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Jon and Maureen’s 350g Tank: The Reef Awakens


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We’ve been on the fringes of reefing for the last three years.  In 2013 we sold our place in Fredericksburg and moved to the Alexandria/Annandale area so I could be closer to work and spend more time at home.  The new house had been a rental for many years, and required a lot of love.  Which means it required a lot of our time.  Setting up a new and bigger reef tank remained in the back of our minds, but progress has been slow.  Many, many deadlines for starting the new tank came and went.

 

With most of the major renovation nearly done, we have more time to dedicate to finishing the tank planning and preparations.  I wanted to share our ideas with the WAMAS community, get feedback and others’ perspectives, and chronicle our progress as a warning to others!

 

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The tank will be a mixed reef with sps, lps, and zoanthids.  The display tank will be on our ground floor in the dining room, and also visible from the living room and kitchen.  Part of our kitchen renovation was removing the load bearing wall between the kitchen and dining room.  While everything was apart, we also had the dining room floor reinforced to bear the weight of the tank.  The engineer called for two triple-ply laminated veneer lumber (LVL) running under the tank.  He also recommended doubling all the existing 2x10s in the dining room floor.  Now the floor is rock solid.

 

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The tank is a glass, eurobraced 350g (96”L x 28”D x 30”H) made by Aquarium Obsession.  I bought it from another WAMAS member in 2012 when he took his system down, and I’ve been dragging it around for the last four years.  Corner overflows were all the rage when this tank was built, and this one came with two very large overflows and holes in the bottom of the tank for the overflow plumbing.  I removed the overflows and drilled the back wall for a ghost overflow.  I’ll incorporate the leftover holes from the old overflows into the closed loop plumbing.

 

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Equipment:

Tank: 350g (96”L x 28”D x 30”H)

Stand and hood: 80/20 extruded aluminum structure.  Hardwood cabinetry.

Return: Vectra L1 (or Hammerhead gold hybrid, if required)

Overflow: Ghost overflow with beananimal plumbing.  1” siphon.  1.5” open and emergency channels.  1.5” supply.

Closed loop: Vectra L1 on OM 4-way

In-tank circulation: TBD, likely a combination of Gyre and quietdrive MP40/MP60s on DC backup

Lighting: 4 Reefbreeder 48” Photon V2 with room for T5 color supplements, if required

Skimmer: Avast CS-3 w/ Swabbie and skimmate locker

ATO: Spectrapure LLC

Additives: Kalk topoff; 3-part additive via BM-01 doser

Controller: Apex

Filtration: Polycaprolactone biopellets, UV, carbon, filter socks, and chaeto

Humidity control: TBD, depending on need.  Dehumidifier, whole house fan, and 8” ducted vent possible options.

Cooling: Evaporative fan (or chiller, if required)

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Tank Room

With a system this size, I decided early on that we needed a separate tank room.  A dedicated tank room lets me work standing up, instead of crawling around underneath the DT stand.  A tank room simplifies water changes.  It also lets me set up a generous number of support tanks, a fragging counter, a deep sink, water change station, RO/DI, and a separate “dry workbench” for stuff that shouldn’t get wet.

 

The drawback to a tank room in the basement is head pressure loss and ventilation.  Between vertical rise, horizontal run, and friction losses, I have about 17’ of head to overcome.  My plan is to try out the Ecotech L1 pump as the return and see if 450gph is sufficient for surface skimming and keeping the DT water mixed.  I like the low noise and low power characteristics of the pump.  If not, I’ll upsize to a Hammerhead gold hybrid with ~1500gpm at that height.

 

 

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I just broke down my fish room which was run off a baldor hammerhead gold( the one with out the fins) and moved the sump under the tank. When I had the fish room I had about 12' of head and ran 3 tanks and all my reactors from the hammerhead with ease. I replaced it with the L1 to lower the noise under the tank. The L1 is weak in comparison and I don't think you will be happy with it using it in that manner. I know it's comparing apples and oranges , it would surprise me if it lasted long pushing that height.

 

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Wooo! I've been waiting to see this for all of those 3 years! Not sure if I understand where the tank is going, will it be a divider between the kitchen and dining room, so peninsula style? Or something else?

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I enjoyed your last build very much, and this one looks like it will not disappoint.

 

I can not even begin to tell you how thrilled I am that you've taken the overflows out and going with a ghost, or coast to coast, or whatever. I can't imagine hauling around a tank that big with every move!

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(edited)

Thanks eveyone for your comments and encouragement.  There's a lot more going on with this large a tank, and adding a tank room.

 

I just broke down my fish room which was run off a baldor hammerhead gold( the one with out the fins) and moved the sump under the tank. When I had the fish room I had about 12' of head and ran 3 tanks and all my reactors from the hammerhead with ease. I replaced it with the L1 to lower the noise under the tank. The L1 is weak in comparison and I don't think you will be happy with it using it in that manner. I know it's comparing apples and oranges , it would surprise me if it lasted long pushing that height.

 

Thanks Optimus.  The L1 will only give me ~1.5 tank turnovers, and I admit have concerns about having an ultra-low turnover return pump.  3x to 5x seems to be the general recommendation, but I think that's based on anecdote and circular reporting.  Mostly I'm concerned that I'll get surface scum in the DT, or there won't be enough mixing to keep the water the same throughout the whole system (DT, sump, fuge, frag tank).  I hadn't thought about extra wear on the pump...I'll contact Ecotech for their thoughts.

 

I enjoyed your last build very much, and this one looks like it will not disappoint.

 

I can not even begin to tell you how thrilled I am that you've taken the overflows out and going with a ghost, or coast to coast, or whatever. I can't imagine hauling around a tank that big with every move!

 

I knew I wanted to convert to a 24" ghost overflow, but I almost talked myself out of it because of all the complications.  The tank manufacturer closed a few years ago, so there were no records of whether the glass was tempered or not.  The "polarized glasses and laptop test" told me the glass wasn't tempered, but I didn't know for sure until I drilled.  Then there was sourcing the overflow.  It wasn't until MACNA when I saw the overflow in person that I knew it would work for me.  I had to figure out exactly how high to place it.  I wanted the water level as high as possible while still being safe from spills, and it has to fit underneath the eurobracing.  I think it's worked out now.

Edited by Jon Lazar
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Thanks eveyone for your comments and encouragement. There's a lot more going on with this large a tank, and adding a tank room.

 

 

Thanks Optimus. The L1 will only give me ~1.5 tank turnovers, and I admit have concerns about having an ultra-low turnover return pump. 3x to 5x seems to be the general recommendation, but I think that's based on anecdote and circular reporting. Mostly I'm concerned that I'll get surface scum in the DT, or there won't be enough mixing to keep the water the same throughout the whole system (DT, sump, fuge, frag tank). I hadn't thought about extra wear on the pump...I'll contact Ecotech for their thoughts.

 

 

I knew I wanted to convert to a 24" ghost overflow, but I almost talked myself out of it because of all the complications. The tank manufacturer closed a few years ago, so there were no records of whether the glass was tempered or not. The "polarized glasses and laptop test" told me the glass wasn't tempered, but I didn't know for sure until I drilled. Then there was sourcing the overflow. It wasn't until MACNA when I saw the overflow in person that I knew it would work for me. I had to figure out exactly how high to place it. I wanted the water level as high as possible while still being safe from spills, and it has to fit underneath the eurobracing. I think it's worked out now.

I used a knock off ghost overflow bc nobody was making them when I wanted to install one, except for Modular Marine on EBay. On my 180, I had Aquabox (now closed) build me a custom "ghost overflow." The tank I had was eurobraces, so I butted the top of the internal box against the eurobraced glass, so I never had to worry about fish jumping in or things clogging. Small snails could have gone through the weirs, but the bean animal in the back was the next line of defense. It also looked super clean. I agree with water level being as high as reasonably possible. The 180 was also not documented on the glass, so when I drilled for a 3/4 return, it was a gamble! I feel your struggles.

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(edited)

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I tried to make the most of all the Black Friday sales, and ordered a bunch of stuff I need for the build.

 

I decided to go with two Vectras and have two closed loops.  One on the left side, and one on the right.

 

The Hammerhead will be the basement return pump.  I also ordered a spyglass media reactor.  I'll probably end up with a second one.

Edited by Jon Lazar
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Here's the plan for the tank stand.  It will be assembled out of 1.5"x1.5" and 1.5"x3.0" extruded aluminum (80/20). Deflection of the top frame should be less than 0.25mm.  

 

The tank and stand are not in-wall, so I plan to skin the tank with hardwood.  Doors will be on the front and both sides, and the back will be mostly open.  I'm also looking at a hood made from 80/20 aluminum.

 

Tank%20stand_zpsgxtctenn.png

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Thanks everyone for the encouragement!

 

What type of extruded aluminum, tubing or slotted channel? Will the feet be tapped into the aluminum or secured with steel nuts?

 

It's slotted channel aluminum.  The vertical posts will be tapped, and the leveling feet will screw into the posts.

 

I'm trying to plan to hood out to make access easy.  I'll have typical cabinet doors on the front, and the whole front will be hinged to lift up.  But I also want to put the hood on actuators that lift the whole hood up off the aquarium.  Like doing a push-up.   

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