DeepSouth's misadventures in Reefing (RS625)

[DeepSouth]

I have been debating about doing a build thread. Since I enjoy others, I thought I would give it a shot. Hopefully I can give others some insight into my decision process, equipment choices, so they don't make the same mistakes I do. I also would like to have a record to look back on and see how far I've come

I mainly waited till I got the tank on the stand. I didn't want to drop the tank, and have to do the walk of shame and tell everyone. So follow along and hopefully we can both learn something.

 

[DeepSouth]

Background:

I have a background in freshwater, and decided to take the plunge into reef keeping several months ago. Even before I settled on what tank, I went ahead and purchase some dry rock, placed it in a trash can with food and bacteria to see it I could get ahead of things.

I purchase my dry rock from Amazon. The name on the logo was Billy's Reef, but the seller was a different name. Forget now what it was. It was the cheapest rock I could find, and I was really pleased with it (clean and in large pieces).

For Bottle bacteria I use Biospira and Fritz at different times

 

[DeepSouth]

My criteria for purchasing a tank was that I wanted the largest tank the space in my home would allow. So I was looking for something no longer than 60 inches. I did want 24 inches in depth for aquascaping purposes. As far as height goes I wanted something in the neighborhood of 24 inches. I just don't like the looks of shorter tanks.

I settled on three options:

1.Going with SCaquariums, and building my own stand
2.Red Sea 625
3.Planet Aquarium

Ended up going with Red Sea because I could order it thru the LFS, have them inspect/send back if there was a problem. The Planet Aquarium I loved the quality, but the display was rimmed with canopy, and decided the canopy wasn't going to work.

Stick around and I will catch you guys up with where I'm at over the next few days

 

[DeepSouth]

So I ordered the Red Sea 625 thru a LFS. Now local for me means I have to drive all the way across metro Atlanta to go pick it up. We arrange for a time early in the morning when their crews first arrive. Six guys pick this thing up and put it in my truck.

Being unfamiliar with that much weight in the back (aquarium is 290 plus stand, sump, packaging all adds up) I didn't want to drive interstate due to all the nut cases. I took the really long rural route. It took a long time, and I may have run across the Donner party, but made it home with everything intact.

 

[DeepSouth]

Pro tip for anyone unpacking a Red Sea aquarium. Do not trust the handles on the box that contains the sump. Handle tore, and I took a header off the tail gate. All is well though who would have thought reefing was a contact activity.

 

[DeepSouth]

The stand rests underneath the tank. A person at the LFS gave me some Styrofoam lids and suggested I sit the tank on them when getting out the stand to protect the bulkheads. He said it would probably be okay, but he wouldn't risk it.

 

[DeepSouth]

Got the stand put together. Stand isn't a big deal, but I personally prefer some written directions and hints. My impression of the stand is that I have a hard time imagining it lasting as long as the tank. I guess that is a problem for another day.

 

[DeepSouth]

Okay, tank is on the stand, and we didn't drop it. The thing is a beast. 300 pounds of glass is a lot different than 300 lbs in the gym. Anyway it is safely done.

 

[DeepSouth]

Here is a shot of the tank complete with aquascape. I will try and get better photos as we go along.

 

[DeepSouth]

With the aquascape I was trying to have something with a lot of ledges for coral placement. Crevices for fish to hide, and good water movement in and around the rocks. Hard to tell from this photo, but I think I pulled it off. Rockwork is really stable mostly from large rock that "locked in" together.

I tried some putty that is worked together to form a consistent color, but it didn't really work for me. However superglue gel worked fantastic.

 

[Hannahrain]

With the aquascape I was trying to have something with a lot of ledges for coral placement. Crevices for fish to hide, and good water movement in and around the rocks. Hard to tell from this photo, but I think I pulled it off. Rockwork is really stable mostly from large rock that "locked in" together.

I tried some putty that is worked together to form a consistent color, but it didn't really work for me. However superglue gel worked fantastic.

I find if you "sandwich" the putty with gel super glue on either side, you get a better bond. Looking great!

 

[DeepSouth]

Had a mishap when first filling the tank. My plan was to use a trash can for water transfer with a utility pump and hose. I bought a low price utility pump thinking it would barely do the job, Place the end of the hose in the tank, and went to plug in the pump. The force blew the hose out of the tank. Fortunately the tank wasn't damaged. While the tank sits on tile the hose shot out to a carpeted area dumping enough water to put out the Chicago fire.

The good news is that it was only RODI and hadn't had salt added yet.

 

[DeepSouth]

Looking great!

Thanks. I will remember about the putty.

 

[DeepSouth]

So over the next few posts I'll go over my equipment choices and my impressions so far. Keep in mind:

1. I am new at reef keeping and so I admit I may not know what i'm talking about.
2. it is early days yet so my opinions may very well change.

 

[DeepSouth]

Red Sea 625 tank, stand and sump

TANK: It was well packaged and came to me unblemished. I really like the way the seems are done, and the rimless style. With regards to the plumbing, which gets some complaints I really don't have any problems. You are supposed to screw in until it clicks, which takes some force, but is doable. I also have not had any problems with the valve. For me it was all about making small adjustments, AND waiting a few minutes before making additional adjustments.

SUMP: One change I made that made a real big difference is to swap out the socks for cups with floss. I did so more because I thought I would be better at keeping up with maintenance. What I discovered is that the noise level dropped dramatically with almost no discernible water noise. I do wish one could have the refugium area after the skimmer.

STAND: The stand was always the question mark for me before purchase, and to be honest remains so. I question how long it will hold up. Could be wrong but doesn't seem that robust.

I'm pleased with this choice, and mostly relieved everything arrived and got installed safely.

 

[DeepSouth]

Red sea comes with an ATO. I really don't think I have this set up correctly as water level in reservoir didn't change for a couple days. If anyone has experience with these and wants to pass along any tips, I would appreciate it.

 

[ksfulk]

Looks good so far! Ive had a RSR 525xL for three years now, and the stand hasnt had any real issues, even after a big move. I didnt use the stock ATO for very long, but I would check and make sure that the float valve isnt pinching off the water line and that the line isnt kinked coming out of the reservoir. If you dont have a lot of evaporation, then it might be a bit before the ATO level changes.

 

[DeepSouth]

If you dont have a lot of evaporation, then it might be a bit before the ATO level changes.

Good to hear about the stand. I just cant help but think about the weight of water, glass rock and sand. Thanks for the tip about the ATO. The ATO is the one thing I'm not sure I like. Did you just replace valve or go with a completely different reservoir set up as well?

 

[DeepSouth]

Well props to @ksfulk I think I had the reservoir sitting on the hose, pinching it off.

 

[DeepSouth]

I went with 3 Red Sea 90's along with their fold up mounts. While I won't need to always raise the lights I'm sure there will be a few times a year I will find it handy. While I plan to have some SPS, I personally prefer LPS and some softies. For those unfamiliar with Red Sea lighting the user doesnt have as much control. Only blue and white with a moon setting. There are a few others such as clouds and moon phase. I doubt I will fiddle much once I figure out what settings work for me.

The set up and light app was intuitive and easy, but I would have preferred to do things on a computer app rather than a phone app. Guess that is my age showing.

Also chose the Red Sea 600 skimmer. I just turned it on to make sure it worked. Really don't have an opinion on it, so check back in a few months.