I love this build! and those paintings

I can't wait to see this thing up and running!

Where's mah powder @!!!??

You have done exceptionally well here my friend!

Just need to find the energy to freaking hang them already! lol


You and me both!


My bottom b!tch didn't give it to you? I'ma have to lay the pimp hand across that pretty little face'a hers.
hahahaha.



Thank you kind sir!




Ok, so I got the overflow panel and had to send it back because they burned they acrylic when they heated it to bend it... It was pretty badly bubbled and a couple of the prongs were melted and warped. Really disappointed in craftsmanship. First time I ever saw a piece of crap come out of that place so I guess they got a new guy to try and make it, and rather than trying again he just wrapped it up and told his boss it was done and forgot to mention it was FUBAR.

I am going to have to get another one made up. Might change the style of how I am making it a bit just to allow some more space on either side of the box. as much as I don't want a square sticking out in the middle of my tank I think it might work best overall.

So the overflow box is being redone for me. I was right about some new guy at the company doing it and messing it up and "forgetting" to mention the defects lol. The owner of the company apologized and was very happy to make me a new one with different dimensions. Hopefully I will recieve it before the new year.

I am going to be building my sump this week, possibly drilling the aquarium and plumbing it up as well! Will keep you folks posted as progress is made.

Here are some 3D examples of the sump design:

man you are so meticulous! I just make sure I have a powerhead, a temp controller and an auto top off, and I just wing the rest....well done sir. I aspire to one day actually plan out a reef tank in this detail.

No you don't; don't Lie! That's a Pho Phuc Lai! hahahah. You love the simplicity of your systems man, you advocate that shizzat to me all the time



That aside,
I got my overflow panel rebuilt and it arived today in perfect condition. My sump is being constructed as we speak, and I should have the plumbing done by the new year!

This thing might actually be cycling by the second week of January!

I'm curious to see if the Solaris will be able to grow sps..

I'm sure it can. I'm going to start with some montis and a deepwater acro to test the waters; that thing is one hell of a sun gun and the tank is shallow so I doubt there will be any issues with having enough light.

Awesome. I love montis I want to get one for my tank so badly.

woot, nice work. Now to get some stuff in the tank

lol sun gun. Did you get that overflow installed yet?

It's sitting in place but not installed yet. I am going to install it after the holes are drilled and plumbing is in place. It is easier to work with it that way.

I am just waiting for the sump to be finished and my gate valve to come in and I will go nuts one night and plumb the damn thing. Soon as I have it all plumbed up I will take some photos and run a wet test for leaks.

Hopefully this will happen real soon!
Also in the process of putting together a refugium light. Thinking I might do a little LED retrofit into a small fixture housing.

Did up a simple and questionably sufficient LED fuge light.

Basically it is an old 12" dual coralife PC housing, with 3 biocube moonlights, and 18 cool white LEDs of unknown wattage. All I know is that each bank of 9 cool white LEDs is supposed to run off a 9V DC adapter, and I have both banks (18 LEDs) running off a single 12V DC adapter which (from what I can tell) has made them quite a bit brighter.

Took me all of 30min to rig together. We will see how well it performs a little later. I will test it out on a small tank with some macro in it before I actually put it to use.

Here are some pics of the fixture:







Adjusted shutter speed for this shot:

Yeah thats cool.

Pretty Cool TJ Miyagi...
Now You need Wata in Da Tank...
Then we drink saki...
Or else you walk da Plank...

Keep pictures coming...

Thanks guys - we will have to see how it actually performs lol... I made it out of boredom without much thought so I don't really know what to expect from it.

Quick update

I am picking up the sump and having the tank drilled tomorrow, and that means I can finally plumb this sucker and get it going!

I am currently in the market for an RKL3 as well as a couple MP10/MP20s. Once I have those components my dosing system, ATO, heating/cooling and flow will all be accounted for and I will be comfortable getting what I am keeping from the Solana into this tank and under the Solaris.

This is going to be a fun way to kick off the new year!!!

So things are finally getting a little more interesting!!!

I picked up the sump today (my buddy Calvin constructed it for me), also had the tank drilled. Sooo the two most important pieces of the puzzle that were holding up the project are completed. This means I can plumb this baby up this week and get the thing running!!!

I am just slightly pumped lol...

I took some photos of my sump and tank with the new holes drilled. Also took a shot of the fuge light over top of a 5g. There is almost no spread due to a lack of optics, but the sump is taller and the light will be on the legs so I am sure it will spread a little more. They may not be enough light though - time will tell. Also Frankensteined a 5 stage RO unit. Basically it is MICRON -> ACB -> MEMBRANE -> GAC -> DI and it should certainly clean up my tap water enough to make it reef safe.

Anyways, I'll shut up and post the pictures since that's what you people care about

Sump:











Tank:





RO Unit:



Fuge Light:



Hope that was an update worth looking at lol...

What's going on in here? Shenanigans, I say.

Now You Must Teach Me The Ways TJ MIYAGI!

I wirr Need Your Herp Pho My Firteress Reef!

I want to make babies with your sump.

Really looks like things are starting to pick up TJ. Glad to hear and see that all went with the drilling the tank and the sump. I really wish that there were more local folks with DIY acrylic or glass skills that could build something like that. Looks like everything is right where it needs to be and super clean.

Are those custom hangers for the Aqualifters or can you buy them somewhere? Love how much better it looks....nice and professional.

-Adam

Shenanigans of the grandest kind!



Anytime you need help just ask!



Thankfully all the edges of the baffles are ground down smooth so you can't cut yourself while fornicating with my sump!



Thanks Adam!

The aqualifters came with those brackets. I bought them for cheap from a store who had some of those Tom Rapids Pro PS3 wet dry filters returned and credited. Those brackets come with them so they can sit right near the overflow box they prime.

I lucked out getting them with the brackets. I am sure you can purchase them separately though.

Thanks for the information on the brackets....might have to do some hunting around to see where they are available.

What all are you planning on dosing with them? Of course Ca and Alk, but what's the 3rd pump for? Mg?

Yep, it certainly is for mag!

Basically the 3 most vital components for SPS when it comes to dosing. I am also purchasing a Phos reactor and running Chemi-Pure to keep chemical wars and other impurities in check.

I really want my SPS to do incredibly well this time around, and I want everything to be as automated (and stable) as possible to prevent me having to put much effort in lol.

Now you're gettin' somewhere. Sump looks very slick. You are going to be doing NOTHING to this tank but enjoying it!

Oh man... This is going to be a blast to watch!!! So far... AMAZING!!!

Those brackets are slick! Will you just run the Aqualifters on timers for dosing...??? Sorry for the stupid question!

That's the plan!



Not a stupid question!

I'm going to run them on an ever-so-accurate RKL or RKE. (Haven't decided the level of investment I am willing to put into my controller)

Wow! makes my sump look like a hawt mess

I am sure it will look more cluttered once it's all tucked under the stand

I picked up some plumbing and equipment today. Hopefully I will get the bulk of the plumbing done tonight!

Well, it isn't exactly plumbed yet but I am getting there. Goal is to have it all done by Sunday night for a wet test.

I installed the overflow panel last night. My silicon abilities are only slightly better than they were on my 40br. I managed to used much less silicon and get a much stronger bond so I guess that is a plus. Still not as "clean" looking as I would have hoped for but I am sure it won't be noticeable once I paint that back panel black. I also threw the sump and all components under the stand to see how well it fits.

Wow! That is a tall tank. Can't wait to see how you aquascape and light it.




Looks like you have plenty of sump room.

LoL you're a nutbar.

Yeah, the fuge area is going to be quite large just like my 40br sump.

I still need to prime the inside of the stand and add an extra 2x4 under the front lip of the sump. Shouldn't be too much of a PITA.

What will you use to prime? Is there a floor inside the sump area or is it open to the room floor?

Just going to use a white deck primer/paint. Currently its open to the room floor but it wont be once I measure out and get that 2x4 in. I have 1/4" ply that I will be putting in the bottom of the stand.

1x1000w mh, lol

hey, I goss a couple a demm...

so sick

Lookin nifty TJ.

Looking good...real good.

Looks awesome. Let me know how that last baffle in the sump to limit flow to the refugium works out for you and if you'd change anything. Can't wait to see this one fired up.

Thanks guys! Glad to see I have a possee following this thread again

Paleoreef103 - Don't worry, I will document how everything works and if it has turned out as intended.

I am excited cause I just got the winning bid on a very lightly (2 days) used MP10 for $150

You'll love it! With mine you can here it after you turn it above 80%, but it'll probably be more silent than your overflow. They're awesome little pumps. Are you going to mount it on the over flow side or the far panel?

Overflow side about half way down. I am going to purchase another one and run one on each side of the overflow panel. If I find that I don't have enough flow at the other end of the tank (which I doubt will be the case) I can always move one down to the other end. Or just buy a third... hahaha

So I was hoping to have water in this thing today, but a lack of parts at local stores (namely the SCWD) has postponed my reef for another week. I had to order the SCWD from MOPS.ca which has it for a very reasonable price.

The rest of the plumbing is pretty much done but I will wait until I have it completed before I throw up any more photos.

Well the very simple looking plumbing is all done. Decided to run the return pump internally to conserve space in the cabinet. Also decided not to use a tripod to take the following photos because it looks more dramatic when they are crooked

Currently brewing up many gallons of R/O for what I expect to be a flawless wet test (or at least I hope) lol...

Pics!

Hurray!