ksfulk's Red Sea Reefer 525xL

[nanchil]

Excellent post ... I am in the process of plumbing my 525XL this weekend. By any chance you the measurement of the PVC pipes ? I know i am asking too much ... As I am new to plumbing, I would greatly appreciate that. Thanks !

Thanks! I stole most of the ideas for the return plumbing from other people in the long "Red Sea Reefer" thread on this forum. Its worth the read if you have time. There's LOTS of good information in there. And I know how you feel about the plumbing. I have two boxes filled with "extra" plumbing parts that Ive picked up over the years when I wasnt sure what I had or what I would need.

Here's a picture of the plumbing disassembled and being glued, I'll use it to reference.

So I'll start at the Vectra and work towards the red sea return pipe (threaded potion only).

Vectra union (comes with the pump - its the blue ring)
3/4" red schedule 40 pvc
3/4" dual true union ball valve
3/4" red schedule 40 pvc
3/4" 90 degree slip/slip elbow
3/4" red schedule 40 pvc
3/4" "T" slip/slip fitting (3/4" red schedule 40 pvc - 3/4" union - 3/4" red schedule 40 pvc - elbow - 3/4" to 1/2" adapter - Reactor)
3/4" red schedule 40 pvc
3/4" "T" slip/slip fitting (3/4" red schedule 40 pvc - 3/4" slip/slip Gate valve)
3/4" red schedule 40 pvc
3/4'" "T" slip/slip fitting (3/4" red schedule 40 pvc - 3/4" slip/slip Gate valve)
3/4" red schedule 40 pvc
3/4" 90 degree slip/slip elbow
3/4" red schedule 40 pvc
3/4" 90 degree slip/slip elbow
3/4" red schedule 40 pvc
3/4" 90 degree slip/slip elbow
3/4" red schedule 40 pvc
3/4" threaded male adapter (about 15-20 wraps of teflon tape)
Red Sea threaded pipe

 

[ksfulk]

Excellent post ... I am in the process of plumbing my 525XL this weekend. By any chance you the measurement of the PVC pipes ? I know i am asking too much ... As I am new to plumbing, I would greatly appreciate that. Thanks !

I dont have the measurements for the pipes once cut, as I didnt write down the measurements, I just marked and cut as I built. The entire manifold is sitting on the floor in my basement at the moment, as I swapped sumps to something different, but I spent so much on the valves and such, I just couldnt junk it!

 

[nanchil]

Thanks ! Let me try my luck today ...

I dont have the measurements for the pipes once cut, as I didnt write down the measurements, I just marked and cut as I built. The entire manifold is sitting on the floor in my basement at the moment, as I swapped sumps to something different, but I spent so much on the valves and such, I just couldnt junk it!

 

[ksfulk]

Thanks ! Let me try my luck today ...

Its not nearly as hard as people think. Dry fit everything, make marks on both pieces as to how they fit so you can put it all back together in the same manner, and you should be gold.

 

[nanchil]

Thanks. Will do and will update here.

Thanks

Its not nearly as hard as people think. Dry fit everything, make marks on both pieces as to how they fit so you can put it all back together in the same manner, and you should be gold.

 

[ksfulk]

 

[ksfulk]

Ahhh... CherryCorals live sales... those guys get me every time! Now I owe Todd a growler of Bells Two Hearted as well! I'll probably head over to the shop late this week or early next week depending on the weather and work here. Regardless I picked up a handful of sticks and other odds and ends to fill in the lower areas of the tank. Im sure I'll pick up a few more sticks when I visit the shop, as I dont think Ive ever walked out of there without picking up at least one more item

Here's the list of what I picked up:

Tyree Red Dragon
ORA Borealis
Frag Farmers Red Stag
JF Freak Hair Litho
Blue Blood Blasto
CC Triple Sec Zoas
WWC Twizzlers Zoas
Oddball Combo Zoas

 

[Clayton Jessup]

Beautiful build I loving this tank and build progress. [emoji12]

 

[ksfulk]

Beautiful build I loving this tank and build progress. [emoji12]

Thanks! It's coming along, but as most people are, I'm focused on the unpleasant parts and often miss the beautiful parts. I appreciate the comment though!

 

[ksfulk]

In an attempt so work on water clarity, I had been debating on picking up some KZ Coral Snow and trying it out. Fortunately, I ran across a thread on the forum here by @jedimasterben and ordered some Calcium Carbonate powder and mixed up the slurry per the directions for 250ml solution. I just dosed 5ml of the solution (1ml / 25 gallons) and we'll see how things look in the morning.

 

[zachxlutz]

In an attempt so work on water clarity, I had been debating on picking up some KZ Coral Snow and trying it out. Fortunately, I ran across a thread on the forum here by @jedimasterben and ordered some Calcium Carbonate powder and mixed up the slurry per the directions for 250ml solution. I just dosed 5ml of the solution (1ml / 25 gallons) and we'll see how things look in the morning.

How'd the "coral snow" experiment turn out?

 

[ksfulk]

How'd the "coral snow" experiment turn out?

Pretty good actually. After dosing I was a little worried about my derasa clam, as I didn't know if there would be any issues with the particulates that were formed from the DIY Coral Snow. I checked the tank briefly before leaving for work in the morning and everything looked ok, with the tank looking more clear even just using my phones flashlight. When I got home from work this evening the tank was noticeable clearer, and nothing looked irritated by the treatment. I think I will be adding this to my monthly tank maintenance schedule.

 

[ksfulk]

Got my Triton test results back from last week. I was having some issues with my monti's losing color and turning gray-ish, as well as two of my acros getting really pale and dull in coloration. I realize that Zeo tanks have a tendency to run pale coloration, but this was only two sticks out of the two dozen or so I have, so I didnt think it was wide spread. Doing some reading through the forums, I found that potassium deficiency was a common thing for Zeo tanks, and the symptoms of low potassium are greying out montis and washed out reds. I ordered a Salifert Potassium testing kit and picked up a potassium supplement from the LFS and dosed per the directions while I waited for the Triton test to come back. The Salifert and Triton test results jive (~ 400 mg/l) and everything seems to be rebounding now that Ive gone back to I/O salt from Red Sea Blue Bucket. Must be the added Lithium

 

[zachxlutz]

Interesting. I really need to bite the bullet and get some Triton tests. Seems like really good information to have.

 

[Giraffe0621]

Kris, Do you to the Triton testing regularly or when you're worried there's a specific problem?
A

 

[ksfulk]

Interesting. I really need to bite the bullet and get some Triton tests. Seems like really good information to have.

Kris, Do you to the Triton testing regularly or when you're worried there's a specific problem?
A

I think that the Triton testing is invaluable for pinpointing issues that you cant test for, or have some doubts with. There isnt a lithium test kit, or one for strontium - this gives me an idea what those numbers are. Most of the time, those numbers dont really mean anything - does it matter that my Boron is 0 ppm or if its 100 ppm? Im not sure it matters. But what I can see are descrepencies in my own testing versus the Triton test, and if there is anything that Im not testing for that could becoming an issue - I dont usually ever test my display tank for copper, since its not something that I add to my tank, nor is it something that should be in there. A triton test can tell me that there is Copper in my tank and I can trouble shoot to find out what is causing it. On a former tank I had a remote sump and somehow three nails got into the sump but was in a place where I didnt notice them. I got back elevated levels of copper, tin and iron on my Triton test, and was able to find and remove the nails. On the next test, the levels had dropped and everyone was happy.

The tests arent something that I run on a set schedule or anything. But I think there's merit in having them run twice a year or so. I always run all the testing that I have available and make note of all of the numbers of my tank, then I collect the water samples and send them out. I find this important, because when I get the results back, I can compare the two and see if there is a testing kit thats running high or low. Its a good thing to have an independant test that isnt relying on me. If my Calcium number is 413 ppm and the Triton Calcium comes back at 421 ppm, then Im pretty close. If instead it comes back at 370 ppm, I might have an issue with my testing kit.

Just another tool to help understand whats going on with our tanks!

 

[ksfulk]

Had a couple of questions about my coral dipping procedure, so I figured today provided me an opportunity to make a video about my coral dipping procedure.


That said, I picked up my CherryCorals order this afternoon, and got them all dipped, remounted and put into the tank. I'll get some photos in a minute, but everything was polyped out and happy within an hour of being in the tank.

 

[ksfulk]

 

[zachxlutz]

Great video! Very similar to my dipping procedure. I've added a CoralRX dip to my procedure as well as the Bayer and I haven't had any losses or pests show up yet. Do you use anything other than Bayer?

 

[ksfulk]

Great video! Very similar to my dipping procedure. I've added a CoralRX dip to my procedure as well as the Bayer and I haven't had any losses or pests show up yet. Do you use anything other than Bayer?

I dont use anything else but Bayer and a nylon bristled brush.