fogcutter

I've been following this thread on RC. This guy was building a system in a confined space and wanted a way to lift the whole assembly up for maintenance and access to his sump etc. Of course he has some mad fabricating skills and it's an awesome build.

So I have the luxury of time for planning my new/next tank. It'll be my first tank setup since I left the hobby / moved to VA 6 years ago. I was going through the gear that I had left and testing to make sure everything still worked. I found out that the custom 20 gal acrylic sump I had in storage wasn't as ideal as I thought....I'll probably have to add some baffles and make some adjustments.....no biggie. The rockin' return pump still works great but it's a monster and it's an external/dry pump but I see no reason not to use it. What'd like to know is: What do you think the best way to plumb my return pump with my sump? I don't have a problem drilling the sump but do I need to? Any thoughts?

Has anyone seen / used these for a setup? Seems like you'd only have to add some blues to have a dimmable LED solution. I'm not sure about this particular bulb but they list Cree's as the LED manufacturer on some of the other models. : EarthLED LumiSelect PAR38 Dimmable LED LumiSelect PAR38 The premiere dimmable PAR38 spotlight, LumiSelect PAR38 allows you to install a high powered LED spotlight in PAR38 form factor downlights or track lights and maintain full dimming capabilities. Utilizing 12-2Watt LED Light engines, the LumiSelect PAR38 can achieve light output comparable to a 100-120 Watt Spotlight while only using 24 watts of power. Specifications and Dimensions: Power Consumption: 24 Watts Light Engine: 12×2 Watt with LumiSelect Technology Input Voltage: 110~240 V AC (Worldwide) Luminous Flux: 1000 Lumens (Warm), 1200 Lumens (Cool) Color Temperature: 2800 K (Warm), 6000 K (Cool) CRI: 75 (Typical) Beam Angle – 45 Degrees Lifespan: > 50,000 Hours (MTBF) Construction: Aluminum with Integrated Heatsink Physical Dimensions: Overall Length – 5.08 in (129.17 mm), Diameter – 4.78 in (121.87 mm) Weight – 12 Ounces Base Types Available: E26/27 Great For: Spotlights, Down Lights Cost to run for one year – $7.01 Calculated assuming 8 Hours a day operation, 365 Days a Year with $.10 KWh Electricity Cost Just curious.

I couldn't agree more. Have you seen any pictures of natural reef columns? I saw one or two on a RC thread about DIY rock but I haven't found any good pictures of reef columns for inspiration.

I like the looks of those...might have to consider that and maybe combine with some MARCO rock. I'm kind of a dyed-in-the-wool rock wall kind of guy but I'm trying to break out of my mold. It might be silly, but my main concern while I'm planning my tank is to create something that is found in nature. I've seen a few pictures of come columnar rock/reef formations that those ceramic rocks could be perfect for. I'm still trying to find some real life pictures of some non-rock wall or mound reef formations.

The dimmable drivers would be controlled by most of the modern controllers on the market from what I've been reading. That's one of the main reasons I want to have a dimmable LED setup....so I can make that future controller that I just spend $$$$ on work for me.

And then I found THIS site... http://www.reefledlights.com/

Those LED fixtures look to be the frontrunners on my quest for a LED lighting solution. I'm not so freaked out about the cost...well yes I am...but I know that a DIY solution (the one I want anyway) would be just as much if not more. In my searching I'm finding "almost perfect solutions" for my future LED lighting but it always seems to fall one feature short or one parameter that's just not enough. My ultimate wish list would include a 36" size LED fixture sufficient for a mixed reef that has moonlight capability and can be fully dimmable for use with a controller but I don't think such a commercial fixture exists.....yet. The Maxspect has it's own timer / controller and the KEY doesn't look like it can be dimmed. Still looking though.

These guys are apparently 50% owners: http://www.fish-stre...category_id=118

Ok, I'm pleading total ignorance here...why do you need two PH probe ports? Are you measuring PH twice? Or are you using the probe port for something else?

Hmmm....that's sounds like a definite possibility. Thanks!

I am still in the planning stages for my tank and I'm thinking about what I want to use for LR. Since I wanted to have some caves I was considering making my own rock with the various recipes and techniques I've seen here and elsewhere. Then I had another thought....could I take some dry rock like the Marco stuff and drill or chisel some holes and caves? Or would you think it would be too brittle to do anything like that? Just a thought....

I had a Dragon that stayed in the sand for over a week. I thought for sure he was dead and gone then one morning he was just swimming around like he'd been there all along. I agree with the others....wrasses are awesome and half the reason I got into this obsession...errrr....hobby.

Those kits still look insanely complicated to me but I guess that's half the fun of DIY. I still recommend a couple of these: http://www.amazon.co...h/dp/B0002DKBE0 They can be mounted either way to operate an outlet/switch for high or low water situations. Or heck...just go Cadillac and get one of these: http://genesisreefsystems.com/products.php?cat=10

So while I'm more than ready to buy and setup a new tank, I've been getting some pretty serious push back from my significant other. Can't say that I blame her too much since I was such a noob when I set up my first tank and I'm pretty sure she remembers some of the flooding / water spills. So in a compromise I've decided to go lower on my tank size.....a 29 gallon or lower. However, I already own a custom made acrylic sump that's 30 gallons. So besides that fact that I'll be looking at my setup and thinking "this is just WRONG" all the time....does anyone foresee any problems with having more water (relatively) in the sump than in my main tank?