Teenyreef's 20g Study-kept Dustmite Biotope: IM10 Transfer

[teenyreef]

5 hours ago, Reefkid88 said:

Could've just asked me about the fittings, I am a mechanical plumber by trade ya know lol. A spigot x slip 90 would have been perfect in that situation. 

 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Dura-Corp-1-2-in-Schedule-40-PVC-90-Degree-Street-Elbow-C409-005/100344960

I didn't know you were a plumber - now I can have you in my "list of great people to ask a million questions" list 

 

I'm doing all Schedule 80 so that made finding less-common fittings a little more challenging, plus the bulkhead is threaded so a spigot wouldn't work. But what you recommended was almost the same thing - I wanted a MIPT x slip street elbow, but I couldn't find one. But I did find MIPT x FIPT, so I just added a threaded socket adapter. I just got them yesterday and I'm really happy with how it fit. When I place it flush to the wall, there's just a little spare room between the overflow box and the wall, so the box won't get scratched up.

 

 

 

For anyone looking for plumbing parts online, Blackhawk Supply was one of a very few online plumbing places that had this particular fitting when I was searching. They happily accepted my $10 order and shipped it right away.

 

 

 

[teenyreef]

10 hours ago, neyes_ice said:

i got the fiji cube 12 sump. the klir di-4 fits perfectly

That's good to know! How do you like it?

 

On my sump, there's a cover panel over the sump section that's only about 3" wide, so it's way too small for the big square part of the filter. And the sock holder is about 3 1/2" wide, which is just a tiny bit too small for the part of the filter that goes below the holder.

 

I'm considering whether to get out the power tools and just cut a bigger access hole and add some notches for the filter. When the filter is in place, none of my butchery will show anyway. 

[mipster]

Just now, teenyreef said:

I'm considering whether to get out the power tools and just cut a bigger access hole

DOOOO IT!

[teenyreef]

On 6/16/2020 at 9:30 PM, RedTheReefer said:

I was also eyeing these rocks for my new build. I can't wait to see what you come up with.

 

How come you decided to go the X30 over the XR15? Isn't the XR30 overkill?

The XR30 is waaaaay overkill. 

 

I went back and forth in a couple posts in the first few pages about the lighting. I really thought about a single XR15, but I was concerned about having a big hot spot in the middle and not enough PAR on the far ends of the tank. I thought about two separate XR15's, but that would be even more overkill, and would be kind of, well, ugly.

 

It really came down to what light would give enough PAR for high-end SPS while taking up the least possible space above the tank. I still wonder if I should have just gone with the XR15, but this way I'll never regret my choice because I didn't get enough power 

[teenyreef]

4 minutes ago, mipster said:

DOOOO IT!

It's really tempting and I probably will. Really the only thing holding me back is that I'm not sure how much I'll even need it to begin with. In my 30g frag tank, I run without a sock most of the time, and just put one in for a few days when I need to clean things up a bit. The automated filter will be a little less convenient to pull in and out whenever I want to.

 

On the other hand, even in a super clean tank, mechanical filtration doesn't hurt anything. The main reason for running sockless in the 30g is that the tank is clean enough to not need it, and when I do run socks, it's a pain to remember to change them regularly. An automated filter eliminates that problem.

[Reefkid88]

BRS had slip Sch.80 bulkheads and sch.80 spigot by slip 90's in stock. 

 

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/schedule-80-90-elbow-slip-x-spigot-street-1-53329e4c4ffe13a2129d58d8d8c09a80.html

 

 I found an amazing fitting website but added stuff to my cart and come to find out you had to order $100 worth.. bummer. 

 

 I got all my fittings from HD,Lowes and CoralVue for my union check valves. 

 

 I mean I only run copper and carbon steel. I have maybe installed 60ft of pvc in 4 years lol. I consider myself lucky lol. 

[neyes_ice]

On 6/17/2020 at 8:19 PM, teenyreef said:

That's good to know! How do you like it?

 

On my sump, there's a cover panel over the sump section that's only about 3" wide, so it's way too small for the big square part of the filter. And the sock holder is about 3 1/2" wide, which is just a tiny bit too small for the part of the filter that goes below the holder.

 

I'm considering whether to get out the power tools and just cut a bigger access hole and add some notches for the filter. When the filter is in place, none of my butchery will show anyway. 

so far so good! butcher away! :D

[teenyreef]

I now have all the plumbing parts and am ready to do the cutting and dry fitting, and ready to do the scape.

Unfortunately, something came up at work and I've been working weekends and nights. Hopefully that will be over after this coming weekend and I can get back to the build!

On 6/19/2020 at 12:04 AM, neyes_ice said:

so far so good! butcher away! 😄

Yeah, I think I will!

[RedTheReefer]

On 6/17/2020 at 11:25 PM, teenyreef said:

The XR30 is waaaaay overkill. 

 

I went back and forth in a couple posts in the first few pages about the lighting. I really thought about a single XR15, but I was concerned about having a big hot spot in the middle and not enough PAR on the far ends of the tank. I thought about two separate XR15's, but that would be even more overkill, and would be kind of, well, ugly.

 

It really came down to what light would give enough PAR for high-end SPS while taking up the least possible space above the tank. I still wonder if I should have just gone with the XR15, but this way I'll never regret my choice because I didn't get enough power 

If you can afford it, why not? 😄

 

How do you like the light so far? Have you messed with the settings at all? Is the light too blue for you?

 

I'm trying to decide between the Pro and Blue versions myself.

[teenyreef]

Well, I thought I had posted to let everyone know that work suddenly got busy and that I wouldn't be posting anything for a few days. But there's no sign of my post, so sorry about that. 

 

The good news is I'm back from work and ready to get going on the tank again this weekend 🙂

 

[teenyreef]

On 6/25/2020 at 3:13 PM, RedTheReefer said:

If you can afford it, why not? 😄

 

How do you like the light so far? Have you messed with the settings at all? Is the light too blue for you?

 

I'm trying to decide between the Pro and Blue versions myself.

Good questions! I do like it but haven't really played with the settings much yet. It's not too blue for me, but it is worth noting that the "AB+" default setting, which is supposed to look like the Gen4 AB+ setting, isn't the same. I didn't have one of the old ones to compare, but it did look different to me, and I've seen other posts talking about it. Time will tell if "different" means "worse" or "better". So if you are looking for the classic color, be cautious with the Gen 5 and do research. For me, it's not too blue, though.

 

I love the large number of LEDs, the spread, and the diffusion from the lenses. They offer a diffusion cover but I haven't seen any need for it.

 

The slim profile look of the light is fantastic, and the fan is quiet, at least at the very low levels I've run the light on.

 

 

[xiaoxiy]

That's the exact sump I ran on my Elos MIDI. FYI, I used the main chamber as a refugium, and just stuck my skimmer (Icecap K2-50) in the return section and it worked like a charm! Food for thought in terms of filtration setup.

[teenyreef]

34 minutes ago, xiaoxiy said:

That's the exact sump I ran on my Elos MIDI. FYI, I used the main chamber as a refugium, and just stuck my skimmer (Icecap K2-50) in the return section and it worked like a charm! Food for thought in terms of filtration setup.

Oh, I like that idea! I noticed how big the return chamber was...I just might try it.

[teenyreef]

On 6/30/2020 at 10:47 PM, teenyreef said:

Oh, I like that idea! I noticed how big the return chamber was...I just might try it.

On further review...the return chamber is too small for my skimmer (Coralbox D300). It's probably just as well, I've never been able to grow macroalgae in any of my four reef tanks so far. I guess I just don't have a green thumb.

[teenyreef]

I've been slowly figuring out the plumbing this weekend. Having the back of the tank close to the wall is a bit of a challenge, and having the back of the cabinet close to the wall is a really big challenge. I can't easily move the cabinet without moving the whole desk which would mean moving the IM10 that's on the desk now. 

But as of Saturday night, everything is done except for the return. I'll post more pics when it's all done, but here's the overflow plumbing as a quick preview:

 

[Reefkid88]

Do you feel like in an emergency situation the ball valve would work better in the sump area ? 

[teenyreef]

4 hours ago, Reefkid88 said:

Do you feel like in an emergency situation the ball valve would work better in the sump area ? 

That's a good thought. Ideally it should go lower, in the sump. With a herbie drain, having the valve as low as possible helps the siphon, and it would be easier to get to in an emergency with my head in the sump. But from what I've read, it doesn't make all the much difference for the siphon.

 

But the tradeoff is being able to easily adjust the valve while watching the water level in the overflow. As the pump eventually slows down, I anticipate having to adjust the valve every few months. So having it up top is easier overall for me.

 

For those wanting to learn more about the different overflow options and how to do the plumbing, the gmacreef site is a classic reference. Here's the article on the herbie overflow: https://gmacreef.com/herbie-overflow-reef-tank-plumbing-method-basics/

[Reefkid88]

Hmm interesting I will have to look into that link. 

 

 I'm using a full union check valve's and ball valves on both lines just to be safe.

 

 I have 2 full port regular pvc sticky handle ball valves I may install too on both lines as,may seem redundant but idk what else to use them for unless I make a manifold on the return for a reactor ?! 

 

 I need to order a strainer for the overflow,a Sicce .05 or 1.0 and an ATO today and I have everything but salt. I need to build a stand too lol. 

[teenyreef]

Assuming things pass the lead test, the plumbing is done!

 

Here's the first hole cut in the cabinet - we're committed now! 

Don't mind the mess with all the cords and tubes. All that stuff is temporary because everything still runs to the IM10 instead of the sump. Once this tank is cycled and I'm ready to shut down the IM10, I'll clean it all up.

 

Main return line. Because there's not much space between the back of the cabinet and the wall, I drilled holes large enough for the unions to fit and placed the unions right againt the back of the cabinet.

 

This is the emergency drain line and the return line.

 

I used 45 degree angles to align the pipes so that the siphon didn't have to go through too much horizontal piping. So that meant, measure, cut, dry fit, and repeat. And repeat, and repeat...

Turns out that was impossible to do behind the tank with the overflow in place. So I made a little stand to hold the overflow in place without the tank so I could reach behind and down below the cabinet.

 

Not a lot of room back there...this would have been so much easier if I had just moved the desk out from the wall before I set up the IM10.

 

Final dry fit for the overflow plumbing:

 

It's not perfect but I'm fairly happy with how things turned out inside the cabinet.

 

Top down in the back:

 

Final plumbing in back (from the side):

 

I'm happy with how it turned out up top. This is the clean look I was hoping to get!

 

[Elizabeth94]

Sure does look a lot bigger than the IM 10 in that last photo. More than I expected. Digging the frosted glass. 

[Merthynia]

Wow this is really coming along Teeny!!

[mipster]

WOOOO!!!! It's looking great! I love getting to see the whole process. It's fascinating. 

 

Fingers crossed the leak test goes well! Looks like it won't be easy to make adjustments if there is a problem 

[teenyreef]

2 hours ago, Elizabeth94 said:

Sure does look a lot bigger than the IM 10 in that last photo. More than I expected. Digging the frosted glass. 

Thanks! I agree, even knowing 20g is twice as big as 10g, it just seems even bigger than that.

29 minutes ago, Merthynia said:

Wow this is really coming along Teeny!!

Woo hoo!

5 minutes ago, mipster said:

WOOOO!!!! It's looking great! I love getting to see the whole process. It's fascinating. 

 

Fingers crossed the leak test goes well! Looks like it won't be easy to make adjustments if there is a problem 

Glad you are enjoying the process. I know I've always really appreciated detailed build threads and have learned a lot from them. I certainly don't know everything but hopefully even the mistakes are helpful. Or at least entertaining! 🙂

And yeah, I'm not looking forward to finding any leaks. I was careful to use unions on both ends of anything that might need to be removed. But just getting my hand back there to loosen up a union will be a pain.

[teenyreef]

So I took my first shot at a scape tonight with the Stax rocks. Complete fail. But in the spirit of helping myself and other learn from my mistakes, here it is:

 

 

I'm going for an islands/bommie/canyon look. But working the with Stax rocks is really different from piling up regular rocks, breaking them up a bit, re-piling, and repeating until something good happens. It's almost too easy to pile up these rocks, but the result is very artificial looking, and just isn't appealing to me. 

There are a lot of small chunks I can add to break up the straight lines, which will help a bit. The right pile benefited a bit from that approach. 

I think the next version will have the rear island be less steep but have the highest point more towards the middle of the tank, and have the front island be quite a bit smaller.

[Merthynia]

26 minutes ago, teenyreef said:

So I took my first shot at a scape tonight with the Stax rocks. Complete fail. But in the spirit of helping myself and other learn from my mistakes, here it is:

 

 

I'm going for an islands/bommie/canyon look. But working the with Stax rocks is really different from piling up regular rocks, breaking them up a bit, re-piling, and repeating until something good happens. It's almost too easy to pile up these rocks, but the result is very artificial looking, and just isn't appealing to me. 

There are a lot of small chunks I can add to break up the straight lines, which will help a bit. The right pile benefited a bit from that approach. 

I think the next version will have the rear island be less steep but have the highest point more towards the middle of the tank, and have the front island be quite a bit smaller.

I've never seen these rocks before. They look pretty nice to build with. Are they just all slabs cut from the rocks to give you two flat sides?