H20's 75g tank build

Many of you have been following the progress on my thread here on my Aquapod 24g. I appreciate all the feedback and encouragement that I recieved along the way.
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=130744

I am starting a new tank, and hope to build upon that thread, by starting a new one for my new tank.

I have been hanging out on ReefCentral for a little while now, trying to learn more about larger tanks, protein skimmers, sumps, etc. I started this thread originally over at RC, but wow, that place moves so fast, my thread was on page 10 before anyone could even look at it. NO way to get real feedback over there, unless you bump it every hour. At any rate, I decided to post the thread here, and continue it in the future on here.

I am in the process of moving up from a 24g Aquapod All-in-One, to a 75g. I have most of it up and built, and have taken pics along the way. It might take me a little while to post all the pictures and descriptions so bear with me.

Here is my Aquapod a month ago:




This change all started when I was getting a little tired of the small size of the Aquapod, and wanted something bigger, but didn't know if I wanted to put in the extra time or work. After debating for a few months and talking to the wife, I decided to start on the less expensive end, and get a complete used setup on Craigslist. (Oh, how that changed quickly once I got into it.... lol ) I felt that starting out with used equipment and all, would help me get my feet wet with a bigger tank and how to run it.

Fast forward a bit and I acquired a pretty complete setup on Craigslist from a local person that was getting out of the hobby.

For $350, I got:

75g AGA
external overflow box with U-tube design
Stand
Hood Canopy
20L sump
Berlin Classic protein skimmer with Rio 2500 pump
Typhoon Aggressor III HOB protein skimmer
250w VisiTherm Heater
1-175w Mogul SE Metal Halide and Ballast (Custom Sea Life)
2x96w Power Compacts and Ballast and extra bulbs (Custom SeaLife)
another Rio 2500 powerhead
2-Maxijet 1200's
box of various junk (carbon, Ca supplements, nets, hoses, various gadgets and junk)

I felt this was a decent deal to get started. Funny thing though, once I got into it, I wanted to sell all of it and upgrade each item as I went along. I made the executive decision that if I was going to do this, I was going to do it right. Alot of changes were to come after the purchase from Craigslist.



Some pictures of what I originally bought:


The original stand (notice the salt creep all over the back)





The hood canopy






The sump 20L and skimmers and various junk:





I wanted to improve upon all of this, so you will see in my coming posts the upgrades and changes that I have made so far.

The Stand and Hood


First of all, I had to fix up the hood and stand. The original owner had the bare wood on the inside of the hood and stand, so I decided to paint the interior with white Kilz, and paint the outside a satin black.

First of all, I decided to make the hood taller, as it originally was too short and had the mogul halide only a few inches off of the water. I cut some strips of wood about 5" to match the front and sides of the hood. Now I can get my halides up to 10-12" off the water if I choose.

First I removed all the lights, added a coat of Kilz, so I could add the wood strips and then further paint it.



Adding the wood strips on the sides by using wood glue and clamping



I then added a few brackets on the inside, and one on the outside, for added stability. Here is the first bracket



After the sides had been added



Now the same for the front





The fans that the previous owner had in the hood, had totally rusted through and didn't work, and I had to use a dremel and some tools to cut the bolts off and rip the fans out. They were rusted through.




Then I used wood filler to fill in the gaps in the new wood strips and the canopy, and after it dried, I sanded it down to make a nice smooth seam.

I did notice that the brass hinge that was on the canopy was rusted, and I feared rust bits falling into the tank when I opened and closed it, so I removed it and added a new stainless hinge.

As far as the stand goes, I roughed up the paint a bit with sandpaper to get it ready to paint, and sanded the salt creep off the back.


Next comes the painting!

Painting


As I mentioned before, I gave the interior a few coats of White Premium stain/water resistant/mildew resistant Kilz, on the interior of the stand and hood.




The out to the garage with it all to paint with black Satin spray paint.






The tank is going in the office/bonus room in my house, so I felt that I needed more room for the new tank, so I sold the couch that I had in there. This was a heavy beast to move. Recliners on both ends. The hardest part was getting it through the door and down those stairs that you see. I don't think my friend that I asked to help me move it was very happy with me after that hour of hard work........ lol

Upgrading the lights:


The setup that I originally bought, only had one 175w mogul halide over the center of the tank. It had also slightly melted the center brace on the tank.

With me adding the canopy extension, I can now get the lights up higher. Speaking of that, I decided to sell the 175w Mogul, and go up to two 250w HQI metal halides. I talked to Hamilton Technologies on the phone, and they said that mounting the double ReefStar unit in the top of the canopy would be fine, as it has mounting brackets and leaves a little space between it and the wood. So I went with it in the low-profile unit (only 3.5" tall), with 2x250w 14K Hamilton bulbs. I also have the 2x96w Power Compacts, but with the blueness in the 14K MH's, I will probably just run the PC's for a short time before and after the halides for a sunrise/sunset effect. I debated for a while on getting the 150w or the 250w, but in the end, chose the 250w's so I would not be limited in what I keep down the road. I am interested in SPS and a couple of bright clams at some point.

I also added in 3 of the Current-USA lunar moonlights, one on the left, one in the middle and one on the right side.




I also added in two 4 3/4" fans on the ends, one pulling air out, and one pushing air in.





Both lights on, the PC's swing out and up when I raise the front of the hood.

The Tank Itself:


The tank I originally had bought had been used for awhile as a saltwater reef tank. As I filled it up with freshwater and vinegar to clean it and test for leaks, I found that the sides and back glass were pretty shabby as far as clearness. Apparently, silica or something had allowed the glass to get etched or something all over it. It was not salt or calcium build up, as I worked on it with vinegar and a razor blade for awhile, and found that it was not on the glass, but I guess I could call it 'etched in'.

So, as in all the other things that I had started to upgrade, I decided to sell the tank, and get a new one, as I wanted all clear clean glass, if I was going to do this right. Plus, the old tank had the melted center brace and that really bugged me after awhile.

I found a good deal on a new 75g AGA and bought it. This is the one slight regret I have now, looking back, as I should have paid the extra and gotten a pre-drilled reef ready tank. But I had the external overflow box already and the undrilled was about $100 less, so I went with it. If I could go back, I would have paid the extra and gotten the drilled with internal overflow. My new one has a tempered bottom, so I just said what the heck, and proceeded with the external overflow.


Old tank during the water test and cleaning (if you look closely, you can see the glass etching on the back that would not come out):




New tank right after I bought it:




Then I painted the back of the tank. I chose black as I like the way it makes fish and coral colors stand out. I started out with Krylon Fusion, and made a big mistake while doing this. I moved the tank into my daughters playroom next to my office, and put a big tarp of about 10x10' on the floor. Then I taped the tank up with newspaper on top and the sides. I felt the big tarp would have adequate coverage if I were to spray paint in that room. Oh, how I was wrong. After a couple of coats, I noticed that the paint mist in the air was settling outside my tarp area and had painted the carpet. Nice...... I am sure the wife will love that one. I learned to always spray paint outside. lol




The good news is that most of it came up with some carpet cleaner. I guess it is a good trade for both of us. I am getting a new tank and my wife may be getting some new carpet or hardwood.

At any rate, back to the tank. I was not going to spray anymore in the house, and noticed that the spray wasn't getting thick enough, as I shined a flashlight through the back and could see through in spots. After the first fiasco, I said to heck with spraying and just brushed on black paint over the Fusion. It turned out perfectly and looks very nice when looking through the front of the tank.

Nice! How old is your ap? I want a bigger tank too, but my parents won't have that!!! So what was the point of buying the whole set up? Seems liek you got rid of most of it!

Some Miscellaneous equipment pictures:



When I bought all of the used equipment, it had two protein skimmers, a Berlin Classic and a Typhoon Aggressor III HOB. I did not want to use a HOB for sure, and I read less than favorable reviews on the Berlin, so in being consistent, I sold them and bought a new one. lol I went with the Euro-Reef RS-80. Found a good deal online direct from Euro-Reef with a GenX pump. I had heard some people said that they were noisy pumps, so I put dabs of silicone on the bottom of the pump and the skimmer to make little soft 'feet'. Seems to work well so far, as it is silent.





Also, while I was at it, I sold the Rio 2500 pumps that I acquired in the Craigslist deal, and bought an OceanRunner. It sits on suction cups, and is silent too.

I was not happy with my sump, as the one I got used in the original package deal was a 20L, but the way that the guy had built it, the inner walls and baffles were too short, as water deep enough to keep the return pump in, would flood over the baffle walls. In true style, I sold it and bought a new Eshopps RS-100 sump from the LFS. I like this one better and it is just large enough to hold what I need.

Sold the 250w Heater that I had gotten in the original deal, and got two new 150w Visitherm Stealths. I figured two was better than one large one in case one goes out or overheats.

Then set up a JBJ ATO for my topoffs. It is run by a Toms Aqualifter sitting on top of a RubberMaid tote that holds about 6 gallons. It has been keeping my salinity very constant.






My overflow is a LifeReef 600gph. I figured since I had to have an external, I might as well have the best. It has the optional AquaSilencer on it.









After all has been said and done, the only original equipment that I kept from my Craigslist deal was the stand and canopy, of which I renovated them too....... lol Oh, well......

Filling the tank:


Next, I got the tank onto the stand and in place where I wanted it in the room. I started filling it up with RO/DI water, but since my filter is only 50 gpd, this took a couple of days to fill the tank and the sump.




After it was filled, and I made sure all of the plumbing and pumps worked correctly, and tested for overflows simulating power outages and so forth, and all was working correctly.

I then slowly added my salt mix (SeaChem Reef Salt) to get it to the salinity I wanted, 1.025.




After all was mixed and aerated for a couple of days with the two Koralia #3's in the tank and also running the tank to sump loop, I added my sand. I decided to go with 80 lbs. of CaribSea Arag-Alive Fiji Pink.





In my AquaPod, I used a little coarser grain, the Special Reef Grade 1-2mm, but decided to go with a smaller grain sand this time.


Soon after the sand was put in:



Next day:





I think the picture above shows only 60 lbs sand, and I later decided to add one more bag to make 80 lbs. as I might get a Diamond goby or the like down the road, and I also have a Randalls pistol shrimp in my 24g that likes to dig.

Cool look good, now I def want to upgrade to a 75 gal.

My only suggestion is to change that OD return tubing to black I have the samething on my return line and its now has algae growing. So now i have to change it out with the black od tubing.

Let's Rock!



It was time to add my live rock, but since the LFS that I use had just gotten in their rock shipment, he said it would be a month till it cured. I decided to do what I did with my Aquapod originally, and order the pre-cured Premium Fiji live rock from Premium Aquatics. I only ordered 50 lbs., as I will be moving over alot of rock from my AquaPod.

The live rock order came by two-day ground, and smelled fine when I got it. Here are a couple of pics with and without flash.





I added the rock to the tank, and made some small islands for the time being. I will re-aquascape when I move over my rock from the Aquapod.






The rock had some nice color to it, but since I have had it in the tank for about a week with no lights while making sure it was all cycled, the color has mostly left it, but I am sure it will come back when I start running my lights. I have alot of different colored coralline in my Aquapods rocks, so I am sure it will seed as well when I move it over.

The pre-cured rock seems to be good, as my Ammonia and trites/trates are undetectable right now.


Here is a final parting shot of my AP24g and the new 75g side by side. Quite a difference.





Thats where I stand as of now, just making sure it is cycled before progressing. I will update soon when I start transitioning the Aquapod over the 75g.

why not buy reef-ready tank ?

I already had an external overflow box, and got a good deal on the non-reef ready tank. If I could go back and do it over, I probably would have paid the extra money and gotten the drilled one.

Looks good, my dad has a 75 and it's just a bi to BIG for me, i think that when i eventually upgrade from my ap i'll go with either a 40 breeder or 55.

Looking good H2O. Tagging along here to watch your progression on this one. Did you have a larger tank before the AP24 or is this your first venture into larger water changes.

The Aquapod is the first saltwater tank I ever owned. Heck, it was the first fish tank that I ever owned for that matter. lol This will be my first time in a larger tank. There was a slight learning curve for the new equipment and needs. But I did alot of research and reading before I went forward, so hopefully I will be able to handle it.

After running the Hamilton 250w HQI magnetic ballasts a few times, I realized that I wasn't going to be happy with them. They are noisy, humming very loud, and put off some heat. I work alot in my office where my tank is, and the humming was really distracting to the point of annoying.

After speaking with Chris at IceCap, I decided to order two IceCap 250w electronic ballasts, that could power my HQI pendants. I ordered the male quick disconnectors as well, so I could just wire my ReefStar pendant to the IceCaps.

I simply had to cut off the male quick disconnectors that lead to my pendant, and wire them into the IceCap connector.





This is the newer ballasts that Icecap makes, with the heatsinks and all built in.






I wired and connected them today, and plugged them in to test. They fired right up. Yay!


I let it all run for a couple of hours to test, and they were completely silent. Much better! And the ballasts stayed relatively cool. I am much happier with the electronic ballasts as opposed to the magnetic, based off of the sound alone.

Wow great thread H20! I will definitely be tagging along on this one!

stand is looking good. i have a pfo mag ballast and the only time it hums is on start up then all is quiet

funny i started with a ap24 (first tank ever) and jumped up to a 75g also. now im trying to talk the wife into a 8' tank.

This is looking really nice, I really like the look of your satin black finish.
I think it's funny that you've traded for almost everything you got in the original package!

ooooh! I am so tagging along on this thread..I am starting a 75 as well..I have the tank, overflow box(not RR) and will be ordering the lights soon..I also wanted 2x250MH but decided to stick with T-5..prob the Nova Pro, i don't want to have to spend $120 bux every 6 months for bulbs..great thread about the light fixture at RC (i know what u mean by a busy forum)
can u post pics of the plumbing? i have never used a overflow and was wondering what is working for you..also what size is your return pump?
Keep updating as u go along..this is great!

I just put up my 75 gallon and have the same fans, ballasts, sand, koralia 3's. Nice set-up

Very nice! Definitely gonna be following this thread since I was a little late on the AP build. Can't wait to see it stocked. When are you going to start transferring everything over?

I am thinking about starting to this coming weekend, if my water parameters look good. Last I checked, everything looked good except for nitrates, which were between 5-10. And I attribute that to the fact that I needed to change my filter sock. When I get to 0 (or undetectable) I will make the move.

Nice "little" project you've got going. I'm waiting to see what happens. Are you moving some of your corals into the new tank? if so, which ones?

Actually, I am moving all of them over and shutting down the AP24. I am not adding the GSP, as I decided not to have it in my next tank. Will probably trade it into the LFS.

The Big Move:


I have been dreading this for awhile. Moving everything in the Aquapod over to the new 75g. I knew it would be messy and not too much fun. I had planned on playing golf today, but since I woke up to pouring down rain, I decided now was the time. All my parameters were good, and nitrates were 5 or less. I decided now was the time, since I had some free time to do it.

I had made up 10g of new saltwater last night, and I did a 10g water change out of the sump. That is one nice things about sumps. You can do a water change and nothing ever happens in the main tank, and the coral and fish have no idea that anything is going on.

I drained 10g of water out of the sump into a couple of 5-gallon buckets, then I took them over to the Aquapod. I first took all my corals and put them on the substrate in the AP. Then I took out each live rock, and rinsed it really good in the first bucket, and when it was clean, I placed it in the second bucket for holding. I did this until I got all my smaller rocks out, and into the second bucket. Then when I got to my larger base bottom rocks, I dunked and swished and cleaned them in the first bucket, then they went straight into the 75g. When I had my larger pieces moved over, I then did a little aquascaping, and when I had a decent base built, I moved over the smaller rocks from the second bucket. I decided to make a couple of islands, as I did not really want to make one big 'wall' of rocks. After I had all the rock moved over and was happy with the aquascape, I turned all the pumps and protein skimmer back on.

I then went back to the Aquapod, and caught the Clownfish, the Goby and the Cleaner shrimp, and put them in a bag to float in the 75g. Then in smaller bags I caught the crabs and snails. I floated them too, for about 20 minutes, then I released everything into the tank.

The one that I was most worried about, the Randalls pistol shrimp, ended up being not too hard to catch. He was in one of my larger rocks, and when I was dunking it in the bucket of saltwater to clean it off, I saw him flip out of the rock and into the bucket. From there, I just had to net him out of the bucket. Hope he pulls through the move ok, he is one fun guy to watch.

Everything looks good so far, the corals have all opened up, and the hermits and snails are already working on the rock.


Here are a couple of pictures that I took. I should have taken some of my working and moving stuff, but it was a mess, and time consuming, and I was just trying to get it all done.

The lights don't look that bright in the pics, as I have several layers of screen over the top on the tank, to acclimate the coral to my new lights.

My new aquascape ( I plan on building up the right side a little taller down the road):




Right side:





Left Side:





A little closer:




The poor Aquapod after I was done. It looks such a mess because I dug down through the sand looking for snails that were buried. I could not believe how much detritus and junk was down in the sand. When I got done stirring it up, you could not see anything in the tank. And now that some of it has settled, it looks like a 1/4" of 'dust' on the sand. Very nasty. Maybe I should have been vacuuming my sand.....





Here are a couple of photos that I just took in the new 75g. Everything looks really nice under the 14K halides.


Orange Zoos:




Green Zoos:




Some ricordea:





Aussie Duncan:




Acan Lord:




Trumpet coral:





The big move was not as bad as I thought it was going to be, but was definitely not fun. Had to do alot of cleanup of buckets, and pumps, and towels, etc. The good thing was that everything went smoothly and I had no spills, unexpected surprises, etc. Let's hope they start doing well in the new tank!

Dang H20! it looks amazing! You did sch a great job on the aquapod i am sure this tank is going to look great and it already looks amazing!
Are you going to take the GSP off of the wall in the Ap and put it in the 75?

H2O, how are you liking the Fiji Pink sand compared to the Special Grade so far? Also, what are you gonna do with the Aquapod now? Would you use it as a quarantine or prop tank?

Robin

Looks Awesome!

So far I really like the Fiji Pink. It moves around more with flow, but not a sand storm or anything. The Reef Grade stays put. But I think I am going to like it. I have been thinking of using the AP as a quarantine tank.

Looking very nice! I love those orange zoas in the center. When you look at the FTS they just demand attention.

wow it looks great
I love those zoos and rics

It looks so Big! wow I think it turned out great!

First SPS:


I have become increasingly interested in SPS recently, and am going to start moving my tank in that direction I believe. I will probably start slow and do it over time, as SPS need great water parameters and my tank is really new.

I was at a LFS today and saw a monti cap frag that I really liked, so I picked it up for a good deal.

The Monti Cap: (montipora capricornis) :

From the internet:
The Monti Cap (montipora capricornis) is one of the mainstays of SPS coral found in reef aquariums. The swirling plates of the coral are unmistakeable, a familiar and appealing growth pattern. Monti Caps are easily fragged for propagation, with broken pieces readily encrusting and starting new growth. Proper flow is necessary for coral to achieve multiple layers characteristic of this morphology. Fast growers, these corals are highly recommended as first corals for new SPS reef tank hobbyists.





I just placed it on the substrate for now, till I get everything acclimated to my lights. Then I will move it up onto the rocks.

It came with a couple of nice little hitchhikers, two mini brittle stars, one was on the bottom of the frag disc, and one was under the monti cap itself.

Here is one of them:




Here is one last picture that I took last night under my moonlights. It is the trumpet coral with its tentacles out, feeding.

Tank is looking amazing already bro!!!
I will be watching this one for sure!!!

awesome setup! sad to hear you took the ap down - but everything looks great in your new tank.

very informative as always - i'll be following along as usual.

looks great! And 350$ for all that is friggin' GREAT! Keep it updated

Well, $350 is what it started out as. But then I sold most of it and went with different equipment. The cost has slightly gone up since then...

nice monti! great color..i know that feeling about SPS lol u're hooked now..no turning back

Sweet tank! One of my fav's in the large reef section.

I really want a 75g but waiting till I know more about reefing and until I am done with college and have a place to set it up.

Great work can't wait to see where this tank goes from here.

Great 'Scape setup. I always love the 2 island layout and I hope you keep it!!!

Edit: Page 3 man. Let's keep it going.

Man... This thread will be 30-40 pages in no time!

Have you thought of the final location for the cap? I saw a few spots in the FTS it would look great at.

Sweet monti and hitchhikers!

Not really decided. What thoughts did you have on where to put it?

Tank is looking good.

Monti caps are a great way to get into SPS, they grow fast too. I have seen some Monti Cap only tanks and they look amazing, all the little overhangs and all the colors.

New Aquascape and New Coral:


I added one more chunk of cured live rock to my tank. I may still add some more down the road, but am going to stick with this for a little while and see how it goes. I added a piece of rock that weighted about 5 lbs. or so. It is the nice purple coralline piece in the middle on the right side.

I re-arranged some of the rocks, and was able to make everything a little taller. I also used epoxy to secure the rocks together so I don't have to worry as much about something tumbling over. Wow, the epoxy made my protein skimmer go crazy, so I had to shut it off for a few hours. It is now 12 hours later, and is almost back to normal, but that epoxy in the water makes the skimmer foam, thats for sure.


Newest Aquascape:




Right Side:




Left Side:





I also bought a couple of nice pieces of SPS. I may be jumping the gun a little, and probably need to wait awhile longer to make sure my tank is stable before adding SPS, but I could not resist. But that is all I am going to buy coral-wise for a bit, to let everything mature a tad. I also added another Koralia, a #4 this time. Since I am working towards SPS down the road, I am going to need alot of flow. This now gives me about 41X flow rate.


True Oregon Tort:





Vivid Evergreen Acropora Coral - (Acropora humilis):

looks great! love the blue tort

Wow i am jealous!
About how many pounds of rock do you think you have in there?

New aquascape looks great, nice tank.