jm23
Active member
I wanted to clean up my build thread a little and the only way to do that is start a new thread (Here is the old thread). So, I will start at the beginning and then give an update on where it is at now. Thanks for following.
07/16/12:
Well I brought home my first tank today. A used, but in great condition 265 gallon perfecto reef ready (85"L x 24"W x 30"H). I have read too many threads to count and feel confident to start the hands on learning process. First let me say thanks to everyone who has shared all their knowledge and first hand experiences and second thanks in advanced for answering a thousand questions I am sure I still have.
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That glass that broke from the lids during transport actually scratched up the tank a little bit, but not too bad.
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07/17/12:
I started the tank stand. The design is going to have bookshelves underneath.
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07/25/12:
A quick update...The tank stand is 99% complete, I only have to drill holes for the overflow into the top, but that will take all of 2 minutes. I will get pictures up, but I think it turned out pretty good. It is definitely far more structurally sound then the stand that came with the tank (only 3/4 plywood box, no additional supports or bracing). I have also resealed the silicone on the inside of the tank with RTV 108 clear silicone. I just finished a few minutes ago and am suffering a headache from not ventilating the area enough . I will let that cure for 14 days and then do a leak test. If all is good, which I am confident it will be, I need to find 3 to 5 strong guys to help me move it into my basement.
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08/02/12:
Attached below are some photos of the LED build. I am debating putting together a step by step on that, but since there are so many available online I think I will wait, but if anyone has any questions I can try to help or point you the right way. *The AA LED tested from RapidLED caught on fire today, so until they figure out why, I would only leave batteries in when testing.*
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08/08/12:
The tank is in place!!! 5 co-workers were kind enough to help me out today and we had a nice bbq afterward. I spent the rest of the day plumbing the tank through the wall. I haven't tested the plumbing yet as I only have 80 gallons of SW in the tank, but I started the cycle using shrimp as there is enough water to cover almost all the dry rock. Here are some pics:
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08/16/12:
Well after a good 10 hrs of wiring my LED lights to my Apex and wanting to
, I finally got them working. Nothing on the Apex side, just my own stupid fault for switch polarities at one point.
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08/27/12:
The sand is in and the islands are set up to where I think they look good. My ammonia is zero, but my nitrites are still high. So, maybe another week or two and the tank will be ready for a CUC. I am starting to see brown algae building on the rocks and think the coraline algae is spreading or I am just noticing more dead spots of it on the rock.
I purchased 2 onyx clownfish on Thursday and put them in QT. I am doing the tank transfer method to make sure there is no Ich. I put a Seachem Ammonia Alert Badge in the tank to warn me of ammonia. Well Saturday morning I woke up and noticed the clowns breathing very rapidly and tipping on their sides every couple seconds. Well I am new to this whole thing, but that just didn't look right to me. So, I checked the ammonia alert badge and it still read that there was zero ammonia. Just for the heck of it I put a second ammonia alert badge in and it said zero. So, I tested it with API and it read over 0.5 ppm Well I did a quick 25% or so water change and put some Prime in the water. Well they got worse and worse and the more I read online I was pretty sure it was from the ammonia. I talked with the LFS who took my water sample and tested it and said that everything looks fine now, but that I should just turn the lights off and wait. Well they look like they will actually make it, not sure if the ammonia damaged their organs permanently or whether they will heal, but they are swimming around now and eating like pigs. They are still breathing heavy, but the LFS said it will take some time for their gills to heal. Needless to say I will never trust one of those alert badges again. DrsFosterandSmith refunded me my money and Seachem argued that the API test and theirs tests for different types of ammonia. They told me to put the badge over a bottle of windex to see if they worked, well of course that worked it is 1,000,000 ppm, but they didn't work in the QT. The only thing that changed was the ammonia level from when they were dying to now when they are swimming around. Anyway, just a warning (sorry for being long-winded).
View attachment 6472
View attachment 6473
07/16/12:
Well I brought home my first tank today. A used, but in great condition 265 gallon perfecto reef ready (85"L x 24"W x 30"H). I have read too many threads to count and feel confident to start the hands on learning process. First let me say thanks to everyone who has shared all their knowledge and first hand experiences and second thanks in advanced for answering a thousand questions I am sure I still have.
View attachment 6454
That glass that broke from the lids during transport actually scratched up the tank a little bit, but not too bad.
View attachment 6455
07/17/12:
I started the tank stand. The design is going to have bookshelves underneath.
View attachment 6456
View attachment 6457
View attachment 6458
07/25/12:
A quick update...The tank stand is 99% complete, I only have to drill holes for the overflow into the top, but that will take all of 2 minutes. I will get pictures up, but I think it turned out pretty good. It is definitely far more structurally sound then the stand that came with the tank (only 3/4 plywood box, no additional supports or bracing). I have also resealed the silicone on the inside of the tank with RTV 108 clear silicone. I just finished a few minutes ago and am suffering a headache from not ventilating the area enough . I will let that cure for 14 days and then do a leak test. If all is good, which I am confident it will be, I need to find 3 to 5 strong guys to help me move it into my basement.
View attachment 6459
View attachment 6460
08/02/12:
Attached below are some photos of the LED build. I am debating putting together a step by step on that, but since there are so many available online I think I will wait, but if anyone has any questions I can try to help or point you the right way. *The AA LED tested from RapidLED caught on fire today, so until they figure out why, I would only leave batteries in when testing.*
View attachment 6461
View attachment 6462
View attachment 6463
View attachment 6464
08/08/12:
The tank is in place!!! 5 co-workers were kind enough to help me out today and we had a nice bbq afterward. I spent the rest of the day plumbing the tank through the wall. I haven't tested the plumbing yet as I only have 80 gallons of SW in the tank, but I started the cycle using shrimp as there is enough water to cover almost all the dry rock. Here are some pics:
View attachment 6465
View attachment 6466
View attachment 6467
View attachment 6468
08/16/12:
Well after a good 10 hrs of wiring my LED lights to my Apex and wanting to
, I finally got them working. Nothing on the Apex side, just my own stupid fault for switch polarities at one point.View attachment 6469
View attachment 6470
View attachment 6471
08/27/12:
The sand is in and the islands are set up to where I think they look good. My ammonia is zero, but my nitrites are still high. So, maybe another week or two and the tank will be ready for a CUC. I am starting to see brown algae building on the rocks and think the coraline algae is spreading or I am just noticing more dead spots of it on the rock.
I purchased 2 onyx clownfish on Thursday and put them in QT. I am doing the tank transfer method to make sure there is no Ich. I put a Seachem Ammonia Alert Badge in the tank to warn me of ammonia. Well Saturday morning I woke up and noticed the clowns breathing very rapidly and tipping on their sides every couple seconds. Well I am new to this whole thing, but that just didn't look right to me. So, I checked the ammonia alert badge and it still read that there was zero ammonia. Just for the heck of it I put a second ammonia alert badge in and it said zero. So, I tested it with API and it read over 0.5 ppm Well I did a quick 25% or so water change and put some Prime in the water. Well they got worse and worse and the more I read online I was pretty sure it was from the ammonia. I talked with the LFS who took my water sample and tested it and said that everything looks fine now, but that I should just turn the lights off and wait. Well they look like they will actually make it, not sure if the ammonia damaged their organs permanently or whether they will heal, but they are swimming around now and eating like pigs. They are still breathing heavy, but the LFS said it will take some time for their gills to heal. Needless to say I will never trust one of those alert badges again. DrsFosterandSmith refunded me my money and Seachem argued that the API test and theirs tests for different types of ammonia. They told me to put the badge over a bottle of windex to see if they worked, well of course that worked it is 1,000,000 ppm, but they didn't work in the QT. The only thing that changed was the ammonia level from when they were dying to now when they are swimming around. Anyway, just a warning (sorry for being long-winded).
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. The diatom bloom came and went and now I got algae growing everywhere, including coralline algae. One of my LED drivers went bad, so I am trying to either troubleshoot the problem or ask the company for a replacement. I bought my first corals Thursday and they are adjusting to the tank well, along with 5 trochus snails and a cleaner shrimp. I have my custom snail package from reefcleaners coming this week. It is exciting to have movement in the tank now.
