Matt's 225g Build Thread

[meschaefer]

Another 24 hours, for a total of 72 hours and ...

Ammonia is at 2.0 (same as yesterday)
Nitrate is at .25 (.00 yesterday)


The carbon has really help pull out some of the yellow in the water and my skimmer has calmed down a bit. I had to open the air valves a little bit, but not allot and it is still pulling allot skimmate out of the tank. I still need to get that phosban reactor online.

 

[cali_reef]

Matt, you plan to run your cracked tank(sump) with that much water in it all the time?

 

[meschaefer]

Matt, you plan to run your cracked tank(sump) with that much water in it all the time?

Yep.

My original plan was to put a patch over it to help reinforce it, but after looking at it, I feel completely comfortable with it. (famous last words right)

The crack runs diagonally across the lower right hand corner of the sump, from the bottom to the right side, about 1 - 2 inches from the corner. It is impossible for the crack to get any bigger as it has no where to go (It has met the edge of the glass on each side). As it is only an inch or so from the corner, it is almost completely covered with silicone. Since it is before the first baffle, it only needs to be able to withstand the pressure of the water coming from the overflow (As opposed to the much greater volume of water in the return portion of the sump). Rich had the tank up and running for six months with the crack in it.

 

[cali_reef]

Yep.

Rich had the tank up and running for six months with the crack in it.

Did he tell you that?? Because he acted like he didn't know it was there when I found it the night I went to pick up his last remaining fish. We drained the tank that very same night in the fear it will not hold the full tank of water. I would put some silicone inside the tank and outside covering the cracked area. a little more pressure from an accidental kick will be detrimental to the structural integrity of that corner.

 

[meschaefer]

Did he tell you that?? Because he acted like he didn't know it was there when I found it the night I went to pick up his last remaining fish. We drained the tank that very same night in the fear it will not hold the full tank of water. I would put some silicone inside the tank and outside covering the cracked area. a little more pressure from an accidental kick will be detrimental to the structural integrity of that corner.

What he told me was that he didn't know it was there when he found it, but in thinking about it later he figured out when it happened. He said he had been working on his tank about six months prior when he heard a sharp popping/cracking sound. He looked over the tank but couldn't find anything at the time.

This is one scenario where Glass Cages' world famous silicone jobs worked to the benefit of the tank. That being said, I am sure that the crack occurred due to the tank not being put together properly. It is such a strange place for a crack to develop as the glass is well supported on two sides since it is so close to the corner.

 

[cali_reef]

What he told me was that he didn't know it was there when he found it, but in thinking about it later he figured out when it happened. He said he had been working on his tank about six months prior when he heard a sharp popping/cracking sound. He looked over the tank but couldn't find anything at the time.

This is one scenario where Glass Cages' world famous silicone jobs worked to the benefit of the tank. That being said, I am sure that the crack occurred due to the tank not being put together properly. It is such a strange place for a crack to develop as the glass is well supported on two sides since it is so close to the corner.

I am pretty sure the crack originated from excessive pressure being place in the small area where the crack is. There was a screw head sticking out where the wooden ledge comes in contact with the tank. Can't blam GC for this one.:Hydrogen:

 

[meschaefer]

Can't blam GC for this one.:Hydrogen:

:headache:

 

[meschaefer]

I don't know to what extent anybody cares about my daily water tests during the cycle, but this is a good place for me to keep track of it.

After 96+ hours,

Ammonia about 1.5 (2.0 yesterday)
Nitrite .5 (.25 yesterday)
Phosphate .96 (.71 3 days ago)

The ammonia is coming down, while the nitrite is on its way up which tells my that the cycle is well on its way, which makes sense because half the rock was fully cured to begin with. It does appear that phosphates are increasing, and I don't know if that is leeching from the rock or due to the breakdown of organic matter. Either way I need to get my phosban reactor up and running. Maybe tomorrow.

 

[meschaefer]

I was kind of busy the last few days and didn't get much done until today, and even then what I got done was minor.

The first thing I did was to build durso standpipes. I would have had them done last week, but I was short one 1.5 inch T. I picked that up today and then it was just a matter of fine tuning them a bit.

I also needed to get my Phosban reactor up and running. I had two problems; I didn't have the right size hose to go from the plumbing manifold to the reactor, and I had no way to support the reactor in the sump. The hose was easy enough, took care of that at HD. I also picked up some misc. PVC fittings and made a rack to hod my phosban and carbon reactors. I am using PhoSar from Warner marine, and I am starting out with a 125g. I am not worried about starting out at full strength as I don't have any corals to bother. If the tank was established I would start out with a quarter that amount and slowly work up the dosage. I changed out my carbon as it seems to have exhausted itself (water is still yellow and has not cleared up anymore in the last few days).

Finally, I also removed a small amount of live rock from my display tank and put into the sump with the rest of my rock. The columns where two tall so I removed the top layer of rock. This gives me broad flat areas with plenty of room to mount corals to. The way it was before cut down on allot of useable space. Here is a before and after shot.

Water tests after one week since the introduction of the rock are as follows:

Ammonia 1.0
Nitrite 5.0 (top limit of test)
Nitrate 100 (top limit of test)
Phosphate 1.07
Salinity 1.021

 

[meschaefer]

I got just a little bit more done last night. After running 125g of PhoSar from Warner Marine for twenty four hours, my phosphate level dropped from 1.07 to .76.

Aside from doing the phosphate test, I added 150lbs of ESV coarse grade sand to the tank. I would love to have a picture for you, but even with rinsing it off the tank clouded completely over.

It was no better this morning, and it seems to have completely killed off my skimmer as it is pulling nothing out. The only mechanical filtration is some filter floss in my carbon reactor. If it is not much better when I get home, I will fill my carbon and phosphate reactors with filter floss and let them run for a few days.

 

[cali_reef]

Matt, use a filter sock to speed up the clearing process.

You not cutting off the rods on top of the rock piles?

 

[meschaefer]

...you don't like the rods.....I think they give it a slightly postmodern look.

They will go I just haven't got to it yet. The PVC rods cut very easily and I it should be easy enough to cut them in the tank.

I don't have any filter socks, while I will have to make do without this time I probably should pick up a few. I was going to try and run this system without socks, but I think it may be next to impossible to get rid of all the micro bubbles without them.

I was up at Jim's last weekend and he was showing me the filter sock rack that he built, and I think I am going to build something similar (By which I mean I will out right copy it).

 

[meschaefer]

Tank was still cloudy, so I pulled out both the carbon and the phosphate reactor and filled them with filter floss and increased the flow through them.

I also noticed that the amount of water coming out of my skimmer had slowed to a trickle, so I closed the ball valve where it is t'd off from the overflow and disconnected the skimmer. I cleaned out the hose running to the skimmer, there was a big chunk of crap in it that was slowing the flow to the skimmer.

I was impressed with my own planning as all this took me no more than 10 minutes. It is so nice not to have to work bent over with my head in a small cabinet, and to have all of the plumbing easily accessible. To do the same thing on my old 65g would have taken at least 1/2 hour if not much longer and I would have made a mess doing it.

 

[House of Laughter]

Matt,

That contraption is copyrighted :p

Nothing like good planning to make the eventual work as easy as possible - wait til the system levels off, you're barely have anything to do.

BTW, I think you're going to need the socks permanently to keep that tank crystal clear.

Still looks totally awesome - BTW, is there salt in there? or just RO/DI?

House

 

[meschaefer]

Matt,

That contraption is copyrighted :p

Nothing like good planning to make the eventual work as easy as possible - wait til the system levels off, you're barely have anything to do.

BTW, I think you're going to need the socks permanently to keep that tank crystal clear.

Still looks totally awesome - BTW, is there salt in there? or just RO/DI?

House

You have PM regarding the socks.

Salt was put in the system a little over a week ago, and the cycle is fully underway.

 

[meschaefer]

I was away for a week or so, so not much has been done on the tank. At this point the tank has been cycling for three weeks, and it was almost done when I left for Las Vegas. I didn't test it today, but expect the levels should be fine.

I was at Pets Warehouse this morning and couldn't resist picking up two female Genicanthus Lamarck (Lamarck's Angel). I want to stock a number of angels from this group and this seemed like a good place to start.

As with many fish, in the absence of a male one should turn into a female whether I can get them to pair is another story. I will give the sales guy credit, he thought I might have trouble with the two in one tank fighting and wanted to know about my tank. I had done aloft of research into Genicanthus Angels, and have come across many good stories of people pairing them up, and not allot of negative ones. Hopefully this will work out for me, as I feel that I have done my homework on them.

Right now they are in quarantine (20 L), with allot of supervision in case it I do have troubles, at which point the quarantine will be divided.

The one to the upper right is much larger than the other, has been much more active than the smaller fish. I don't think this is due to aggression as I have kept a close eye on them. They will stay in quarantine for 1 -2 weeks.

 

[meschaefer]

This is a close up of the tail of the larger one, I really like the poka dot markings on the tails. This is the same picture as above but cropped and at full resolution, its hard to get a pic of this guy as he is really active.

 

[KathyC]

Very pretty fish Matt, nice place to start. I can't wait to see this tank in all it's glory!

 

[jhale]

nice, I like the tunze in the QT tank :pimp:

beautiful fish also

 

[meschaefer]

nice, I like the tunze in the QT tank :pimp:

I saw that in somebody else's QT and thought it was a great idea to appropriate.