Reefcowboy's 80 Gal Rimless thread

[Reefcowboy]

Was looking online for hanging kits for the T5 fixture, the ones that attach behind the tank stand since i didnt want to hook it to the ceiling. Even though they seemed nice, i realized they can become an easy DIY project. Went to a hardware store and got myself 1/2" metal pipes, some screws and got myself what i needed. With the help of a friend that owned a pipe bender, we got exactly what we were looking for. The last step will be to paint it black, attach it to the stand with the fasteners ,attach the steel cables from the fixture adjusting it to the desired height from the tank water level.. More pics to come soon. Here is a pic of what came out:

 

[saltwaterinbrooklyn]

You can also float it off of the wall with a bracket, looks cooler !

 

[Reefcowboy]

You can also float it off of the wall with a bracket, looks cooler !

Oh yeah! That looks so slick. My fixture though might have too much weight and with time it could end up falling in my water... For LED modules though is so cool. Your tanks looks sick bro!
BTW, whats that monster skimmer doing dry on the side?? Fire that bad boy up!

Here is another update:

For refugium light, i decided to go with an LED bulb. Found this beast, that is extremely bright, and produces a temperature that will keep my chaeto happy(5.000K). I tried hooking it up inside my cabin and it produced the perfect amount of light for the sump to come...here are pics:

 

[saltwaterinbrooklyn]

That skimmer is an itech200 lol too big for my sump lol

 

[saltwaterinbrooklyn]

How heavy are your lights ?? I made brackets to hold up PAC sun pythons and Hyperion as well as acan lights , if you want to bring em oout off the wall let me know I have everything you would need , and bend that pipe up a bit to compensate for the down pull when you hang the light!!! So far so good I'm following this thread closely things are looking great!

 

[Reefcowboy]

Little update...unwrapped the tank, connected the bulkheads, place the sump in the stand..it fits like a glove. This stand is far from being as well made as most of the ones i see people building out there. Since i have extra room ,am going to reinforce it by placing 6 pieces of 4x2 by the main points of weight support in the structure. I figure now is the time to do anything in that matter if really needed. Here is a pic of the tank.



As far as aquascape, i will be having very little LR in the main display tank, so i wanted to make sure the pieces i kept in there allowed for the placement of many sps colonies at different heights in the water column. I want efficient flow between and around the rockwork and to avoid blocking the light from corals placed underneath. Thanks to Ronald at Royal Aqua World in brooklyn, i was able to get a few of tonga branching rocks, which should make the rock design im after. These are the materials:


I really like this kind of epoxy, much better than the ones found for aquaria. These are found for $8 at hardware stores, dries very quick and is extremely strong. For glue, im using the gel.


Here is the final product...a little tonga branch! Tomorow i will make another, which will be placed on the other side of the tank. In the middle, i plan on having my acro colony, which is pretty big and should fill the middle part of the tank well...i must now glue some tiny pieces of LR to cover the epoxy so the piece looks more natural. more to come tomorrow!

 

[E.intheC]

I like where this is going.

I've heard as long as you keep the stand dry it should work out ok.

 

[Reefcowboy]

How heavy are your lights ?? I made brackets to hold up PAC sun pythons and Hyperion as well as acan lights , if you want to bring em oout off the wall let me know I have everything you would need , and bend that pipe up a bit to compensate for the down pull when you hang the light!!! So far so good I'm following this thread closely things are looking great!

Thanks for the heads up...the fixture isnt that heavy, im sure i could place some brakets and hang them in a cooler way such as yours. The thing is i am moving to my own apt mid next year and now i am avoiding making holes on the walls on the one i rent. Once i move you bet i will be making things better and i will remember your product and will try it! Thanks again

 

[saltwaterinbrooklyn]

Yeah don't make any holes in wall if your leaving lol that's one of my biggest beefs with my wife , when she wants to switch up pictures and stuff I have the Swiss cheese look on my walls lol , but please keep the pics rolling cause this tank layout is looking sweet!!! Can't wait to see that tank full of water!!

 

[Reefcowboy]

Rainy day and when back from work was able to relax and try to finish building the rocks for the aquascape. Today i gathered some more LR ruble and finished the second rock. Here is a pic of the work in progress...


And the finished rocks, the second turned out pretty good and looks exactly like i was hoping it to be. I was able to hide the epoxy with smaller rock pieces which gives them a very natrual look. They have lots of spots for my sps colonies and many more to come...



Hopefully tomorrow i will be able to get some water mixed so sunday i can move everything to the new tank. I got myself a new Rodi unit,100 gal /day 5 stage, l will try this new system and hopefully. Will like it.

 

[krazime]

very nice! tagging along

 

[Reefcowboy]

My rodi is REALLY slow...im sure i dont have too much pressure fom my sink, but cmon...i left a 10 gal bucket sit overnight and got up this am and have maybe 5-6 gal? Is this normal? The unit is rated for 100GPD, brand is Typhoon. Was that a bad investment? Im going to have t grab some RO from my LFS, or ill never fill this tank!

 

[sroot17]

My rodi is REALLY slow...im sure i dont have too much pressure fom my sink, but cmon...i left a 10 gal bucket sit overnight and got up this am and have maybe 5-6 gal? Is this normal? The unit is rated for 100GPD, brand is Typhoon. Was that a bad investment? Im going to have t grab some RO from my LFS, or ill never fill this tank!

Not normal. I highly suggest getting a pressure valve, not only to see why your water is producing so slowly but also to make sure your membrane is working at full capacity. The ideal pressure is around 60 psi.

I have to use a pressure booster in my apartment in NYC. Also added a second membrane to reduce waste water and increase production.

 

[saltwaterinbrooklyn]

Especially now that it's warmer , you should be making higher levels of water !! Check it all out maybe you have the filters in the wrong canister??

 

[ssminnow81]

Yea something's not right. I fill up a 7 gal bucket in 2-3 hours

 

[MikeC]

Looking good man.
I love the tonga branch rock that's exactly what I used to hold my rock work up to get great flow under the rock work.
I'm loveing the minimalist rock work you have allowing more room for sps
Keep up the great work!

 

[Lenny718]

Wow that 20g is insane! Ill be tagging along to watch this 80 come alive

 

[Reefcowboy]

Ok so i took me the whole weekend to get the tank filled and going...i had an issue with my RODI system, and waiting for water delayed everything. Good thing is i paid attention to all details and everything got transfered over with little stress. I just placed the corals all over the sand for now, troughout the week i will be gluing them to the rocks and aquascaping. its amazing how many corals i had on that 20! theres enough corals to fill the 80 gal and i had sold 4 huge pieces before moving it all!




I tested my params to check the salt i used( Red Sea coral Pro) and WOW! Alk 3.6, Ca 450...salinity as recommended ended up .025. Couldnt be happier.
All corals are open, fish doing well. Water is really cloudy, tomorrow pics will be better.

 

[Rob&Gab]

great tank i cant wait to see it fully stocked, keep up the good work!

 

[Reefcowboy]

Especially now that it's warmer , you should be making higher levels of water !! Check it all out maybe you have the filters in the wrong canister??

I think the unit i bought came with a small membrane. The unit is supposed to be rated 100 gal per day. I opened every canister, inspected all lines, all media seems fine, system is brand new. The membrane is brand new also but might be for like 25 gal per day or similar. Im going to take it to a store by my house that sells rodi systems and ask them to check it for me. Wish i knew about them before i bought this here on MR!