hypertech November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 (edited) If you didn't rise the rock, it may turn yellow. Carbon helps get rid of that. I don't know exactly what it is, but I've noticed it using that rock. On my tank, I filled the whole works with tap water and ran the pumps for a couple days to "rinse" everything really well. Then I drained that and filled with RODI and salt. Its also very common to have a sand storm with a new tank. It takes a little time to have all the fine powdery stuff work its way out/settle. Edited November 7, 2011 by hypertech Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 7, 2011 Author Share November 7, 2011 Thanks for the heads up. I wish I had washed the rocks now. If it turns yellow ill throw some carbon in. Well tanks about 50% full and its just murky not so much the sand storm ive seen and read about. I made sure to put a bowl in the sand and fill it that way so i wouldnt have too much cloudiness Lots of stuff floating around. Im assuming from the rock and sand. I did manage to wash the sand out a few times before it went in Im also noticing many micro bubbles. Is that normal? Will they go away once i turn on the powerheads and have the returns going? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 7, 2011 Author Share November 7, 2011 Just an update..still have to fill the sump. Woke up to this today..I am assuming that the water level has not reached the black trim level because of the overflow box. I think set it in a bit low and now I can't get the water to go any higher.....I'm guessing I have to redo it??? Tank is covered in bubbles even with the powerheads running. Front/Back/Sides....Everything Front view Side View Anything I can do?? Do I need more powerheads??? Top Down View You can see all the stuff floating and what looks like foam bubbles circling around. Will this clear up once I have everything running?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omair November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 Looking good man! I had that happen when I first setup as well, after the overflows filled up and water flow was set they disappeared. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 If you don't have the return pump running yet that will cause the water level to rise a bit. This tank will clear up nicely, everything you've seen so far is normal. If you want to eliminate all of the debris quickly just add a filter sock to the overflow and run your skimmer for a bit after you put salt in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypertech November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 The bubbles are normal and will go away. The return pump will make the water level rise about a quarter inch or so. At this stage of the build though, I would drain it down below the box, cut out the box, let it dry (help it with a blowdryer if impatient but be sure it is completely dry) and redo the box. Its a little bit of a pain now, but once the tank is established you'll probably be kicking yourself you didn't do it and it will be a big pain then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypertech November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 Also, do you have at least 2" between the left side rock and the glass? Pirhana magnets are fantastic especially with the razor blade attachment. You'll want clearance to be able to get in there and clean with something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 7, 2011 Author Share November 7, 2011 Looking good man! I had that happen when I first setup as well, after the overflows filled up and water flow was set they disappeared. Thanks! I don't have the overflow running yet and the DT is the only thing filled. Hopefully will get the sump in later tonight If you don't have the return pump running yet that will cause the water level to rise a bit. This tank will clear up nicely, everything you've seen so far is normal. If you want to eliminate all of the debris quickly just add a filter sock to the overflow and run your skimmer for a bit after you put salt in. Hoping the get the sump filled tonight and get the returns going. I plan on picking up a few filter socks tonight as well. Hopefully the BRS order with the salt should be here today or tomorrow. The bubbles are normal and will go away. The return pump will make the water level rise about a quarter inch or so. At this stage of the build though, I would drain it down below the box, cut out the box, let it dry (help it with a blowdryer if impatient but be sure it is completely dry) and redo the box. Its a little bit of a pain now, but once the tank is established you'll probably be kicking yourself you didn't do it and it will be a big pain then. If the water level will rise, should I just leave it as is? or see how much it rises once the return is on and if its not to my liking cut out the box and redo? Can I just do the sides of the box or do I need to try and get the bottom as well?? Also, do you have at least 2" between the left side rock and the glass? Pirhana magnets are fantastic especially with the razor blade attachment. You'll want clearance to be able to get in there and clean with something like that. No idea on the clearance between the rock and the glass. I'll have to double check once I get home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypertech November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 I'm not sure what you are talking about sides vs bottom. If you start the return and it doesn't push it high enough, you need to move the whole box up. Basically, you need the teeth higher to set a higher water level. The overflow doesn't work if it isn't sealed, so the whole thing needs to move. Just cut it from the glass, slide it up however much it needs to go up and re-silicone it. Make sure to clean the glass and the box well to remove the old silicone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 7, 2011 Author Share November 7, 2011 Sorry should have clarified. I meant can I just silicone the sides? or do I have to try and get the bottom of the overflow box as well if I have to move it. I'm hoping there will be enough room to move it up. I want to say I have the box centered over the drain hole and there is room to move the box closer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surf&turf November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 Looks great, really like the scape!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypertech November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 Sorry should have clarified. I meant can I just silicone the sides? or do I have to try and get the bottom of the overflow box as well if I have to move it. I'm hoping there will be enough room to move it up. I want to say I have the box centered over the drain hole and there is room to move the box closer. The sides and bottom of the box should be cemented together. I don't know how you would move the sides without the bottom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tpallas November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 Great job on the aquascaping Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 7, 2011 Author Share November 7, 2011 Looks great, really like the scape!! Great job on the aquascaping Thanks! It took me forever to get it that way. I still think I need an arch in the empty section, maybe ill make it out of LR so I can seed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surf&turf November 7, 2011 Share November 7, 2011 That would look good too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 8, 2011 Author Share November 8, 2011 (edited) Update: Filled the sump last night and turned the whole thing on minus the skimmer. Good news: The water level got high enough almost to the black trim just short by like a hair. Not going to stress about it because I couldnt move the overflow box any higher it was already up against the drain hole. Most of the micro bubbles are gone from the front and some on the sides. Seem to have a lot on the back glass and around the loc line returns. Cant get rid of em. Turned off the power. And sump held all the water Added a filter sock and it caught all the junk that was floating around, water is much clearer now Bad News: The drain is still way too loud, it doesn't look like I can get water to fill it to where its not sucking air with it and making a big draining noise. Even with all the returns and everything running. Should I make the hole in the end cap bigger to let more air in? Should I take the overflow box out completely and use a 90 elbow? or as someone mentioned before an inbox?? Move the overflow box lower into the water? Edited November 8, 2011 by .OptimusPrime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypertech November 8, 2011 Share November 8, 2011 If the box is up all the way already, you could put a piece of acrylic in the back behind the teeth slightly higher than the where the bottom of the teeth are now. This will do the same thing as raising the whole box and raise the water level. Don't sweat the micro bubbles. They will eventually go away on their own unless there are more being added to the tank by the pumps. For example, if the pump is sucking air at a small leak on the return plumbing, it could be adding bubbles. Those types of drains can be tough - just experiment till you find what works. Be careful not to restrict it as this could eventually lead to an overflow. When I had a plain standpipe, what worked for me was stuffing a piece of air tube down it so that the air could escape and it didn't make the sucking noise. You could also try restricting the return to change the flow down the pipe, but do not restrict the drain since you only have a single drain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 8, 2011 Author Share November 8, 2011 If the box is up all the way already, you could put a piece of acrylic in the back behind the teeth slightly higher than the where the bottom of the teeth are now. This will do the same thing as raising the whole box and raise the water level. Don't sweat the micro bubbles. They will eventually go away on their own unless there are more being added to the tank by the pumps. For example, if the pump is sucking air at a small leak on the return plumbing, it could be adding bubbles. Those types of drains can be tough - just experiment till you find what works. Be careful not to restrict it as this could eventually lead to an overflow. When I had a plain standpipe, what worked for me was stuffing a piece of air tube down it so that the air could escape and it didn't make the sucking noise. You could also try restricting the return to change the flow down the pipe, but do not restrict the drain since you only have a single drain. if i put the put the acrylic in the box you think that will fill the drain to where its not sucking any air in??? I'll keep an eye out for the bubble situation. I was playing around with both the drain and return last night trying to find a happy medium to where it would fill the overflow box and not suck any air. I have some tubing I can stick in the end cap to see what will happen if thats what youre referring to. Any chance I should drain half the tank and drill a second hole? LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypertech November 8, 2011 Share November 8, 2011 No, it will raise the water level. Really, you don't want to fill that drain so there isn't any air. Because, if there is no air, its running at capacity as a siphon. If anything gets into at that point, it will be below the needed capacity and it will backup and the tank will overflow. Basically, that's the principal of running a herbie drain, but you don't want this unless you have an emergency backup drain in case it does do that. What you want to do is manage the airflow to quiet it down. This is the idea behind a durso and things like stuffing an airline down the drain. I think I wrote this in this thread (and if I didn't then I haven't written it lots of other places) - Dursos, etc can be quiet. Herbie's are practically guaranteed to be quiet, but they do require two drain lines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 8, 2011 Author Share November 8, 2011 I'll play around with it tonight and see what I can come up with. You are correct, you did mention the herbie earlier in this thread. Should I try to go for the herbie method at this point? is it worth the trouble?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypertech November 8, 2011 Share November 8, 2011 Only you can decide if its worth the trouble. If you can't get the drain as quiet as you would like, its worth considering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 14, 2011 Author Share November 14, 2011 Anyone make overflow boxes locally? Im probably going to need a new one to fit over the herbie style Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 15, 2011 Author Share November 15, 2011 So yesterday, I tried a make-shift herbie (a T coming off the drain with an elbow up and down) just to see what the difference would be like, and wow what a difference! Thanks hyper, just wish I would have done it from the start. Now, I'll probably drill the tank again tonight for the 2nd drain. will a 3/4" be enough? I need to make a new overflow. Since I will be getting the pieces for free, i thought id make one out of glass and spray it with krylon to make it black.. Are there any problems with this? Has anyone had a glass overflow? Will I need to have overflow teeth? I figured I'd add a top too, but then how would i get the water to flow in the box without any teeth?? I want to make the dimensions of the box enough to where I could take out the elbows (if needed) of the drains right? and about an inch or so under the full siphon elbow? Also, is there a way to minimize the sloshing of water in the full siphon drain? should re-work the drain so its going at angle down to the sump and not a drop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowieReefer84 November 15, 2011 Share November 15, 2011 Full siphon drain should exit at 1" below water surface in sump. Also, put the gate valve (or ball valve) close to the sump, rather than high up... 3/4" should be ok I think. I would go farther down that 1" below the full siphon to be safe. Not sure how to build an overflow cover with a straight overflow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.OptimusPrime. November 16, 2011 Author Share November 16, 2011 I drilled the second drain hole in about 5 mins! woohoo and no chips or nothing! I placed the hole to where the emergency elbow will be just about about the water level/trim. I already have a ball valve on my main drain which i will probably keep and not switch the a gate valve even though it will be easier to control the water level with the gate. Ill have to redo the top half of the the drain to get rid of the durso, or I can leave it as is??? or will the air hole in the cap make noise for the drain? Im overflow boxless at the moment, the glass stuff aint going to work out at the moment, Anyone have any acrylic laying around? or know someone who can make it for me? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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