Smaller place, bigger tank...My 200DD build

[eric b 125]

Using your old MP's?

Worked on your water change system at all?

Yeah, I didn't see a reason not to. I might get two more (one for each side) if I need to, but I want to try and create a gyre on Long Pulse Mode. Plus, it'd be nice to not have powerheads and wires on the sides of the tank.

The water change system is three good old fashioned 33 gallon trash cans and a Mag 18 that was my old return pump. I'm going to have two cans in the fish closet: one for salt and one for fresh water (the third can is for old tank water). I'm going to keep the fresh water one full so I can get water for my ATO reservoir without having to hook up the kati/ani for an hour several times a week. I will refill the fresh water can whenever I fill the salt can for a water change the next day.

I will need to get a de-humidifier. I noticed condensation on the inside of my kitchen window. Just like the system, it will need to be very quiet. I'll start looking into that later today. This place has radiant heat so keeping the kitchen window cracked won't be a big deal until I find a good unit.

 

[snakeblitz33]

Wow. Very nice. I'm liking it. Well thought out.

I don't know of a silent dehumidifier. All of them I have ever used do make some noise.

Man, I am loving this cold weather!!

 

[eric b 125]

I looked at some consumer reports and I found a dehumidifier. I still want to compare some other ones but at least I have an idea of what I'm looking at.

Hoping to get a little more done with the tank today...

 

[eric b 125]

Got the reactors connected to the manifold and did some minor stuff with the ATO. I'm hoping that it's okay to have the Phosban reactor on the ground and not hanging off of the tank. I don't see a problem with it as long as it doesn't fall over. Having it on the floor just gives me more room to play since I can set it under the R overflow plumbing. I kept the lines from the manifold long so that I can remove the reactors without having to pull the hose from the manifold. When I do have to remove the hoses, doing it outside of the stand rather than within the limited space of within the stand, will give me more dexterity to do it in a gentler way. More bad pictures of the worsening mess...

I didn't really have time to be concerned with taking decent photos today (not that I take decent photos on other days, lol). I have to get some stuff to be able to attach the wires from the VorTechs and my lights to the top of the inside of the stand so they aren't in the way. I'm just going to use the stickies like the ones that came with the VorTechs and twisty-ties so I can remove the wires easily if I need to. Rarely have I seen electrical wires well hidden or even organized, but I'm going to get as close to organized as I can.

I also got a few coats of black paint on the acrylic top for the ATO reservoir. Should be dry enough by tomorrow so that I can continue the electrical over the next few days.

 

[gemmy]

The system is coming along nicely! Have you thought about the riptide gyre? I have seen them in person and they create some awesome flow!

 

[eric b 125]

The system is coming along nicely! Have you thought about the riptide gyre? I have seen them in person and they create some awesome flow!

Thanks Krista! I'm hoping to have all the equipment running today, even though it's still just FW. I want to see how much noise this thing makes. If I can get all (or at least most) of the wires ran and there are no leaks or anything, then I'll drain it and start filling it with filtered water to start mixing the salt.

I've not heard of a riptide gyre. I'll have to look it up.

 

[eric b 125]

I used some of these:

To make some of these:

I used them throughout the stand to hang wires. A few on the top of the stand, on the trim of the sump, and one on the back of the stand. With such little room to work with in the sump at least I can keep the wires out of my way.

 

[eric b 125]

There's a huge mess behind the electrical box:

But once I velcro the controllers and monitors to the electrical box, it'll look pretty good:

You can barely see the wires for the lights

And with the return, skimmer, VorTechs x 3, lights and calcium reactor running it's amazingly quiet. I can still hear my ceiling fan when the system is running.

 

[silverado61]

That's the only way to go. Clean and organized. You just get frustrated if its a tangled mess.

 

[eric b 125]

I did break my extra bulkhead and another one, so I have to get some replacements. I don't know how I feel about Rectorseal 5. I never had leaks or breaks with teflon tape. I had a few leaks once I put the standpipes in, but when I replaced the first broken bulkhead I put one of Marinelands gaskets on the threaded bulkhead and it worked much better. I can still run the system with the broken bulkhead. It only drips a little bit and it's right over the sump. I'm not going to keep the system running, but at least I could work on it.

 

[eric b 125]

That's the only way to go. Clean and organized. You just get frustrated if its a tangled mess.

It is a mess behind the box. But I'm going to bundle the wires and zip tie them to try and minimize any knots. It's not like I'll be doing much work b/w the box and sump anyways and anywhere I will be putzing around is pretty clear of wires.

 

[eric b 125]

So...there is a HUGE mess of wires b/w the box and the sump. Zip-tying loops of wire will just create big wads and if/when I need to remove a single wire those wads will just pull on other wads and make it more difficult than it has to be. The good news is: the mess is contained in a part of the stand where I don't need to reach regularly. It ain't pretty, but for the most part it's out of sight anyways.

Aside from the mess of wires (which I think in most systems is inevitable) I'd say everything turned out pretty clean. The system is insanely quiet, self contained (except for the CO2 bottle and VorTech Battery Backup) and everything is reasonably easy to access...which is exactly what I set out to build.

There are a few things that need addressed: that broken bulkhead, calibrating the pH controller, getting the CO2 bottle filled, etc., but once that bulkhead is taken care of everything else can be handled in due time, most likely during the cycle.

 

[silverado61]

One day at a time. It took me almost a year to build my stand the way I wanted it. Aside from adding/building a calcium doser its pretty much done. Then I can start adding corals. There's an aquarium expo this weekend that I'm going to. Looking forward to that.

 

[eric b 125]

One day at a time. It took me almost a year to build my stand the way I wanted it. Aside from adding/building a calcium doser its pretty much done. Then I can start adding corals. There's an aquarium expo this weekend that I'm going to. Looking forward to that.

One day at a time is how I live my life, lol. This build has really shown me the benefits of practicing patience in this hobby.

 

[eric b 125]

Brought the sand home today

Also fixed that cracked bulkhead. Draining the tank now and going to start filling it with the kati/ani. By tomorrow I should at least have enough water to keep the aquascaping submerged.

I did a little test today to figure out the capacity of the sump and I drained both overflows into it once the return was turned off. The sump can accommodate all of the back flow from the return in addition to both overflows with about 1.5" of room to spare.

I've been looking at the gyre that Gemmy had mentioned and I think I might give it a shot.

 

[eric b 125]

Getting salty finally!

 

[eric b 125]

There is a pretty sweet aquascape in there. You'll just have to trust me for now.

 

[eric b 125]

I have 60 gallons of saltwater mixing. I was using a Mag 12 to mix water before, but the wire frayed, the housing wasn't looking too good, and the impeller was shot. I have a Mag 18 that was my old return pump as was going to use that, but I gave a MJ1200 a shot and I like it better. It mixes the water just fine and when I connect a hose to it it pumps the water to the tank without blasting it. I have two MJ 1200's: one for the SW and one for the FW buckets.

I only used 120 of the 160#'s of sand. I'm going to wait for it to clear up to see how much more to add.

I also have an extra MP40 wet side that needs serviced. I'm going back and forth on sending it in and also paying for a new one, so I have two back ups, or just getting the Maxspect Gyre. Early reviews are that the Gyre is louder than VorTechs, and that won't work for me.

 

[gemmy]

Hmmm....I did not find the gyres to be that loud when I checked them out 2 weeks ago. I have a demo unit on my 55 and it is not noisy. I know there is a break in period for them. Maybe that is what the noise issue is??

 

[eric b 125]

Hmmm....I did not find the gyres to be that loud when I checked them out 2 weeks ago. I have a demo unit on my 55 and it is not noisy. I know there is a break in period for them. Maybe that is what the noise issue is??

Which one do you have? Do you have it on the back or the side of your 55?