markdadof2 Posted September 25, 2008 Share Posted September 25, 2008 Yeah, where are the pictures?? I like pictures.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CCR Posted September 25, 2008 Share Posted September 25, 2008 (worthless) Ya can't have a build thread without them(enforcer) Step up! We want to see holesDOH! cabinets, Hoods NOW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted September 26, 2008 Author Share Posted September 26, 2008 I'm working on the pics....as for the Closed loop...this insane amount of flow will be perrrrfect for my manifold design around the perimeter of the tank....no powerheads allowed! Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted September 30, 2008 Author Share Posted September 30, 2008 Okay, as promissed, here are a few pictures: This is some of the lighting that I pulled out from under the tank. I still have it in reserve just in case! This is the area that I will build my wet area. It looks small in the photo...but once I stack the washer and dryer and move a few things...I will have room to use my 55 gallon (48" long) as a sump! This is the drilled tank! Ready to paint! My hubby has a better hand with spray paint. I used Rust O'leum Flat Black (recommended by Joel). It took a can to get pretty good coverage. Painted! The only thing...I should have painted the back of the bulk-head nut. It was white originally, and you can see it from the inside of the tank...I will fix this. I got a picture of the inside...but it was dark outside and I got a huge flash spot...I will take another picture of that tomorrow...it does look really sweet! I started empting out the china cabinet where the tank will go. I will probably sell that off and opt for a smaller version! Now that Mike is done with hunting, I will be able to accomplish more on the weekends! Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael7979 Posted September 30, 2008 Share Posted September 30, 2008 Looks great! Just be careful with your sump next to the laundry area, that nothing gets into the sump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted September 30, 2008 Author Share Posted September 30, 2008 I have already got a plan for that...I will be partially enclosing the wet area to keep it separate from the washer/dryer...I spent too much money on those to get damaged from the sump!!! Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael7979 Posted September 30, 2008 Share Posted September 30, 2008 I was thinking more along the lines of laundry soap falling into the sump! :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted September 30, 2008 Author Share Posted September 30, 2008 I can understand that! Trust me...won't be an issue at all. Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coralreefaquarist Posted September 30, 2008 Share Posted September 30, 2008 looking good im jealous keep the pics comin i we all love pics(wife) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CCR Posted September 30, 2008 Share Posted September 30, 2008 HMMMM I think I would have some concerns with chemicals in the air that naturally occur in a laundry room Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePremiumAquarium Posted September 30, 2008 Share Posted September 30, 2008 Very nice build so far. Keep us updated with photos along the way. Garrett Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Allen Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Hey Kris --- looking great. The black look is great for a tank background. My last two tanks I have done the same, except I used chalk board paint (non-toxic). It does a great job attracting light and increasing the speed and amount of coralline. The comment about chemicals in the air is legit. An LFS that I know of was killing fish constantly and could not understand why. Come to find out that mopping the floors at night with clorox was doing it. Vapors getting sucked into the skimmers. They shut the skimmers down during the floor cleaning and it resolved the problem. Ever since then I have been more cautious of what floats around the tank and sub-system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted October 2, 2008 Author Share Posted October 2, 2008 I can certainly understand the concerns...I don't use bleach in my laundry at all. There are only three of us in the family and the area is well ventilated. As stated before, the "wet area" will be seperated from the machines. I don't anticipate any problems at all with this set up. The only thing I worry about is keeping the dog hair out of it! I have finished painting the tank. I have the stand and hood nearly complete. This weekend I will be moving the china hutch out and the stand and tank in. Plus working on the "wet area". As usuall...I will post lots of pics. Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted October 6, 2008 Author Share Posted October 6, 2008 So...I finally got the tank painted, the stand finished and the bulkheads tightened. The china-cabinet was emptied and moved, and the tank put in place! It really look so empty! I know that will change soon enough! I kept pretty busy trying to get my ducks in a row. I got the washer and dryer moved and stacked. Once this was done, I was left with a space big enough to build a cabinet 40" long by 32" deep. I think I will go 38" or 40" high and raise it up off of the floor. I have opted to go with an enclosed area as it is the garage, and a few of you did make a good point about possible contaminates. I am still fairly confident that my plans are overkill...but what the heck. It's always better to be on the safe side. I will vent the cabinet to prevent humidity/heat build up as well. I also cut out 5 pieces of acrylic tonight. This will build a small tank 24" X 10" X 14" (about 14 gallons). I will use this as the return portion of the sump and attach it to the current sump using 1" bulk heads. This will increase the total volume of the sump from 24 to 38 gallons and ensure that if power fails, the sump will not overflow (fingers crossed)...as I need a 15 gallon sump to hold any overflow from the tank. The current sump typically houses around 14 gallons while running, so another 15 would have overflowed for sure! I spent about 3 days thinking of a way to do this and then came up with the plans today! I am fairly sure that with the two hooked together at equal heights, should the one fill up, the other should fill equally, based on gravity. I suppose placement of the link will play a big part in this as well as how quickly those extra 15 gallons should pour into the sump! More research whould help figure this out! Perhaps I will put a "T" in one of the overflows and send half to the fuge and the other half to the return section. I will glue the little tank together tomorrow and pick up materials for the cabinet, plus more plumbing fixtures! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rider Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 you should put your sump right on the concrete. It will help naturaly chill your water. especialy on the hot days. just a way to help with the heat. the tank is lookin great, peace, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted October 8, 2008 Author Share Posted October 8, 2008 I thought about that, but the distance from the tank to the sump is already large enough. I am already worried about the head loss on the return. It's a good thing I have a huge pump for the closed loop! My garage is insulated and stays pretty cool in the summer....this part I definately keep going back and forth on. I did get the other part of the sump built last night. It turned out pretty good and will get a few pictures up of that. I also got the closed loop manifold put together. Tonight I will glue and paint it...it as well turned out pretty good. One thing...I will have ball valves on everything and every pipe will have a coupling....this so it can always change it later if it don't work the first time! Cheers. Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CCR Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 NICE WORK:) Your going to have 2 tanks as sumps? Is that what I read? As long as the tanks are joined together they will always be equal Into one out the other. Height will adjust as necessary. Is this what your thinking. Also I would put a hard piece of foam under the sumps. Directly on the concrete not a good idea with thin acrylic. Call me if you would like and talk a minute about it. AFTER THE DEBATE:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rider Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 by coupling do you mean union. just curious, why not set it directly on the concrete. wouldn't the concrete help cool the sump (water)? what is wrong with putting acrylic directly on concrete? peace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted October 8, 2008 Author Share Posted October 8, 2008 Unions...coupling...all the same eh? LOL... CCR...I am trying to increase the overall volume of the sump. This will be accomplished by adding another sump to the one I am using on the current tank. Thanks for the reassurance that the two will be in equilibrium as long as they are joined together...boy this is starting to sound like my marriage! I plan on using 1" bulkheads in each sump to join them together...I was thinking white gold or platinum (laugh) . I currently have foam under the existing sump...will do the same on the other. HMMMM...should I put it under the tank? Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CCR Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 Unions...coupling...all the same eh? LOL... CCR...I am trying to increase the overall volume of the sump. This will be accomplished by adding another sump to the one I am using on the current tank. Thanks for the reassurance that the two will be in equilibrium as long as they are joined together...boy this is starting to sound like my marriage! I plan on using 1" bulkheads in each sump to join them together...I was thinking white gold or platinum (laugh) . I currently have foam under the existing sump...will do the same on the other. HMMMM...should I put it under the tank? Kris Funny you should ask. Under the 110 AND the 180 stands I had hard foam. I just never really trusted the floors with weight that there may be a fault. Also I had a 150 spring a leak after 2 years with a pine stand. No foam. I also figure that if you do have a spill around the tank, the foam, and tank weight will keep it from getting under the stand. So no warp, mold, or swollen frame and/or floor:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted October 25, 2008 Author Share Posted October 25, 2008 Onward and upward... I have gotten quite a bit done lately, and hope to get more accomplished this weekend! Last weekend I maxed out my panel and added the last breaker possible. I opted for a 20 amp, as I would be running several pumps that do draw a bit of electricity....plus it gives a little exta piece of mind knowing that the power demand won't overload the breaker. I installed a GFI that is followed by 3 more outlets. The husband asked "Isn't that alot of plugs"? I told him I was going to install a "controller" with a few more plugs....(laugh) It was fun crawling through the depts of my house to run the wires...but all in all it worked out ok. Unfortunately, I have some water pipes and drain pipes that I had to work around...and eventhough it doesn't "look" perfect...it will do the job! I started tonight on the stand for the sump and pumps..hopefully that will be done this weekend. I will post some pictures as soon as I can. The dog knocked over the little return tank I built, cracked it to heck and back...so i think I will go with a rubbermaid or something for now as I don't feel like building another! I will link it to the current sump I have once the move takes place! Lastly...question??? I am assuming that i can add sand, new salt water and existing rock (in my current tank) and move forward with out a cycle period. Or should I add sand, water, rock and wait? Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spectra Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 If taking down your old tank I would try and use some water out of it if possible. When I downsized my 90 to a 37 I took out a few pcs of rock then used new sand with a little old stuff to seed it then took about 30 gallons of water and mixed with a little new. Never did run into any problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 Same here, I brought my tank up with a bunch of rock from an established tank and it never cycled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kriswaters Posted October 26, 2008 Author Share Posted October 26, 2008 Cool...I am really hoping to avoid going through a cycle. The idea of using some water from the current tank is good to. I got the table built today for the sump stuff...here are some pics The "stand" is 42" wide x 34" deep and 22" tall. I picked up some thick, non-skid, waterproof shelf liner that covers the stand (black). You can see (in the first picture) my RO/DI unit in its temp location and the new "electrical box". The conduit is glued at the bottom to prevent any water entering into it. Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pledosophy Posted October 26, 2008 Share Posted October 26, 2008 I have upgraded tanks a few times. :lol: I use the same rock and water (as much as I could, it's just cheaper) and have always used new sand. Never a cycle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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