new schools 200 gal sps build

[new school]

as a couple of you know, this tank was finished being built this week. after not having the time to load any pictures, each evening im going to try to post a few build pics, as i have been super busy. i really hope you all enjoy. this took about a week to build. then the transfer of all the livestock was an even more unbelievable task. i want to thank tom from upscales for making all this possible. this is a livestock combination of my tank and another mature aquarium he maintained weekly. a good man named "al". also isaac of coralmafia.com helped tremendously with the tear down.

 

this is a 200 gal marineland starphire build 48x36x27. and a 55 gal

custom sump, 31x24x18.

phosban x 2

reeflo 200 dnb

precision calcium reactor

4 koralia 4's

2* 250de 20k plus 8 t-5, 4 ati+, 2 supe ati, 2 blue +

2 seaswirl 3/4"

reeflo dart

neptune ac3 w exp module

red sea ozonizer

 

 

 

 

starting with the stand........

 

nothing special, pretty basic open and finished of with a layer of killz and silicone to help with some moisture protection. took about a day and a half since i ran outta paint. this is to be finished off with some very nice stained wood and unusual doors.

more to come.......

[new school]

day two

 

this was more fun than the stand, however there has since been a sump change so i ill leave the old sump pictures out. it was a very nice tru vu platinum refugium sump, however if there was ever an electricity loss it woulda overflowed. check valve or not. just too small and not very effective. so these will just be some random plumbing pictures. seaswirl photos with bulkhead, a front shot and overflow.

[dsoz]

Nice. Keep it coming

 

dsoz

[reef165]

Nice dimentions on the tank!! Will be watching this build!!

[ThePremiumAquarium]

This will be one sweet tank! Keep the pics coming!

[downhill_biker]

I'm subscribed. This is the same tank I am setting up and I love it. I like the way your stand looks, even unfinished. I really like the clean lines of it. Here is my build thread if you haven't seen it yet.

 

http://www.pnwmas.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11877

[undrtkr_00]

Hey, glad to see you posting this! Yeah, hurry up and get to the updated shots. I really like the dimensions on it and the spread out aquascaping you have going. You should show off your lighting rig, too.

[new school]

thank you

 

im pretty pumped, i know that downhill biker set this same aquarium up as well. i like your scaping, its nice and open. did you have the same overflow restriction problems at first?

 

i really like the size but woulda been a lot happier if the 250 was available..... i wanted that size bad. no one from salem to seattle had one. same depth and height. however, instead of 48 long it woulda ben 60 long. just enough room to not feel so cramped with all the livestock. you will see. i have room to grow, just not nearly as much as i want. but isnt that the case for everyone?

 

as for the lighting, ima post that next. every one thats seen the frame has loved it. its modular and capable of any upgrades or additions you could want to add. i just added double 250de halides, and it took about 30 minutes. i have considered making this for others if any one is interested. you can use reflectors, make relectors, skin it with wood or any material. i was thinking something unique..... install it in a canopy with cabinet sliders or use it as a pendant like i did...... it wasnt nearly as cheap as i hoped it would be but i had to buy all the tools, metal and then all the lighting parts. it was a nice learning exp as well!(nutty)

 

thanks again undertaker_00, you making use of that light yet? if you can, try the radium 20k. the ushios i used were nice but i lost some blue and purple. my buddy has the same fixture with radium 20k bulbs and it brought out more colors for sure. he also used the split purple/pink actinic combo and his tank was fantastic......growth was nice too. i still have extra zooas and a nice little frag here for you as well!

[new school]

basically its a box design that fits the size you need. in may case it was 48x30.5. i made this from box aluminum with a chop saw and rivet gun. i worked in car audio for many years and motorized amp racks on this same principal. however we had all the lg tools we needed, and trial and error was of no cost to us (hahahaha).

 

in the first pic i assembled the basic frame and then reinforced it. hard part is keeping it square. i added some other strips that the end caps can actually snap into. no standoffs, not needed. makes it way easier to service this way. also you have to wrap your head around the actual reflector part. the little ones are nice, but...... get salt splash. white reflects evenly and better than the chrome or shiny finishes. the german spectral hammertone is about the best, yet i havent found it in lengths i need.

 

im still currently waiting for the white reflector material to show up. you can see how the end caps snap in place in pic 2 and 3. i riveted "all" this together so i can eventually powder coat it white. screws also have the chance to strip out with thin aluminum...... not cool! if you wanna change something just drill the rivet and add a new one. wait til you see the new addition of halides. i think its sick! i just pulled out a ballast & 4 encaps, added 2 pieces of aluminum 90, and bang...... a easy simple upgrade. gotta love it...

[new school]

wiring

 

i wired this again in the same principal as i would a proper car audio high end system. i use bus bars for ease of service/upgrade. keep wires short as possible! also twist them with your drill, this keeps them super clean. the only shop i "EVER" seen in the aquarium industry do this in my yrs of hobbying is "upscales". travi's hood/light wiring work is second to none. and yes he is a car audiophile as well. not sure where he got it from but over the years i seen him work magic for customers and this is the litle stuff people simply overlook. next time you go in a shop look at the wiring nightmare behind the hoods. this is one reason why travis/upscales is an elitist and also a pioneer in this hobby. builders willing to go the extra mile and try new things. you get what you pay for with upscales. pro work! there is no second chance for a poorly wired light system. once you let the magic smoke out, its all over..... hahaha!!!!

 

i wired and numbered each ballast, used code wiring, and called the manf for any suggestions and opinions on how to better use their product. must do! i ran my end cap wires just a couple inches long on each one, so i can slide end caps or upgrade easily...i have since pulled the fulham workhorse ballasts and put in 2 icecap 660 ballasts. thank you nick (rose city) much nicer and brighter. also added 2x250de halides. overdriving is different than std operation. my experience was way better. some heat, not enough to worry about. i still even have to run a heater!

 

i also used the sunlight supply hanging kit. its easy to mount and looks clean. you can see the ferule in the pictures as well. more to come!!

[new school]

light upgrades *

 

basically i started with 12 t-5's, i changed it to 8 plus double 250's until my new 400 ballasts show up. however things are really looking good with the 250's???? hmmm(scratch).

 

here you can see the basic fixture finished with the icecap 660's and the new halide centerpiece. as you can now tell, this is easily completely changeable. i could add elite fixtures or even make my own. when i choose the wood finish it will simply mount flush to the outside of this and drop to the top of my aquarium. however im having some home interior deco problems. i may finish this off with some skate decks cut up. or maybe some crazy polished metal.... any ideas?

 

anyhow the black centers are out of powder coated aluminum and i robbed some mini reflectors out of an old fixture i got ripped off on r.c. for. atleast it wasnt a total loss! also you can see the twisting of the wires for a nice clean finish. when i used to compete in car audio this was so important. judges would pull removable panels and if you twisted your wire it looked nice. not like some third graders went crazy!(nutty).

 

you can also see the new ballast's in place of old ones, also the finished wire hanging kit. hope you like.

 

if you have old fixtures laying around and ballasts i can build a setup any way you want. you can have a shop get the exact wood to finish it off so it matches your existing get up. or build it into your hood with drawer sliders. also let me know what you dont like about it. i may start building these for people and shops. input is appreciated even if its neg. thanks

 

im still waiting for internal reflector material and to finish this of. no light will escape the top or front. gonna be super cool and modern i think! also different than other options out there. i can even make a rack for someone that they can get down with on their own.(rock2)

[vanz]

Freaking sick man! Great way of incorporating another hobby to improve this one! Let's see what else you can do to streamline reef keeping.

 

Maybe you can give me suggestions on how I can improve my canopy. Don't want to go off topic here so I'll pm you with the info.

[undrtkr_00]

Glad to see your work in progress. No, I don't have the Aquamedic up yet. I'm actually going to have to get some wiring work done in my house before I can add more watts to that circuit, and haven't scraped together the change for the bulbs yet. All in time.

[new school]

overflows

 

this aquarium is very nice, but the overflows are a little weak. ok, they pretty much suck..... basically the down flow tubes are great, nice, quiet.... even allow great water volume to flow to the sump. yet if you put in a pump any larger than about a 850 gal for return, the water gets backed up by the tiny overflow grills and restricts water flow so much the center brace of their tanks become submerged is visible. i would think after this many yrs of aquarium experience, coupled with the fact that the entire marketing program for marinelands lg deep corner flow is toward our use, they would have seen this issue. how about test it one time?!! anyway i used an old school tec tip and zip tied in some gutter guard. just seems kinda lame ya know. heres pics of it in action after modifying.

[new school]

plumbing

 

basically the under side of the tank has a ball valve at each corner locline return, for flow control, and a union on each side of the pump for maintenance. plus a bulkhead to maintenance my double seaswirl return. this was made as one piece that can still be serviced/removed without affecting the overall aquarium flow. i can just shut it off and force more water thru the factory issue locline if i need to. you can see my tie in connection for the calcium reactor and also my phos-ban reactors. its the small blue ball valve at the top and black on the side... one dart does it all. its valved back some where to aprx 2000 gallons of flow, with the ability to control the entire return and wave action with one pump. less than a 100 watts. makes me happy. also have a spare if she fails me!!

 

also a sump mock up.

 

i like it simple and clean. less room for error and its a lot easier to service something.....even though its never sup to go bad according to the manufacturers right!!!(threaten)

[new school]

this is the third sump to enter the system in less than 2 weeks. first was a ruben sump that didnt fit my skimmer and such. decent sump for the price but not what i needed. second was my old platinum tru vu. nice, nice sump for sure. was highly modified to bust the micro bubble issue, just too small. last was this davy jones special, and fit all my equipment plus room for upgrades if i need! he built it exactly the way i needed. after a few micro bubble busting mods, perfect. here are some finished pics. and old sump pics.

 

the first is rubens. not a good pic.

 

second was my platinum mod. microbuster in and out. egg crate and black foam suspended by acrylic cubes.

 

3rd is the finished and complete 50+ gal.

[new school]

tank pics

 

these photos were all from my camera phone. soon as i get a real camera you will be able to see how she reallllly looks!!!!(clap) just a kida simple side shot and a small center shot. the pictures just really dont tell the story.

 

 

more to come soon. i promise.

[finch6013]

I love sps tanks! nice job.

[jason7504]

nice tank..i love sps tanks too.is that a colony of blue tort kind of in the center back towards the wall?

[Randy-S]

Nice build thread we need to get a couve tank tour going madmike has a nice system and I have the 200 gal marineland tank too.

[new school]

yes jason7504..... that is the oregon tort. i also have a nice sized tyree birds nest, my personal favorite is the upscales microlados barely visible at the bottom. there is a really odd acro ive not seen anywhere, directly below the tort. it has kind of a brick/maroon colored skin with really pastel teal/aqua tips. like the crayola but completely diff growth pattern. never seen anything quite like it. she is a beauty. i have such terrible photo skills and no real camera. i do apologize.

 

my girlfriend and i are good with a tour..... in a couple weeks we should do that. i need to do some house cleaning and aquarium finish work first. but were in for sure.

 

randy-s you say you have this same tank as well? is it set up? if so what did you do with your overflow and return........did you have similar problems too?

[jason7504]

wow i love your sps especially that oregon tort..where did you get a colony of it at? oh no its ok..your pics look good to me

[Randy-S]

randy-s you say you have this same tank as well? is it set up? if so what did you do with your overflow and return........did you have similar problems too?

 

Yes I did I used all four holes in the overflows for my drains and planned on using a dart for my return. I have the same problem the dart pushes to much water and I could see the center brace. I removed the overflow screen like you did and it still could not handle the flow so I just run it tuned down.

I am thinking of replacing the dart with a flow star pump since I cant use its full power. The flow stars are dead silent and use less energy but their spendy little buggers.

The tank is up and running with rock and fish just waiting for it to age a bit before I start restocking with corals.

[Smann]

Very nice tank, Did you move the corals from a different setup?. What lighting were they grown under. I am definetly intersted in building a T5 light rack i have the tools to do the work but not the knowledge to run the wiring (scratch), so I may take you up on the offer to help build one

[new school]

randy, i used only two of the returns after reading on r.c. some of the build threads for these marineland tanks. all with the same issue it seems. i still used the factory locline supplied. after all my plumbing and reactors were in place i didnt have to valve it back too much. about 25%, it still touches the center brace from time to time when my seaswirls fire toward each other.....no real biggie, only visible once in a while.

 

smann, just dont use the fulham ballasts. they are great but the wiring diagrams they offer along with their suggestions have far too many hot spots on end caps. pull the workhorse 7 diagram from their website and you have to jumper each end cap along with series them. way too much potential for failure. use any ballast but those from what ive seen and read. it makes install easier and less potential for fire!!!! hahaha.

 

let me know, be happy to help you.

ima cover the tear down and old tank today or tomorrow.