

Just a caution, don't push too much flow into the unit, I did a higher GPH to try to flush bubbles out the first time I used it and the pressure cracked one of the bulb sleeves and I had to order a new one.

[+Dogfish]

Thanks Ty. I will start off with slow flow and increase it little by little til I hit the sweet spot.

I dry fit some of the plumbing today. Its always fun building manifolds. Built platforms for the skimmer and 65 gal water tank. Mounted the RO/DI unit. Im on rainwater collection so my waters pretty clean at 18ppm. Maybe the RO/DI will not have to work so hard.

[FarmerTy]

Holy moly! I don't run across a lot of skimmers that make me have skimmer envy but that thing is giant!

[+Dogfish]

The skimmer is a light duty commercial. Coral Vue Reef Octopus SRO 7000 EXT. They make some really really big commercial ones, making mine look small.

[Isaac]

moody gardens aquarium has a window into the back room.  that skimmer is easily 4ft wide and 12-16ft tall.  i gotta find a pict.  i know i have it *lol*

[+Dogfish]

Not much progress today. Had to clean the chicken coop (not fun) and the windows in my own house. Did get the manifold glued up and attached to the reactors. UV unit is also plumbed. Working on getting the epoxy on the floor. That stuff cant dry fast enough for me. May have to fill some sand bags tomorrow according to the weather report.

[victoly]

On 8/22/2017 at 10:34 PM, FarmerTy said:

The ends light up so you can easily tell at nighttime if its running... Probably a little harder during the day to see but you can tell. I'm not sure about the Apex but that would make sense.

FWIW, I wasn't sure if they recommend running it vertical like you have it mounted. I don't really know but I would double check just in case. I feel like if it was able to go vertical, I think I would have done that myself so that's why I'm thinking that wasn't an option for me at that time.

it seems like it would make bulb replacement a PITA. with a horizontal mounting, you could drain the fixture through the outlet, whereas it would be full until you removed the bulb fitting in a vertical installation. 

[FarmerTy]

Striaght from the horses mouth, you are safe mounting it vertical. Around 1:10 on the video.

Agreed with Victoly, changing bulbs will be epic it seems, you'll have to remove the entire unit everytime full of water. I would maybe suggest adding true unions instead of just unions so you can shut off the water on both sides to remove the sterilizer and replace the bulbs annually.

I'm curious, where does the rest of that line go after the sterilizer? Back to the tank? Is that your return line or is that whole setup just for reactors and UV only and you have another line for return water?

I only ask becauae ideally you'll want a pretty low flow going through the sterlizer to be effective for fish disease purposes. Anything above 400 gph going through that UV will basically only clarify the water (kill algae spores) but would do squat for fish disease for the most part.

[+Dogfish]

So now you have me thinking. My house UV system allows for bulb replacement without draining the water. You unplug the unit and pull off the electrical end caps and slide the bulb out. From the video it looks like the bulb slides out without taking off that screw cap that holds the crystal. Should still be water tight. Yes ? Do you find the need to clean the crystal?  If so how often? My home unit has a wiper built in so no need to take it apart.

I have another line for my main return. It will "T" off the main pump.

[FarmerTy]

So now you have me thinking. My house UV system allows for bulb replacement without draining the water. You unplug the unit and pull off the electrical end caps and slide the bulb out. From the video it looks like the bulb slides out without taking off that screw cap that holds the crystal. Should still be water tight. Yes ? Do you find the need to clean the crystal?  If so how often? My home unit has a wiper built in so no need to take it apart.
I have another line for my main return. It will "T" off the main pump.

Yes, you can pull off the end caps and slide the bulb out. The current orientation vertically would make it impossible to do that unless you have more room than it seems below the UV.

Wipers I consider gimmicky from my experience. Had one on my old unit and swiped it every month as instructed. I stopped entirely the 3rd year and nothing... Notta... No growth on it. Plus, its just another source for a leak.

Oh good, just wanted to make sure all of your return wasn't getting blasted through that UV.

[+Dogfish]

That good news. Don't want to take that thing off full of water to clean the crystal. The bulbs will come out the top. 10 foot ceiling. I do the wiper in my house system every weekend -  4 or 5 pulls each time. Do not know if it helps or not. I have a .05 micron filter just before the UV unit and my tap water is pretty clear except when the oak trees lose their pollen in the spring.

[FarmerTy]

That good news. Don't want to take that thing off full of water to clean the crystal. The bulbs will come out the top. 10 foot ceiling. I do the wiper in my house system every weekend -  4 or 5 pulls each time. Do not know if it helps or not. I have a .05 micron filter just before the UV unit and my tap water is pretty clear except when the oak trees lose their pollen in the spring.

I didn't catch the height from the picture. Looks like you're all set then!

[+Dogfish]

Here is the acrylic for the sump. Regal did a good job on the cuts. On a scrap piece I routed the edges smooth as silk to remove the saw marks . Had a small piece come off the corner. Peeling back the paper I noticed it was fractured at that corner. They might have dropped it. All the other pieces are clean. Drilled hole to be sure my hole saw was the correct size for the 3" socks. Practice, Practice, Practice.

[+Dogfish]

The floor is now dry enough for me to put things back in place. I decided to add some feet to my skimmer stand . They are just rubber end caps for 2" PVC.

[+Dogfish]

Not much progress. Busy with the chain saw clearing the road. Plus power went out which means no power to my shop area. Finished plumbing the skimmer. Worked on the pump placement and the pipes underneath.

 

[+Dogfish]

Gate Valves ,

Does anyone have any experience or opinions on these gate valves? I need a 3" gate valve for my Bean overflow. Standard PVC ones are ok priced up to 2" then they cost like 3 hundred dollars for the bigger sizes. 2" is not enough flow. 3" is over kill but dialing it back with the valve it will come out perfect. These are cheap. Since it will only be gravity creating the flow I would hope they will work without springing a leak.

https://www.clearpvcpipe.com/valves/gate-valves/3-clear-pvc-gate-valve.html

[victoly]

ive used those exact valves on my dads koi pond. they're ok. ive had to replace one that leaked around the top seal. I don't know that they're great for long term flow rate control though. 

[+Dogfish]

Thanks victoly, At that price I can replace a lot of them before i approach the cost of 1 PCV unit.

Built a filter sock holder and a probe holder for the sump. Plan is to start gluing the sump together this week.

[Gig 'em @ NDstructible]

You built the probe holder yourself? That looks pretty sleek, you drilled it for threads as well? Do you have past experience with acrylic fabrication? Or just a skilled jack of all trades

[Isaac]

hell, the taps are the easy part

[victoly]

5 hours ago, Isaac said:

hell, the taps are the easy part

that's what she said.


ill see myself out. 

[+Dogfish]

CHOKE GAG tank COUGH COUGH quote. Got a few quotes on my tank. I guess the tank builders are all millionaires. 20K, Ouch. Looks like I'm going to be building the tank myself. 6 sheets of 1" thick acrylic @ 600.00 a sheet is 3600.00 plus a few CNC cuts, will not add up to 20K. This is gonna be fun.

I did drill the holes and tap them for the probe holder. I am a hack. "Un-Skilled" Jack of all trades and master of none. Anyone know if there is a place in Austin that sells SCIGRIP #40? I called Regal and Austin but they did'nt have it or know who would. Online I guess? I want to use it for the sump instead of #4 to get some practice before I tackle the tank.

[Jnaylor]

30 minutes ago, Dogfish said:

CHOKE GAG tank COUGH COUGH quote. Got a few quotes on my tank. I guess the tank builders are all millionaires. 20K, Ouch. Looks like I'm going to be building the tank myself. 6 sheets of 1" thick acrylic @ 600.00 a sheet is 3600.00 plus a few CNC cuts, will not add up to 20K. This is gonna be fun.

I did drill the holes and tap them for the probe holder. I am a hack. "Un-Skilled" Jack of all trades and master of none. Anyone know if there is a place in Austin that sells SCIGRIP #40? I called Regal and Austin but they did'nt have it or know who would. Online I guess? I want to use it for the sump instead of #4 to get some practice before I tackle the tank.

Yeah its not cheap to get a new tank. As dimensions get more extreme, the cost is exponential. Best of luck building it yourself, you are much more adventurous than I in that regard!

[Woods]

There was a new 60x60x60 tank for sale on Craigslist for $5700 that I saw.  I don't know if it is still for sale but it may be worth you looking into if you are willing to go taller.