jwpadgett Posted February 11, 2015 Share Posted February 11, 2015 This is my first build thread. I'm upgrading my 9-month-old 20L to a 40b. At the creation of this thread, a lot of work has already been done, but I've taken pics along the way with the intent of sharing. Link to comment
quiddmobile Posted February 11, 2015 Share Posted February 11, 2015 can't wait to see the pictures! Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted February 11, 2015 Author Share Posted February 11, 2015 Here is a pick of the 20L. This was my first saltwater tank. You can see why I need an upgrade, I need more room! Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted February 11, 2015 Author Share Posted February 11, 2015 Here's a few shots of my stand build. I still need to put more paint on the interior and build the doors. I've got the tank drilled for a herbie overflow and two 1/2" returns. The overflow box is built, but I don't have a pick yet. I used 1/4" glass to build the box. I purchased 50lbs of Pukani dry rock on line. After an acid bath, I put it in to cook. After about three weeks, the ammonia is down to almost nothing. This rock had A LOT of dead matter in it! Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted February 11, 2015 Author Share Posted February 11, 2015 I've also been busy building a new light for this tank. It still has a way to go, but it's coming along nicely. Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted February 12, 2015 Author Share Posted February 12, 2015 Worked a bit last night on the control box for my lights. The controller is a a stormx. I have 5 channels for the lights, one channel controls the fans. I also plan to power the stormx off of the 180W power supply. The empty slot on my LDD board is where the driver for the storm will be placed. Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 12, 2015 Share Posted February 12, 2015 Looks good so far! Word of caution, though, that power supply will die very quickly if you're going to put a lid on the project box. Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted February 12, 2015 Author Share Posted February 12, 2015 Looks good so far! Word of caution, though, that power supply will die very quickly if you're going to put a lid on the project box. Thanks, Jedi. I had planned to put a lid on the box. Would some vent holes suffice? Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 12, 2015 Share Posted February 12, 2015 I don't think that would help. Those supplies are made to be open air only. Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted February 12, 2015 Author Share Posted February 12, 2015 wow, ok. How about cutting out the top large enough to reveal most of the metal screen? I'm also trying to work out the cabling from the box to the light. I picked up some 8-wire thermostat cable with the intent to run two pieces to the light one for input, one for out. I just don't like the stiffness of the cable. I thought about a vga cable, but it seems like several parts of that cable are coax, so I'm not sure that would work. I need 5 pairs for the light and one pair for the fans. Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted February 24, 2015 Author Share Posted February 24, 2015 I still haven't worked out the kinks in my DIY light, but in the meantime I've managed to get the tank plumbed and filled. I have also moved my rock from their curing containers to the tank. First time I've cycled rock outside of the tank and I have to say I like it! Here's a a few pics. Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted March 2, 2015 Author Share Posted March 2, 2015 Let there be LIGHT!!! It turns out, I ether blew my LDD board, or it never worked in the first place; probably blew it. Anyway, after testing all new drivers, I ordered a Coralux board and wired the light as instructed on an LEDGroupBuy how-to. It felt amazing to finally see light! Thanks go out JediMasterBen and O2Surplus over at ReefCentral for patiently answering my questions. I still have to get another board to hold the two drivers needed for my controller and fans; it is on its way already. Once I have that I can finish up the the control box and hang the fixture. Over the weekend I transfered live sand that I had been maintaining in a separate aquarium to the new tank. This sand came from another tank that was broken down a few months back. It is full of clean-up crew members like spaghetti and bristle worms. Once I hang my light I can begin to break down the 20-L. The 5 gallon tank I had been using to maintain the sand has been converted into a temporary frag tank to help during the big move. Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted March 11, 2015 Author Share Posted March 11, 2015 Finally! The light is above the tank and working. Whew! I spent all weekend finishing up the light and getting moved into the new tank. I'm pretty pleased with how things shaped up. Not the best pic, but it's all I have right now. I'll try to get better pics to share later. The light is dimmed pretty low to acclimate the corals. My previous light was a current orbit LED and the maximum par level was 300 at the surface of the water and 100 at the sandbed - directly under the light. PAR dropped significantly on the edges. This light should blow that one away. My only complaint at this point, is that all my babies look so tiny in their new home.... Link to comment
Chief Reefer Posted March 11, 2015 Share Posted March 11, 2015 Looks great so far man. Love the DIY in this build so far - always fun and rewarding when things work out as planned. Sump custom too? Link to comment
clink51 Posted March 11, 2015 Share Posted March 11, 2015 what was the total price on the LED build? Link to comment
jwpadgett Posted March 12, 2015 Author Share Posted March 12, 2015 I have yet to build my sump. For the short term, I have borrowed an acrylic sump from a friend that sits in a 20 long. My old tank will be converted into a 3-chamber sump in time. I'll have to get a pic of the sump setup. The total price of the LED build was between $400 and $500 before all the replacement parts I had to buy after blowing things up. I was trying to match/beat the performance of a AI Hydra 52 with the controller. I think I got pretty close. The Hydra/controller would have cost about $800, so I saved a few bucks and learned a ton in the process. The storm-x controller isn't wireless, but it does what I need it to do. I can always upgrade individual components later. Here's a few pics with the colors filtered. A few of my pieces haven't fully accepted their new home, yet. The field of frags on the sand bed will be mounted in time. Most are zoas that will be attached to the bits of tonga rock. Link to comment
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