110g reef tank build (New pics!)

[fjr_wertheimber]

Okay, so as those of you who've read my posts about T5 lighting and tank stands know, I'm currently in the process of setting up my first saltwater tank. I decided to start a thread detailing everything from start to finish so that I can look back on it in the future and see where I made mistakes, what I did right, etc., as well as hopefully passing along some useful information to someone else like me who's starting off from scratch.
Before I start off, I'd like to send some thanks out to Lee Hoy, Brian from Kingfish, and Misti from River City Aquatics for all the help and guidance they've all provided so far. Plus the stuff they sold me. After all, without stuff to mess with, what's the point?

The Stand
Some of you may have seen these diagrams before, but I'm reposting them here to consolidate things in one thread. The stand is being built by me, and (as of now, at least) is pretty close to this design (so far).



The Stuff
Okay, so the "stuff" area is pretty thin as of the moment. Mostly these are planned purchases, with a few that I've already picked up.
RO/DI unit: 100gpd RO/DI unit from Melev. Everyone keeps saying that water quality is of the prime importance on a SW tank, so I figured I'd be happiest knowing exactly how well maintained the RO/DI unit I'm getting my water from has been.
Controller: Reefkeeper2 by Digital Aquatics (thanks, Kingfish!). This will control three Maxi-Jet 1200s with the 1600 upgrade kit on a pulse timer, and 1 constant flow, as well as the lights, moonlights, cooling fans, heater and (possibly, I'm debating) chiller.
Lights: Right now I'm planning on building a panel to house six 80 watt T5 retrofits 6" off the water (the panel will move out of the way when the stand is opened). This panel isn't shown in the sketches above, but I'll update those and post them soon.
Sump/Refugium: TBD
Skimmer: TBD
Tank: 110g tank that I picked up from RCA for über-cheap. I've picked up 50 lbs of base rock (nice stuff, too) from Lee Hoy, need to get another 50-75 lbs of live rock and intend to do a 5" DSB with Pavestone pulverized limestone from Home Depot. Brian from Kingfish was nice enough (and handy enough with a drill and acrylic) to drill my tank and build me an overflow box with two 1" bulkheads as well as a third 1" bulkhead below the overflow box to facilitate easier water changes (one thing the Army has taught me: the easier something is to do, the more likely it is to get done with regularity. Tell a private to mow the grass with a pushmower and you'll end up with waist-high grass pretty quickly. Put him on a riding mower and you can practice your putting on the perfectly mowed surface). I'll post pics of my planned plumbing diagram for analysis/suggestions shortly, but for now here is a pic of the tank as it stands (lays?) now:

Fish: TBD
Coral: SPS, Type TBD
Inverts: TBD

Yes, I realize that there's a WHOLE lot that still needs to be done, but it's a start.

Okay, now here's a question for this illustrious group:
Assuming two 1" bulkheads from the overflow box, what would you recommend for a return pump? I'm thinking about using one of the bulkheads with a ball valve to adjust flow rate and dumping that into the refugium, and using the other bulkhead to dump into the sump. Thoughts?

[Texreefer]

looks like you have a great start.. keep us updated

[Bill S]

Couple of thoughts: On your stand, where you can, put some plywood on the sides to brace the legs. The 2x4s will take an INSANE amount of pressure, but even way overbuilt like you have, you need lateral support. My 215 has an Oceanic stand, and it has only 8 2x4s as legs. But, it's very well braced on the front and sides.

On your overflow, I'd suggest that you put a "y" in, instead. Put the ball valve on the fuge end of the "y". That way, if your other drain gets clogged (and it will...), you won't overflow. Make SURE a single one of your drains will hand the full volume of your pump.

[seamonkey2]

On your canopy DO NOT do it that way, from my experience, with a canopy that opens that way is a pain in then long run, every time you open the canopy with the lights on you will get a tan, also turning them on and off is a pain, have a canopy with a front opening and you'll be happier

good luck

Jose

[alton]

On your pump question, I use a Pan World 50PXX on my 158g. It seems to match the two 1" bulk heads my tank has.

[fjr_wertheimber]

Okay, so the silicone has had a chance to cure, which meant it was time to paint the back of the tank and take some pics to share with the group...

The tank from the front. Yes, I know I need to clean the top of the tank. Anyone got any suggestions for getting that stuff off there?


Close-up shot of the overflow box with the eggcrate attached to it. There's also a plexi cover that goes over the whole thing, but that needs to be trimmed a bit, as it catches on the trim ledge.


Top view of the overflow box with the bulkheads in place.


View of the overflow box and bulkheads from "behind the scenes". You can see the spiffy new black paint job, the hole where the bulkhead for water changes will go, and the nice clear area behind the overflow box so I can see if anything is smart/dumb/crazy enough to get in there.

Questions, comments? Three sustains, three improves? (Sorry, it's an Army thing for After Action Reviews.)

[lhoy]

Yea, use vinegar to clean the tank and you won't have any problems.
Brian did awesome on your overflows!!

Lee

[Bill S]

Lookin' VERY nice.

[bronck83]

Are your bulkheads on backwards?

[Bill S]

I think you are right... They ARE in backwards. I looked at them and thought they looked weird, but couldn't figure it out.