I generally run PVC all the way except just a small piece from the pump to the PVC. Works good.
First large tank - 180 reef build (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter tthorn125
- Start date
OP
OP
Been a while, I've been busy with house stuff. Time for the leak test...
I completed the durso standpipes and put them in. I started with a 1/16" hole in the top cap. They aren't glued in, so they can be pulled out to clean out the drain when necessary.
View attachment 100_1852.bmp
I put together some makeshift PVC drain lines and let er' rip with the hose.
View attachment 100_1850.bmp
Had a beer...
View attachment 100_1855.bmp
Had another beer...
View attachment 100_1856.bmp
Everything is holding for now. I'm going to let it sit overnight and check again tomorrow. If all is well, I will connect the hoses for the Mag12 and see what happens. I'm also picking up the ReefMania PS8 tomorrow, so that can be added in as well for a test. Once everything is tested, I'll being working on baffling the sump. Still not sure on how high I should run it, but I will fill everything up and cut the power and see where it drains to.
I think I'll need to drill a bigger hole in the durso because I'm getting some slurping sound. The other part that sucks is that my garage floor is slanted on purpose for draining, so my overflow on the left isn't filling up. It's all coming from the right.
Oh well. I'll just fill that one up separately and see what happens.
Next steps will be cutting the hole in the wall in the basement, installing headers above and below, and bring the boys over to run electrical. Nice thing is the basement is only partially wired so we have free reign to do whatever we want. The "fish room" / "dog room" will probably be open for quite some time so outlet's can be added as needed / if needed.
The new home will be above the couch in the "to be finished" man cave.
View attachment 100_1858.bmp
:beerchug:
I completed the durso standpipes and put them in. I started with a 1/16" hole in the top cap. They aren't glued in, so they can be pulled out to clean out the drain when necessary.
View attachment 100_1852.bmp
I put together some makeshift PVC drain lines and let er' rip with the hose.
View attachment 100_1850.bmp
Had a beer...
View attachment 100_1855.bmp
Had another beer...
View attachment 100_1856.bmp
Everything is holding for now. I'm going to let it sit overnight and check again tomorrow. If all is well, I will connect the hoses for the Mag12 and see what happens. I'm also picking up the ReefMania PS8 tomorrow, so that can be added in as well for a test. Once everything is tested, I'll being working on baffling the sump. Still not sure on how high I should run it, but I will fill everything up and cut the power and see where it drains to.
I think I'll need to drill a bigger hole in the durso because I'm getting some slurping sound. The other part that sucks is that my garage floor is slanted on purpose for draining, so my overflow on the left isn't filling up. It's all coming from the right.
Oh well. I'll just fill that one up separately and see what happens.Next steps will be cutting the hole in the wall in the basement, installing headers above and below, and bring the boys over to run electrical. Nice thing is the basement is only partially wired so we have free reign to do whatever we want. The "fish room" / "dog room" will probably be open for quite some time so outlet's can be added as needed / if needed.
The new home will be above the couch in the "to be finished" man cave.
View attachment 100_1858.bmp
:beerchug:
OP
OP
Ok. Three days later and water is still holding in the tank. This is a good thing!
Water is evaporating fast in the overflow, however this could also be attributed to the a small leak in the slip plumbing for the PVC. I didn't cement/glue anything in place, so if there is a small leak... I don't care. It won't be there when done.
View attachment 100_1859.bmp
I also made some more purchases today at BRS.
I got a dual reactor for Carbon and GFO with Maxi 1200, a Mag7 for running this beast of a skimmer.
View attachment 100_1860.bmp
This thing is just huge. The above picture was side by side with a 40b.
View attachment 100_1861.bmp
So for the pre-checklist, I only have two more purchases left as far as "stuff" needed before cycling and populating.
#1
Some dry rock from BRS to auqascape with acyrlic / plexi rods.
#2
I'm still going to do the LED DIY with 3 heat sinks of 36 / per sink. This is still a great unknown as far as I can tell. I've sent out feelers but no bites as far as what's acceptable vs. what's good. We'll go with 108 3 watt Cree's and adjust as necessary I guess.
:beerchug::beerchug:
If anyone see's an issue with the current plans, let me know.
Next steps are to make a hole in the wall and put headers in place. Moving 380 lbs. of dry tank is much easier to do on a warm dry day than cold icy day walking down a hill. :gay1:
Water is evaporating fast in the overflow, however this could also be attributed to the a small leak in the slip plumbing for the PVC. I didn't cement/glue anything in place, so if there is a small leak... I don't care. It won't be there when done.
View attachment 100_1859.bmp
I also made some more purchases today at BRS.
I got a dual reactor for Carbon and GFO with Maxi 1200, a Mag7 for running this beast of a skimmer.
View attachment 100_1860.bmp
This thing is just huge. The above picture was side by side with a 40b.
View attachment 100_1861.bmp
So for the pre-checklist, I only have two more purchases left as far as "stuff" needed before cycling and populating.
#1
Some dry rock from BRS to auqascape with acyrlic / plexi rods.
#2
I'm still going to do the LED DIY with 3 heat sinks of 36 / per sink. This is still a great unknown as far as I can tell. I've sent out feelers but no bites as far as what's acceptable vs. what's good. We'll go with 108 3 watt Cree's and adjust as necessary I guess.
:beerchug::beerchug:
If anyone see's an issue with the current plans, let me know.
Next steps are to make a hole in the wall and put headers in place. Moving 380 lbs. of dry tank is much easier to do on a warm dry day than cold icy day walking down a hill. :gay1:
OP
OP
So... Couple of updates.
SKIMMER:
I've setup the skimmer with some PVC running externally and dumped two gallons of white vinegar in the sump and let it circulate. I did this for a couple of reasons.
1. Let the vinegar circulate and clean anything that may have been in the tank and skimmer before I start with my RO/DI fill.
2. Give it a carbon source to actually generate bubbles.
Wow!!! I couldn't believe how much skimmate it pulled out from just having the vinegar in there and well water (live out in the country).
Does anyone have experience with the Sedra 5000 pump? That thing isn't exactly quiet. Even though this will be in a "fish" room, the rooms are only separated by sheetrock and may still be audible from the other side.
LED's:
I've ordered a couple of Mean Well's.
HLG-185H-48B
My thoughts are to run 36 Cool Whites with 72 Royal Blue 3W Crees. One driver for each color giving a "dimmable" solution with my RKL controller.
I'm also going to be using aluminum channel for my heatsinks. My plan is to have 3 sections of 24" x 3" bolted together over the three partitions of the tank. I will then cut sections to attach the 3 sections together to make one single frame. My wife (Engineer) loves this stuff so she will helping design the final product.
This is what I'm thinking of buying:
http://www.amazon.com/Aluminum-6063-T52-U-Channel-Thick-Length/dp/B003U6IB9S/ref=sr_1_2?s=industrial&ie=UTF8&qid=1319495305&sr=1-2
Thoughts? Sufficient? Will I need some fans as well?
If I have them bolted together, their combined width is 9". Not quite sure, again, what optics if any are needed if they are hung 12" over the water.
Lot's of rambling thoughts. Need to get things moving since the tank is filled with water and still in the garage. Have to move inside within the next two weeks.
SKIMMER:
I've setup the skimmer with some PVC running externally and dumped two gallons of white vinegar in the sump and let it circulate. I did this for a couple of reasons.
1. Let the vinegar circulate and clean anything that may have been in the tank and skimmer before I start with my RO/DI fill.
2. Give it a carbon source to actually generate bubbles.
Wow!!! I couldn't believe how much skimmate it pulled out from just having the vinegar in there and well water (live out in the country).
Does anyone have experience with the Sedra 5000 pump? That thing isn't exactly quiet. Even though this will be in a "fish" room, the rooms are only separated by sheetrock and may still be audible from the other side.
LED's:
I've ordered a couple of Mean Well's.
HLG-185H-48B
My thoughts are to run 36 Cool Whites with 72 Royal Blue 3W Crees. One driver for each color giving a "dimmable" solution with my RKL controller.
I'm also going to be using aluminum channel for my heatsinks. My plan is to have 3 sections of 24" x 3" bolted together over the three partitions of the tank. I will then cut sections to attach the 3 sections together to make one single frame. My wife (Engineer) loves this stuff so she will helping design the final product.
This is what I'm thinking of buying:
http://www.amazon.com/Aluminum-6063-T52-U-Channel-Thick-Length/dp/B003U6IB9S/ref=sr_1_2?s=industrial&ie=UTF8&qid=1319495305&sr=1-2
Thoughts? Sufficient? Will I need some fans as well?
If I have them bolted together, their combined width is 9". Not quite sure, again, what optics if any are needed if they are hung 12" over the water.
Lot's of rambling thoughts. Need to get things moving since the tank is filled with water and still in the garage. Have to move inside within the next two weeks.
OP
OP
So here's a new estimate for the LED build. Is there anything that I'm paying way to much for here? The U-Channels will be cut into 24" strips and 3 of them will be bolted together to make one unit. Three of these units total, one over each of the open sections of the tank. All three of the units will be connected with the remaining U-Channel to make one 72" unit.
Thanks :beerchug:
View attachment LEDs.bmp
Thanks :beerchug:
View attachment LEDs.bmp
Why not get heatsinks? At 21.00 the uchannel won't be cheap.
OP
OP
A heat sink from heatsinkusa.com for 8.5" x 24" is $59. Mine combined for everything is $84 so I'm saving $93. I'm also getting a lighter unit and 1/2" wider. From what I've heard, the number of LED's won't generate enough heat to affect the U-Channels.
Is there somewhere cheaper for equivalent?
Is there somewhere cheaper for equivalent?
For LED's you will want to run them as cool as possible. If your running 3watt LEDs on the channels I would use a fan also to keep them cool.
Also do you have a floor drain in the back room for the tank? If you do I would recommend drilling the sump and putting a ball valve in for water changes right away.
Also do you have a floor drain in the back room for the tank? If you do I would recommend drilling the sump and putting a ball valve in for water changes right away.
OP
OP
I was thinking maybe running a couple of computer fans over the top of the U-Channels. I may be enclosing the unit with wood and then could have the fans mounted to blow across the tops.
There is a cap on the floor, but not quite sure if it runs straight to the septic or not. I've only lived in the house for about 5 months.
If it is a drain, then I'll definitely be utilizing it. I've already got a plan to run hose from the utility room to the fish room for filling purposes.
There is a cap on the floor, but not quite sure if it runs straight to the septic or not. I've only lived in the house for about 5 months.
If it is a drain, then I'll definitely be utilizing it. I've already got a plan to run hose from the utility room to the fish room for filling purposes.
OP
OP
Questions about sand.
Currently I have ~ 2 inches fine sand in a standard 75.
1. Should I reuse the sand in the existing tank or buy new?
2. If I reuse, should I just just scoop it up and dump it in or rinse it? I know I'll need more than what I have...
3. If I buy new sand, what is the best size / grain?
Currently I have ~ 2 inches fine sand in a standard 75.
1. Should I reuse the sand in the existing tank or buy new?
2. If I reuse, should I just just scoop it up and dump it in or rinse it? I know I'll need more than what I have...
3. If I buy new sand, what is the best size / grain?
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Reefer Sutherland
Too Muddy...
Theres much debate lately about reusing sand...
I would buy new, I would also go with something larger than sugar grain, but less than crushed coral - That my personal preference though.
I would buy new, I would also go with something larger than sugar grain, but less than crushed coral - That my personal preference though.
I abosolutely would keep a sand bed, there's certainly some benefit to the corals from reflected light. what type of sand would be determined on what you want from the sand bed. if you plan on having any of the "burrowing/burying" type fish/critters.. finer sand is a must so as to not harm the fish.
I have re-used sand from my previous two tanks and have seen no ill effects, but then there's more opinions out there. If reusing ..rinsing to remove any gunk will be a good idea.
One more thing to consider about buying new sand is... the more we buy new sand... the more is being removed from somewhere.
I have re-used sand from my previous two tanks and have seen no ill effects, but then there's more opinions out there. If reusing ..rinsing to remove any gunk will be a good idea.
One more thing to consider about buying new sand is... the more we buy new sand... the more is being removed from somewhere.
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PengXiong
Senior Member
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2010
- Messages
- 896
Re-use the sand. But when you do make sure you make some clean Saltwater and rinse it before you put it in your tank. Then hook up a mechanical filter to try and filter most of the unwanted dust particles. Healthy used live sand will also help your Cycle as well.
OP
OP
That is what I'd ideally like to do. Problem right now is trying to find another 150 lbs of sand to use. I'd rather not purchase brand new dry sand if I can get some used stuff on here.
With 72"x24" dimensions, 2.5" sand bed is about 250 lbs.
With 72"x24" dimensions, 2.5" sand bed is about 250 lbs.
heat sink... why a 3" wide U channel? a 3/4" works from any big home improvement store works with most LED stars... ~$10 ea. If at some point you plan to add larger diodes then its a different story
OP
OP
If a 3/4" will be wide enough to hold the Cree star then I can use those. When I went to Menards to look at them, they seemed pretty small.
If I end up using the 3/4" instead of the 3", I'll need to use spacers for the 3 rows. From what I've read, the fixtures need to be at least 8" wide to cover the 24" spread of the tank.
Will the 3/4" aluminum have enough surface space to allow appropriate heat diffusion?
If I end up using the 3/4" instead of the 3", I'll need to use spacers for the 3 rows. From what I've read, the fixtures need to be at least 8" wide to cover the 24" spread of the tank.
Will the 3/4" aluminum have enough surface space to allow appropriate heat diffusion?
The menards U channel will fit the CREE star perfectly. Thats what I will be using for my rebuild. It also works better than a larger heatsink by drawing the heat away from the LED quicker than something thats wider.
The thinner the aluminum the faster it will dissipate heat, take a look at CPU heatsinks they are made with such a fine aluminum if you can find it a 1/16" aluminum channel would do a better job than say a 1/4" or even a 1/8" thick material.
there's quite a few people who use it and I have not seen a problem reported due to this. other factors to keep in mind... the LED is designed to operate at temps of upto 180F if I recall correctly.. in our setups for the LEDs to get that warm something fundamental was very wrong from the start.
In fixtures more heatsinking and ventilation is needed since the fixture is completely enclosed. if you plan to do anything along those lines then I would make sure that you have proper ventilation and over temp shut off in your design. Overtemp shut off is a good idea even in a open design.
The thinner the aluminum the faster it will dissipate heat, take a look at CPU heatsinks they are made with such a fine aluminum if you can find it a 1/16" aluminum channel would do a better job than say a 1/4" or even a 1/8" thick material.
there's quite a few people who use it and I have not seen a problem reported due to this. other factors to keep in mind... the LED is designed to operate at temps of upto 180F if I recall correctly.. in our setups for the LEDs to get that warm something fundamental was very wrong from the start.
In fixtures more heatsinking and ventilation is needed since the fixture is completely enclosed. if you plan to do anything along those lines then I would make sure that you have proper ventilation and over temp shut off in your design. Overtemp shut off is a good idea even in a open design.
OP
OP
At the moment, I don't plan on using an enclosed hood. The fixture will hang from the ceiling and have open space all around it.
What are people using to check on temp. for auto shut off?
What are people using to check on temp. for auto shut off?
havent researched that a lot for my rebuild but the last time I bought a fan controller from micro center, that has four temp probes and the speed of the fan be adjusted to maintain temparature. Looking for something that can be hooked upto a controller... Neptune Apex or Arduino board that will determine when the fans switch on/how fast they spin or when the lights shut off...
here's a big thread on how others are building their own LED light controller including over temp shut off and if I'm not mistaken also control the powerheads
DIY LED controller
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1987110&highlight=arduino
Build using Menards type U channel -
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1973462
here's a big thread on how others are building their own LED light controller including over temp shut off and if I'm not mistaken also control the powerheads
DIY LED controller
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1987110&highlight=arduino
Build using Menards type U channel -
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1973462
Like others have said, reusing the sand in this case should be fine. The problem is with moving deep sand beds. 1-2" is not an issue. Just put the new sand on bottom and the old sand on back on top.
If this were me, I'd go with the true heatsinks. Keep in mind $93 is not much when your thinking long term. It is well known the cooler they run the longer. So in the long run you may very well spend more then $93 on replacement LEDS from premature failure.
If this were me, I'd go with the true heatsinks. Keep in mind $93 is not much when your thinking long term. It is well known the cooler they run the longer. So in the long run you may very well spend more then $93 on replacement LEDS from premature failure.
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