SuncrestReef's Red Sea Reefer XL 425 build

[Peach02]

Looking awsome! Are you still using the DOS for dosing? If so what are you dosing and how much or did you end up moving onto a a calcium reactor? Also what are your thoughts on the lighting, have you got any shadowing or spread problems?

 

[SuncrestReef]

I love how the Apex reveals so much about what's going on in your tank:

 

[SuncrestReef]

It took my clowns about 10 months to find the anemone, and now they’re starting to explore my goniopora too!

 

[DeMichiel5]

Hello Suncrest Reef,
I've been reading your build thread which is incredible and it has me both excited and intimidated. I have a reefer 425 on order coming before the holiday and my planned set up is very similar to yours with the Nyos 160, Radion lights, Aqua UV sterilizer and Aquamaxx reactors

I have a few questions... if you get a chance.

1) Your manifold is ingenious and my goal is to mirror it almost exactly. It looks almost like your reactors are suspended from the plumbing and zipties that you've screwed into the stand ceiling. Is this really the way you have this set up and how difficult is it to get in there and change the media?

2) I really don't have I have room in the budget for all the Apex gear. My wife already thinks I've lost my mind. Are there pieces you would say that you can't live without and/or could be added simplistically later without tearing things apart?

3) Are there any of your equipment choices that you've made but regret? would you make any tweaks to your manifold?

Thanks for your time. Your thread is an inspiration.

Brian

 

[SuncrestReef]

Hello Suncrest Reef,
I've been reading your build thread which is incredible and it has me both excited and intimidated. I have a reefer 425 on order coming before the holiday and my planned set up is very similar to yours with the Nyos 160, Radion lights, Aqua UV sterilizer and Aquamaxx reactors

I have a few questions... if you get a chance.

1) Your manifold is ingenious and my goal is to mirror it almost exactly. It looks almost like your reactors are suspended from the plumbing and zipties that you've screwed into the stand ceiling. Is this really the way you have this set up and how difficult is it to get in there and change the media?

2) I really don't have I have room in the budget for all the Apex gear. My wife already thinks I've lost my mind. Are there pieces you would say that you can't live without and/or could be added simplistically later without tearing things apart?

3) Are there any of your equipment choices that you've made but regret? would you make any tweaks to your manifold?

Thanks for your time. Your thread is an inspiration.

Brian

Thanks for following along! I always love to hear when my build inspires other reefers!

Yes, my whole plumbing manifold and reactors are suspended by about 12 zip-ties with mounting plates screwed into the cabinet ceiling. It has held up perfectly. The UV sterilizer is screwed to the cabinet ceiling with large plastic clamps designed specifically for the UV unit.

There are a few things I would change:

1. I never ended up using the 3rd reactor (for biopellets) so I would only plumb 2 reactors.
2. The 12" tall AquaMaxx reactors ended up being larger than necessary for my tank size. The amount of carbon and GFO needed only took up about 1"-2" of the reactor. I have since replaced them with the XS version that's only 8.5" tall, leaving much more space below the reactors to give me easier access to my return pump, ATK, and Apex probes.
3. The Neptune flow sensors on the exit tubes of the reactors frequently get clogged with stray granules of carbon or GFO. Next time, I will place the flow sensors on the input tubes rather than the output tubes so there's less chance of debris clogging them.
4. I ended up replacing my Radion XR30 Pro LED lights with ReeFi DUO Extreme LED's, as I posted about in August. I didn't like the side glare from the Radions when sitting across the room from the tank. The ReeFi's are excellent lights with no side glare.

As for your Apex questions, that's a tough one for me since this is my first tank and have used the Apex since day 1. I can't really imagine running my tank without it, but I know many people do with no problems. I just really enjoy the automation and granular data it provides, as well as the peace of mind from alert notifications when things go wrong.

Good luck with your build! Please let me know if you start a build thread so I can take a look.

 

[SuncrestReef]

Looking awsome! Are you still using the DOS for dosing? If so what are you dosing and how much or did you end up moving onto a a calcium reactor? Also what are your thoughts on the lighting, have you got any shadowing or spread problems?

Sorry for the late reply, I just saw your comments today.

Yes, I'm still using the DOS for BRS 2-part and controlling it with my Trident. It's working great and keeps my alk within about 0.10 dKH per day. I don't plan on switching to a calcium reactor until I start my next tank, hopefully in 2020.

I'm still really enjoying my new ReeFi DUO Extreme lights. The coverage is perfect for my tank. The only shadowing issues I have is from a couple of large SPS colonies near the top of my rocks that are growing like crazy, so I moved a few corals and placed some low-light corals in the shaded areas.

 

[Peach02]

Sorry for the late reply, I just saw your comments today.

Yes, I'm still using the DOS for BRS 2-part and controlling it with my Trident. It's working great and keeps my alk within about 0.10 dKH per day. I don't plan on switching to a calcium reactor until I start my next tank, hopefully in 2020.

I'm still really enjoying my new ReeFi DUO Extreme lights. The coverage is perfect for my tank. The only shadowing issues I have is from a couple of large SPS colonies near the top of my rocks that are growing like crazy, so I moved a few corals and placed some low-light corals in the shaded areas.

ok cool. How much 2 part are you dosing per day?

 

[SuncrestReef]

ok cool. How much 2 part are you dosing per day?

About 120ml per day, with higher amounts dosed when the lights are on:

 

[Peach02]

About 120ml per day, with higher amounts dosed when the lights are on:

Far out thats a lot, why don't you switch to a calcium reactor?

 

[SuncrestReef]

Far out thats a lot, why don't you switch to a calcium reactor?

Because I have no room inside my cabinet for a calcium reactor and I promised my wife I wouldn't have any exterior equipment in our living room. I just mix up 2-part every 2 weeks to refill my reservoirs and it's simple to do. My big plan is to add an addition on our house next year with a dedicated fish room and new large peninsula tank, then I'll have a calcium reactor in the fish room.

 

[Peach02]

Because I have no room inside my cabinet for a calcium reactor and I promised my wife I wouldn't have any exterior equipment in our living room. I just mix up 2-part every 2 weeks to refill my reservoirs and it's simple to do. My big plan is to add an addition on our house next year with a dedicated fish room and new large peninsula tank, then I'll have a calcium reactor in the fish room.

fair enough. Doesn't it get expensive to dose the 2 part though?

 

[klimfish]

Looks amazing!

Have you tried dosing ALK primarily at night (latter 3/4'ths of daylight cycle, then through the night) and calc during daylight only to keep the pH stable throughout the night?

 

[SuncrestReef]

fair enough. Doesn't it get expensive to dose the 2 part though?

At my current dosing rate, it's only about $120 per year, so I'm not concerned about the cost.

 

[Peach02]

At my current dosing rate, it's only about $120 per year, so I'm not concerned about the cost.

oh wow, I wish I knew of a 2 part that cheap, I don't know of any ones that are mixed in Australia and 2L bottles cost like $100

 

[SuncrestReef]

oh wow, I wish I knew of a 2 part that cheap, I don't know of any ones that are mixed in Australia and 2L bottles cost like $100

I just buy the dry 2-part mix from BRS to mix with RO/DI water.

 

[Peach02]

I just buy the dry 2-part mix from BRS to mix with RO/DI water.

unfortunately BRS doesn't ship to Australia

 

[DeMichiel5]

Thanks for following along! I always love to hear when my build inspires other reefers!

Yes, my whole plumbing manifold and reactors are suspended by about 12 zip-ties with mounting plates screwed into the cabinet ceiling. It has held up perfectly. The UV sterilizer is screwed to the cabinet ceiling with large plastic clamps designed specifically for the UV unit.

There are a few things I would change:

1. I never ended up using the 3rd reactor (for biopellets) so I would only plumb 2 reactors.
2. The 12" tall AquaMaxx reactors ended up being larger than necessary for my tank size. The amount of carbon and GFO needed only took up about 1"-2" of the reactor. I have since replaced them with the XS version that's only 8.5" tall, leaving much more space below the reactors to give me easier access to my return pump, ATK, and Apex probes.
3. The Neptune flow sensors on the exit tubes of the reactors frequently get clogged with stray granules of carbon or GFO. Next time, I will place the flow sensors on the input tubes rather than the output tubes so there's less chance of debris clogging them.
4. I ended up replacing my Radion XR30 Pro LED lights with ReeFi DUO Extreme LED's, as I posted about in August. I didn't like the side glare from the Radions when sitting across the room from the tank. The ReeFi's are excellent lights with no side glare.

As for your Apex questions, that's a tough one for me since this is my first tank and have used the Apex since day 1. I can't really imagine running my tank without it, but I know many people do with no problems. I just really enjoy the automation and granular data it provides, as well as the peace of mind from alert notifications when things go wrong.

Good luck with your build! Please let me know if you start a build thread so I can take a look.
[/QU

Thanks for following along! I always love to hear when my build inspires other reefers!

Yes, my whole plumbing manifold and reactors are suspended by about 12 zip-ties with mounting plates screwed into the cabinet ceiling. It has held up perfectly. The UV sterilizer is screwed to the cabinet ceiling with large plastic clamps designed specifically for the UV unit.

There are a few things I would change:

1. I never ended up using the 3rd reactor (for biopellets) so I would only plumb 2 reactors.
2. The 12" tall AquaMaxx reactors ended up being larger than necessary for my tank size. The amount of carbon and GFO needed only took up about 1"-2" of the reactor. I have since replaced them with the XS version that's only 8.5" tall, leaving much more space below the reactors to give me easier access to my return pump, ATK, and Apex probes.
3. The Neptune flow sensors on the exit tubes of the reactors frequently get clogged with stray granules of carbon or GFO. Next time, I will place the flow sensors on the input tubes rather than the output tubes so there's less chance of debris clogging them.
4. I ended up replacing my Radion XR30 Pro LED lights with ReeFi DUO Extreme LED's, as I posted about in August. I didn't like the side glare from the Radions when sitting across the room from the tank. The ReeFi's are excellent lights with no side glare.

As for your Apex questions, that's a tough one for me since this is my first tank and have used the Apex since day 1. I can't really imagine running my tank without it, but I know many people do with no problems. I just really enjoy the automation and granular data it provides, as well as the peace of mind from alert notifications when things go wrong.

Good luck with your build! Please let me know if you start a build thread so I can take a look.

Thanks so much. I'll let you know when I start a build thread.

 

[SuncrestReef]

I just picked up a new lobo, so I'm trying the ReeFi acclimation mode for the first time. I didn't have this capability on my old Radions controlled by Apex WXM.



I set them to 50% and ramp back to normal over 7 days:

 

[102ttran]

About 120ml per day, with higher amounts dosed when the lights are on:

About 120ml per day, with higher amounts dosed when the lights are on:

I thought your not suppose to dose cal and alk at the same time? I dose mine alk for 10 hrs in pm then cal for 10hrs in am.

 

[SuncrestReef]

This is what happens to your aquarium's pH when you have 45 people at your house for a holiday party: