Red Sea 750XXL Build

[ActiveAngel]

My wife and I just bought our first home, and I'm moving all my tanks and livestock across town from Dunwoody to Marietta!

Some of the challenges that I expected to face involved quarantining everything. My goal was to set up the new tank without any bubble algae getting in. It was planned to be a 5 week move, but I had a comfortable 11 weeks to complete. Similar to when I moved my tanks from Chicago down to here, but things have not gone nearly as smoothly as before.


I meant to get this thread started much sooner, but this move has been particularly crazy so I had to spend more time solving issues than I could documenting the progress. I wont detail 100% of the problems, as many of them had to do with the previous owners' shortcomings in the home-buying process. The issues are all still a work in progress, but i'll try to catch yall up through regular posts, and include some of the various photos (and timelapse videos ) of the progress.

The new living room reef tank is a Red Sea Reefer 750 XXL, picked up from David and Alex @wake125122

 

[ActiveAngel]

After the first couple move-in issues, 2 weeks were lost, and my timeframe was reduced to 9 available weeks. No issue here, I only need 5 weeks.

Moving Time:
We hired Chris Holloway, as recommended by many people on here, to help move the tank. And we planned for delivery on Friday, 1 week out.

His 4 guys arrived ahead of schedule, and loaded up the truck before even Chris or I arrived on site. David/Alex were there. So I turned around, and headed to Marietta so that I would be ready for drop-off. They arrived a couple hours later, dropped off the tank. I suspect they didn't realize just how heavy large glass tanks can be. lol. They struggled with the 4 of them, but managed to move the tank, stand, and sump into position. Unfortunately, after they left, I noticed 3 of the (corner) legs of the tank stand were missing, as were the leg sheaths. And a couple of the legs were at extreme angles. I contacted Chris, with photos. He inspected his truck and found 1 of them, but the others were missing. Insurance, after all, was my primary reason for not moving it myself.




I used this time to clean up, do housework, and prepare things...

Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, it is impossible to get in supplies at all, let alone in a timely manner. Chris's service was great and he never missed a deadline that he set himself to, but his communication was hit-and-miss so I was getting antsy/stressed. After all, we already passed the 3 week mark and I should have been past the halfway point. After ~3 additional weeks, Chris eventually had a solution from a local hardware store. His guys showed up, fixed everything, and put the tank back in place. Now I could finally begin filling it with water!


It wouldn't be a good build thread without some photos... so here is a flash-forward photo.




To be continued...

 

[ActiveAngel]

Update:
Week 7

For the last couple months, I have been cultivating a TON of live rock in a Rubbermaid trough. These are all stunning pieces of Fiji, Pukani, and Tonga that could easily fill a 600g aquarium.
When it comes to bacteria-in-a-bottle, I agree that most of the various brands are all the same. However, I have seen quicker turnaround in numbers with Turbostart 900... so thats my choice for this build.


From our original 11 weeks, we are now at week 7 and now I can finally get started. At the house, I assemble all the plumbing and begin filling the new tank with saltwater. Once it's half full, I add some rocks and sand as I know they will displace a lot of water. When the water level reached the overflow, I discovered a new issue. The bulkhead on the overflow has a small leak, maybe a couple drips per minute. Fortunately, it drips into the sump. Nonetheless, I drain the overflow, disassemble the plumbing, and do my best to fix the leak. I have only 4 weeks left before I must be out of the apartment, and I fully intend to give every piece of livestock a proper quarantine. However, I'm unable to fix the leak, so I will put off this issue until later and hope that salt creep will stop it up. Everything is reassembled. The small leak persists. But it's time to move on.


I double check that the tank is level. Attempt to Dial-in the overflow so that it's not sucking air... but DANG these Red Sea tanks are noisy. The plumbing is terrible. I make a mental note to install a gate valve as soon as I can. Meanwhile, I turn on the protein skimmer to help oxygenate the water, and install an old cheap old circulation pump that is very old. Did I mention it's old. Most of my old pumps are dead, but this one dinosaur is still working, so it's going in the tank. I also am adding more bacteria, a bit of fish food to decompose, and turning on the heaters. Time to grow more BACTERIA for a few days!

...And I play around with the Aquascape, because who can resist.


In-progress/Coming-soon:
Finish Aquascape and sand
Dial-in Temp and Salinity
Assemble ATO
Fix Cabinet Doors (hinge is rusted)
Replace Gate Valve Plumbing
Setup Lights
Setup Apex and Gyres
Begin moving Fish, Corals, and inverts
Quarantine certain fish/corals/inverts
Keep watch for issues
Fix leaking bulkhead
Setup RODI system
Setup Fish Room (storage, quarantines, live rock, frag tanks)
Setup Anemone Tank
Move Thermostat around corner to reduce humidity/splatter

...ugh, while also handling daily life, work issues, breaking down and selling 3 tanks at the apartment, and moving into a new house. Its a lot. Cant wait for it to be completed!


Also, here are listing photos from the new house. The big tank is where the red shelf is located. I'll post a photo once the furniture is all moved, and cleaned up.

 

[ZapataInc]

Nice!

 

[Adam]

Looks nice. Love the open floor plan. Speaking of the floors those look great! If they're LVT you'll be glad you've got them by the tank.

 

[ActiveAngel]

Looks nice. Love the open floor plan. Speaking of the floors those look great! If they're LVT you'll be glad you've got them by the tank.

Absolutely. Those were two of the selling points that really spoke to us as well. It just makes it that much easier when setting up a big tank, and gives options for placement. Now if only I had a huge basement like yours to turn into a fish room... haha. Maybe on the next house

 

[ActiveAngel]

Update:
Weeks 7
I set up a small quarantine for snails and hermits. My intention is to block out all light and keep them quarantined for several weeks. This, in combination with careful inspection and scraping/scrubbing their shells, will hopefully prevent any bubble or turf algae from sneaking into the next tank. For this task, I put @scottw old QT tanks to good temporary use, along with a heater and a small return pump for circulation.

I also managed to catch 2 pairs of my clowns. Both pairs (4 clowns) were moved to the new tank under careful observation. It is a large tank. And for now, they all appear to be getting along amicably.

Weeks 8 and 9
For the main tank, I was able to dial in the temperature and salinity. I also removed and re-aquascaped the rockwork. While the rocks were gorgeous, there just wasn't enough empty space. And I believe that empty space is greatly underappreciated when it comes to setting up reef tanks. Finally, I added 3 sets of orbit marine lights to the top of the tank. These will work temporarily until I can get some better lights.

Meanwhile, I started by moving all soft corals and the hardiest SPS and LPS such as Montis and Leptos. I also managed to catch my big goby, the dominant fish in the tank, and move him to the new tank.

Going into Week 9, I began moving some of the more moderate-level LPS such as the Euphyllias, Favias, and Platygyra. I also installed the Apex (and did the new software update).

Week 10
Unfortunately, during week 10, I have to leave the state for my grandpa's 81st birthday party! So after this, there is really only 1 week left to finish breaking down 3 tanks, catch and move the rest of my fish, anemones, and corals, including all the acros. Its very doable, but faster than I wished for it to be. I preferred to quarantine everything during the transfer.

... now we are approaching week 11, and the deadline. Stay tuned for updates!

In-progress/Coming-soon:
Finish moving fish, corals, and inverts
Move Bellus Angels, Blue Tang, Leopard wrasse, and diamond goby
Finish Aquascape and Sand
Add Pods
Assemble ATO
Fix Cabinet Doors (hinge is rusted)
Replace Gate Valve Plumbing
Replace Return Line plumbing (need to scan and 3d print part)
Setup Hybrid Lights
Keep watch for issues
Setup Doser
Fix leaking bulkhead
Setup RODI system
Move Thermostat around corner to reduce humidity/splatter
---

There was not a lot of photos here, so here is a sneak peek at Week 11, including Acros and the rest of the fish.

 

[scottw]

Looking great!!!!

 

[ActiveAngel]

Update!
Week 11 came and went. I finished transporting all the remaining Acros, fish, and various invertebrates. I lost a couple of acros and inverts that I just didn't have enough time to fully care for. Otherwise, most corals and all fish are healthy and happy! ...But my halloween urchin is temporarily chilling in the sump, because I dont trust him not to move around corals.





I've removed a large rock from the right side of the tank. Its a stunning piece, but I need to open up more space.... And I get the feeling that before I'm finished with the aquascape, I will need to remove 1 more rock. I just have to figure out which one and how to do it first.


I also upgraded my lights to a Noopsyche T5 Hybrid, and threw my old Radions on there as well as a bunch of old bulbs that hadn't seen much use previously. I'll begin selling the radions soon, as I want to switch brands. But things look great under the T5s!


Finally, to get rid of that god-awful noise, I replaced the crappy Red Sea diaphragm valve with a gate valve. I had to buy a imperial-metric adapter for PVC fittings. But oh my, it was worth it! Took a while to dial it in, but it's much more quiet now.



In week 12 and 13, I also added the Bellus Angels, Blue Tang, Leopard Wrasse, and Diamond goby...

• The Angels and the Blue Tang are all fat and healthy. Thank you @roberthu526 and @jmcdona6
• The diamond goby unfortunately arrived injured and bleeding. And while he slowly healed up, is sifting sand, and eating frozen... he is just not eating enough. He is still alive and still eating, but getting skinny.
• The Leopard Wrasse is swimming and eating well. But his fins are a bit tattered. I added a little medication to the food that is being fed to these two fish. I hope they can pull through.

I've added the ATO (and doser). Its not much in terms of complexity; just a simple float valve connected to a water reservoir. To make the reservoir, I've followed my old recipe of:

1. Buy a clear plastic tote
2. Lay down a vertical strip of painters tape
3. Paint the exterior of the tub and lid (dark blue) in order to block light from getting in and promoting phototrophic growth.
4. Remove the painters tape, creating a viewing window to determine water level at a quick glance.

Lastly, for today, my 2 pairs of clownfish which at first got along peacefully.... well they dont anymore. One day, a switch flipped, and the 2 big ones decided they didn't like #3 and began harassing, chasing, and ripping her fins. So I caught her and her mate and moved them both to the sump temporarily. They're doing great down there now, and she is healing well.



... I Cant Wait to glue and place all of the corals! My sandbed looks wayyy too cluttered.


In-progress/Coming-soon:
Finish Aquascape and Sand
Add Pods
Fix Cabinet Doors (hinge is rusted)
Replace Return Line plumbing (need to scan and 3d print part)
Keep watch for issues
Fix leaking bulkhead
Setup RODI system
Move Thermostat around corner to reduce humidity/splatter

 

[scottw]

That looks fantastic!!

 

[ActiveAngel]

That looks fantastic!!

I think so too! I was a little worried that the Noopsyches would look a little too small for a 72" tank, but the light spreads pretty well all the way to the edge. And the L brackets were a great, and super cheap, idea for mounting.

 

[scottw]

I think so too! I was a little worried that the Noopsyches would look a little too small for a 72" tank, but the light spreads pretty well all the way to the edge. And the L brackets were a great, and super cheap, idea for mounting.

I think it looks good too, and those L brackets came out great! Can't wait to see this puppy full of huge corals!

 

[ActiveAngel]

I've been a little sick for the past week, while simultaneously swamped with work and planning a trip overseas for a family wedding, so this update is a little later than I hoped.

Fish update, regarding the two sickly fish: Both passed. While the Orange Diamond Goby healed up his injury, was sifting sand as expected, and even eating frozen... apparently it just wasn't enough. Around the time that his wound fully closed, his activity decreased, he ate less and less, and disappeared into the reef. Similarly for the male Leopard Wrasse, who ate tons, but seemed to have vision problems so I was spot feeding daily. Over 2-3 months, he also disappeared shortly after swimming became a struggle. Its very sad, but these things happen. I wish the moving process wasn't as rushed, and I could have given them proper large isolation and some medication. But I doubt that would have even helped in this case.

On good news; all of the other fish are fat and healthy!

Also good news: Most reefers will swear by the value of the clean up crew, specifically the microfauna that reproduce by the hundreds/thousands both in our refugiums and around the reef. I always love to seed my tank with copepods and amphipods. These larger critters provide a little more meat for wrasses and other fish, which will search the rockwork and chase them around the tank. Anyways, here's a video of both the copepods and amphipods from Heisenberg Aquaculture and Aquarium Depot respectively.

There's a lot more good news to update, including a proper tank vid! But those will have to wait another couple weeks. Have a great day everyone

 

[ActiveAngel]

Hopefully a full tank update video will be coming soon!

Meanwhile, i finally upgraded the broken Loc-line adapter. Reducing the risk of an issue happening beforehand.

The adapter on the return line had a small crack when i set up the tank. So to hold it in place, i used 1/4" tubing as a rope, and tied a knot around it. As you may see. Coralline grew over the knot, securing it a bit more.



However, its not worth the risk. I forgot about the whole replacement until a few days ago. So i got my new adapter and installed it. $12 and 30 seconds of work, to potentially save thousands of $ later.

 

[YoungReefer10g]

Following

 

[andrewjjones1212]

sweet tank so far!

 

[ActiveAngel]

I want to make a tank vid soon... but in case it takes longer, here is some eye candy

 

[ActiveAngel]

And more

 

[Dmitri]

That’s a great looking tank!

 

[Reefkeep]

Seen it in person, pictures don’t do it justice.