Blue Z Reef

This is a cool concept and all, but I don't think you'll be able to keep the temps up (without significant heat from a source like gas), especially with a through floor pond letting cold in. I have been working on a greenhouse in my backyard for a while now (just for plants) and even though I'm using thermal pane windows I still wouldn't really trust it keeping a reef tank in the 76-80ish range.

Typically the end goal of a reef greenhouse is to have a large growing area that would otherwise be difficult/not cost effective to light. This seems like a multi hobby greenhouse that will be difficult to keep each individual area happy.

Props to ya if it works, always fun to build stuff at least  

Just curious, is this a 120w or newer 165w d120?

Rapid led only sells them on PCBs right? I think your just after the leds themselves. I always eBay mine, usually takes a bit since they are coming from China usually. How many and what colors do you need? I have some but don't usually sell my stash lol

http://reefhobbyist.tumblr.com/post/112209001293/changing-fans-on-chinese-blackbox-leds

Check this out Steve, might as well upgrade to make them silent while your at it.

Hope you have an established tank (with large pod population) or bought one that eats frozen...otherwise your gonna have a bad time lol

If you have a source of food for them they aren't really that hard to care for honestly.

I guess I should have also stated that my dual reactor drain goes into my filter sock to avoid any particles getting into the system.

I use it in a BRS dual reactor with a little phosban. Usually about 2ish cups in my 210 gal (medium-heavily stocked) and change roughly every 4 weeks. I rely on my fuge to take care of any slack as it depletes.

And despite what some people probably think, I use Petco pellet carbon. Never had an issue for several years. Sizzles like crazy after initial rinse and I like the pellet size for use in a reactor without sponges.

I don't think he keeps his tank at room temp, he just has a larger water volume so temp doesn't change much from the water change. You should always heat your water up to at least close to your tank temp. Just use a heater in your mixing barrel and wait.

Kenny from Reefstar has adjustable hanging kits like that ATI for his fixtures. You may be able to get one off him cheaper. That's what I'm using to hold my 6 bulb Tek suspended from the ceiling (with anchors)

You have a pic of the setup? Showing all the lines? Somethings off, it's one thing for effluent to clog and reduce drops over a long time but not to flat out stop (especially with the higher drip rate as mentioned).

Link?

Dang! Which laser did you get?

I've got some red dragons breath macro and some chaeto you can have. The dragon has been growing like crazy and covering my chaeto, definitely good for a fuge!

I looked around for one, too. Where did you end up getting one?

Jason at OIAB ordered mine

I use an old OTP3000 pump I had left over from a skimmer (with the water wheel not pinwheel). Really stirs things up well! I use it without the outlet attached, then screw it on and pump the water into the tank.

Most anything will work, larger koralias, a few maxi jets, mag drives, etc.

If it's been a year change them all. What TDS meter you using? I have a triple inline one that makes it easy to tell what needs changed. I read incoming to unit, after membrane, and output. This way if see your after membrane number rising you likely need new pre filters, if that doesn't fix it, time for a new membrane. Also with output you know if your DI is exhausted when compared to the membrane out. The triple meter is probably the best $35 I've spent on my RO system. Highly recommend one.

Ironically that's what I was going to suggest looking into but wasn't sure how cheap you wanted to go. I use the generic full spectrum 165w lights and everything does great so I'm sure you'll be fine with them.

Looks great, nice job finding the deals! ????

What's the lighting plan? DIY or China LED will keep the budget well

Sump level is all that should be changing assuming pump speed is maintained. Sounds like you're running some form of a Herbie drain. Once started, Herbie drains take a few minutes to purge air and get up to full draining. In your case I would suspect something with the drain is slowly changing, is it possible there is a leak somewhere? Maybe air is getting in and slowing it down or making it take longer to get up to speed? I would investigate the drain first and go from there.

Also, auto top offs help keep the level in your sump constant to avoid any fluctuations caused by topoff that could somehow be affecting the pump.

Very cool classroom tank! Looks like you have a cyano algae bloom going on, I would use some ChemiClean to take care of it. I get it seasonally and just treated mine last week. Could be a cool experiment for the class!

That green lazer doesn't work, that's the one I bought exactly. You can literally put it on your skin and it doesn't even get warm. The seller said when I told him it wouldn't light matches to "do it in a dark room" LOL don't waste your cash

Which one did you buy Jeremy? I bought a cheap green one that claimed it would light matches....couldn't even get it to do that...hard to know what ones are the real deal.

If you can manually remove the frags, that's best. Remove with a razor blade or something and dip after. If you can't remove usually emerald crabs take care of it or a foxface. Emeralds can have varying appetites for coral in some cases so that's why I recommend manual removal outside of the tank if possible.

Nicely done! If there's one thing I hate, it's getting in my tight crawl space (pretty similar to yours, army crawl everywhere). Wish I had a spot somewhere for my sump like that :(

Staying tuned for stocking in the future

I'd have to agree with PowderBlue on this one. There are some larger AIOs that Nuvo makes but when your skimmer is limited (by space it can fit) it really limits your livestock in the long run. If you look at skimmers that fit into the AIOs, most cap out at about 60ish gal for capacity. As most skimmers are overrated on capacity, you are going to be pushing the limits. Having a nicely sized sump lets you get into the nicer, more efficient skimmers and let's you have a nice area for a fuge (instead of crammed into the back with a side light). Plus as we all usually say, more water capacity = more stable.