AmberSunrise
Reef enthusiast
I concur, hang on back skimmer for me LOL I give props to those that do drawings and cut hoses and tubes though thats some serious engineering shit.
monkiboy's tank thread
- Thread starter monkiboy
- Start date
I concur, hang on back skimmer for me LOL I give props to those that do drawings and cut hoses and tubes though thats some serious engineering shit.
not bad at all, really. just a bit time consuming getting everything prepped and cleaning up.
holes patched and repaired, waiting for skim coat and sanding for paint...
and tank stand created for wall mounting of the sump. i made sure it would securely hold at least 500 lbs by triple reinforcing with blocking, secondary stud support and triagulating the load on three walls. i raised the RO/DI unit to create space above the tank for reactors and the reservoirs for the automatic water change system, ATO controller and ROCv. i'm good to go!
all that is left and drilling the tank for return, waiting on the return pump to be delivered on wednesday cause of all the holiday hooplah - went with a blueline xd 55 external, and a few random specialty plumbing tid bits to make sure this is done proper the first time.
holes patched and repaired, waiting for skim coat and sanding for paint...
and tank stand created for wall mounting of the sump. i made sure it would securely hold at least 500 lbs by triple reinforcing with blocking, secondary stud support and triagulating the load on three walls. i raised the RO/DI unit to create space above the tank for reactors and the reservoirs for the automatic water change system, ATO controller and ROCv. i'm good to go!
all that is left and drilling the tank for return, waiting on the return pump to be delivered on wednesday cause of all the holiday hooplah - went with a blueline xd 55 external, and a few random specialty plumbing tid bits to make sure this is done proper the first time.
beeguiles
they call me fish geek ;p
Wow great job!
NanoReefer
Reefing newb
thats amazing, i wish i had more space for my tank
thanks, all the support helps! yeah, i just HAD to do something for more space and my narrow and tall 6 gallon sump was just not cutting it. i got so tired of lugging buckets and having no space for all the gear and piping and no way of keeping everything clean and organized.
now, with the new setup, i'll have a much bigger volume, tons of space for gear and organization and can run my reef genesis automatic water changing system with my sump that is right next to it.
tonight, i worked on the sump itself and the baffles. cut some 1" blocks for proper and exact measuring while applying silicone and curing.
i am really digging the final sump design. the first baffle minimizes real estate and forces flow through the middle of the refugium where the chaeto and LR will be, and before the return and after the double baffles you have a wider section to house any media or supplements i want to run. i found these swell glass stir rods from a science lab company, in 12" length that i will use to suspend whatever media in direct downward flow before reaching the return.
tomorrow i'm going to drill the tank for the bulkhead, start adding the fittings and plumbing to the hose tubing, and finish up the baffles!
got everything going today!!
holy cow is the blueline xd 55 pump near silent. i mean, really impressive and i have a ball valve at the end of the 15 feet of head and it wants to PUSH some water so i had to tone it down so my overflow could maintain.
it is so nice having such a large hidden area to work on my tank now.
the new sump is so gorgeous and spacious, i'm really happy. no leaks and everything just works.
i ordered a new skimmer - a SWC 160 cone and also ordered my automatic water change/ ATO / and RO/DI container top off thanks to genesis reef systems. here is a shot of it. should be here by end of next week and never again shall i lift a bucket or top water off!
holy cow is the blueline xd 55 pump near silent. i mean, really impressive and i have a ball valve at the end of the 15 feet of head and it wants to PUSH some water so i had to tone it down so my overflow could maintain.
it is so nice having such a large hidden area to work on my tank now.
the new sump is so gorgeous and spacious, i'm really happy. no leaks and everything just works.
i ordered a new skimmer - a SWC 160 cone and also ordered my automatic water change/ ATO / and RO/DI container top off thanks to genesis reef systems. here is a shot of it. should be here by end of next week and never again shall i lift a bucket or top water off!
little_fish
Reef pro
I do hope the SWC 160 clone isnt a saltwater clone skimmer, they arent worth the plastic they are made from.
i'm a bit befuddled by your statement. are you making a joke as a play on words (your use of "clone" twice vs "cone") or do you have a genuine concern?
what do you mean by you hope it isn't "a saltwater 'cone' skimmer"? i have one ever known of skimmer for saltwater applications.
and lastly, i have yet to read and see a negative experience or review on a SWC product - if anything someone states it was hard to dial in or it was "finicky" but that almost always proves to be user error.
i appreciate your input and would like to understand it better and what your experience has been. thanks!
oh, and this is it for reference:
little_fish
Reef pro
That is exactly what you called it in your above post, but its not the same as the seaclone skimmers which is what i was thinking of. the seaclone skimmers are a piece of crap
beeguiles
they call me fish geek ;p
Man to think you've had this tank for two years and didn't know about any of this stuff and now you are going all out! Awesome!
ohhhhh, yeah i called it a swc CONE, not clone because it is the swc cone-shaped skimmer. you were talking about the sea-CLONE, yeah, i've read a kajillion and four (exact number) of piss poor performance reviews on those to know better. i'm not wasting time with crappy parts or misinformation this time around :wink:
haha, I KNOW! yeah, finding this thread merely out of curiosity has spiked as we call in the car enthusiast world "the mod bug" and i am modding away.
there are so many neat developments and tools available to make my life easier and a more successful reefer to replicate the natural environment my fish desire.
in the next month or so as things reach a routine and the setup is proven, i will use it to kick-start my next project which will be my 268g reef tank in the basement that will be my bar countertop and viewed from the top through 2'x2' viewing panes. my father and i are working up the design and conceptual "drawings" (scribble on napkins) now!
beeguiles
they call me fish geek ;p
That's awesome! I can't wait to see that come project come alive!
tried catching cassandra (blue hippo tang) today again without luck. i even left the bottle in there for her to get used to it but she is too smart. she'll nip at seaweed if it's close enough to the opening that she doesn't have to go in but won't dare go further.
i really am gonna have to get a bunch if not all the liverock out to get her, it seems.
this is how the sump ran last night. the carbon cleaned up the water REALLY well. it was quite cloudy and overnight it almost went crystal. i used four filter bags. i am going to order a carbon reactor to go with the biopellet reactor from BRS, tonight.
the skimmer you see there was a reef octupus that my LFS let me borrow for a while until my SWC 160 cone arrived which was swell of them. it works really well and pulled some NASTY stuff out within hours of plugging it in. i emptied it four times a day, haha!
my skimmer arrived today and i'm excited to see the extended reach of this as it is rated for 100g high bio load and i have a 46g with a 30g sump so it should really take after the "buy one up" philosophy. i plugged it in and it's breaking in really nicely and already picking up some pieces and gunk out. so exciting. the foam and bubbles in this one are much tighter and abundant - i'm glad i went with it!
i really am gonna have to get a bunch if not all the liverock out to get her, it seems.
this is how the sump ran last night. the carbon cleaned up the water REALLY well. it was quite cloudy and overnight it almost went crystal. i used four filter bags. i am going to order a carbon reactor to go with the biopellet reactor from BRS, tonight.
the skimmer you see there was a reef octupus that my LFS let me borrow for a while until my SWC 160 cone arrived which was swell of them. it works really well and pulled some NASTY stuff out within hours of plugging it in. i emptied it four times a day, haha!
my skimmer arrived today and i'm excited to see the extended reach of this as it is rated for 100g high bio load and i have a 46g with a 30g sump so it should really take after the "buy one up" philosophy. i plugged it in and it's breaking in really nicely and already picking up some pieces and gunk out. so exciting. the foam and bubbles in this one are much tighter and abundant - i'm glad i went with it!
NanoReefer
Reefing newb
looks great dude, thats awesome for your lfs to do that! that skimmer will be pulling a ton more gunk when it gets broken in. try feeding your fish from a net, and after a while when they are used to it when the hippo goes to eat net her up.
new goodies - got a 175g bucket of salt (red sea coral pro, does really well) and my skimmer in less than 24 hours has been doing some amazing work already!
i'm gonna let it run like this for a bit and then after i'm sure it's broken in proper, i'm going to tone down the air for some even thicker skimmate!
tomorrow all kinds of other goodies arrive, can't wait to share in the depackaging happiess with you guys, haha.
i'm gonna let it run like this for a bit and then after i'm sure it's broken in proper, i'm going to tone down the air for some even thicker skimmate!
tomorrow all kinds of other goodies arrive, can't wait to share in the depackaging happiess with you guys, haha.
beeguiles
they call me fish geek ;p
Awesomeness!
free $5 off any order from BRS with coupon code: 655974F0CF7AD9EE77
no minimum purchase, one-time/one-person use so first come first served!
i get them all the time and this time won't be able to use it as i have a ton of stuff already coming in!
ps - also only good 9pm EST 01/11
no minimum purchase, one-time/one-person use so first come first served!
i get them all the time and this time won't be able to use it as i have a ton of stuff already coming in!
ps - also only good 9pm EST 01/11
SarahSmile
:)
That is so nice of you! Bet someone uses that one quick....wish I needed something :)
boy oh boy have i been busy! it's hard to believe that just three months ago i didn't even know what RO/DI water was or that a canister filter wasn't ideal...it's a whole new world!
first off, my corals are growing like mad. look at these baby heads, well what used to be little pencil tipped size heads are now the size of nickels! there's three new heads growing off these two branches!
and this guy has inflated to triple his size and he has three teeny lil baby versions growing off him on the side with their own even tinier little extensions.
here you can see the few baby branches sprouting...
the frogspawn has just really taken off and doubled in size, as well.
then awesomeness arrived. my genesis reef systems automatic water change system, automatic top off, and top off reservoir top off. it arrived perfectly and with extra goodies. these guys and their service have been remarkable to work with!
and all opened and taken out...
did i mention how AMAZING my SWC protein 160 cone skimmer is doing?! i mean this thing is pulling up some horrendous stuff, is completely silent, and i had it fine-tuned in less than ten minutes.
this is after only 72 hours and it was broken in and skimming and fine-tuned. one would think i was feeding my fish coffee, haha.
something else that is great is that my cheato is growing like wild and has grown probably about 30-50% in the last three weeks. this used to be two tennis ball sizes portions. my nitrates have dropped dramatically, as well.
and LASTLY, a shot of my wall of fish tank greatness! this is after finishing install of the biopellet reactor, the reef genesis systems, and everything else.
it's so nice to have that heating room with all that space pumping the water up to my tank upstairs and room to maximize sump and equipment use. i have it set on 15g weekly water changes and everything in the last days has gone without any issue. it's so nice to never have to lift a bucket or touch a pump again. the only thing i have to do is dump a premeasured amount of salt into my prepared salt drum twice a month!
thanks for reading!
first off, my corals are growing like mad. look at these baby heads, well what used to be little pencil tipped size heads are now the size of nickels! there's three new heads growing off these two branches!
and this guy has inflated to triple his size and he has three teeny lil baby versions growing off him on the side with their own even tinier little extensions.
here you can see the few baby branches sprouting...
the frogspawn has just really taken off and doubled in size, as well.
then awesomeness arrived. my genesis reef systems automatic water change system, automatic top off, and top off reservoir top off. it arrived perfectly and with extra goodies. these guys and their service have been remarkable to work with!
and all opened and taken out...
did i mention how AMAZING my SWC protein 160 cone skimmer is doing?! i mean this thing is pulling up some horrendous stuff, is completely silent, and i had it fine-tuned in less than ten minutes.
this is after only 72 hours and it was broken in and skimming and fine-tuned. one would think i was feeding my fish coffee, haha.
something else that is great is that my cheato is growing like wild and has grown probably about 30-50% in the last three weeks. this used to be two tennis ball sizes portions. my nitrates have dropped dramatically, as well.
and LASTLY, a shot of my wall of fish tank greatness! this is after finishing install of the biopellet reactor, the reef genesis systems, and everything else.
it's so nice to have that heating room with all that space pumping the water up to my tank upstairs and room to maximize sump and equipment use. i have it set on 15g weekly water changes and everything in the last days has gone without any issue. it's so nice to never have to lift a bucket or touch a pump again. the only thing i have to do is dump a premeasured amount of salt into my prepared salt drum twice a month!
thanks for reading!
