Dan's 90 Bowfront

[saltwaterwannabe]

I am finally setting up a 90 bowfront I bought about 10 months ago.

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The stamd is sanded and caulked. I plan to make the bottom a drip collector pan with alarm.

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I setup a box to try rock layouts tonight. Below is my best from tonight. I may pick up a few larger pieces and give it a go again before setup, but this is what it looks like so far. The bucket with rocks around it represents the mass of rock in my biocube, which may make the transfer as is.

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I picked up a Trigger Enerald 27 sump last weekend, which leaves less than a quarter inch for the doors of the stand to close. I could only fit a slightly larger sump under it if I built a custom size, so this worked beautifully.

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The Turboflotor 1000 multi SL I picked up with the tank was overflowing when running vinegar water. For now, I ordered a $15 replacement part for my skimmer that was aparently lost buy the prior owner but locks the skimmer cup to the top. I had to modify it to fit the skimmer chamber. I will likely upgrade this later. Pictured also are the gfo reactor and water changing station.

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While the rock is curing I plan to pickup led lighting and a wavemaker. I will post more pics soon. As mentioned I may pickup some rock also. I will be posting one of two biocubes, a 20 gallon trickle style sump, and a salt damaged 48 inch coralife aqualight pro with 3 x 150 watt ballasts if anyone is interested in trades.

This will make tank number 7 running at once... 3 cichlid, 1 frog, 1 beta, biocube, plus the 90....what am I thinking?! lol

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[saltwaterwannabe]

I bleached enough rock to fill a 45 gallon brute rot a day and a half and soaked in rodi water for 2 weeks changing out the water every day. I now have the rock in saltwater with an airstone at the bottom on one side and small return pump pushing the top water to the bottom on the other side. Also have a fan accross the top, but I am guessing it may not be needed witb the airstone and return pump.

Also using macrobactr7 with a dosing line run to the bottom as well. I did a tripple dose for day 1 and am dosing for heavy load daily. How long should I leave the rock this way?

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[saltwaterwannabe]

I added enoug ammonia that should bring it up to aroumd 3 ppm while waiting for the dead material to start breaking down. Do I need to keep adding amonia simce the goal is to clean out the dead material in the rock and then cycle it?

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[saltwaterwannabe]

Final flexseal coat on the bottom. Next up a 9 dolllar returned discount shelf white alkyd enamel paint and countertop laminate. I also have some old shower surround material...wondering if it would be better as a laminate in the long run....it would basically make the bottom a sealed tank.

Guess I am rolling the dice that no water gets below it all.

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[myreefclub0070]

looking good so far, DIY projects are the best no matter what.

 

[saltwaterwannabe]

Apex and ATO, minus storage tanks for the build...now to figure out how to squeeze it all in

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[shrimpy brains]

Looks great!

 

[saltwaterwannabe]

Shrimpy Brains;1099277 wrote: Looks great!

Great complement from someone "without a clue?" I like the signature:thumbs:

 

[saltwaterwannabe]

Read zero on all tests less than 24 hours after dosing with 10 ml ammonia. Now to stop procrastinating on the final tank setup:thumbs:

Making water now to set it up in the garage for a wet test run and to try rock layouts before setting it up in the house.

 

[saltwaterwannabe]

I have been looking online for an ATO to fit in my 90 gallon bowfront stand. I am finding that anything over a 2.5 gallon will not fit well unless I make some modifications to allow the ATO tank to hang out of the back of the stand. Is 2.5 gallons a large enough ATO tank for a 90 gallon tank?

 

[hzheng33]

SaltWaterWannabe;1100302 wrote: I have been looking online for an ATO to fit in my 90 gallon bowfront stand. I am finding that anything over a 2.5 gallon will not fit well unless I make some modifications to allow the ATO tank to hang out of the back of the stand. Is 2.5 gallons a large enough ATO tank for a 90 gallon tank?

the 2.5 gallon ato reservoir might last you a week...or less. so it's up to you for the duration between refills. I would have the reservoir external to the stand. that way, you are not always crowded.

 

[firethorn77]

2.5 gallons should work. That's about the evap on my 120 a week.

 

[saltwaterwannabe]

Well, after sliding stuff around in the stand I have to take back my thoughts on using a rubberized liner. The liner buckled and peeled back from the sides then under the laminate I had covering the bottom. I decided to peel the rest of the rubber liner out and will re-caulk and paint the bottom with the same white alkyd paint I used on the inside walls.

Since I am reworking the bottom of the stand, I took the opportunity to remove a poorly placed support and will replace it in a position that is not only structurally more stable, but opens up more room in the stand.

That said, I now have room for a 5 gallon ATO tank, but there would not be much room left in the stand. If a 2.5 gallon will suffice with roughly weekly refills, that will work just fine.

I am hoping someone could let me know if there are any key components missing from my stand. Below are the items I either already have or am picking up soon:

90 gallon RR bow front
Emerald 26 sump
Apex Gold
Apex DOS (considering replacing with a 3 head dosing pump)
2 reactors
Apex ALD
2.5 gallon ATO
ATO pump and sensor
Dosing chambers
Light for sump
Jebao 12000 return pump
Modified TurboFlotor 1000 skimmer (likely to be upgraded later)
5 bulb T5 light with new bulbs
48 inch LED stunner strip
2 Koralia 1500 circulation fans

I think that covers all the major parts, if I am missing anything please let me know.

 

[dapperjman]

I'm not sure how evap rates could only be 2.5 gallons a week for this large of a tank. I lose about 2/day and my total volume is around 150 gallons. I only had room for a 6 gal reservoir, so it's kinda a pain to refill every 3 days.

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[saltwaterwannabe]

Dapperjman;1100356 wrote: I'm not sure how evap rates could only be 2.5 gallons a week for this large of a tank. I lose about 2/day and my total volume is around 150 gallons. I only had room for a 6 gal reservoir, so it's kinda a pain to refill every 3 days.

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I have read a couple of places that a 2.5 gallon is pushing the limit for a 90 gallon tank. I figure as long as I am checking it daily then there should be no issue. However, I went with a 5 gallon reservoir after a minor reconstruction to relocate a vertical "column" in the back of the stand. This freed up my sump to slide another 3 inches towards the end where my Apex will be located and gave more room at the other end of the stand.

This reservoir is only 6 inches wide, so it will leave me access to the last 8 inches of the stand for other equipment or storage with a space of around 5 inches to reach through.

 

[hiimsean]

With a 90g you're going to want more than 2.5g for rodi. I can go through a 5g container in 2-3 days in the summer.

 

[saltwaterwannabe]

Latest addition for the tank...UV

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[saltwaterwannabe]

I am not sure what I have done to deserve this....but I got the green light to convert the former laundry room into a "fish room", complete with supply and return lines over to the tank. I am gonna have a remote sump outside my stand with automated water to boot😄!

Now to pick out the pipe. It is an 85 foot run that has a decent path everywhere except under the tank where I will need to open the sheetrock to make the turn up in the wall to the tank. I am thinking 1.25 pex to sump with 1 inch pex back to tank for budget and ease. An alternate is 1.5 and 1 inch pvc, but I would need to add a lot of small bends to get around stuff in some tight spaces if I use rigid pipe.

1.25 dia should be around 650 gph tank to sump with a 12 inch drop

1.5 dia should be about 950 gph tank to sump with a 12 inch drop.

I figure I can increase the drop or add a small pump to increase the flow from tank to sump if needed.


Has anyone had problems using pex for saltwater?

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[saltwaterwannabe]

I will have a rather lengthy distance (85 feet) between my DT and my sump location. I have an Apex Gold and am now wondering how my Apex will work in this scenario. I had planned to run the circulation pumps, heater, probes, DOS, UV, Skimmer, lights, 2 reactors, etc... using the Apex. Part of the benefit of having the remote sump is access, so I am planning to put the Apex at the sump end of the system. This means there I need 85 foot cables for the circulation pumps, lights, and possibly even a heater given the distance the water is travelling. Is there a separate remote unit for an Apex or do I need an 85 foot non-powered USB that is non-powered?

 

[walterp1982]

I can confirm, I've had my 90 set up for a couple years now, and it uses 4 gallons ato a week with LED lights, no fans, and a canopy.

add fans and or warmer lights and you'll have an increase