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

[crusso1993]

Oooooooooh aaaaaaaaaaahhh...

 

[Mshort03]

Added the t5 lights this am.. ran into a little pickle (those weird ones again) ..when building the canopy frame I didn't take into account the room the boards would take up out of the 8' span. This left me 1 inch short. I didn't want to notch the wood since I regularly lean on canopy when working and those boards is what supports it...so I had to modify my supplemental lighting to one in front and one in back rather than 2. Still ok, looks good and gets rid if the shadowing which was goal, and I had PLENTY of par with led alone. Plus now I have 2 more retrofit kits to build a fixture for some other project.. humm what should I build? Lol

Here's a few shots with just t5.

Now I can finally add the doors to the top of cabinet and get hardware all on and then start work on the side shelves to hide piping

 

[crusso1993]

Added the t5 lights this am.. ran into a little pickle (those weird ones again) when building the canopy frame I didn't take into account the room the boards would take up out if the 8' span. This left me 1 inch short. I didn't want to botch the wood since I regularly lean on canopy when working and those boards is what supports it...so I had to modify my supplemental lighting to one in front and one in back rather than 2. Still ok, looks good and gets rid if the shadowing which was goal, and I had PLENTY of par with led alone. Plus now I have 2 more retrofit kits to build a fixture for some other project.. humm what should I build? Lol

Here's a few shots with just t5.

Now I can finally add the doors to the top of cabinet and get hardware all on and then start work on the side shelves to hide piping

It's looking really good!

 

[Mshort03]

Well I finally finished plumbing the water station. Got it running now mixing up some saltwater and got it plumbed to the room.

I wanted to be able to fill either tank with system so I teed it inside room so I can open a valve to pick which system I want

This is going to make water changes a lot easier and cleaner..looking forward to testing it out for the first time! Maybe this weekend.

 

[crusso1993]

Well I finally finished plumbing the water station. Got it running now mixing up some saltwater and got it plumbed to the room.

I wanted to be able to fill either tank with system so I teed it inside room so I can open a valve to pick which system I want

This is going to make water changes a lot easier and cleaner..looking forward to testing it out for the first time! Maybe this weekend.

Nicely done. I cannot tell but is that an eflux pump you're running? It kind of looks like one.

 

[Mshort03]

Nicely done. I cannot tell but is that an eflux pump you're running? It kind of looks like one.

Yes it is an eflux 3100gph. I traded some coral for it. Also got a reef link out of the deal for the MP controllers. I used 1 inch plumbing so I'm hoping the pump will be able to push the water to my 90g.. I'm pretty sure it will. Ill do a water change this week or weekend to test the system out, not that I really need/want to do one right now. Also, since it will be running 24/7 keeping the saltwater mixed (plan to keep 150g saltwater on hand at all times in case of emergency) I wanted a pump that was energy efficient. Since I basically got this pump for "free" I figured I'd give it a shot. What's your thoughts?

 

[crusso1993]

Yes it is an eflux 3100gph. I traded some coral for it. Also got a reef link out of the deal for the MP controllers. I used 1 inch plumbing so I'm hoping the pump will be able to push the water to my 90g.. I'm pretty sure it will. Ill do a water change this week or weekend to test the system out, not that I really need/want to do one right now. Also, since it will be running 24/7 keeping the saltwater mixed (plan to keep 150g saltwater on hand at all times in case of emergency) I wanted a pump that was energy efficient. Since I basically got this pump for "free" I figured I'd give it a shot. What's your thoughts?

Why run it 24/7? Can it not be set up to turn on and off in intervals? Sorry, I'm not super familiar with these pumps.

 

[Mshort03]

Why run it 24/7? Can it not be set up to turn on and off in intervals? Sorry, I'm not super familiar with these pumps.

With the help of the apex I'm sure I could program that to happen, but not sure why I'd want intervals? Just power savings? I figured it going all the time would just keep everything mixed and not stagnant...even tho I do have a 6000gallon powerhead in salt container...

 

[crusso1993]

With the help of the apex I'm sure I could program that to happen, but not sure why I'd want intervals? Just power savings? I figured it going all the time would just keep everything mixed and not stagnant...even tho I do have a 6000gallon powerhead in salt container...

Yeah, I was just considering power savings. I'm not sure if that's a concern but, after knowing all you have going on with your new, beautiful system, an extra DC pump isn't going to really affect much.

 

[Mshort03]

Got the chiller installed today.. tank temp was 80 which is my threshold for comfort and I wont have AC installed till this weekend so room still gets warm.. (2 fans going and door open currently)

Went with a 1950gph instead of 1050 due to volume of water and wating to pass more through at a time..plus it's more uniform this way.

As if I didn't already have enough piping going on I added some more..

Hopefully I'm done putting return pumps in the sump. I'm up to 4 now!

I placed the chiller outside the room next to my water station.

I will place a fan in this alley blowing out so that it helps remove the hot air from around the chiller, the chiller is 1.5 feet off the wall which is above the recommended spacing..but it still makes me feel better to have air moving around it more.

I also will be insulating the rest of my garage/garage door soon as to help keep the interior temps a bit lower when it gets into the hot summer months.

Now that the system is running I've allowed myself to relax some and I'm not getting rest of things done as soon as I'd like. Hopefully my 5day break from work this weekend can wrap up a good chunk of the little chores left.

 

[Mshort03]

Got a bunch of odds and ends tied up. Installed a dryer vent and got the AC exhaust plumbed

I now have the door shut and the room is cooling down. The temp has gone for 86 to 80 in the room in 2 hours.
Look at these pliers from sitting in my garage for the last couple weeks with the door open!

The salty damp air deff took its toll quick

I also got a 1link extender module and got the other powerhead installed in the frag system. I have one WAV pump in the frag system and one in the colony grow out tank.. the display has enough flow with just the MP's

Added a wifi extender to the room to help with the apex connection

Finally got the magnets, handles. And top canopy doors installed. Finally looks like a complete cabinet.

Installed my UV I had on my 90g. It's a 25watt lifegard..in this system I'm using it simply as water clarifier since it isn't returning to display. Some day id like to add UV system strong enough I can feed my return through it.

Finished plumbing the reactor outputs for if I ever need to use them. Ran them down along the 90s/manifold feed tubes to keep a minimal look.

I have a double reactor with activated carbon and the two outside ones will each be GFO this way I can precisely set the flow through each GFO reactor independantly. These are purely for emergency use. I've never felt or had the need for chemical filtration, but I'd like it ready if necessary.

I did a 90g water change on display and ~40g water change of frag system to test out water change system and it all worked flawlessly. the 3100gph eflux pump is very capable of pumping a serious amount of water to the ceiling and into the room. Very happy with the setup so far.

everything is running great so far.. Calcium reactor is VERY consistent. Corals all have great polyp extension.. now just let things settle and build up some nutrients. I tested other day just to see and I have 0 nitrate or phosphate. I'm sure these numbers will increase over time but nutrients have always been a struggle for me. I feed once, heavy per day and have fat healthy fish. (Days off they get an extra feeding) ive never any detectable nutrients..

Still got a day off tomorrow. See if I can get a few other things done..

Oh wait..forgot to mention I got another project lol..

Got this 24g AIO cube in a trade for a few frags.. cut the wall out and will drill it and build 20g sump underneath. Have a little cube system with LPS and nems for something colorful and wavy to look at in the living room..

..uk..for when going to the front room is just too much.


..

 

[crusso1993]

Got a bunch of odds and ends tied up. Installed a dryer vent and got the AC exhaust plumbed

I now have the door shut and the room is cooling down. The temp has gone for 86 to 80 in the room in 2 hours.
Look at these pliers from sitting in my garage for the last couple weeks with the door open!

The salty damp air deff took its toll quick

I also got a 1link extender module and got the other powerhead installed in the frag system. I have one WAV pump in the frag system and one in the colony grow out tank.. the display has enough flow with just the MP's

Added a wifi extender to the room to help with the apex connection

Finally got the magnets, handles. And top canopy doors installed. Finally looks like a complete cabinet.

Installed my UV I had on my 90g. It's a 25watt lifegard..in this system I'm using it simply as water clarifier since it isn't returning to display. Some day id like to add UV system strong enough I can feed my return through it.

Finished plumbing the reactor outputs for if I ever need to use them. Ran them down along the 90s/manifold feed tubes to keep a minimal look.

I have a double reactor with activated carbon and the two outside ones will each be GFO this way I can precisely set the flow through each GFO reactor independantly. These are purely for emergency use. I've never felt or had the need for chemical filtration, but I'd like it ready if necessary.

I did a 90g water change on display and ~40g water change of frag system to test out water change system and it all worked flawlessly. the 3100gph eflux pump is very capable of pumping a serious amount of water to the ceiling and into the room. Very happy with the setup so far.

everything is running great so far.. Calcium reactor is VERY consistent. Corals all have great polyp extension.. now just let things settle and build up some nutrients. I tested other day just to see and I have 0 nitrate or phosphate. I'm sure these numbers will increase over time but nutrients have always been a struggle for me. I feed once, heavy per day and have fat healthy fish. (Days off they get an extra feeding) ive never any detectable nutrients..

Still got a day off tomorrow. See if I can get a few other things done..

Oh wait..forgot to mention I got another project lol..

Got this 24g AIO cube in a trade for a few frags.. cut the wall out and will drill it and build 20g sump underneath. Have a little cube system with LPS and nems for something colorful and wavy to look at in the living room..

..uk..for when going to the front room is just too much.


..

Got a lot done and the DT is looking very nice!

 

[Mshort03]

Put the control board up under display today and got everything mounted

Also started building the stand for the little cube tank. Will need to make and install sump before I can build any further as sump cant fit through door. Also, the stand is built for a 60 cube as this is ultimately the tank I'd like here so there's extra room around this one for now.

 

[Mshort03]

Might as well show them off.. make someone jealous...

 

[ylreefer]

This is the nuts. This man is building an LFS right into his living room [emoji23]. Good job and great skills man. You my friend have a very very understanding wife [emoji16]. Lucky guy. Lol

 

[Mshort03]

This is the nuts. This man is building an LFS right into his living room [emoji23]. Good job and great skills man. You my friend have a very very understanding wife [emoji16]. Lucky guy. Lol

Lol very lucky that shes into it just like I am! It's nice having an interested helping hand when you need it..

 

[ylreefer]

Lol very lucky that shes into it just like I am! It's nice having an interested helping hand when you need it..

Your not wrong there brother. I'm so jealous lol. Following along. [emoji106]

 

[crusso1993]

Might as well show them off.. make someone jealous...

Gee... I wonder who?

 

[Mshort03]

My Sunday project was to get the little cube going. Got the stand built and painted and started piecing it together. It's pretty cool that I pieced this whole system together all with left over stuff I had from the upgrade. Made a 20g sump to house the skimmer and refugium. Would eventually like to upgrade the light to something nicer and more clean looking.. was considering trying a hydra 26...maybe one day.

Plan to have all higher end euphyllia, nems, zoas, rock flowers, things like that.. just something colorful and full of movement to look at from the couch.

I also went to lowes today and got more insulation.. I'm going to finish fully insulating the garage to help keep things cooler in there in the hot summer months..kinda like a buffer for the room as well.

Can I just tell u guys how seriously excited I am to hang more sheetrock? -___-

 

[Mshort03]

I know updates have slowed way down...with everything running now I've been focused on getting other parts of house settled..afterall we did just buy this house when this thread started lol..

First quick update on the cube..We decided to not wait (per usual) and got a hydra 26. So far I'm very pleased with it.

Here's a few pics of it as of now..

Now to the important tank.. first of all, it's looking great. Very happy with how everything is running so far. Corals are growing, polyps are out, and fish are happy...which makes me happy.

This view doesnt hurt either.

Over weekend i worked on getting things put away a bit more and building storage space. Went with ceiling hung shelves to not take up more floor space in garage

Also built a shelf over by the water station for "more used" storage as well as a place to hold my containers for my phyto farm.. that project will probably get going this weekend..

I went on coralvue website and found these extension cables for the smart ato micro.

They were 20 bucks and are 15 feet each. This allowed me to finally have my ato pull out of my big freshwater bin so I no longer need to fill up ato container. I ran lines into tanks and
This also freed up more floor space in the room.

I mounted my rodi unit to the wall and got all the lines ran as short as possible.

I also ordered another FMM module and two optical sensors for the apex. I'm going to have the rodi unit automated to keep my freshwater container full all the time. It will be set up to make about 100g at once as to not burn through my DI resin with short cycling it. I will also have a float valve above the top optical sensor as a fail safe for if the auto refill feature fails, so I don't flood garage and waste all that water. Still coming up with a way to auto back flush without using ton of valves.. but a monthly manual back flush may be adequate..

Another thing I'd like to say is how much I love this skimmer neck cleaner/skimmate collector setup. I have not touched the skimmer nor collector since this tank started running and I'm only at 50% full.

Skimmer maintenance once every three months? I'll take it.

Also would like to comment on how happy I am with the AC unit in the room. Its keeping the humidity around 40%, and more importantly its keeping the room cool and there are no more heat issues. I've been able to match the room temp with the heaters for the tanks to keep it so basically only the ac is performing temp regulation. Here's a graph of my temp over last five days.

The apex is set to have heaters on at 77 and off at 78, the heaters themselves are set to 78, and chiller is set to 80. Neither chillers nor heaters have come on in last 5 days. I'm sure with the summer months this will change a bit but I could turn room ac down to help compensate.


There's a bunch more in the plans, and I'll post some more coral pics up this weekend when I get time