Joe's Wet Dream, A 550 Gallon Work In Progress

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This is the most amazing project...Joe thank you so much for sharing your pride and joy with us :)
 
Thanks guys, I really appreciate it, it's great to share it with folks that understand what reefing is all about.

The coralline floor was a total pleasant surprise Krish, it has spread like wildfire, it may be helping to keep my nitrates down, gotta be putting a real dent in the Ca++ too... I'm really happy with the rubble substrate, never would have occured to me to use it but for the current blowing smaller substrates all over the place. I'll be trading off some Ricordea in a couple of years I should think, I'm thinking as the polyps multiply each will attach to it's own little piece of rubble, won't have to traumatize them by removing them from a large piece of LR.
 
Wow!!!! your tank looks like a million bucks!!!! (no pun intended) maybe i missed it (only read 40 pages...) but where is your sump sitting? do you culture pods? like the whole bubbly greenwater? I seen the pod section of your sump/fuge and i was just wondering if you actively culture. also i am interested in your olitic sand also. pm me with a price k? lol it took me two sittings to read your thread!!!!
 
Lift Pics?

Yes, Please! Do you have any pics of the lift system? :?:
Do you like it? I'm dying to see them, we need to do a siimilar setup in the fish room we're building behind our new 269 gallon.
 
Joe,

I've been peeking in on the thread from time to time and loving it. Would you be willing to do a state of the tank synopsis as of March 08? What I am wondering is the current state of gear, lights, skimmer, reactors, etc?

I realize there may not be a form to fill out to hit all the details for everyone, but just a reintroduction for those who haven't read all the way through or recall all the specifics! As this is post 609 on your lovely thread.. there is a lot to read through and catch up on!

The tank is looking great!

Best wishes,

Chris
 
The Lift Is Here

Hi All, Randy Harp spent last Sa, Su, and Mo getting the levitator installed and tuned, we've got a few minor adjustments left to do, but it is now fully functional, I'll throw a few pics up and then do a synopsis following this post....
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Here are 3 views of the receiver that the lifting arm slides up and down in.
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Here are the lifting arms, note the cable at the bottom, this is threaded up to the pulley at the rop of the reciever, the cable is then routed downward into the basement and to the counterweight.
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.The arm in place in the reciever
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.Here's the pulley installed at the top of the reciever
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The cable at the base of the reciever
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.The horizontal cable run is protected by PVC sheathing as it is directed to the counterweight.
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.The counterweight, 120 pounds as pictured, 130 pounds of steel plate and and about 100 pounds of old chain were added to it.
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These show the attachment of the lifting arms to the hood itself and the operational lift, featuring Randy Harp and Eric Dustin, thanks guys.....
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I couldn't be happier with this lift, Randy did an incredible job.

Here's a brief synopsis of the system:

3 Sequence Hammerhead pumps, each with an Oceans Motions 4-way powering 12 closed loop outlets

An Iwaki 70 sump return pump

1 HP 220v Tradewinds Chiller with an Iwaki 55 return pump.

BubbleKing 300 internal Skimmer

Precision Marine CR622 Calcium Reactor

4 x 400w MH, 4 Icecap Ballasts, Luminarc Mini Reflectors
6 x 140w VHO actinics, 2 Icecap 660 ballasts
6 Icecap 4" variable speed fans

The 250 gallon sump/fuge is located directly under the tank, Built into the sump is a 55 gal DSB Cheato fuge illuminated by 2 x 96w power compacts, I'm exporting 5 pounds of chaeto per month. A second fuge chamber has about 25 gallons of volume, it is totally packed with coral rubble and is not illuminated, so I guess it is cryptic. I would say I do actively culture pods since I designed both fuges to optimize pod production, the large rubble I used on the floor of the tank also provides great pod habitat, don't see any need to mess with green water, there's no shortage of food for the little beasts.
 
Joe,

Congrats on your insane reef. Worldclassaquarium.com for sure! For your next venture, you should write a book about reef tanks and their owners. I'd buy a few copies......... Jason
 
If not a whole new book, perhaps consider a section in any future versions of one of my favorite marine books:

Michael Paletta's Ultimate Marine Aquariums

It tells the story of the building of dream tanks and offers lessons from the experiences.

Joe's tank would be a great story, for sure!

Best wishes,

Chris
 
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I'm next!! I'm next!! :lol::lol::lol: lol

Anyway, your tank looks stunning! Really. Fun hobby isn't it!! Invite me over some time so I can drool a bit. I love the fact that everyone's system is quite different. Gives great ideas to all of us.

Anyway congratulations. Does this mean your done now. Ohh i fogot your never done. That's the joy right. Always room for improvements.

Anyway, thank you for taking the time to share your pictures with all of us. We, I really appreciate it.

salsaking!!
 
After seeing Joe's and Salsaking's tanks, my 375 gallon tank is a mere baby compared to theirs. :D:D

However, I am happy with what I have. Jason (and Eric) did a great job !!

Kirk
 

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