Enders Mid Life Crisis Build
- Thread starter enderg60
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I was about to say that exact same thing Chuck! You could probably make good money in Atlanta putting systems together for people.
I was curious, the three white pipes that are coming into the top of the right side of the tank are all returns? By piping them all through the rock work I imagine you get flow that is more similar to what you might get in an actual reef. I assume that is the idea anyway. Are you able to increase or decrease the amount of flow going to each zone by say having a pump attached to each line? I know how I am and I would want to be able to tinker with the flow.
I was curious, the three white pipes that are coming into the top of the right side of the tank are all returns? By piping them all through the rock work I imagine you get flow that is more similar to what you might get in an actual reef. I assume that is the idea anyway. Are you able to increase or decrease the amount of flow going to each zone by say having a pump attached to each line? I know how I am and I would want to be able to tinker with the flow.
yes you can maybe thats why he did it
Aside from my back hurting, there is no better way to kill your love of something than doing it for a living. I'll stick with doing the design in cad and letting other people do it!
I spent most of the day piping up the Chiller and gas heater and now I need a few hours on the couch.
The 3 pipes are closed loops. The long middle pipe is the intake. I cut slots in it on the table saw to make the longest strainer ever. I just accidentally deleted the pics of it before I buried it in rock.
Having it long means even at full flow there is no suction danger to anything living. Long and in the rocks helps pull stuff out from behind the rocks. And having it low means I can pipe it to act as a tank drain.
The bottom pipe goes with another pipe along the top front. This will hopefully get the water in the tank moving in a barrel roll.
The top pipe is done to spin the water around the tank. Both loops share the suction pipe and will alternate which is on.
It's all buried in the rock because I don't want to see it. Reefs don't have power heads. Yup, each outlet is valved and adjustable because you never know. The only other flow will be the 1000 gph return via a 1" sea swirl, and I'll have the wave box going. The closed loops are 6400 gph each and everything will have adjustable flow controlled by the apex. So not gonna be hurting for flow any time soon.
The only power head allowed in the display is the wave box because I can take it out from the back.
I spent most of the day piping up the Chiller and gas heater and now I need a few hours on the couch.
The 3 pipes are closed loops. The long middle pipe is the intake. I cut slots in it on the table saw to make the longest strainer ever. I just accidentally deleted the pics of it before I buried it in rock.
Having it long means even at full flow there is no suction danger to anything living. Long and in the rocks helps pull stuff out from behind the rocks. And having it low means I can pipe it to act as a tank drain.
The bottom pipe goes with another pipe along the top front. This will hopefully get the water in the tank moving in a barrel roll.
The top pipe is done to spin the water around the tank. Both loops share the suction pipe and will alternate which is on.
It's all buried in the rock because I don't want to see it. Reefs don't have power heads. Yup, each outlet is valved and adjustable because you never know. The only other flow will be the 1000 gph return via a 1" sea swirl, and I'll have the wave box going. The closed loops are 6400 gph each and everything will have adjustable flow controlled by the apex. So not gonna be hurting for flow any time soon.
The only power head allowed in the display is the wave box because I can take it out from the back.
Just in time for christmas, The stand arrives!
First up, some drawers to hold all my kids junk and the home theater shelf.
Column is up! Bottom skin and doors are on.
Now I kicked them out for the weekend so I could finish stuff. First up, the exhaust duct and the last of the closed loop piping.
Next up, the borg light rack.
Now when testing the light rack 3 things were not in place. 1. The 2" valves were not installed(note the handles 2 pics up). 2. The back XHO light wasnt on the rack. 3. The top front closed loop pipe wasnt in place yet.
SOOOO this is what happens when you rush things......When I raised the lights for the first time a valve handle took out a halide reflector. After doing an impression of my 3 year old, I bent the reflector back ish. Moved the reflectors and angled them where they were supposed to be in the first place and moved the valve handles out of the way. Then I noticed the rack legs were bouncing off the closed loop piping. Joy! I decided I was done, grabbed the heat gun and made me some clearance.
Moving on....Testing!
Cleaned up the wiring for the home theater.
Just in time for the top to be installed!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNDDDDDDDDDD
It took me all of 20 minutes of joy before I grabbed the hose to fill it up.
And it finally looks like it belongs there.
And now youre all caught up on the last few years. I still have a long to do list, but things are always moving and the next big delivery is only a few weeks away!
First up, some drawers to hold all my kids junk and the home theater shelf.
Column is up! Bottom skin and doors are on.
Now I kicked them out for the weekend so I could finish stuff. First up, the exhaust duct and the last of the closed loop piping.
Next up, the borg light rack.
Now when testing the light rack 3 things were not in place. 1. The 2" valves were not installed(note the handles 2 pics up). 2. The back XHO light wasnt on the rack. 3. The top front closed loop pipe wasnt in place yet.
SOOOO this is what happens when you rush things......When I raised the lights for the first time a valve handle took out a halide reflector. After doing an impression of my 3 year old, I bent the reflector back ish. Moved the reflectors and angled them where they were supposed to be in the first place and moved the valve handles out of the way. Then I noticed the rack legs were bouncing off the closed loop piping. Joy! I decided I was done, grabbed the heat gun and made me some clearance.
Moving on....Testing!
Cleaned up the wiring for the home theater.
Just in time for the top to be installed!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNDDDDDDDDDD
It took me all of 20 minutes of joy before I grabbed the hose to fill it up.
And it finally looks like it belongs there.
And now youre all caught up on the last few years. I still have a long to do list, but things are always moving and the next big delivery is only a few weeks away!
Wow that looks so good! I will definitely be borrowing some things from your design for my next tank.
That's so damn cool. Who did you have do your cabinetry?
Outstanding!
I mean its on dudes back in the pics....Buut Its Kellogg Creek Cabinetry (770) 827-8738 or you can just annoy @billyocean. Be aware wait times can be a few months because, well...they rock! I like it so much Im waiting on quotes from them to do a few other items around the house.
Minor update, Ive been working on cleaning up and wiring the closet behind the tank and finishing up the gas water heater system, which turned into a shower on me.
Guys at SEA and MRC keep delaying my due date, but every time they do they show me some cool custom thing they made and Im just like....welllll OK then!
My tub of 200 lbs of marco rock are still curing and Im using lanthanum to deal with the phosphate leaching. Doing the same on the display even though its just soaking in fresh water. After getting new clean rock, and still acid dipping it I no longer thing its even possible to get rock that doesnt leach phosphate. So Im just going to stock up on GFO and not worry about it anymore.
Now back to work so I can pay for my obsession.
Dang! That sucks.I mean its on dudes back in the pics....Buut Its Kellogg Creek Cabinetry (770) 827-8738 or you can just annoy @billyocean. Be aware wait times can be a few months because, well...they rock! I like it so much Im waiting on quotes from them to do a few other items around the house.
Minor update, Ive been working on cleaning up and wiring the closet behind the tank and finishing up the gas water heater system, which turned into a shower on me.
Guys at SEA and MRC keep delaying my due date, but every time they do they show me some cool custom thing they made and Im just like....welllll OK then!
My tub of 200 lbs of marco rock are still curing and Im using lanthanum to deal with the phosphate leaching. Doing the same on the display even though its just soaking in fresh water. After getting new clean rock, and still acid dipping it I no longer thing its even possible to get rock that doesnt leach phosphate. So Im just going to stock up on GFO and not worry about it anymore.
Now back to work so I can pay for my obsession.
The marco rock, was that new/unused and leaching phosphates? I went with new/unused marco rocks and I didn't have any phosphate leaching. That is just weird.
yeah it was brand new stuff never in water. I even bleached and acid dipped it for the hell of it. It will bring the phosphates up to 0.8-1.0 in about 3 days.
My old rock which is mostly in the display was in well fed tanks for 10-20 years back when no one knew what phosphates were so its pushing the fresh water phosphates up past 1.0 in a day or two and this is after bleaching and TWO acid dips.
I was planning on using mostly the marco rock for the display but after seeing the phosphates I said screw it and used my old rock because it was all the cool rocks I collected over the years.
The phosphate curse shall follow me to this tank, but now I have auto testing and a HUGE GFO reactor.
My old rock which is mostly in the display was in well fed tanks for 10-20 years back when no one knew what phosphates were so its pushing the fresh water phosphates up past 1.0 in a day or two and this is after bleaching and TWO acid dips.
I was planning on using mostly the marco rock for the display but after seeing the phosphates I said screw it and used my old rock because it was all the cool rocks I collected over the years.
The phosphate curse shall follow me to this tank, but now I have auto testing and a HUGE GFO reactor.
How do you auto test phosphates?
My new dry rock also leached phosphates for a very long time - I also had to dose lanthanum in the form of SeaKlear to keep it down.
Diluted lanthanum dosed slowly right near the skimmer intake is your best bet for PO4. GFO is just not economical at this scale, I was blowing through a liter's worth in 24-36hrs. Yes it can be renewed but, at this scale, is a major PITFA! Ask me how I know 
You've also shown again and again in this thread that you are one brave sole. I don't think I'd have the stones to put A/V equipment directly under my display.
You've also shown again and again in this thread that you are one brave sole. I don't think I'd have the stones to put A/V equipment directly under my display.
How long did the rocks leach phosphate? Im using the Hanna tester, but also have the red sea one to verify.
Im using the Seaklear now in a diluted slow drip into a filter sock for now. Im Just hesitant to use it with fish in the system.
Adam, just wait till you see whats under my chiller!
About a year in a 150g. I tried to let it leach out on its own and then got tired of staring at a FOWLR tank and started dosing SeaKlear.
I put 1-2ml SeaKlear into a little jug of RODI water and drip it into a sock.
I’ve previously tried dripping it directly into the skimmer but the skimmer chamber developed a white residue on the surface.
I’ve got a bunch of tangs and a clam in there and they are all fine dripping into the sock. It’s just a regular sock. I’ve tried using a 10 micron sock before and that thing just clogged so now it’s just the regular one…I think it’s 100 microns or something
I put 1-2ml SeaKlear into a little jug of RODI water and drip it into a sock.
I’ve previously tried dripping it directly into the skimmer but the skimmer chamber developed a white residue on the surface.
I’ve got a bunch of tangs and a clam in there and they are all fine dripping into the sock. It’s just a regular sock. I’ve tried using a 10 micron sock before and that thing just clogged so now it’s just the regular one…I think it’s 100 microns or something
Actually scratch that - I got my tanks confused. The 150g wasn't all new dryrock - about 75% was used, cleaned and dry.
Are you soaking it in tap water? Just based on your comment of filling it up with a hose.
Yup, ran a test and the tap water has a crap ton of phosphate. So Ill be draining the display now! Fingers crossed maybe it was just that (I doubt it though).
Fun fact, I noticed some FW algae growing in the display....only on the spot that still had coral skeleton from my old system that didnt get dissolved in the acid baths.
The live rock is curing in Ro saltwater so no worries there.
@Rainblood how much Ro were you mixing the 1-2ml SeaKlear? How long was the drip going and how often did you do it?
Im currently just adding like 2-4 ml to a 5g of tub water and letting it drip back in over about 2 days. I would do it with RO but it doesnt evaporate much since its mostly covered.
