New Project - Early planning stages

[NaCl_H2O]

My first post on MAAST - please be gentle!

I have been watching & reading MAAST for some time now and have picked up a wealth of information (& miss-information :roll: ) from all of you - Thanks!

I tried SW tanks 20 years ago & failed miserably, and about a year ago dove back in with a 125 Reef and have been very pleased.

So, now I am an "Expert" (with a few less dollars in my pocket) and I am going to take a big step. My intended project is to convert our dining room into an aquarium setup consisting of three Oceanic tanks (200 RR + 92 Corner + 120 RR) in an "L" configuration with all the support stuff (filter, sump, etc.) behind the "L" with lots of room to work! Eventually, I'll add the 125g back into the project in a later phase. I intend to run all of this off a single sump, refug, skimmer, etc. (That's probably the first slam I'm gonna get :( )

So, a few questions to bounce off the expansive MAAST collective:
Is using my 48g tall as a refugium a good/bad idea, or should I just get it built into the new massive filter/sump?
How do I reach Dan to build me a custom filter/sump/...?
How many gallons of capacity should I target in a sump for a 500-600g system?
How do I reach Matt for the "Monster" skimmer I'm gonna need?
Is there any chance in hell that my Pacific Coast CL-650 chiller will give me 5DegF pulldown?
Any suggestions for a RO/DI holding tank for 50-75g?
So far I have survived without a calcium reactor - should I consider this addition? Or anything else?
Why doesn't Oceanic make an Oak stand for the 92 Corner :x
Is there an alternate Oak stand for a 92C (34.5 x 34.5 x Bow) that wouldn't void the Oceanic warranty?
(Believe it or not - this is the ONLY argument w/my wife regarding taking over the dinning room :-D )
No more submersible pumps for me! What's the best external return pump?
Do SCWD's really work on high volume pumps?
Will one return pump and SCWD be adequate water movement for a 200g? (Planning one return pump per tank)
Lighting - PCs or MH (Not a question, just a random thought!).


Thanks again for your time to read & respond, I'm sure there will be many more to come!

Steve

[::pete::]

Whhh ..shooo thats jumping back in. :D

Matt and Dan from the member list ... just PM them

A few less dollars .. :-D

[matt]

For an external pump to run your main circulation, I think you're looking at either a dolphin ampmaster or sequence pump. Otherwise, the electric cost will kill you for that much flow. No sqwd for this pump. One of the larger ampmasters or sequence pumps will run the whole system no problem. You should check out the thread "Construction finally started..." by wkopplin. He is just finishing up a big system with a lot of tanks and he can give you very good advice about water circulation and plumbing.

A single skimmer for a system this size is no problem. I replied to your PM with info about this. A single reactor is also no problem; whether or not you need one depends on what kind of animals you'll be keeping, how much light, and therefore photosynthesis, coral growth, and calcium demand, you have. I'll tell you one thing, though, with a system that size a calcium reactor will probably be the cheapest way to go in the long run. Maybe you could keep the levels up with kalk, but i doubt it if you have a lot of stony corals and clams. Sooo, you're looking at 2 part supplements, for 500 gallons? Better get a wholesale account with B-ionic!

Think about the calfo style overflows instead of the oceanic reef ready set up. They're much better IMO.

That'll get you started, and I'm sure you'll get all sorts of advice here! Most important, WELCOME!! to MAAST.

[Tim Marvin]

I'd run the reactor and Kalk for that size system also.

[captexas]

If you are going to have the tanks side by side, you should custom build a stand for all of it. That way you don't have any gaps between stands and it will help make it all look like one giant tank. Oceanic only warranties their tanks when used with one of there stands and I don't think there are any exceptions. They do custom tanks and furniture though so you could get them to build you one if you really wanted. Still, you could probably have a carpenter build a much nicer all-in-one stand for less and it would look however you wanted it. Definately go with an Ampmaster or Sequence pump for the main sump return pump and then maybe have a couple smaller closed loop pumps, one for each tank. Don't waste your time with a SQWD on that kind of setup, it won't be that effective.

Matt's the one to talk to about a mega skimmer, but better keep the cost hidden from the wife, she might decide to take her dining room back!

[brewercm]

You're getting plenty of good advice.
Mine is just Welcome to MAAST.

[RobertG]

Welcome to MAAST, I agree you are getting some good advise. I will say this Oceanic will not make any exceptions to the stand agreement. If it is not on their stand you are SOL on a warranty claim. I went round & round with them. Sounds like a great project. Matts Skimmer is very nice, he can build you any size but do recommend the bigger the better. If you can get the dual injector setup as I could see me wanting it now. Oh well.

Good Luck

[NaCl_H2O]

Great advice, thanks to all! Does anyone know a good Aquarium cabinet maker in the SA area? The custom cabinet approach is very appealing to me. What's the "Next Best" choice other than Oceanic for these size tanks. LFS indicated custome built Perfecto :? might be my only other choice.

I have made contact with Matt, and hope to get a reply from Dan soon. I obviously have lots of planning to do before I start "investing".

If anyone can dirct me to a cabinet maker, that would be great - I don't have a clue on specs to support this amount of weight!

Also, I need to become more "sophisticated" on the required plumbing, valves, number/type of pumps, wavemakers, etc. My 125 has a Eheim 1262 and three small Rio's on a switching power strip for "wave" action - My new project is in a whole new class, so advice in that area or pointing me to past posts, etc. would be appreciated.

Thanks ... I can already feel that money sliding through my fingers :grin:

Steve

[captexas]

For cabinet/carpentry work, Misti and Blake have had a guy do lots of work for them, but I think they have been somewhat dissatisfied in how long he took to get things done. You could talk to Robert out in Kerrville (can't remember his screen name on here for some reason). Another one of our members Pete, (prafferty) does excellent work, but he is located out of state currently out on the east coast. Tanks are heavy. Water weighs like 8.5lbs. per gallon. Then you add rock, sand, and other stuff, it adds up. It's not hard to build a solid stand though simply using plywood and 2x4s. The most important issue besides being solid is that the stand is level. Just being alittle off can put a lot of stress on the joints in an aquarium

As far as tank manufacturers go, Oceanic makes the best and strongest tanks. Even without the warranty you should still look at them as long as you can afford to. They are really the only ones I know that make the round corner tanks that I would trust. There is a company here in town that makes tanks that you could talk to. Most of the local LFS carry their stuff as it is local and less expensive than the others. I think a few people have ordered tanks from them through Alamo Aquatics. If you want to talk to them directly, they are located on Basse near San Pedro in the same building as the new Forever Pets.

Plumbing is always the fun part! lol. Best recommendation is to simply visit with other people and check out there setups. See what you like and what works for others to get ideas. Blake recently put together a large setup and was using a new wavemaking device and seemed to like to a lot. You should check out his set up, I think we are having a meeting there in August.

You have chosen a very large project so do lots of research and planning. Always remember to think ahead in case some piece of equipment needs to be upgrades as well.

[::pete::]

Added to the Oceanic and stand issue. I heard here that if you submit a plan to Oceanic for them to view and if it is approved the warranty is still valid.

What is your time frame on the stand?

[Sherri]

Chris.... R.Allard is member name located in Kerrville....

[scuba_steveo]

Sounds like the bug has bit you too. I am currently building a fish room. I have converted my garage into a home theater room with an oceanic 215 brace-less built into the wall. Behind the wall in the fish room I am going to have a +100 gallon refugium, 75 gal sump, 75 gallon coral prop tank, and maybe a few 20s plumbed in. So I will not slam you for doing several tanks on the same skimmer and refugium, I think it’s a great idea.

Is using my 48g tall as a refugium a good/bad idea, or should I just get it built into the new massive filter/sump?

Yes, that is a bad idea. Do not have it built into the sump either if you have the space to have one that stands aside. You want the refugium to be higher than the other tanks so that it will gravity drain into them. Have Dan build the refugium. It will be custom and light and just perfect.

How do I reach Dan to build me a custom filter/sump/...?

He just left my house. PM him. He responds quick.

How many gallons of capacity should I target in a sump for a 500-600g system?

Enough to hold all water that will drain to it if the power goes out and then some. Ex: I only need a 58 gallon but I bought a 75.

How do I reach Matt for the "Monster" skimmer I'm gonna need?

It sounds like you have already reached him but the one thing I want to tell you is do not skimp on a skimmer. If you have to cut cost do it somewhere else. IMO a skimmer is the most important piece of hardware you will have.

So far I have survived without a calcium reactor - should I consider this addition? Or anything else?

Have matt build this too. Far better than any you can buy from an LFS.

Is there an alternate Oak stand for a 92C (34.5 x 34.5 x Bow) that wouldn't void the Oceanic warranty?
(Believe it or not - this is the ONLY argument w/my wife regarding taking over the dinning room )

Just have it custom built and do not worry about a warranty. Just make sur it can hold the weight and that it will be level.

No more submersible pumps for me! What's the best external return pump?

I agree with ever one else. I am going to use a dolphin ampmaster.

Will one return pump and SCWD be adequate water movement for a 200g? (Planning one return pump per tank)

I do not know much about SCWD but I have not heard much good about them. I am going to use 2 tunze system 6100’s with multi controller.

Lighting - PCs or MH (Not a question, just a random thought!).
If you do all of this and do not have MH, I will laugh. Go with MH and an actinic support, either T5 or VHO.

Hope this helps. Plan well. And post a drawing of you idea if you can so that we can better visualize it. Well I have to go perform a water change.

[NaCl_H2O]

WHOA :confused: I am approaching Reef-Info-Overload! This is all great stuff and I definately have many new ideas! The oceans motions device is worth some serious ($$) consideration.

Looks like I'll be "Planning" for a few more weeks!

One basic plumbing question: In the past (fresh & SW tanks) I have run return plumbing up over the top of the tank and put a small hole in the PVC just below the water line to break the siphon in case of a power outage/mainteance. I plan to run all plumbing up from underneath (driled) on my new tanks. Is there an alternate approach to break the siphon, or do I need to run at least one pipe up high enough to provide a siphon break?

This is GREAT :-D and keeps me from doing the loads of work I brought home for the weekend!

Steve

[NaCl_H2O]

What is your time frame on the stand?

How about this afternoon ;)

Seriously, I am probably 30-60 days away from getting seriously comitted ($), I intend to spend a considerable amount of time with paper & pencil first!