New 75gal Reef Tank Step-By-Step Setup DIY - Page 13

PowerManJ316 · 03-07-2006, 06:00 PM

That may be my only option. Ill make sure I keep pics/testing/ideas posted as I put this thing together. Thanks.

PowerManJ316 · 03-08-2006, 06:02 PM

Is there any problem with running live rock in the tank all by itself for several months? I want to start the aquascaping and get the basics of the tank setup (live rock, sand overflow, sump, cls). However, I do not plan on adding my lionfish for several months. Can live rock flourish on its own? WIll it need food supplementations? Also, I only have one NO light. WIll this be sufficient if only live rock/sand is present in the tank?

motorslave · 03-08-2006, 06:04 PM

You can run it that way for sure. Actually will be better for the tank, gives it more time to stabilize and settle down. The lights should work okay, Ive had mine with just an NO in a 55 till the 150 is back and there has been no problems. The coraline is still the same even. The only thing I would worry about feeding would be hitch hikers but I dont realy think its needed. I think it would be a good move!

R

Geoff · 03-08-2006, 06:49 PM

i plan on doing this when i finally get water in my system. i will just put a cup of water from a fellow reefers system in the tank and let it go. in the meantime i will be building the lights and other periferal systems. i find it much easier to let the tank go through its cycle on its own with nothing but LR in it than with critters in it. much less stressfull on you. with only LR in the tank, you do not care if everything gets covered up with diatoms. so what if it looks ugly.

G~

russbriscoe · 03-08-2006, 07:26 PM

I am living this right now. I have my tank with about 50lbs of rock 120lbs of sand and another 150 lbs of rock in my sump. I have heaters in the tank about 6" from the front. When I put the rock in on Saturday the water got so nasty I literally could not see the heater. Now things are getting much more clear, but it is still nasty. the sell is finally getting less too. My little skimmer is working very hard.

PowerManJ316 · 03-08-2006, 08:11 PM

This is good news! Is a skimmer neccessary at this point, or any filtration for that matter? If I have good flow with perhaps a filter sock of some sort, will this suffice?

PowerManJ316 · 03-08-2006, 08:20 PM

Here are some pics from the progress of this week. I have tested the sump one last time to make sure that it will not leak. It can hold approximately 35 gallons in the typical operating point. It can hold a max of about 45 gallons in the event of power/pump failure. Later this week/weekend I am going to paint the back of the tank black and run the majority of the plumbing.

PowerManJ316 · 03-08-2006, 08:21 PM

More pics!

ChrisPrusha · 03-08-2006, 08:44 PM

Well done!!

PowerManJ316 · 03-08-2006, 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChrisPrusha

Well done!!

Thanks, lots of elbow grease went into her

PowerManJ316 · 03-08-2006, 10:05 PM

I plan on making the protein skimmer in the next couple of weeks. I am going to make a counter-current venturi style skimmer. It is going to be about 36" tall, 5 in diameter and use a standalone pump to inject air into the water column.
Once this is complete I should have the plumbing done and I will begin aquascaping!
Also, something I am rolling around in the back of my head is a sulfur reactor and calcium buffer. Anyone use this and have good luck with it?

Geoff · 03-09-2006, 06:57 AM

boy, you sure placed a lot of trust in that coffee table of yours.

G~

PowerManJ316 · 03-09-2006, 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Geoff

boy, you sure placed a lot of trust in that coffee table of yours.

G~

Yeah, I thought about that after it was full

PowerManJ316 · 03-10-2006, 08:37 AM

Went to Lowes last night and got all my plumbing parts. i am running 2" elbows to set the height of the water in the tank. This will go down to 1.5" into the bulkhead and the rest of the return pipe will be 1.5". The return from the sump will be 1.5" FlexPVC. For the CLS main pump I opted to use regular 1.5" PVC because there were just too many adapters if I tried to use FlexPVC and barb connections. I will be posting pics tonight when I start assembling everything.

PowerManJ316 · 03-10-2006, 08:50 AM

One more thing.
I am considering not running a protein skimmer in this setup at all. I plan on using the Ecosystem method of biological filtration. i.e. A Miracle Mud bed with Caulerpa, a little Chaeto, and a little Red Seaweed in the fuge. It is recommended to not use a skimmer and allow the nutrients and detritus accumulate in the refuge where the Caulerpa will aborb it and then you harvest the Caulerpa to eventually export the nutrients from the system. I have read several caveats about this system and may use protein skimming in small doses to complement this natural filtration method. First, under heavy bioloads, there will always be small nitrate levels present with this method. (I believe a Lionfish=heavy bioload, yes?) Thus I was planning to run a smaller protein skimmer during certain periods of the day to pull any extra organics out of the water that the Mud/Caulerpa won't be able to handle (I.E. at night when I feed). Also, the way the sump is setup, no water will go directly from the protein skimmer to the refuge. Instead, both the skimmer and the refuge will be getting water from the display. This is a good thing, because this water will be the "dirty" water and allow both filtration methods to work properly.

I know that is quite the mouthful, but let me know what your thoughts are for those who take time to read and are interested.