monkiboy's 265g build thread

[monkiboy]

Mby start with what you have now and add MP60s in the future if you really need them. You're not going to immediately drop expensive SPS in there anyway.

 

By faux bare bottom do you mean the white cutting board stuff with sand glued to it like was mentioned recently? If you're not getting fish or inverts that like to live in sand, it seems like the way to go in my opinion. You'd get the look without the headache.

that's a proper idea. i'm getting ahead of myself.

 

yes, i was thinking of starboard or similar material. do it outside of the tank in sections than bring it in and silicone it in place to the bottom for a proper seal. thinking of hawaiian black arag-alive with some pink fiji accents. not sure yet tho.

 

anybody have a faux bottom and have an opinion. i'm pretty sure the system will be SPS dominant so max flow will be nice and never have to worry about the extra maintenance or blowing things around. the downfall as you mentioned is none of those cool sand critters. still not sure. someone make a case!

 

 

 

 

Old reefer has starboard, many suggested it before I started my build, wish I went with it some days. I think my next build will be bare bottom, especially if I go bigger.

 

based of the mp40 flow (which is all I have to base off) your flow ideas sounds good, but allan had a good point. Doesn't ecotech hasn't a flow calculator on their website? Don't know how legit it is...

thanks for the input, i didn't know if they did. i'll look into it!

 

 

 

 

Two Tunze 6105s will handle that tank nicely......and not as loud as Vortechs. You saw my tank today.......that has 2 6105s and they have the jumper in the slow the flow. Eric Leeds has 2 on a 72" tank and he could use the more powerful jumper either. You won't regret it.

i really believe the tunze would be more quiet as the MP40/60s do create a bit more noise than the mp10s which is a bit more than i like but i really don't like the look of cords in a tank. odd things like that distract my eyes and bother me. additionally, noise like that isn't really a concern as i've planned accordingly with the build. between the 5/8" drywall, 1/2" plywood, sound insulation, vapor barrier, caulking, and all else, i'm aiming to make this tomb silent from the outside. now when behind the tank, well that might be a bit noisy, haha!

 

 

 

I have two 6105s and they are so silent sometimes I have to get close to make sure they are running lol...amazing flow...

yeah a lot of great builds on here use the tunze's - i don't doubt their performance and levels of quiet. thanks for your input!

[Der ABT]

ever mp60 ive seen is pretty loud, nicely built pump but very loud, even if its in another room it tends to vibrate and travel into the viewing room.

Mp40s can be noisy if not properly aligned, wrong thickness setting or if the dryside needs new bearings..all fixable with some effort.

if they are on the long glass they tend to do better with noise than on the short panes from my experience.

 

Also there is the known fish killer issue with the mp60 because it pulls so much dang water.

 

I still like the MPs and agree the look is SOO much nicer but i plan to have a mix, may pick up one of those cheapo wp40 tunze nock offs and then have the mp40s as well (the tunze 6080 i have is just huge as its the older boxier style)

 

 

For the bottom, i painted the bottom of my tank white, just did like 4 coats to really cover it well, top o the stand was wait also......not sure why i never did this on other tanks, AMAZING how much more light it brings out and it actually looks like there is sand of some form on the bottom.

if i didnt do this i would go with starboard and some epoxyor silicone/sand mix i think...

if you go with majority black sand keep in mind that the light reflection will not be as great, its crazy how much light actually does bounce off the bottom if its white/sand....

 

while i wish i could have some of the sand dwellers ill get over it or have them in a frag tank...or just put a little section with sand in a corner with an acrylic "fence" to keep it there.

[monkiboy]

thanks for the feedback on the mp60s. i have read one instance of an mp60 that the user forgot to turn to low or off at night and literally pulled a clown out of its nearby nem and killed it while it slept.

 

i think i'll take it easy and try the mp40s and mp10s i have and see how it works out.

 

the reflective light isn't something i had considered and i think it does make a difference in a tank. maybe a mostly pink fiji with smaller portion of the black hawaiian substrate is the better way to go. i really like the clean contrast that black provides.

 

i like on the sand dwellers and fish that use the sand for napping but i can do without in favor of an easier system, higher flow, etc.

 

thanks for the input!

[monkiboy]

swimmatte helped out in a big way and sourced a used 160g vertical storage container for me and some HCl for the 400+lbs of rock i need to clean!

 

 

 

instead of using two 160g i am going to do the 160 and one 55, saltwater and fresh respectively.

[monkiboy]

the pocket door rail track and rollers arrived today. i love me some mcmaster!

 

this will make maintenance so much easier by allowing me to slide the soon to be constructed LED frame rack completely out of the way behind me.

 

[Delphinus88]

Amazing build. Great information too. And thanks for the advice on the BTA.

[monkiboy]

Amazing build. Great information too. And thanks for the advice on the BTA.

thanks for following along. glad to help!

[monkiboy]

rinsed out the 160g water container a few times and filled and will leave it be for a while before doing the treatment with sodium thiosulfate later this week.

 

[Der ABT]

looks like the same rollers i used,

only issue i found was the bolts arent very long and they do rock a bit side to side. so keeping things level is interesting, i ended up using some wood on the cieling that the rack mount could rest against when its over the tank where i want to to be and that seemed to do the trick very well.

[monkiboy]

looks like the same rollers i used,

only issue i found was the bolts arent very long and they do rock a bit side to side. so keeping things level is interesting, i ended up using some wood on the cieling that the rack mount could rest against when its over the tank where i want to to be and that seemed to do the trick very well.

i'll be replacing the hardway to adapt my ceiling mount kit to it as the bolt it has isn't easily adaptable itself.

 

what's rocks side to side? the rollers? how much weight if your light rack mounted? can you take a photo and post it here of what you are describing with the wood on the ceiling? thanks!

 

edit: just checked your build thread and see what you mean:

 

 

the problem with that is that you're only using one rail and you got a significant amount of distance from the center albeit with close to equal weight. you could easily expand to one more rail for a more stable platform if you cared to but perhaps it doesn't bother you so much anymore.

 

i'll have two rails with four hangers so i can't imagine having any troubles like you're describing, sir. thanks for the heads up, nonetheless!

Edited April 9, 2013 by monkiboy

[Der ABT]

Sure thing

I actually just went to home depot and found some bolts that were the same thread and then cut up a 1x1 with a V to go around the tracks, worked just fine.

i only used one track and probalby shoulda used 2 but its what i had on hand and adding another track is easy enough if i feel like it (i just got impatient)

 

Here is what i came up with, just made them with a cut like a door stopper aka smaller up front than in back HAHA.

 

Will eventually be adding some LEDs to the light rack to help light the middle (probalby a d120) of the tank and the back. (t5s are mounted to the wall in front so when i move the light rack away i can still see in the tank.

 

not much weight (maybe 10lb at the most probalby less)

 

just wanted ease of access...Bolt goes up thru 1x1 if there were 2 tracks it would be ideal i think (not necessary for weight just for ease of centering the fixture and leveling.

 

Edit: Just noticed you have two track so that will be perfect

 

also i used an extra roller to help guide the cords out of the way when i move it (saw the rig at Disney on ice like this and it works REALLY well if you leave a loop of slack in teh cord (not shown in this pic)

Edited April 9, 2013 by Der ABT

[CaptainRon]

Marco, will your mp10's run on your tank? I got rid of mine because I didn't think they'd work with my new tank. Although they did ok with my old 93 gallon, the glass is a little thicker on the 200. I hope it does work for you - I think they'd be great on the back wall.

[monkiboy]

good point ron! i know ecotech says they will go up to 3/8" so maybe not. my tank is only 1/2" though. we shall see.

 

is your 200 1/2" or even thicker?

Edited April 9, 2013 by monkiboy

[DCReefer1964]

good point ron! i know ecotech says they will go up to 3/8" so maybe not. my tank is only 1/2" though. we shall see.

 

is your 200 1/2" or even thicker?

Waiting for the MP10's

[Chad]

i went looking for your build thread when you mentioned it in mine... Nice work!

 

And having had both ecotechs and tunzes... I'd go with the tunzes again hands down. Other than being quieter, tunzes are practically bulletproof and do not need much maintenance; ecotechs need a bit to keep them running smoothly and wetsides almost need periodic maintenance. The 6105s are unbelievably awesome pumps (and they essentially plug right into an apex controller if you're planning on using one, so it saves that cost)..

[swimmatte]

swimmatte helped out in a big way and sourced a used 160g vertical storage container for me and some HCl for the 400+lbs of rock i need to clean!

 

 

 

instead of using two 160g i am going to do the 160 and one 55, saltwater and fresh respectively.

 

Glad I was able to be a part of this awesome build.

[CaptainRon]

Well the MP10's say they'll work on glass up to 9.5 mm and the 200 is listed as 12mm - so I made an assumption that it wouldn't work. I think my old 93 was right at 9.5 mm - the pumps did run a little warm sometimes. I think more so when they got a litle dirty with algae. Also, I wasn't very confident that they'd stick very well on anything thicker - on the 93, they stuck together ok, but just weren't very strong.

 

I'll second Chad with the 6105's. I got a pair of them and they do hook up very nicely to the Apex. Programming was a snap. And I've seen some rather fancy programming out there for them that make extensive use of the profiles. I do agree with you about the wire in the tank though. I truely hate that I have a wire in the tank again, and I may go to an MP40 sometime in the future (I didn't think I'd have room between the wall and the left glass pane, turns out I have *just* enough room to make it).

 

I just looked up your tank - looks like it's listed as a 12 mm thickness too. I guess all you can do is give it a shot at this point! I did NOT try the MP10's on my 200.

[monkiboy]

Waiting for the MP10's

if serious, shoot me a PM!

 

 

 

i went looking for your build thread when you mentioned it in mine... Nice work!

 

And having had both ecotechs and tunzes... I'd go with the tunzes again hands down. Other than being quieter, tunzes are practically bulletproof and do not need much maintenance; ecotechs need a bit to keep them running smoothly and wetsides almost need periodic maintenance. The 6105s are unbelievably awesome pumps (and they essentially plug right into an apex controller if you're planning on using one, so it saves that cost)..

thank you, sir! yes i picked up a neptune apex on the groupbuy here and am planning to use it with whatever powerheads i decide to go with. thanks for your feedback because despite my gravitation to the vortechs hearing more and more about how awesome the tunzes are makes me second guess. it's just those darn cords are so freaking annoying in the tank!

 

 

 

Glad I was able to be a part of this awesome build.

thanks again, sir!

 

 

Well the MP10's say they'll work on glass up to 9.5 mm and the 200 is listed as 12mm - so I made an assumption that it wouldn't work. I think my old 93 was right at 9.5 mm - the pumps did run a little warm sometimes. I think more so when they got a litle dirty with algae. Also, I wasn't very confident that they'd stick very well on anything thicker - on the 93, they stuck together ok, but just weren't very strong.

 

I'll second Chad with the 6105's. I got a pair of them and they do hook up very nicely to the Apex. Programming was a snap. And I've seen some rather fancy programming out there for them that make extensive use of the profiles. I do agree with you about the wire in the tank though. I truely hate that I have a wire in the tank again, and I may go to an MP40 sometime in the future (I didn't think I'd have room between the wall and the left glass pane, turns out I have *just* enough room to make it).

 

I just looked up your tank - looks like it's listed as a 12 mm thickness too. I guess all you can do is give it a shot at this point! I did NOT try the MP10's on my 200.

yeah approximately .5"/12mm. well i can always just try it out i suppose then make the switch if necessary. i REALLY don't like cords much like you. i'm rather meticulous and things like that drive me bonkers but not using mp10s isn't a big deal. i can just upgrade the mp10s to mp40s and have 5 or 6 mp40s all round. i have time and that is something i can always change.

[CaptainRon]

Marco, I know you've been looking at different water storage options. I saw this today and immediately thought of you. Perhaps you could look into this is you can't get the chlorine out of your current container

 

[Chad]

thank you, sir! yes i picked up a neptune apex on the groupbuy here and am planning to use it with whatever powerheads i decide to go with. thanks for your feedback because despite my gravitation to the vortechs hearing more and more about how awesome the tunzes are makes me second guess. it's just those darn cords are so freaking annoying in the tank!

 

Yes, they are... but at least it prevents the vulnerability of having a non-water resistant part on the outside of something that could potentially overflow! Also, vortechs are like ferraris... super expensive and maintenance intensive, but beautiful beasts...

 

In the meantime, the tunzes will sit back and work fabulously and continually while only rarely requiring your thought!

 

[swimmatte]

Marco, I know you've been looking at different water storage options. I saw this today and immediately thought of you. Perhaps you could look into this is you can't get the chlorine out of your current container

 

 

I can get that

[monkiboy]

Marco, I know you've been looking at different water storage options. I saw this today and immediately thought of you. Perhaps you could look into this is you can't get the chlorine out of your current container

HAHA, thanks ron!

[monkiboy]

ok, it's bed time for me but i got a ton of stuff done today and wanted to post up. i'm too tired to explain or provide captions so it's just going to be a bunch of photos that perhaps seem random. if i'm motivated in the AM maybe i'll try to go back and edit. otherwise, ask away and i'll reply to what happened and what i got done. thanks for checking my build out!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 11, 2013 by monkiboy

[swimmatte]

Man, you're not messing around......

 

If I was finishing work and posting pics at 3:30 there would be no work going on in the "AM".

[monkiboy]

Man, you're not messing around......

 

If I was finishing work and posting pics at 3:30 there would be no work going on in the "AM".

didn't end up in bed until 5am so i just stayed up. sometimes getting an hour of sleep seems worse than staying up so i chose the latter. hopefully an early day so i can get back to work on a mesh top for the broodstock tank and painting the patch that was made on the outside wall, and cleaning up and to bed early with a solid night's rest.