Zach's 120 Gallon Reef Resurgence

[zachxlutz]

double post oops

 

[zachxlutz]

xilez;1094437 wrote: I dont think you can go wrong with either, I have never painted... I did vinyl to my tank last night, and it looks funky. I am going to try window tint on thursday and if that doesnt work, I will resort to paint.

You could either do Krylon Fusion of Plastidip (which would peel off technically).

I'm going to go with painting it after doing further research. I've had good results in the past... no reason to change what works!

Dapperjman;1094490 wrote: I had to peel off some old paint before and it came off very easily. I believe you'd be Ok with the krylon fusion.

I also just used some non-hardening pvc paste for the first time and have to agree that I trust it more than the Teflon tape!

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Non-hardening PVC paste is, IMHO, a far superior product to the tape. I did some research on why it's a better product and found that the tape is static while the paste is actually forced into the areas it's needed most by the water pressure. http://www.lascofittings.com/threads">Image below from Lasco Fittings.</a>

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/xatlzachx/threadsealant.jpg alt="" />

 

[zachxlutz]

WE HAVE PAINT!

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Last night and earlier today I put a couple of coats of gloss black paint on the plumbing and on the back of tank. It really turned out great aside from a few areas on the glass that I apparently didn't clean well enough. I'll be lightly scuffing those areas and applying a little more paint to hide the imperfections. The blue on the valves offsets with the black and creates a visually pleasing aesthetic that shouldn't be too obtrusive when viewing the tank from the sides once it's in place in the dining room.

Every day we get a little bit closer to bringing the tank inside and getting things going. I'm getting very excited!

 

[zachxlutz]

The project is on hold for a bit while I wait for a new tank to be delivered. I'm just not happy with the scratches on this one from the previous owner. I'll re-drill the holes for the bulkheads in the same spots so I should just be swapping all the plumbing over and then bringing it inside... Fingers crossed.

 

[sewer urchin]

Did you ever get around to doing a water test, well really doing a simulated power outage?

The reason I ask is it looks like the the returns under water without a siphon break, there is a good chance water could siphon down to the sump.

 

[zachxlutz]

Sewer Urchin;1095297 wrote: Did you ever get around to doing a water test, well really doing a simulated power outage?

The reason I ask is it looks like the the returns under water without a siphon break, there is a good chance water could siphon down to the sump.

I did a full several day leak test as well as some simulated power outage situations. The return loc-line jets sit at roughly the same water line level as the overflow boxes. The sump is a standard 55 gallon tank and with the baffles I imagine it sits around 40 gallons full while the return pump is running. When I kill the power to the return pump it siphons for a while and then settles out with quite a bit more room in the sump. It's safe as long as the loc-line return nozzles don't get bumped down very low but I really don't see that happening. Maybe I'll look at drilling two small holes in the return line at the highest point inside the tank in the event that a "perfect storm" happens and the loc-line gets bumped too low and the power goes out.

 

[sewer urchin]

Cool, it's a well thought out system. Good luck with the swap other to the new tank.

Maybe I'll look at drilling two small holes in the return line at the highest point inside the tank in the event that a "perfect storm" happens and the loc-line gets bumped too low and the power goes out.

In my experience, and in all honesty.... it it gets any light at all it will grow algae and get plugged within a couple of weeks.

 

[zachxlutz]

Sewer Urchin;1095312 wrote: Cool, it's a well thought out system. Good luck with the swap other to the new tank.



In my experience, and in all honesty.... it it gets any light at all it will grow algae and get plugged within a couple of weeks.

Thanks. I'm trying to do things right the first time on this tank. I really don't want to go back and make big changes later. I read something one time that said something along the lines of "if you don't make the time to do it right the first time, you're certainly not going to make the time to fix it later." Trying to avoid that situation.

I may skip drilling those holes, given your experience with it. I'll do some more test scenarios when I get the new tank drilled and set up in the garage. I'll keep everyone updated. I'm having a blast getting this tank going!

 

[zachxlutz]

Friday Update:

I picked up a new Marineland 120 gallon 4'x2'x2' tank last night from

 

[xilez]

holy ****! thanks for linking their FB.... I know where I will be dropping hundreds on coral frags once my tank finishes cycling

 

[firethorn77]

Shac is doubling the size of his store. Seen it lately?

 

[grouper therapy]

If I were you i would put some vertical 2x4s between your horizontal 2xs. All the weight is resting in you fasteners.

 

[zachxlutz]

xilez;1095503 wrote: holy ****! thanks for linking their FB.... I know where I will be dropping hundreds on coral frags once my tank finishes cycling

His store is looking great, awesome coral selection and the prices look very competitive.

Firethorn77;1095587 wrote: Shac is doubling the size of his store. Seen it lately?

I hadn't been there before but will definitely be returning.

grouper therapy;1095589 wrote: If I were you i would put some vertical 2x4s between your horizontal 2xs. All the weight is resting in you fasteners.

I bought it second hand and will be doing some modifications to it to make it more secure and stable.

 

[zachxlutz]

New Marineland tank... I took very careful measurements of the previously drilled holes in the old tank as I only wanted to drill holes this time around (measure twice, drill once!). I had no intentions of changing up the plumbing work:

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Thankfully, I made all the plumbing very modular in the event I needed to change one part here or there... This made things infinitely easier in the dissasembly of the previous tank and reassembling here:

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IT FITS! (I had my fingers crossed the whole time):

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Paint applied to back of tank:

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Filled with water for the leak test:

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Shiny! No scratches or haziness:

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Thoughts:
I'm a little disappointed I had this setback, but I know I'm going to be much happier in the long run. The leak test appears to be going smooth. It ran all night last night with no leaks. I assume I'll come home after work today to the same scene as I saw this morning. 170-ish gallons of water still contained within glass walls.

If all goes smoothly, I'll disassemble everything again and being working on reinforcing and painting the structural portion of the stand. I'm going to paint it with white appliance epoxy paint for a strong, somewhat waterproof coating. I'll be painting the inside of the canopy with the same white epoxy paint as well.

I need to get in the crawlspace under the house and add a few supports for under the tank and then I'll be bringing it inside to start filling it with water, salt, sand and live rock.

I'm getting excited! I placed an order today for new canopy cooling fans, live sand, refugium mud and a silicone insulation mat for the return pump to help keep the noise down.

Question:
I'm running 2x250w Metal Halide Lights in the canopy along with 2xPC lights. It's going to be hot. I'm thinking of running the fans in tandem. One on each side. One pulling air in and the other expelling air out. Does this seem like the best solution or would it be better to have them both pushing air into the canopy?

 

[dapperjman]

I'm not too sure about aquariums, but with computers you want more exhaust fans than intake fans, giving you a negative pressure. The opposite will give you stagnant air; however, I've read exhaust fans in canopies will be exposed to all the humidity and won't last as long.

Is the canopy open in the top or back?

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[zachxlutz]

Oh! Also, I'm picking up a Reefkeeper Elite system from http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/member.php?u=6579">Braselton4</a> next week. This should help me get the whole system automated and hopefully make for a very clean install!

Temp, pH, Salinity and 3x power strips. SCORE!
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/xatlzachx/IMG_6720.jpg alt="" />

 

[zachxlutz]

Dapperjman;1096011 wrote: I'm not too sure about aquariums, but with computers you want more exhaust fans than intake fans, giving you a negative pressure. The opposite will give you stagnant air; however, I've read exhaust fans in canopies will be exposed to all the humidity and won't last as long.

Is the canopy open in the top or back?

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The canopy has a small opening at the back but is otherwise closed around the tank. I'll try and snap a pic this evening.

 

[dapperjman]

zachxlutz;1096015 wrote: The canopy has a small opening at the back but is otherwise closed around the tank. I'll try and snap a pic this evening.

If it's at the top I would recommend having the fans both blow in and let the air exhaust out that opening.

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[zachxlutz]

Dapperjman;1096017 wrote: If it's at the top I would recommend having the fans both blow in and let the air exhaust out that opening.

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Here's a pic... it's a little hard to see but the two fans are 120mm fans on either side of the canopy. The open area along the backside is about 2.5" tall along the full length of the canopy.

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[brandonmason]

zachxlutz;1096008 wrote: New Marineland tank... I took very careful measurements of the previously drilled holes in the old tank as I only wanted to drill holes this time around (measure twice, drill once!). I had no intentions of changing up the plumbing work:

alt="" />

Thankfully, I made all the plumbing very modular in the event I needed to change one part here or there... This made things infinitely easier in the dissasembly of the previous tank and reassembling here:

alt="" />

alt="" />

IT FITS! (I had my fingers crossed the whole time):

alt="" />

Paint applied to back of tank:

alt="" />

alt="" />

Filled with water for the leak test:

alt="" />

alt="" />

alt="" />

Shiny! No scratches or haziness:

alt="" />

Thoughts:
I'm a little disappointed I had this setback, but I know I'm going to be much happier in the long run. The leak test appears to be going smooth. It ran all night last night with no leaks. I assume I'll come home after work today to the same scene as I saw this morning. 170-ish gallons of water still contained within glass walls.

If all goes smoothly, I'll disassemble everything again and being working on reinforcing and painting the structural portion of the stand. I'm going to paint it with white appliance epoxy paint for a strong, somewhat waterproof coating. I'll be painting the inside of the canopy with the same white epoxy paint as well.

I need to get in the crawlspace under the house and add a few supports for under the tank and then I'll be bringing it inside to start filling it with water, salt, sand and live rock.

I'm getting excited! I placed an order today for new canopy cooling fans, live sand, refugium mud and a silicone insulation mat for the return pump to help keep the noise down.

Question:
I'm running 2x250w Metal Halide Lights in the canopy along with 2xPC lights. It's going to be hot. I'm thinking of running the fans in tandem. One on each side. One pulling air in and the other expelling air out. Does this seem like the best solution or would it be better to have them both pushing air into the canopy?

Angle the fans to as point them to blow across the top of the water. I ran 3 server fans over my 210 like this. My temp always stayed within .5 degrees, however now that I was using evaporated cooling I would top off 5 gallons a day.

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