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bluebastion's Solana 67 XL


bluebastion

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bluebastion

Later meaning... TODAY! Teehee!

 

First up a side project with an old Mag7 from my fragubator....

 

Various newly bought plumbing parts:

2011-08-05184529.jpg

 

Couplings threaded together:

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Final product:

2011-08-05191550.jpg

 

My mini-fireman hose of RO water awesomeness....

 

Next up... the main course....

 

"Cooking" Dry Rock...

 

Place the rock patties in "pan"

2011-08-05195415.jpg

 

Use the mini-fireman hose of RO water awesomeness to add some RO water (1:1 water/vinegar)

2011-08-05195926.jpg

 

Dash of water here...

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Dash of water there....

2011-08-05200209.jpg

 

And for some flavor add just a little bit of vinegar

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2011-08-05200343.jpg

 

And in an instant you get:

 

 

 

Bon Appetit!

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bluebastion
Wowzers, nice! Is it difficult to get all the vinegar off?

 

 

I hope not :) First time cooking rock. In the past I just bought Marshall Island Live Rock.. but you can't get that anymore :( I sure hope its easy to get out...

 

Also, please don't kill my thread!

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bluebastion

Weekend update..

 

 

Here is my living room wall (shared by the garage behind the wall), behind the tank stand:

2011-08-06104719.jpg

 

Here is the opposite side of it in the garage:

2011-08-06104903.jpg

 

+ this drill and hole saw:

2011-08-06104950.jpg

 

=:

2011-08-06110236.jpg

 

 

 

Run some RO line from the filter.....

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...and it's finally time to do a leak test!!!!!

2011-08-06134004.jpg

 

At this time, the tank is only 25% full... at this rate, mid-day tomorrow I'll have the pump running.

 

 

 

Coming soon:

Combo-RENEW-Pro-STORM-Pro-Pumps.jpg

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bananahands

Sweet setup! (the tank and the water system).

Can you provide a link for info about the water system? I tried a quick search but came up with nothing.

Thanks!

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bluebastion
Sweet setup! (the tank and the water system).

Can you provide a link for info about the water system? I tried a quick search but came up with nothing.

Thanks!

 

 

http://www.genesisreefsystems.com/

 

 

Thanks guys... look forward to taking you guys on this wild trip...

 

Building a new tank is always exciting! :)

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bluebastion

Well.. tank is up and running for a leak test...

 

And I found a leak already... good news... not from the glass or seams...

 

It's from the return bulkhead.

 

Bad news... attempted the re-seal twice to no avail. (yes the gasket is on the inside of the tank..all attempts)... looks like this bulkhead is a dud. I'm going to get in contact with Premium Aquatics and have them contact Current (or attempt to contact Current directly, which I've heard is a pretty good feat). This bulk head actually has some couplings/barbs permanently glued to it for the return fittings... so, I think seeing about getting a replacement is the easier step.

 

We shall see...

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bluebastion

Quick update:

 

Jeremy B. at Premium Aquatics is working with Current to make sure I get taken care of... let's see how this plays out. If all else fails... I'm might have to silicone both sides of the gasket to ensure a seal... I hope not.. but we'll see.

 

Genesis comes in on Wednesday....

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bluebastion
Lol geez that is one spendy light!

 

 

Initially, you are correct.. but take into consideration that this does not need bulb replacement unlike T5's and HQI MH bulbs... a replacement bulb every 6months minimum... Then the money I am not spending on a $700 chiller.....and electricity to get my house ambient temp to help control the heat issue I would have from an MH fixture. I think this fixture pays for itself over time.

 

I'm not much of a DIY'er, but I know I could save a lot of money if I built my own... I'd rather pay the premium and buy something I know I will love.

 

Can't wait to get this thing on my tank.

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Came home from work this afternoon to find my Genesis Reef System delivered. Everything was well packed and no external damage that I can see from shipping... I am very impressed by all the quality I see in the control units. No joke, high quality materials used here. Only issue I noticed so far (I have not completely unpacked everything yet) is the yellow button on the RENEW system (water changing system) was jammed up and into the top housing... I pushed it downward to the bottom of the face to dislodge it into it's intended position... still looks a little tilted upwards in the seated/resting position.. Hopefully this will not cause issue in functionality.

 

Speaking of which, I'll be installing this puppy this weekend, as this system is no short or easy task it seems... (not that I expected that). There are A TON of pieces that make up this unit, but a big part of that is because I got the PRO system that includes many redundancies... Great for peace of mind.

 

In the meantime, please enjoy my unboxing teaser pics:

 

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I'll update this weekend when I free time to get this install done.

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Well I literally spent ALL DAY Saturday working on this setup....

 

Most of the morning and early-mid afternoon was taken up by the rock work:

 

Practicing with the hand I was dealt with:

RockWorkPractice.jpg

 

Prepping the living room for some rock work mess:

RockWorkPractice2.jpg

 

I used the Marcorocks E-400 mortar for joining the rocks... it sets in about 15 minutes and is "cured" in 24 hours.

RockWorkPractice3.jpg

 

The finished product:

RockWork.jpg

 

I'm pretty happy with the outcome... a lot of places for my SPS coral to be mounted at, and a lot of grow out room vertically and horizontally. I also like the open areas in the caves for water and detritus to flow freely. I think it is reminiscent of my former 20 gallon, but better with all the free flow.

 

 

The early to late evening (stayed up until 1:30am) was occupied with the Genesis Reef System.

 

I ordered the PRO system combo so there were many parts that I had to get familiar with:

GenesisReefSystemPro-1.jpg

 

The Renew: This is the water changing system. It uses metering reservoirs (the big black canisters) to meter a gallon at a time. One to meter water pumped from your tank (to be sent to be discarded) and one to meter water pumped from your fresh saltwater reservoir (to be sent to your sump).

Renew.jpg

 

As I've stated before, there has been no short cuts taken in the quality of materials or engineering. Plastics are heavy duty, buttons are response and do not sound cheap, even the vinyl tubing provided is HIGH QUALITY (unlike the ones I find in hardware stores).

 

Renew main control unit:

Renew2.jpg

 

Outlets to control the Quiet One pumps:

Renew3.jpg

 

Connections ports on the bottom of the control unit:

Renew4.jpg

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Float Sensor Housings: A simple but important piece of the Genesis Reef System really shows the brilliance of engineering in their product.

 

I give you modular float sensor housings:

ModularFloatValveHousings.jpg

 

Industrial looking but very clever combinations that allow you to use one housing in various applications:

ModularFloatValveDiagramandMountingTemplates.jpg

 

In conjunction with supplied black PVC pipe a redundant float sensor setup becomes an all-in-one low level and high level system, saving valuable real-estate in your sump or reservoirs: ModularFloatValveStacked.jpg

 

ModularFloatValveStacked2.jpg

 

Here is an application used in my fresh saltwater reservoir:

ModularFloatValveSalt.jpg

 

Metering Reservoirs: How come nobody thought of this before???

MeteringReservoir.jpg

 

Inside the reservoir you'll find float sensors (I think the PRO version adds the extra float sensor for redundancy), an inlet tube, and two outlets... one for overflow (another redundancy) and one for the actual exit of the metered fluid.

MeteringReservoir2.jpg

 

Bottom exterior: 1/2" inlet on left, 1/2" outlet "drain" rear-center, and 5/8" over flow redundant drain on right.

MeteringReservoir3.jpg

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My Install:

 

Kevin at Genesis Reef Systems made this install as easy as possible. Included with the well written instructions are to-scale mounting templates that will assist you in making holes in the wall, without making a mistake.

 

My little "fish" corner in the garage (opposite side of the wall from my tank in the living room)

MountingArea.jpg

 

Checking fitment

MountingArea2.jpg

 

Objective complete

MountingArea3.jpg

 

I didn't really go into detail on the STORM auto top off system that I bought in conjunction with the RENEW, but to me it was important to get both. When the RENEW system is activated and changing your water, it will tell the STORM system to disable.. so you are not getting fresh water "topped-off" in place of the salt water being exchanged.

STORM Pro System

Storm.jpg

 

 

At time of writing (Sunday morning) I do not have this system up an running, nor do I need to just yet.. I still have to fill my new aquarium with saltwater today and have a reason to do a water change (which will be after the cycle). I also need to figure out what I'm going to use for a waste water reservoir (probably another brute).

 

When my tank is established I plan to post a video on how it works. I know there are lots of people here and on Reef Central intrigued by this system, but don't want to bite the bullet until they see it in action. I haven't found a video on the internet on this system yet.

 

Thanks for tuning in!

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