MSL5078 DSA NEO 65 Mixed Reef Build

[msl5078]

After not having a tank up and running since last May, I finally built the new stand for my 65 gallon tank. This will be my second attempt at a mixed reef tank.  My first tank was an Aqueon 120 gallon RR tank that I had purchased used locally when I was living in Connecticut. The 120 gallon tank wasn't a failure, but it wasn't a huge success either.  I learned quite a few hard lessons from that tank, all of which have been incorporated into my new build.  The goal of this tank is to have it automated as much as possible (I travel quite frequently for work) and to have enough room under the stand to work and perform maintenance tasks easily. 

 

For the stand I wanted to make an over-sized stand to fit all the equipment, ATO Tank, QT tank underneath the tank.  I used a program to do a layout of the equipment and sump, and used that to determine the size of the stand I would need.  Much of the equipment I have supported my 120 gallon tank, which is over-sized for my new 65 gallon build but I did not see any need to spend more money on getting new equipment. Major Equipment for this tank is:

• AquaMaxx CO-1 Cone Protein  Skimmer
• Sump
• BRS Carbon / GFO Reactors 
• BRS CO2 reactor for Protein Skimmer Intake 
• Coralife 36-Watt Twist UV Sterilizer with dedicated Siccie feed pump 
• Koralin Nitrate Reactor 
• TLF Phosban 150 for ARM Media for Nitrate Reactor  
• Calcium/Alkalinity/Magnesium Dosing pumps and Containers 
• Dosing Pump for Nitrate Reactor Feed water 
• 5 Gallon ATO Tank with Tunze Osmolator 
• 5 Gallon QT Tank 
• Apex Controller with PH, ORP (used for Nitrate Reactor), 2xEB8, and WXM module. 
• DC Return Pump 
• 2 x Ecotech Radion Gen 3 Pumps 
• 2 x Ecotech MP40 Powerheads 
• Tunze Nano-Wavebox (not sure if I want to use this yet) 
• Koralin Powerheads (not sure if I will use these, used them to help with dead spots in my 120)

The stand was built while I was back visiting my parents in Pittsburgh. The stand itself is very easily broken down, and can easily fit in the back of my car. The stand dimensions came out to be roughly 44" (w) x 23" (D) x 36" (H).  The stand construction was a 2"x4" frame skinned with 1/2" plywood and 1"x2" Trim.  The stand was then stained with an ebony wood finish and flat black for the areas that will not be seen.  Here are some pictures of the stand construction.

 

 

The bottom of the stand is held together using a mostly pocket screws, I purchased a pocket screw jig just for this build and I was very happy with the results.

 

 

The stand was then wrapped in 1/2" plywood with 1"x2" Trim used around the edges.  There is one large door on the front of the stand, with wood bracing behind it to help with any bow that may occur over time.

 

 

The stand was stained using an ebony stain.  The stain was left on the wood for about 20 minutes to get a very dark color, I was trying to match our living room furniture.

 

 

When I took the brand new tank out of the box, I found that the plastic frame was chipped.  Needless to say I was a little irritated, the chip does not go all the way through the frame.  I contacted DSA and was told the frame on this tank is only cosmetic and that I could just super glue the chip back into the frame.

 

Before:

 

After (what looks like a larger crack was just a cat hair that got stuck to the glue, darn cats!):

 

Here is the finished stand with the tank on top!  My girlfriend added some Christmas wrapping leftovers inside the tank to make it more festive I guess.

 

Edited January 5, 2015 by msl5078

[MBVette]

So I think you are going to regret just a 5g ATO.  you are going to be refilling that every couple days. 

[AlanM]

I have a 5g ATO on the 90g tank I run at school and every couple of days is about right for that.  I evaporate about 1.5 gallons per day.

[msl5078]

So I think you are going to regret just a 5g ATO.  you are going to be refilling that every couple days. 

 

I think you may be right, When I was running my 120 gallon I would get about 3 days out of 5 gallons.  I could go with a larger ATO container, but I would have to make an acrylic one to fit in the same space.  I will have to look into that.

[MBVette]

I have a 5g ATO on the 90g tank I run at school and every couple of days is about right for that.  I evaporate about 1.5 gallons per day.

 

 

My 93 I go through about 2 GPD, so if he has a 120, he would be a bit more than that.  So 2-2.5 GPD of evap probably.  So a 5 gallon bucket would only be 2 at most 3 days, thats why I recommended it.

 

I think you may be right, When I was running my 120 gallon I would get about 3 days out of 5 gallons.  I could go with a larger ATO container, but I would have to make an acrylic one to fit in the same space.  I will have to look into that.

 

Hopefully you can get something made, I think you will really appreciate it in the long run.

[msl5078]

I know I could get custom cut acrylic online, but I rather use a local supplier.  I will have to stop by ArtFully Acrylic and see what they can do for me.  I would have to keep to a 5 gallon footprint, but could make the ATO pretty high.  Thanks for the idea/input!

[MBVette]

Adam can definitely get you something that will work.  And you can use your current setup until he gets it built for you.

[flooddc]

I have a 300+ volume tanks. I have a 25G ATO, but only filled it up to around 10 Gallons. I refill it every 3-5 days. Only filled up to 15-20 when I am away, for longer than 4-5 days.

It's always be safe than sorry. ATO could and will failed and you might ended up flooded the tank or run dry.

Also, everyone setup is different in evaporation. I recommended that you determine your evap rate and get an ATO container that better suite your need.  

personally, like to check my tanks regularly. I recently discovered that my ato pump failed. Thanks to my, normal ato fill up routine.

 

BTW, nice stand build!

[YHSublime]

Also, everyone setup is different in evaporation. I recommended that you determine your evap rate and get an ATO container that better suite your need.

 

 

BTW, nice stand build!

This. Look forward to your build!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Crob5965]

I have a 5g ATO on the 90g tank I run at school and every couple of days is about right for that. I evaporate about 1.5 gallons per day.

I figure that I have about 1gal maybe 1.5 PD on my 90, I hook it up to a 30gal trash can if I go away for longer than a couple of days

if I had room I would have liked to done 10-15 gal ATO

Edited January 6, 2015 by Crob5965

[msl5078]

Update:

 

So I finally got around to starting to paint the inside of my stand.  The inside of the stand is going to be painted with 2 coats of primer and 2 coat of flat black paint.  Unfortunately, I only had some Rustoleum oil based enamel paint laying around from another project, and decided to use that instead of going out and buying new paint. I ended up having to put the stand into our second bathroom, and using the fan to help with the fumes.  The girlfriend was ready to kill me when I had the door open while I was painting.  Here is a picture of the stand with just the primer. The next step in the build is to order some PVC sheets, and build a dip tray inside the stand. I also may look into using acrylic for this, but I think it would be more expensive than some 1/16" PVC sheets. 

 

[DuffyGeos]

 Did you already paint the inside black? Not sure by the post.

 

If not, keep the inside of the stand white. IMO

 

1- Reflects more light, you will be able to see things better.

2- Hides salt creep.

[msl5078]

 Did you already paint the inside black? Not sure by the post.

 

If not, keep the inside of the stand white. IMO

 

1- Reflects more light, you will be able to see things better.

2- Hides salt creep.

 

Yea I did a single coat of black already, and will be doing a second coat tonight.  My old 120 gallon setup I had, I painted the stand white but I like the look of the black much more. 

[smallreef]

Looks like a good start!

[YHSublime]

Any updates?