Marty's 8' 300g/sump room build. ~750g system

[Mshort03]

Alk at 8.7 again today. Looks like she's holding so no adjusting for now!



@crusso1993 Complete and total random side note.. have you ever heard of electric forest? The way you talk sometimes you seem like you belong there. Just curious

 

[crusso1993]

Alk at 8.7 again today. Looks like she's holding so no adjusting for now!



@crusso1993 Complete and total random side note.. have you ever heard of electric forest? The way you talk sometimes you seem like you belong there. Just curious

Electric Forest? No idea of what you speak... but EDC is better.

 

[Rick.45cal]

You've made many of my concerns clear!
The many ways to skin a cat comment really just reassured me that my thinking of the same thought was correct. I'm going to test water soon and will post results. I see what you're saying and understand your method of adjustment now. So now that you have mentioned you use a peri pump, I assume you run it on the lower end as to be more concentrated but then assuming also less strain thus higher longevity of motor? If so, I'm liking this..

It’s just easier on me to make a tiny adjustment in the output by tweaking the CO2 a tiny bit.

 

[Mshort03]

Electric Forest? No idea of what you speak... but EDC is better.

Genuinely cant tell if you're being sarcastic or not lol. I just got the vibe of forest fam so had to question

Never been to EDC but will be at forest again this year and possibly lost lands. Did forest and imagine last year. EDC Orlando is also a possibility!

At least were not dealing with the bs at ultra this year..

 

[Mshort03]

Today I spent the day organizing the garage a bit and getting water station area organized. First thing i did was Get the pipes insulated.

Then I got the sheetrock hung back up and also added a sheet of FRP behind the totes because I have 3 left so why not.. will add top one once I get some hands to help me hold it up.


I also got the big crate tote pressure washed and all cleaned up. I put the two barrels in place and will plumb it in next couple days.

I moved the rodi unit into the room and got it hooked up. It's just sitting on floor temporarily until I get the nem tank and stand in here, it will mount underneath of that.

Drilled a hole in the wall and the line goes to other side to fill tote. Still need to put my float valve and auto shut off on.

I bought the valve thing from brs that stops the rodi unit when the float valve is up that way it doesn't keep producing waste water.. but I think I'm gunna go a step further and use my apex solenoid on top of that so that I can add a float switch about half way down in tote, this way the unit isn't constantly coming on and off as top off occurs and what not... if its gunna come on I'd like it to have to make at least 100 gallons that way I don't have an abundance of "dirty" water from not being purged filling up my container. This also will prevent me from having to remember to shut it on and off...a set it and forget it design.

I got the rest of sand in the display refugium and add the 40 lbs of rock that have come so far.. still waiting kn one more box of rock tomorrow before I add that and scape it.

...now Let's see if I can get a few other small things wrapped up today

 

[crusso1993]

Today I spent the day organizing the garage a bit and getting water station area organized. First thing i did was Get the pipes insulated.

Then I got the sheetrock hung back up and also added a sheet of FRP behind the totes because I have 3 left so why not.. will add top one once I get some hands to help me hold it up.


I also got the big crate tote pressure washed and all cleaned up. I put the two barrels in place and will plumb it in next couple days.

I moved the rodi unit into the room and got it hooked up. It's just sitting on floor temporarily until I get the nem tank and stand in here, it will mount underneath of that.

Drilled a hole in the wall and the line goes to other side to fill tote. Still need to put my float valve and auto shut off on.

I bought the valve thing from brs that stops the rodi unit when the float valve is up that way it doesn't keep producing waste water.. but I think I'm gunna go a step further and use my apex solenoid on top of that so that I can add a float switch about half way down in tote, this way the unit isn't constantly coming on and off as top off occurs and what not... if its gunna come on I'd like it to have to make at least 100 gallons that way I don't have an abundance of "dirty" water from not being purged filling up my container. This also will prevent me from having to remember to shut it on and off...a set it and forget it design.

I got the rest of sand in the display refugium and add the 40 lbs of rock that have come so far.. still waiting kn one more box of rock tomorrow before I add that and scape it.

...now Let's see if I can get a few other small things wrapped up today

You accomplished a lot today and the hard work is paying off!
As for your RODI, have you considered adding a booster pump to the system? More specifically, a Smart Buddie booster? Not only does it make the system much more efficient but it also has a built in auto-flush whenever it comes on. I was going to buy one yesterday but the price jumped from $99, on Wednesday, to $119 yesterday. I was like W T F! Anyway, I suspect the price will come back down sometime soon.

 

[Mshort03]

@crusso1993 I have considered adding one actually. With the lines for rodi cut to the final length I'll use, I'm still only getting 50 psi. I could either turn up my house pressure or get a booster pump. Which is better? For some reason I'm thinking the booster pump is probably safer, and if so then I'll get this one because it sounds pretty good and doesn't break the bank.
The rodi unit needs 65 psi to be in its efficieny rating.. since I spent the extra money to get the ultra efficient rodi unit, I should make sure its operating correctly to perform as such.

Would this booster pump also have to be tied into that float switch ordeal I'm talking about so that it's not always on? Or does it only come on when sensing feed pressure? Never used booster pumps before.

 

[Mshort03]

Decided how to fix my heat issue in room as well. Ordered a portable ac unit which will sit above the sink next to the 90s I can drain the pan into the sink and then run the exhaust hose out the room at top of wall and then across the small hallway to the rear exterior wall of the house, Put a vent cap on it and done. total vent tube length will be like 6 feet..Way easier than cutting and framing a window unit then trying to duct that outside. Plus I can move it if I ever need to for some reason.

 

[crusso1993]

@crusso1993 I have considered adding one actually. With the lines for rodi cut to the final length I'll use, I'm still only getting 50 psi. I could either turn up my house pressure or get a booster pump. Which is better? For some reason I'm thinking the booster pump is probably safer, and if so then I'll get this one because it sounds pretty good and doesn't break the bank.
The rodi unit needs 65 psi to be in its efficieny rating.. since I spent the extra money to get the ultra efficient rodi unit, I should make sure its operating correctly to perform as such.

Would this booster pump also have to be tied into that float switch ordeal I'm talking about so that it's not always on? Or does it only come on when sensing feed pressure? Never used booster pumps before.

"The Great Floatswitch Ordeal of '19"... has a certain ring to it!

I would STRONGLY recommend you not increase the pressure coming in to your house. Especially if you are going to add your new tanks to your homeowners insurance policy. Also, I am sure you have other appliances and what not on the water line. Typically, these types of things are rated up to a certain psi. If you were to go over whatever psi is recommended you may run into problems. Setting up the booster gives you a nice option of placing it right before your RODI unit and getting good pressure running through it. I know a couple people running the Smart Buddie booster and getting 80psi from it. I believe the booster pump has a built in pressure sensor and only comes on when needed. I could be wrong on this, though, and suggest you check the specs on the pump out.

 

[crusso1993]

Decided how to fix my heat issue in room as well. Ordered a portable ac unit which will sit above the sink next to the 90s I can drain the pan into the sink and then run the exhaust hose out the room at top of wall and then across the small hallway to the rear exterior wall of the house, Put a vent cap on it and done. total vent tube length will be like 6 feet..Way easier than cutting and framing a window unit then trying to duct that outside. Plus I can move it if I ever need to for some reason.

You know, I was going to recommend a portable AC unit like this but wasn't sure if it would cool the space down to the temp you need. Especially because they are higher priced units and, from what I understand, not quite as efficient. Anyway, it's cool you got it figured out! (See what I did there?)

 

[Mshort03]

You know, I was going to recommend a portable AC unit like this but wasn't sure if it would cool the space down to the temp you need. Especially because they are higher priced units and, from what I understand, not quite as efficient. Anyway, it's cool you got it figured out! (See what I did there?)

I have also heard they are a bit less efficient but this is a 8000btu unit and the wall one was 5000 so hopefully that makes up for it. Also the ease of installation for my scenario is a massive massive boost in deciding...the unit is rated for a 10x12 room and I'm 7x10 so I'm hoping it's enough. I only wanna come down to 80 or so that should keep things in line.


Also, brs had chillers on sale for 15%off so I decided to snag me up a 1/3 hp. This is purely an insurance policy against heat from failing ac in house or any other reason...hopefully it never really comes on. Figured since I was gunna get it in a month or so might as well get it now and save the money...they way I view it is I just got the pump to run it for free! The pump will be a current USA eflux 1050gph...i like these and its controller will match the others on the board

...and I did see what you did there @crusso1993 it was very punny!

 

[Mshort03]

So today I test and alk is 9 mag is 1440 and cal dropped to 400. Checked 3 times. It's been steady until today. With only calcium dropping why would that happen and what would I do to reactor? I mean I'll dose it back up manually but going from here.. thought the reactor would feed alk and cal balanced w eachother? @Rick.45cal

 

[Mshort03]

Decided to make a shelf for the paristaltic pump..puts it a bit higher from reactor and prevents bubbles from accumulating in tube

I also decided to run an air line for the skimmer out of the room to get it some fresh air instead of this stuffy air in room.. I feel like it can't do anything but good so why not.

I also fixed my issue where my drains come in. All the bubbles were creating super bad condensation over edge of sump behind pipes. I got this foam block off Amazon for 25 bucks and was able to cut a slit in it and slide it over pipes. Bubbles fully contained now.

I also had enough to make a foam wall in return chamber so there's no issues with bubbles there any more

I had my appointment with Neptune today. Turns out I had some IP address issue causing connectivity problems and then 2 faulty probes (temp and salinity) which they are replacing free of charge. The rest of probes are working and my tank ph is sitting around 8.1 I'm pretty happy with that number, never cared about ph before but I see a lot of people complaining its low when running a reactor.

The tablet is working great as a display

I placed one leak detector under the paristaltic pump.. I have three more that I have to figure out where to place

Started plumbing water station, got valve on salt container and will have rest of pieces tomorrow to get pump hooked up. I attached a 6600gph powerhead to the mixing pipe about a foot off bottom pointing down. This will ensure no salt collects at bottom with getting mixed in

Lastly I got my display refugium scaped. I'm very happy to have all this extra live rock for filtration, plus it looks pretty awesome..esp for being a fuge lol. If anyone has any suggestions to macro algae I'm all ears!

I plan to get a lot more done tomorrow. I want to do a water change this weekend and plan to use the new system to do so.

 

[crusso1993]

Decided to make a shelf for the paristaltic pump..puts it a bit higher from reactor and prevents bubbles from accumulating in tube

I also decided to run an air line for the skimmer out of the room to get it some fresh air instead of this stuffy air in room.. I feel like it can't do anything but good so why not.

I also fixed my issue where my drains come in. All the bubbles were creating super bad condensation over edge of sump behind pipes. I got this foam block off Amazon for 25 bucks and was able to cut a slit in it and slide it over pipes. Bubbles fully contained now.

I also had enough to make a foam wall in return chamber so there's no issues with bubbles there any more

I had my appointment with Neptune today. Turns out I had some IP address issue causing connectivity problems and then 2 faulty probes (temp and salinity) which they are replacing free of charge. The rest of probes are working and my tank ph is sitting around 8.1 I'm pretty happy with that number, never cared about ph before but I see a lot of people complaining its low when running a reactor.

The tablet is working great as a display

I placed one leak detector under the paristaltic pump.. I have three more that I have to figure out where to place

Started plumbing water station, got valve on salt container and will have rest of pieces tomorrow to get pump hooked up. I attached a 6600gph powerhead to the mixing pipe about a foot off bottom pointing down. This will ensure no salt collects at bottom with getting mixed in

Lastly I got my display refugium scaped. I'm very happy to have all this extra live rock for filtration, plus it looks pretty awesome..esp for being a fuge lol. If anyone has any suggestions to macro algae I'm all ears!

I plan to get a lot more done tomorrow. I want to do a water change this weekend and plan to use the new system to do so.

Busy and it shows!

 

[Phil Joyner]

Dude it was awesome to check it out yesterday, thanks for to tour. Can’t wait to come see some more progress bro. Such and amazing setup!

 

[smartwater101]

Have you used those check valves before? I absolutely hated everything about them. I had three that started failing within a couple weeks and after adjustments/cleaning, they would still fail 60% of the time.

After a few months they ended up being very expensive pieces of trash :/

I went back to the flap/door style and have slept better ever since. I used to go years without cleaning them (now I clean them every 4-5 months) but have never had one fail.

 

[Mshort03]

Dude it was awesome to check it out yesterday, thanks for to tour. Can’t wait to come see some more progress bro. Such and amazing setup!

Thank you for the kind words! I love sharing this project with everyone, especially in person. The frags from our trade yesterday are looking great thanks again!

 

[Mshort03]

Have you used those check valves before? I absolutely hated everything about them. I had three that started failing within a couple weeks and after adjustments/cleaning, they would still fail 60% of the time.

After a few months they ended up being very expensive pieces of trash :/

I went back to the flap/door style and have slept better ever since. I used to go years without cleaning them (now I clean them every 4-5 months) but have never had one fail.

This is actually my first time ever using a check valve. I've tested and I am actually ok without it, but I didn't know if I would be or not when purchasing things so I got it. So far with the 5 shutoffs I've done it hasn't leaked down at all, so I cannot really comment to that. I know a few people that have them and love them and a quick wipe down of the weight doesn't seem like much work.. better than buying a replacement of the other style IMO but time will tell!

 

[crusso1993]

Dude it was awesome to check it out yesterday, thanks for to tour. Can’t wait to come see some more progress bro. Such and amazing setup!

@Phil Joyner - you got a tour? Lucky dog! But did he cook you anything on the grill? That's the real question! Lol

 

[Mshort03]