Reburn Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 I'm sure Sasha just forgot to say he filled them with sand before he capped them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 1, 2015 Author Share Posted June 1, 2015 You Think It Will float? Good question! I had thought of that as well, but I haven't tested it yet. My theory is that it will sink because neither the PVC pipes nor the crate floats. I will remove the caps and release the trapped air by filling the tubes with tank water before installation. I don't need to weigh the structure down because it will be resting in between the baffles. The baffles are 9" and I cut the rack to 6" to give it plenty of room for growth and water flow above the rack. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 1, 2015 Author Share Posted June 1, 2015 Plumbing...yay! I don't have the clearance to install a light over the new frag section because the manifold is in the way. I wish I would have thought of these things ahead of time, but I had never thought I would want to install this much equipment under the stand. The original plan for this tank was a natural reef, but I didn't like it and now it's evolving back into what I have done in the past. Unfortunately, that means I have to upgrade equipment and redo a lot of designing that was done in the past. First things first...the manifold. *dun dun dun* Here is my original manifold that Bio3 helped me design.One problem with the design was that the ball valves contradicted each other. I had to hang the manifold higher in the stand because the return valve was on the left side, furthest away from the return pump. If I did not hang the manifold high then the return line would kink. Unfortunately, the manifold was too close to the roof and that made the right ball valve unusable .This valve is used to cut off back flow when I turned off the return pump. This design was improved upon in the second manifold. First, I shortened the length to allow for a calcium reactor or large skimmer in the first chamber. Next, I moved the right ball valve to the left side, before the reactor valves. Then, I move the return line from the left to the right. Lastly, I added quick disconnects that allow me to disconnect the manifold for maintenance. This manifold was positioned directly over the sump. I thought it would make it easier to have the valves closer to the front of the tank, but it really hindered accessing the sump. I reworked the position of the manifold last night in order to give me more room to work in the sump and provide the head room needed to install a light above the middle chamber. I got the idea for this position from a picture I saw of Melev's sump. It's not as fancy as his and I don't have as much room in my stand, but I think it works. I also moved the sump towards the front of the tank for additional headroom and to give me space in the rear to run cords. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 1, 2015 Author Share Posted June 1, 2015 Skimmer Upgrade...maybe I have been thinking about a protein skimmer upgrade for a while now. My total water volume is around 180 gallons with the sump and equipment. My SCA-302 is rated for 180 gallons, but my original design called for lighter skimming. This skimmer served me well and I was pleasantly surprised. Moving the manifold will allow me to get a larger skimmer and my friend was nice enough to let me try one out before I buy it. I'm not sure what model this is. Based on the OTP 3000 pump I think it's either a Reef Octopus DNWb 200 or a NWb 200. Both are rated for 250 gallons but I don't know the difference besides that. It also appears to be an older model because the pictures on the Reef Octopus website don't match what it looks like. I will have to take some measurements tonight and see if it matches any of the models. Here is the previous skimmer Here is the Reef Octopus Here is where my sump is at the moment. I decided to let the PVC cement cure over night and I have not tried to run water through it yet. If there is a leak then I'll be making a trip to HD tonight. I hope I don't have to Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 1, 2015 Author Share Posted June 1, 2015 Here is what the skimmer looks like if anyone is interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 1, 2015 Author Share Posted June 1, 2015 Next steps... This afternoon I'm going to finish hooking up the equipment in the sump and turn it on. God willing, there won't be any leaks. If there are then I'm going to have to redo the leaky parts. If not, then I'll be free and clear to start on the rest. The rock in the sump is pretty gnarly! It's all covered in sponges, turf algae and whatever else was in my refugium. I have to make the decision to keep it under the frag rack, sell it, or dry it out for later use. Keeping 10-20 pounds of rock under the frag rack would provide some additional biological filtration, but detritus would collect there and I would have to remove it periodically for cleaning. If I went bare bottom in the sump then I would be able to easily siphon out the gunk every few months. Selling the rock might get me $20 but it might be worth it to cook the rock and have it in case I want to add rocks later. I did lug it all the way from Hawaii after all Once that is decided then I can install the frag rack. Let's hope I measured correctly. After that, I have to relocate the electrical from the right side of the stand to the back panel. I'm thinking above the manifold would be the best place for it. It would be well above the water level and every cord will have a drip loop. I will have to look into some cord management techniques to figure out what to do with all of the loose cords. I remember seeing someone install metal shelving in their stand and then zip tying the cords to that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted June 1, 2015 Share Posted June 1, 2015 If it helps with any decisions... I haven't siphoned detritus in my sump for the last 3 years... both in the old system and the new system. I don't feel the need for it and my tank hasn't given me any reason to have to do it. I do run biopellets and GFO and as always, other's mileage may vary as each tank is different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 1, 2015 Author Share Posted June 1, 2015 I took my sump down a few months ago to make the skimmer chamber larger and the refugium chamber had a good 1/4" of sludge in it. Last night the middle section was looking pretty murky. I don't know how detrimental the buildup is or if the BP's help export some of it. The low nutrient tanks that I've seen in the past run bare bottom sumps so they can siphon it out. I'm not sure if the build up is detrimental or just ugly to look at. Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 2, 2015 Author Share Posted June 2, 2015 American Ninja Warrior!!! We are men and we do manly stuff like obstacles! Rawr! Every spoon full of ice cream makes me feel infinitely out of shape while I'm watching it. Needless to say I was sleepy after the show and didn't do anything on the tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 2, 2015 Author Share Posted June 2, 2015 Quick Update: I allowed the manifold to set for 18 hours while the PVC cement cured. During this time the sump was disconnected from the display and it ran without a skimmer or reactors. I fired the return pump up after I got home and everything looks great! No leaks! The water was crystal clear after an hour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Demodiki Posted June 2, 2015 Share Posted June 2, 2015 American Ninja Warrior!!! We are men and we do manly stuff like obstacles! Rawr! Every spoon full of ice cream makes me feel infinitely out of shape while I'm watching it. Needless to say I was sleepy after the show and didn't do anything on the tank. I genuinely laughed out loud.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 4, 2015 Author Share Posted June 4, 2015 Here is what I got from Aqua SD. I didn't realize they were frags and I had thought the listings were WYSIWYG but they came in good health. Red Stem Gold Torch Bali Green Slimer Heavenly Acropora (left) Strawberry Shortcake (Right) Two Freebies - The center one is blue and red, maybe some kind of chalice or monti cap. The right one isn't in very good focus but it looks like a pagoda. The base is brown and the polyps are green. Pink Dino Chalice Blue Efflo Dark Knight Millepora Yellow Millepora Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 4, 2015 Author Share Posted June 4, 2015 Here is the skimmer on day 4. On the plus side the foam is fantastic! On the negative side the pump is loud and annoying. I'm going to look up the model tomorrow. The cup diameter is 8", stands 25" tall and uses the OTP 3000 pump. That should narrow it down pretty well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 4, 2015 Author Share Posted June 4, 2015 Well I was unable to really determine the model so I opened a ticket with Coralvue. I'm also concerned about the pump noise that you can hear in the video. http://youtu.be/BNhVisNDQLk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 4, 2015 Author Share Posted June 4, 2015 I received an email from customer support within 3 hours. They have confirmed the product is the NWB2000INT skimmer. Unfortunately, the pump that I got is the one that was discontinued and not the new super awesome, mega spectacular, bubble blasting, hydrotastic, foamrific, Aquatrance 3000. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jolt Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 Not that it's much comfort, but I have the 110INT which has aquatrance 1000 and it is pretty darn quiet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 4, 2015 Author Share Posted June 4, 2015 Thanks Jim. That means there is probably something wrong with the pump. It could be a simple impeller issue, but I don't think I want to mess with it. I asked the customer service rep and he said it's $110 for a new pump if it has to be replaced. It's not worth the risk. If I have to buy a new pump then I would have spent more than the skimmer is worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+OU12004 Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 Did the strawberry shortcake you got from AquaSD come in browned out? It is hard to tell from the pic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 8, 2015 Author Share Posted June 8, 2015 Yeah its pretty dark, but the polyps are out so I'm not worried. The Green Slimer came in with a pretty shade of lime green and white growth on the tip. The Blue Efflo and Yellow Millepora came in without zooanthellae, which is common in mariculture colors. I'm not sure if this was a mariculture but it is possible. Lastly, the Dark Knight Millepora came in pale in color. It should be a rich purple with purple polyps. Weak color can mean nutrient deficiency, but the polyps are out and I expect it to fuzz up in my tank. Overall, I am satisfied with my order from Aqua SD. However, it is unlikely that I would have paid the same price if I had seen these frags at the LFS. I had thought that the corals that I was buying were WYSIWYG because they were not marked as frags. If these corals were regular price AND the shipping was as much as it was, then I would be very disappointed. Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 8, 2015 Author Share Posted June 8, 2015 It's hard to tell what the freebies are and I may have to wait months for an ID. I'm fairly certain that one is Yellow Turbinaria, aka Yellow Scroll. It's a coral that was once very common and considered to be a "newbie" coral. I haven't seen much of it around lately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+OU12004 Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Yeah its pretty dark, but the polyps are out so I'm not worried. The Green Slimer came in with a pretty shade of lime green and white growth on the tip. The Blue Efflo and Yellow Millepora came in without zooanthellae, which is common in mariculture colors. I'm not sure if this was a mariculture but it is possible. Lastly, the Dark Knight Millepora came in pale in color. It should be a rich purple with purple polyps. Weak color can mean nutrient deficiency, but the polyps are out and I expect it to fuzz up in my tank. Overall, I am satisfied with my order from Aqua SD. However, it is unlikely that I would have paid the same price if I had seen these frags at the LFS. I had thought that the corals that I was buying were WYSIWYG because they were not marked as frags. If these corals were regular price AND the shipping was as much as it was, then I would be very disappointed. Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2 That pretty much sums up my order as well, I already lost 2 heads on the hammer I ordered, but they are going to send a replacement. I will be curious to see how yours color up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 8, 2015 Author Share Posted June 8, 2015 So far so good. The golden torch was supposed to be red with gold tips but it doesn't look that way to me. I would have gotten the pale yellow had I known that. I'm hoping it colors up and turns lighter. Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 Tank was looking great Sascha! Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 Do you think so? Thanks buddy, I really appreciate that! It's been a trial the last few months, but I feel pretty good about the tank. What do you think about the zoas on the main rock structure? Do you think they will give me problems later? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 Color was looking great as well as the health of the corals. I'm a control freak so take my opinion with a grain of salt... remove the zoas and put them on their own rock as discussed. Either that or put something on all sides to sting them back and halt their progression. Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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