rossco's 210 gallon SPS reef

[rossco]

As mentioned in my Reef Spotlight article, I have upgraded my 75 gallon SPS reef to a 210 gallon system. I am writing this thread in a build thread style, but this build thread is going to to pretty quick as I actually started on this project over a year and a half ago and the system just hit the 1 year anniversary. I just kept putting it off thinking no one would really want to see another build thread.... Several members here at R2R have asked to see what I have been up to, so here goes!

Tank specs and equipment list:

Aquarium: Custom 72 high x 25 tall x 27 deep 3/4 inch acrylic. Dual 1 inch overflows set up herbie style, dual 3/4 inch returns.

Stand: Custom self built cherrywood.

Canopy: Custom self built cherrywood

Sump: Custom 3/8 inch acrylic 36 x 24x 18

Flow: 2 Vortech MP40's on the back wall and an MP60 on one end. (Maximum potential 13,900 gallons/hour)

Return pump: Eheim 1262

Skimmer pump: Eheim 1262

Ca reactor: Geo 818 with Eheim 1248 feed pump

Lighting: Sunbrite LED




The tank:

I enlisted Ray at Reef Tech in Medford Oregon to build me a custom 210 gallon acrylic aquarium. (the same Reef Tech who originated the Starbust Monti Cap) I decided on 3/4 inch acrylic for the top, bottom, front, back - the whole thing. The back is black acrylic. It has a 20 inch by 4 inch center overflow with a pair of one inch drains. The back is drilled for dual 3/4 inch returns.

I decided on a 6 foot tank based on the amount of room I had. Watching the acros grow until they touched the front glass of my 75 taught me that width would have to be much more than 18 inches. I chose 27 inches after measuring and visualizing the impact the tank and stand would have on the rest of the room.

 

[rossco]

The Stand:

The stand was made and designed by myself. There were a few requirements for the stand. It was to be made of cherry. I wanted drawers like my kitchen cabinets. The inside height of the drawers is 5 inches, exactly the height of a Salifert test kit. The front and back needed to be as open as possible, the front to allow for sump removal if needed and the back for ventilation and the ability to utilize the wall for electronics mounting. The inside compartment had to accommodate the skimmer and calcium reactor I was planning on using. The height of the stand is 40 inches to the tank platform, 41 to the top of the trim. Inside height from the melamine platform to the bottom of the drawers is 27 inches. The stand is 30 inches front to back in order to accommodate the vortechs and return plumbing and still place the stand only a couple inches from the wall. A 3 inch plank fills the gap to make up the 3inch difference between the canopy and stand and the aquarium. The stand at 30 inches deep matches the distance from the wall of the front of the couch nearby. I utilized plywood to create glue-lam type supports rather than dimensional lumber. Even the frame has support features. The doors and trim were fabricated at a local cabinet shop to my specifications.

The stand literally started from the drawing board.

 

[rossco]

The sump:

The sump also constructed by Ray to my specifiations is patterned after the one I had under my 75. It made of 3/8 inch acrylic and measures 36 long x 24 deep x 18 tall. The first chamber houses dual filter socks,the calcium reactor feed pump and chaeto. The second chamber (24 x 13) is for frag storage and growout and is lit by an EcoRay 60D with aftermarket 90degree optics. The 3rd chamber houses the skimmer, skimmer pump, heater, and return pump. The return pump has 1 inch output until it tees into the dual 3/4 inch return lines.


During the test run:

Lighting:

Lighting is 10 Sunbrite 2nd generation 72 inch LED tubes.Eight of the tubes are controlled by a Sunbrite timer and the other 2 by myReefkeeper 2. I built a rack on heavy duty drawer slides to facilitate moving the lights back out of the way when needed during maintenance. I chose LED's for the advantages of less heat outputand greater longevity. I chose Sunbrites specifically for several reasons. I wanted a uniform light pattern with no hot spots, which an array of 400 1 watt diodes handles nicely. The color spectrum is tunable by chosing a combination of tubes and NOT by having to turnone or more channels down. EverySunbrite tube runs at 100 percent, so there is no wasted potential. With the controller, each tube is independantly controllable. Finally, I had personally seen success inperson by watching my good friend Dwayne (Scoly here on R2R) grow a beautiful reef under Sunbrites.

 

[slugwall]

Crazy!!!

 

[revhtree]

Looking great! I love a clean new sump! HA!

 

[Rob.D]

Awesome woodwork!

 

[Aquaph8]

Nice work Rossco, looking really nice!

 

[Texasnano]

Man it looks sick, great woodwork & clean set up

 

[Reefer831]

Your stand came out really clean, and I like your grow out section in your sump. Looking forward to following!

 

[Wesley42079]

Nice wood work. I sure wish I was handy with the hammer.

I also likeyour sump. Very, very clean setup.

I can't wait to see water and corals inside it.

 

[wysiwyg]

absolutely amazing

 

[Scoly]

I'm liking the build thread! I must say, that when Scott told me he was building his own stand n canopy, I had no idea it was going to turn out as nice as it did! Looks like a nice piece of furniture! Well done Scott! And thanks for the kind words on my tank!

 

[KoleTang]

Very nice. We need an FTS. :wink:

I'm curious about your stand.... are you sure that stand will hold up to the weight? That is, being made almost 100% out of cherry plywood.

 

[revsgirl]

Very nice!! Watching this one!

 

[LVE]

Very cool, tagging along.

 

[rarelyseriousb]

Nice build.

 

[swannyson7]

Very nice Scott! 1smile1

 

[AsphaltPays]

Great looking build..tagging along

 

[Sahin]

This thread seriously needs updating. :attention:

I recall various coral shots from your last tank, and judging by the effort put into that awesome stand, I just know this is going to be a sweet tank. So let's see some more photos.

 

[jdpiii3]

Great looking stand! Keep it up and post more pictures!