stefanm Posted January 28, 2017 Share Posted January 28, 2017 Been here since Christmas Eve... 40" x 20" and 24" height (internal measurements) I'm trying to stick to a budget, the build will stretch some months, not sure how many, all depends on time and money.. Between my LFS and myself, kind of messed up the holes, so i'll need to work around it, now i've decided to run a Beananimal drain system and a coast to coast weir, the hole on the side wall is for the return, the other two which are 5 mm lower will be my emergency drains, the long glass where the single holes is will be where I drill the other two holes and where I will silicone the weir to, I have a maximum of 15" where I can keep the plumbing as it'll be hidden by a wall. The sump I've not built as yet but the dimensions should be as follows (I've kept 8" for the diy chiller etc.would like more though), 32" long x 18" wide (less the glass approx half inch), first chamber 7" (this will be for the protein skimmer, maybe some media or live rock) second chamber for macro algae and live rock 11", return after bubble trap should be around 10" this will also house a drop in chiller coil (either PVC coated copper or titanium) The lighting is my single biggest expense, I have started an LED build thread in the lighting forum, I was initially going to run T5's, until I had shown my daughter a youtube video of the bluefish controller thunderstorm, dug my own grave there. The stand should be ready next week, I have decided to have one made in 1" steel tube, it'll have a rectangle arm for the light stand which will be spray painted and clear coated. For the doors initially I had planned to do in solid acacia, which is quite cheap here, but I don't much like the look for my flat, so I've decided to use half inch marine ply, with 10 mm thick 2" wide steam beach, these will be spaced approx 2 mm apart horizontally, this way I can attach myself and no holes to fill, the nails/pins will go between the gaps and some scrap will hold them in place whilst the glue dries, thus without any visible holes to fill I can polish the wood myself and should look nice. If anyone can advise on the sump sizing, that's the most confusing as I need to fit the chiller gear in there, the chiller is based on a fridge size (1/2 hp) compressor and condenser, I would use a split ac, but I don't think my wife would let me as the pipes would be in the middle of our balcony. 1 Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted February 8, 2017 Author Share Posted February 8, 2017 Some progress, sorted out the overflows, installed the coast to coast, leak tested, built the sump, got the stand ready (need to make it taller and remove the bottom cross braces, to accommodate the skimmer I have bought) got a pair of Loc-line style returns today also. 1 Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted February 21, 2017 Author Share Posted February 21, 2017 A few changes, we've decided to keep the tank on my balcony now, I have a protein skimmer which I hopefully collect today, I have also ordered a return pump should be here this week, plumbing done and tested. The sump is now going to be in the garden will build a housing hopefully next week. Quote Link to comment
WV Reefer Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 It is looking very nice so far! 1 Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted March 2, 2017 Author Share Posted March 2, 2017 Some progress over the past 3 days, got a return pump sunsun jtp5800, couldn't find much in the way of reviews, apart from one fellow in Brazil, who's been running one for almost two years, got it for a good price and it runs on 12 v DC, I did have to buy a separate power supply and car cigarette lighter adapter, so far it seems ok, draws 37.5 watts, I will be hard plumbing it, I don't much care for flexible pipes. Also built my sump area yesterday, I will be making another tank to house filter socks and a refugium. The extra chamber will be for media which can be used for quarantine/hospital tank as required. Next I'll be making a cover for the sump and an insect screen for the display, after that media, live rock and sand, the final stretch will be to finish the lighting whist the tank is cycling and chiller if needed, I'm keeping a close eye on the temperature as summer has begun, day time temps are equal to peak summer and so far water temps are just about ok. Other things I need to sort are a battery backup and a wavemaker, both are essential, hoping to keep my current use for essentials under 100 watts, with the return pump and skimmer I'm at around 54 watts. The beananimal drain system seems very good so far, not 100% silent, but very quiet, no gurgling sound, however it did take a good 3 hours for me to dial it in properly, not sure if I'll need to adjust it further with salt water. 1 1 Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted August 26, 2017 Author Share Posted August 26, 2017 Nothing much as of now, however I have made some diy rock, which is curing, the last batch I had put in the curing tank yesterday. All together I've made around 40kg, I won't be using all. 1 Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 Some updates, I've made some diy rock and got the diy LED's working with a diy version of the storm x controller, pics and a video.... 2 Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted January 9, 2018 Author Share Posted January 9, 2018 Lights are up.... 2 Quote Link to comment
KuruptPixel Posted January 9, 2018 Share Posted January 9, 2018 I love that this is outside! Nice work! 1 Quote Link to comment
Christopher Marks Posted January 9, 2018 Share Posted January 9, 2018 Such an interesting system you're building @stefanm! Somehow I missed your journal until today! Congratulations on getting your lights mounted, that is a big step! Do you have to take any special precautions with the design so that it can stay outdoors? Is the sump box also covered to keep out debris from the yard? Thanks for sharing! Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted January 10, 2018 Author Share Posted January 10, 2018 Thanks, no special precautions though I'll need to have something like a shower curtain for the rainy season, where the tank is it generally never gets rain, we have between 8-12 ft of rain between June and October annually. Better to be safe than sorry. Hopefully I can finish the controller housing this week. 2 Quote Link to comment
Christopher Marks Posted January 10, 2018 Share Posted January 10, 2018 Whoa, 8 to 12 feet of rain, that's incredible! Here in the Sonoran desert we only see 8 inches of rain all year! Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted March 2, 2018 Author Share Posted March 2, 2018 Right lots of progress happening and lots of hard earned gone.... Firstly the thing that has slowed my build is that I needed a battery backup, not just for the tank, but also my home, finally I invested in a 200 ah battery and ups, the tank can run for 10 hours along with a ceiling fan, this is around the max of the 2-3 times a year when the electricity department shuts our electricity down for maintenance, other power cuts a from a few minutes to 2-4 hours so no problem, the chiller won't work on this though. So I've built an rodi unit for top off, I'll semi automate it for topping off, the rodi will fill the reservoir manually. I've bought a second hand window A.C. And ordered a titanium evaporator coil, so hopefully that should be ready in a couple of weeks. I also made another tank for the sump, this will be to hold filter socks, rock rubble, the cooling coil, this will feed the existing sump, which I've modded yesterday, the new tank will feed the old tank by gravity and will have a gravity fed turf scrubber. I've been modding the plumbing, screwed up my back in the process yesterday, hopefully I'll be back in action and finish either tomorrow or on Sunday, then I'm ready to collect NSW, I've bought water containers, 2 x 35 litres and 4 x 20 litres, so that should be 4 trips, though I have an old chlorine container that holds 50 litres, not sure I'll use that, might be too heavy! Photos and/or a video to follow, I'm expecting the tank to cycle relatively quick, then I can get the quarantine tank running and order some fish and corals....maybe one of the slowest builds on the forum... I missed a few of things, I have made a mesh cover for the tank and picked up a zetlight wave maker and installed some sockets beneath the tank, I had my electrician do that, finally some light at the end of a tunnel. 1 Quote Link to comment
Christopher Marks Posted March 8, 2018 Share Posted March 8, 2018 I am glad you checked in @stefanm, I am curious to see how your build is progressing. You will be converting the second hand window A.C. into a DIY chiller system of some sort? Take lots of photos! Quote Link to comment
HarryPotter Posted March 8, 2018 Share Posted March 8, 2018 What made you spring for a battery system instead of purchasing a cheap generator/inverter? Just curious because I went the small generator route, picked up one right before Irma and it saved my butt! Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted March 18, 2018 Author Share Posted March 18, 2018 On 08/03/2018 at 9:05 PM, Christopher Marks said: I am glad you checked in @stefanm, I am curious to see how your build is progressing. You will be converting the second hand window A.C. into a DIY chiller system of some sort? Take lots of photos! Almost done, the ats is working, the titanium coil should be here next week, I decided to use a drop in coil instead of A.C.'ing the sump, should be more efficient, all plumbing is re-routed. I've collected most of the NSW, if I get the time tonight I'll collect the rest, first I was wading into the ocean, but carting the heavy water barrels up a beach was too much effort! So I found a jetty, collection is easy though it's a 250 meters walk to the car. I did finally visit a not so local fish store last week, he gave me a ball of chaeto, I need to feed it and the pods that live in it, not sure what to do? Any ideas? Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted March 18, 2018 Author Share Posted March 18, 2018 On 08/03/2018 at 9:08 PM, HarryPotter said: What made you spring for a battery system instead of purchasing a cheap generator/inverter? Just curious because I went the small generator route, picked up one right before Irma and it saved my butt! Well generators are quite expensive here, we tend to get frequent but short power cuts, the 200 ah battery/inverter will last me a good 10-12 hours which is enough, only the return pump, wavemaker and controller are on backup, so that's around 70 watts, then there's a ceiling fan, router and lights in the house as required, now when we have power outages at night I don't wake up as the fan stays on. Quote Link to comment
stefanm Posted April 20, 2018 Author Share Posted April 20, 2018 Diy chiller, titanium coil hooked up to a second hand window A.C. Testing complete chilled the 40 litres bucket from 31 celcius to 6.1 celcius in less than half an hour. 1 Quote Link to comment
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