WheresTheReef

If the water is dropping into the external box then you can use slightly longer pieces of pipe to raise the water level a tiny bit so the water flows into the box instead. Leave the tallest emergency drain at its current height.

Nice! Where is the noise coming from? What kind of noise is it making? I have an emerald sump too, though a larger version, and my drain noise is the water falling into the filter socks. If the plumbing on your tank is noisy then you should be able to quiet it down by fine tuning the flow and drainage.

The tank is looking really nice. I’ve enjoyed watching your update videos.

Look at the typical online vendors. I'm pretty sure they're running 20% off now.

The problem is you tied those two drains together (see your picture below). If you look at the info here https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/content/post/md-2017-08-durso-herbie-bean-animal-overflow you will see that each drain should be independently plumbed, even for a herbie. The bean animal is essentially a herbie with an extra emergency drain. The one with the gate valve would be your primary drain and you close the valve enough that you don’t have air in the pipe (full siphon) to make it quite. It’s possible you were able the crank down your flow enough with the valve on you pump to make it work. If so, your not maximizing the flow of your pump. Anyways, just wanted to point this out. Glad everything else is coming along.

Did you tie one of the drains to the one with the gate valve? If so, I don't believe it's going to allow it to create a full siphon. It won't drain properly and be loud. I think it will fill the overflow box with water, start a siphon and then drain the box in a cycle. Did you test it to do a leak test? You'll see what I mean if I'm correct. Each drain should be independent.

Do you have a piece of wood separating the sump area from the drawers? My concern would be moisture buildup, and possibly the drawer slides rusting. Not sure if rusty drawer slides could drip into your sump. Maybe I’m overthinking it, but maybe something to avoid down the road by sealing it off now. I have my stand’s removable panels off all the time due to the previous moisture that was causing some mold in my sump area. I need to add fans to drive out the moisture so I can put the panels back on.

Very nice! Looking forward to more updates.

Yea things are growing nicely. Definitely takes more patience watching LPS grow compared to SPS. Most are frags so it will take a bit to grow. Once they are small colonies the growth rate is exponential. I’m enjoying this version of the tank. I love the movement in the tank way more than the static look of colored sticks. It definitely helps to know we are not alone in our tough times. If you’re in this hobby long enough, most experience at least one setback. I agree with needing to stay diligent in this hobby. Many of my struggles have coincided with times life was too busy for me to focus on the tank. I think it’s important to enjoy when the tank is doing well, and lean on that as you ride out the struggles. It’s all part of this journey. I actually feel more connected to this version of the tank than previous ones. I find myself inspecting coral tissues to monitor the health of the euphyllia/frimbriaphyllia. I like the faster feedback you get from LPS compared to SPS (especially acros), which might look fine one day and just seems to die overnight sometimes.

Things are filling in slowly. I also managed to swap out the 30g breeder with this DeepBlue 55g RR rimless tank. Currently have a couple fish being treated in QT. The hogfish will go into the 120g and the tiny purple tang in the 55g.