MarineDreamer's 55 Gallon learning curve

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Jiddy said:
Hey MarineDreamerI i was curious if you could show/explain to me how your pump interfaces with the CL system, i have an extra and want to do a CL like yours!

Sure, J-Dawgg.

The pump is a PanWorld NH-100PX which is rated to 1275 GPH at 0 head. As you can see in the pictures that follow; right out of the pump I've got unions and ball valves. This will allow me to quickly remove the pump for service/maintance.
 
wrightme43 said:
SAND baby SAND. Its like the bottom of the ocean where its SANDY, not where its rocky or silty but where its SAND. LOL

I echo Steve Number 35,468,576,843 sentiments exactly. So after adding the last of the rock, and waiting for the numbers to go back to zero; I have added my sand. It's about an inch deep.

The last picture is an awesome tool that my wife suggested to me. I think it's called a "Cuticle Remover." I use it scrape away anything on the rock (Translation: Aiptasia) that I don't want there. The blades are small enough to get into all the small nooks and crannies in the rock, and it's made of stainless steel. I actually can scrape awat rock with this thing. The best part: it's all of five bucks at Fred Meyer's.
 
Hey Jiddy!!!

I forgot to add, that I've have seen one flaw in my CLS. That is the way I've currently got it set-up that there's no surface agitation. I noticed this when I was adding the sand bed that all the particles where just happy as ducks floating on the surface. Hence, the powerhead in the tank. I'm going to put 90's on the sump return again and see how that goes. Other than that: I couldn't be happier with this set up.
 
So after using the cutical removers did you have any more trouble with the Aiptasia coming back? Looks real good with the sand there in the bottom and your LR looks real good. I wish I could come down more often.

Ian
 
And now for an update:

First the tragedy: Yesterday while I was doing my daily detritus storm, I noticed that the SCWD wasn’t SCWDing. It was stuck. If you (all) recall, I ended up gluing the SCWD to the plumbing. That made it necessary to remove the entire system. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get the SCWD up and running. The lesson:

Don’t run your CLS while adding sand!

So I’ve rebuilt the entire CLS plumbing and have ordered a new SCWD. Basically, it is identical to the original system, except I have applied Brad’s suggestion and the SCWD is attached to unions on all sides allowing it’s removal.
 
Second: I have finished the canopy!!!

It will (eventually) house two 250W 10K Ushio's, four 28/32W PC actinics, and two 3/4W blue LED's as moonlights in two 15" PFO Parallel Reflectors.

Enjoy!!!
 
MarineDreamerII said:
So after using the cutical removers did you have any more trouble with the Aiptasia coming back? Looks real good with the sand there in the bottom and your LR looks real good.

Hey little brother,

As for the sand, thank you. B agrees.

As far as the Aiptasia goes, no I have not seen any growth. With the Cuticle Remover, I actually will grind into the rock. The flip side is: it’s only been two weeks. So we shall see! :doubt:
 
When do you think that you'll get the lighting up and running, in the pictures you seem pretty far along? Do you have all the equipment...i.e. balast and whatnot? Now that you mention the whole not running your cls while moving sand around it seems a duh, but I think it could be something very easy to look over and not think about...oops. How much do those cost??? :D It looks like Mrs. Summers and I will get our money the beginning of next week to get lights and other assortments... maybe some softies (well see how slow I can do this...) :) So anyway, looks great and I can't wait to see it in person.
 
All righty, time for an update:

Date Ph Temp Salinity Ammonia Nitrite Nitrate dKH Alk
5/13 8.3 79.3 1.026 0.25 0.025 5 12.5 4.46
5/16 8.4 79.6 1.026 0.25 0.01 5 12.5 4.46
5/21 8.3 79.5 1.027 >0.25 0 0.25 12.8 4.57

My intention is to do a five gallon water change every Friday night. However, I came home last night to find that my powerhead and heater had been unplugged!!! So, fearing the accuracy of my refractometer, I waited until tonight. And, yes; the tests were done BEFORE the water change.

On Tuesday, the 17th I got a shipment of ‘pods from Essential Live Feeds and some snails that I ordered off of Ebay. The ‘pods were acclimated in their bottle for about three hours and then dumped into my refugium. More on that later. The snails were not so lucky, they arrived without any water! The container, a tupperware type with the snap on lid, had opened during shipment resulting in a very wet cardboard box. My Wife immediately pulled out one of my 5-gallon buckets, took water from the tank and mixed them together. When I got home that night, everyone that was moving around I dropped into the tank. I ended up losing about twenty out of a hundred. Last night while watching the tank, I was getting mad at these snails for dragging up sand on to the glass. When I went to take a closer look, one of the snails was leaking. Yup, I’ve got the durn things spawning in the tank. So, I’m particularly happy with the latest numbers from the water parameter tests in light of a spawning event.

One of my goals is to keep a Mandarin Fish (Synchiropus splendidus.) With that in mind, I wanted to turn my refugium into a ‘pod making factory. The night that I added the ‘pods, I brought out the ‘ol Mag light and to my disgust, I saw the happiest bristleworm in the world hanging out in the ‘fuge. I have moved some of the rock around in the hopes of catching this guy in the open, but no such luck yet. I’ve finished off a coke and have stolen a pair of my wife’s knickers. I’ll let everyone know how this works out.

I tried to get some pictures of the snails spawning, but not only does my forensic photography class not teach me how to take these kinds of shots, the snails had quit releasing sperm by the time I got the camera out. And the last picture is the infamous home of the bristleworm.
 
"One of my goals is to keep a Mandarin Fish (Synchiropus splendidus.) With that in mind, I wanted to turn my refugium into a ‘pod making factory."

When you say Mandarin Fish, do you mean a Mandarin Dragonet? Just curious, see you the 10th...and the 12th...and the 14th... :D
 
Need an update!

questions

1. What did you use to glue your pvc together

2. How did you attach your manifold to the tank?
 
Jiddy said:
Need an update!

questions

1. What did you use to glue your pvc together

2. How did you attach your manifold to the tank?


1) Oatey PVC glue primer and Christy’s Red Hot PVC glue.

2) I used two 90 degree pieces attached to each other to go over the
top of the tank. So the manifold just ‘hangs’ on the back of the
tank.

After having this system up and running for about three and a half months, I would only recommend this type for tanks thirty gallons and under. Having ‘maxed’ out the rate of flow that the SCWD can handle, there just isn’t enough flow in the tank and I find myself starting to use powerheads to get the turbulence and flow that I’m looking for. :doubt:
 
As far as the updating goes:

Let’s see here, the parameters are holding around:

pH: 8.3
Temp: 80
SG: 1.027
Ammonia: 0.25
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
Alk/dKH: 3.77/10.6

On June 4th, I added a serpent star, Ophioderm sp. And then on the 14th I added a brittle star, Ophiure sp.

Then I got really crazy, and on the 17th I got an Amblygobius phalaena (Dragon Goby,) and a Pseudocheilinus hexataenia (Six-Line Wrasse.) I had been planning on letting everything sit for a month or two as I had not seen a cyano outbreak nor did I get any microalgea taking off. However, at the PSAS meeting on the 18th, someone who we will not name here, (-cough- PaulHanby) decided to bring in some Tridacnid spp. I was able to resist, but my wife was not. So we added a gorgeous crocea on the 18th. I was able to get some Cheto off of Brad, A.K.A “Sock Puppet,” at the meeting for the refugium, too. And if that wasn’t enough, on the 19th Todd, “Disturbed Reefer,” gave a very nice frag of Euphyllia paradivisa (Frogspawn Coral.)

I was able to calm down for a few weeks after that and then Indoor Reef here in Tacoma got in a red morph of Trachyphyllia geoffroyi (Open Brain Coral,) that I picked on the 5th of July. Five days later Todd again hooked me up with a frag of Caulastrea sp. (Candy Cane Coral) and what I think is a Stylophora sp. (Bird’s Nest Coral,) but Todd thinks is a Seriatopora sp. Either way, it’s a nice frag! :D

That’s been it for the livestock additions. The E. paradivisa is just stunning, and it has a whole corner of the tank to itself. The Six-Line is going to town on the Amphipods, and is the fattest little fish that I have seen. I have gotten some cyno, and some microalgea. The snails are working the cyano, and after pulling a rock out and scrubbing it down, the algae has not returned on that rock, so I’m thinking that the nutrients are now locked up. I’m pulling a cup of skimmate a day, and while the coralline has colored up rather nicely, I’ve not noticed that it has spread out of that much. I am dosing “Purple Up” one a day. We’ll see how that goes. I’m hoping to get my hands on a Centropyge loricula (Flame Angelfish) soon to help with the algae.
 
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MarineDreamer said:
After having this system up and running for about three and a half months, I would only recommend this type for tanks thirty gallons and under. Having ‘maxed’ out the rate of flow that the SCWD can handle, there just isn’t enough flow in the tank and I find myself starting to use powerheads to get the turbulence and flow that I’m looking for. :doubt:


I am 100% agree with this.... SCWD cannot make the water move in 30G or more tanks... UNLESS.... you are not using it to make INDIRECT flow but instead you have several SCWD with it ends DIRECTLY concentrated to corals....
 
Scooterman said:
Wow Just Awesome rock work!

Thanks Scootie. I was a bit proud of myself with that. :eek: You see we had Anthony Calfo up, and in his presentation he instructed us not to stack the rock up against the back of the tank. Well, I had done this!!! Yeah! Goooo Me!!! I guess that I was lucky, in that the rocks all ended up fitting together and locking together and the back is as open as the front. :D
 
Man Trev your tank has come along ways and looks incredible! I really cant wait to stock my tank like yours! I just got all my parts/gear in the last few days and that was excitin enough for me, lol.

Thank you for the help on the manifold!

-Jidz
 

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