Max Ivers March 23, 2011 Share March 23, 2011 (edited) Hi everyone, For those who don't know me, I'm relatively new to WAMAS, I joinedthis past fall. I'm a high school student and absolutely love my reef. I started my current 55g in August of 2010 and it's been thrivingsince. I'll take a few pictures of it when I get the chance. My new project is going to be "the big one" at least until Igo off to school at the end of next year. The equipment list is as follows: 48"x24"x24" 120 gallon AGA Dual Megaflow Tank with 2 back overflows 36"x18"x16" 40 gallon breeder tank for the sump. 4x 48" 110w VHO SuperActinic bulbs overdriven by an IceCap 660 48" 4x54 T5HO Current Sundial Fixture with ATI bulbs (2 Blue+,Aquablue Special, Purple Plus) Reef Octopus NWB-150 Gate Valve Model BRS Biopellet Reactor driven by a MJ1200 WarnerMarine EcoBak BioPellets Rio2500 submersible pump 30lbsof BRS Dry Rock mix of pulkani and fiji 65lbsof Live Rock from my current setup KoraliaEvolution 1050 and 750 circulation pumps Details on the actual build to follow! Edited March 23, 2011 by Max Ivers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onux20 March 25, 2011 Share March 25, 2011 Oooooh...sounds like an adventure. Definitely tagging along. Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerseller March 25, 2011 Share March 25, 2011 sounds great. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers March 28, 2011 Author Share March 28, 2011 sorry I couldn't get the second half up, I was out of town over the weekend. But the first installment WITH PICTURES will be up tomorrow afternoon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers April 1, 2011 Author Share April 1, 2011 So life has been really busy as of late. But I've been making progress on the tank, just the pictures havent really been taken. I'm gonna try to get some up ASAP. But for those following I have some questions. I have 4 48" 110w VHO SuperActinic Bulbs on an IceCap 660 Ballast and the guts of a 4x54 Current Sundial T5HO fixture. I'm thinking of doing a light rack that would slide away for tank access. I was going to use door tracks like these from McMaster-Carr part #1223A8 rated at 150lbs per rail. I would replace the bolts in the sliders with eyebolts and then put eyebolts on the light rack (probably just nicely trimmed plywood) and connect the two eyebolts with chain. Anyone see problems with this? I've seen builds such as this one (start on the page linked and go through another page or two for complete assembly) that have used these exact parts and had good results. I'm thinking about laying out the bulbs as follows: ----URI SuperActinic VHO---- ----ATI Blue Plus T5HO------- ----ATI Purple Plus T5HO----- ----URI SuperActinic VHO---- ----URI SuperActinic VHO---- ----ATI AquaBlue Special T5HO----- ----ATI Blue Plus T5HO------- ----URI SuperActinic VHO---- Any comments on this setup? Keep in mind I got 8 VHO bulbs thrown in the deal and I just replaced my T5's so I'm not really looking to buy new bulbs for another year. But if I'd be better off with some other layout or if you see a potential issue, absolutely let me know. Here's a picture of a layout of the light rack I was envisioning but with only the VHO's (the t5's are on my tank now) but you can see the space where the T5's would go. Also threw in a picture of the tank sitting in my basement after I cleaned it out with a vinegar bath and then 3 tapwater rinses. It was gross when I first bought it, covered in coraline, tube worms and dead macroalgaes. Thanks for looking! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle April 9, 2011 Share April 9, 2011 You did a pretty good job at cleaning the tank up, Max. I think you'll have a very blue looking tank with that bulb selection, though maybe that's what you're going for. You may want to mix in some daylight or 6500K bulb(s) into the mix. They're also very high in PAR. Maybe check with some of the bulb geeks on RC for their opinions as well. When I experimented with fluorescents years ago, the order of the bulbs mattered big time. Shift bulbs to the back to "dim" their effect, bring them forward to increase their effect. I may have some light rail stuff left in my basement that I can bring to the meeting. Otherwise you might have luck in Lowes for sliding door hardware if you don't want to deal with McMaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind April 9, 2011 Share April 9, 2011 Are you going to use reflectors with the lamps? You might want to paint the wood white to reflect more light and to keep moisture out. I would mount the ballast / switch somewhere outside the hood because salt is going to eat both of them up and two the heat from the ballast will not be good for the lamps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers April 9, 2011 Author Share April 9, 2011 You did a pretty good job at cleaning the tank up, Max. I think you'll have a very blue looking tank with that bulb selection, though maybe that's what you're going for. You may want to mix in some daylight or 6500K bulb(s) into the mix. They're also very high in PAR. Maybe check with some of the bulb geeks on RC for their opinions as well. When I experimented with fluorescents years ago, the order of the bulbs mattered big time. Shift bulbs to the back to "dim" their effect, bring them forward to increase their effect. I may have some light rail stuff left in my basement that I can bring to the meeting. Otherwise you might have luck in Lowes for sliding door hardware if you don't want to deal with McMaster. Thanks alot of elbow grease and a few gallons of vinegar goes a long way! Also I'm not sure if I was totally clear on how I'm going to run my lighting. All 4 VHO's are going to be run as an actinic cycle and my 4x54 T5 setup is going to be run as my daylights. I may try an experiment with the cheap 4600k VHO bulbs from the big orange box as I have more than a few in my house and they're cheap to replace. I may go and look at Lowes for the sliding track, good idea. Thanks! And thanks for tagging along Are you going to use reflectors with the lamps? You might want to paint the wood white to reflect more light and to keep moisture out. I would mount the ballast / switch somewhere outside the hood because salt is going to eat both of them up and two the heat from the ballast will not be good for the lamps. Thanks for the question, I actually had that question myself. Do T12 bulbs need reflectors? These seem to have internal reflectors (URI SuperActinics) but I already intended to paint the "reflector" side of the board white with Kilz 2 Primer to keep the moisture out and I figure it'll help with reflection. And the setup I posted a pic of is just a temporary setup so I could get the hang of wiring a retrofit light setup. But I appreciate the questions and I hope you'll continue to ask because I'm sure there's always something I've overlooked Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle April 13, 2011 Share April 13, 2011 I think most of the people who run VHOs use the bulbs with internal reflectors. URI superactinics are somewhat of the defacto standard for fluorescent actinics. A properly designed reflector for a VHO bulb would be relatively large compared to the bulb itself (think twice as large as a good T5 reflector). Nothing wrong with priming the inside of the canopy. I actually left mine unfinished to cut down somewhat on leakage, but if you're doing an in wall setup, this is a non-issue. Actually, what do you have to paint if the setup is in wall? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers April 13, 2011 Author Share April 13, 2011 I think most of the people who run VHOs use the bulbs with internal reflectors. URI superactinics are somewhat of the defacto standard for fluorescent actinics. A properly designed reflector for a VHO bulb would be relatively large compared to the bulb itself (think twice as large as a good T5 reflector). Nothing wrong with priming the inside of the canopy. I actually left mine unfinished to cut down somewhat on leakage, but if you're doing an in wall setup, this is a non-issue. Actually, what do you have to paint if the setup is in wall? Yeah I don't think I'm going to make any reflectors for the VHO's since they have the internal reflectors. I'm going to put the primer on any wood that is near the tank so that the moisture won't affect it too much, but I'm not going to do any sort of painting since it'll all be hidden in my fish room. What do you mean when you say you "left yours unfishied to cut down somewhat on leakage" I'm confused about what you mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers April 13, 2011 Author Share April 13, 2011 Also another update...I started to measure out where I'm going to be cutting the hole in the wall! Next comes ripping out the carpet and tearing down the drywall on the "wet" side of the tank so that I can get a look at the inside of the wall. Lots of progress is going to be made in these next two weeks or so since I'm on spring break Thank you all for your interest in my project. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle April 13, 2011 Share April 13, 2011 What do you mean when you say you "left yours unfishied to cut down somewhat on leakage" I'm confused about what you mean. The inside of my canopy isn't primed white. I'm trying to keep the reflection down so that the light that leaks out (back, cracks on the side where my canopy is hinged) is a little less intense. Maybe it makes a difference. Maybe I say this because I was lazy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers April 14, 2011 Author Share April 14, 2011 The inside of my canopy isn't primed white. I'm trying to keep the reflection down so that the light that leaks out (back, cracks on the side where my canopy is hinged) is a little less intense. Maybe it makes a difference. Maybe I say this because I was lazy. Ah now I understand, I'm going for both waterproofing and maximum reflection of light into the tank. To control light leakage (since this is inwall) I'm going to probably use weatherstripping to fill any small gaps that light goes through. It's what I did on my cabinet for my 55 gal to keep the fuge light from spilling out as the tank is in my bedroom and the fuge light was on while I was asleep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowieReefer84 April 9, 2012 Share April 9, 2012 How about a one year update? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers April 9, 2012 Author Share April 9, 2012 Sure! Totally thought this thread was dead. And since my tank turned out absolutely nothing like I had originally planned I didnt know if it was even worth it to post here. I'll make a video tonight or tomorrow of my whole setup. Stay tuned Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onux20 April 13, 2012 Share April 13, 2012 Sure! Totally thought this thread was dead. And since my tank turned out absolutely nothing like I had originally planned I didnt know if it was even worth it to post here. I'll make a video tonight or tomorrow of my whole setup. Stay tuned The suspense... JK, looking forward to the update. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers April 13, 2012 Author Share April 13, 2012 It will absolutely be worth it haha. I'm broke yet happy. I ended up sparing very little expense...unlike my original plans ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers April 16, 2012 Author Share April 16, 2012 Ok so I'm going to be out of town for the next two weeks so the full update will have to wait. But heres a mini blog writeup of my tank to tie everyone over. Special thanks to Nishal (Gizmoody) for taking the pics and posting them on his website. http://redseamaxreef.com/photo-shoot-of-maxs-110-reef-tank/ Enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers May 1, 2012 Author Share May 1, 2012 (edited) Alright time for an update finally, but not a good one (at least right now)...I posted this in general discussion as well but figured I would put it here as well. So I recently took my ZeoVit reactor offline which clearly was helping to keep my nutrients under control. I took the reactor offline around 3 weeks ago, and since then have seen a massive bloom of bryopsis, cyano (red) and a black cyano-type algae which i think is a different species of cyano. My NO3 is 0 (absolutely clear on 3 different salifert kits with myself and 2 others verifying the color and doing the tests) and Phosphate is 5ppb phosphorus = .015ppm PO4. I run a TEK 8x54w fixture with the 4 actinic bulbs (3 blue+ 1 purp+) on from 12pm until 10pm and the 4 daylight bulbs (2 coral+, 2 blue+) run from 2pm until 8pm. All the bulbs were replaced on 2/12/12, so that can't be the issue. Also I've cut down my feeding to once a day with pellets and they are fed with a feeding cone (funnel) so that they dont get sucked down the overflow and rot. My cheato has been growing like crazy, but the Bryopsis is just unbearable, it's smothering zoa frags in my frag tank and beginning to take root in the display. I just placed an order from reefcleaners.com for nearly 200 snails which are long overdue as a replacement CUC. I probably have 40 not including nass. currently. I've been dosing brightwell hydrat-mg (just like Kent Tech-M) and raising my magnesium. Anyone else have ideas? Edited May 1, 2012 by Max Ivers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott711 May 1, 2012 Share May 1, 2012 Max, Even though you are measuring very low phosphates, as you have noted your macro algae is growing like crazy. That would tell me that you have more phosphates than you can measure since the algae consumes it before you are able to measure it with test kit. How often are you doing water changes? Do you use GFO? What about carbon dosing? what about harvesting the macro so you allow it to grow again? By taking the macro out you are helping remove excess phosphates. I started dosing vinegar a month or so ago in combination with GFO and my corals are doing great. I have some cyano in places due to the carbon dosing, but my tank has responded very well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surf&turf May 1, 2012 Share May 1, 2012 Max, Even though you are measuring very low phosphates, as you have noted your macro algae is growing like crazy. That would tell me that you have more phosphates than you can measure since the algae consumes it before you are able to measure it with test kit. How often are you doing water changes? Do you use GFO? What about carbon dosing? what about harvesting the macro so you allow it to grow again? By taking the macro out you are helping remove excess phosphates. I started dosing vinegar a month or so ago in combination with GFO and my corals are doing great. I have some cyano in places due to the carbon dosing, but my tank has responded very well. +1 My phosphates were high enough to burn the tips of the SPS corals and they started to recede from the base. Still tested 0 with Salifert test kit. I really didn't have much if any excess algae, I guess my CUC was consuming what was growing. I started changing water, in a week and half I changed 60 gallons in a 90 gallon system. I also changed the GFO twice in that 2 week period as well. The tank has really turned around, my colors are coming back and everything looks great again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers May 1, 2012 Author Share May 1, 2012 Max, Even though you are measuring very low phosphates, as you have noted your macro algae is growing like crazy. That would tell me that you have more phosphates than you can measure since the algae consumes it before you are able to measure it with test kit. How often are you doing water changes? Do you use GFO? What about carbon dosing? what about harvesting the macro so you allow it to grow again? By taking the macro out you are helping remove excess phosphates. I started dosing vinegar a month or so ago in combination with GFO and my corals are doing great. I have some cyano in places due to the carbon dosing, but my tank has responded very well. I assumed that phosphate was available to all of the algae, I'm just not sure why the chaeto and mangroves aren't outcompeting the bryopsis. I currently run 700ml of biopellets (a mix of warner marine ecobak and ATB HQ pellets). I run 2 cups of BRS carbon (the grade below ROX 0.8, I forget the name) in a filter bag between my baffles which is changed every 2 weeks. I do not run GFO at all. I harest the chaeto whenever the ball fills up my 20 long refugium. Usually every 2 weeks or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott711 May 1, 2012 Share May 1, 2012 what about water changes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Ivers May 2, 2012 Author Share May 2, 2012 what about water changes? I've been out of town for the past two weeks so I've been slacking. When I ran the zeo I did wc's once a month, usually like 20-25 gallons. Now I've begun to pick it up. I did 20gallons before I left and I did a 10 gallon change when I got home this past sunday. And I plan to do about 20 gallons per week from now on. I use D+D H2Ocean salt currently but I plan to switch to reef crystals as soon as I finish the bucket and a half of deltec that I have left. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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