Frizzles7 Red Sea Max S-500

Frizzles7 · Jan 11, 2018

I have begun my tank upgrade. Currently I have a 75 gallon tank:

My 75 was working okay, but I don't have a sump and I don't have enough room. I also don't think I have enough light. So I decided to upgrade to a Red Sea Max S-500. I'm still relatively new to saltwater tanks (my 75 has been up for a year and 9 months), so I thought that getting an all-in-one setup was a good way to learn and be confident that I have what I need for a successful reef.

The new tank arrived (best belated Christmas present ever):

Here's what the crate looked like when I got it into the garage and popped it open:

Frizzles7 · Jan 11, 2018

The next step was to start assembling. Here is the location for the new tank:

I started assembling, and I hit a snag right away. Apparently, I am much stronger with power tools than the guy in the assembly videos. I totally broke the head off of the screw.

Three trips to Home Depot later, I had drilled out this screw, replaced it, and finished the first part of the assembly. This is when I realized I wasn't going to finish the assembly in a weekend.

I was making progress, but needed to pause to coordinate help to get the tank out of the crate, out of the garage, and into the house. This is going to take a while.

Frizzles7 · Jan 14, 2018

It's all built!

Holy cow. I love it already, and it's not even wet yet.

I also wanted to provide some details on the sump. I had difficulty finding all of the different dimensions of the sump for the Max S-500 before purchasing. Here are some pictures and measurements, if any one else was also looking for this info:

The overall dimensions of the sump are about 28 inches wide by 19 inches deep. The sump is about 17 inches tall in the front, and about 22 inches tall in the back.
When facing the aquarium, the right section has the filter socks, return pump, and float. This is about 10.5 inches wide. The return pump section in front is about 12 inches deep.
The middle section has the skimmer and media section and is about 10 inches wide. The skimmer sits on a platform about 5 inches tall (I didn't have that in yet when I took the above pictures). The front section for media is about 5 inches deep.
The left section is the accessory section. This is about 7.5 inches wide and runs the full depth of about 19 inches.

More to come.

SPR1968 · Jan 15, 2018

Hi Frizzles

Great built so far. I’ve got the 2016 Max S 650 which is basically the same but longer so if you need any help or anything just ask.

Frizzles7 · Jan 15, 2018

SPR1968 said:
Hi Frizzles

Great built so far. I’ve got the 2016 Max S 650 which is basically the same but longer so if you need any help or anything just ask.

Thanks so much!

Frizzles7 · Jan 23, 2018

Leak test successful. Filling the tank now. Man, it takes a while to make this much water!

Frizzles7 · Jan 28, 2018

I made a lot of progress this weekend. Finished the fill and got all of the pumps on and quieted down. Took a bit to adjust the main valve, but I got there. Installed RFG nozzles on the circulation pumps.

I added my new dry rock that was curing in a Brute in the garage. I also was curing some rock donated by a couple friends. I picked out my favorite new pieces and added them to the tank, along with the sand. Unfortunately I still have a sandstorm of cloudy water.

I also worked on the sump and electrical. I added two motion sensitive led light bars to the sump area - no more flashlights! The lights and circulation pumps are hooked up to the power center. Everything else is plugged into my new Apex. Still learning that, but I’ve managed to get comfortable with the return pump, heaters, and skimmer. I’ve got the probes in the sump but my probe holder hasn’t arrived yet.

I’m also not sure that my salinity probe is working right. The Apex is reading at only 22, which is way off. Maybe the calibration didn’t go well? Or maybe it will update after I get the probes installed in their holder and the cords cleaned up?

The only tricky thing has been the skimmer. The outlet elbow is leaking and dripping onto the skimmer pump. When I assembled it, it seemed very loose. I even convinced my husband to look and see if I did something wrong - he couldn’t see anything wrong but agreed it was loose. Well when I finally got the water flowing through the skimmer, it leaks. I can hold it closed and tight, but as soon as I let go, it starts leaking again. Oh, and whenever I touch the skimmer pump, it shocks me. (Maybe this is affecting the salinity reading?) So I sent a note to Red Sea asking for help late last night. We’ll see what they say.

I’m hoping my sandstorm settles soon and we fix the skimmer issue. Then comes the part of moving all my existing rocks and fish to the new tank. For now, I am waiting.

Frizzles7 · Feb 2, 2018

Good news! The replacement parts from Red Sea arrived today.

I installed the new parts, and now the skimmer is working great. Thank you Red Sea for the quick support!

Frizzles7 · Feb 27, 2018

I’ve made a lot of progress. I installed RFG nozzles on the recirculaton pumps and the return. I put on a Tunze ATO (sensors in the sump, with the pump in the reservoir), rather than use the float in the sump. I have the line emptying into the display, rather than the sump.

I also got my Apex set up and mounted. I have the mounts for my dosers set up too (but they aren’t up yet). I still have some work to do on the cords.

I also got the Innovative Marine XL probe holder, which I really like.

The only thing holding up the transfer from my existing tank is my lid. Butterscotch (my yellow wrasse) is a jumper, so I won’t move everything until the lid arrives. Hopefully it’s only another week or two.

SPR1968 · Feb 28, 2018

Looking good so far. What’s the pipe for going into the top left hand side of the tank near the RO reservoir hatch ? Is it a Tunze ATO hose ?

EDIT. Just re read your post so yes it it!

I’ve got mine returning into the main return chamber and I have a 100 litre bucket under the power centre as storage.

I actually use the inbuilt float system and reservoir as back up in case the Tunze fails. I have the Tunze sensors at a level that just keeps the inbuilt float closed but just keep the RO chamber full. Just another idea for you.

Frizzles7 · Mar 1, 2018

SPR1968 said:
Looking good so far. What’s the pipe for going into the top left hand side of the tank near the RO reservoir hatch ? Is it a Tunze ATO hose ?

EDIT. Just re read your post so yes it it!

I’ve got mine returning into the main return chamber and I have a 100 litre bucket under the power centre as storage.

I actually use the inbuilt float system and reservoir as back up in case the Tunze fails. I have the Tunze sensors at a level that just keeps the inbuilt float closed but just keep the RO chamber full. Just another idea for you.

Do you have a pic on how you returned it to the main return chamber? I was thinking about doing something like that, but was a little gun shy to start making permanent mods there. And I wasn’t exactly sure the best way to do it.

That’s a great idea on using the float as a backup! Thanks for the advice!

SPR1968 · Mar 1, 2018

Frizzles7 said:
Do you have a pic on how you returned it to the main return chamber? I was thinking about doing something like that, but was a little gun shy to start making permanent mods there. And I wasn’t exactly sure the best way to do it.

That’s a great idea on using the float as a backup! Thanks for the advice!

Your welcome!

It’s nothing permanent so don’t worry about that.

If you look on page 13 of my build thread and then at the pictures of the sump, if you look in the main return chamber you can see the Tunze sensors at the front and the black return hose goes back into there. Top left of the return chamber.

I feed the hose from my reservoir under the power centre, up through the hole in the top left of the cabinet and then back down around the back of the skimmer and then it’s clipped into place. The exit needs to be above the water.

Works perfectly and in the event of any failure the water level will drop and then the inbuilt float controlled system will kick in and give 4-5 days backup.

I hope this helps you out.

PS another tip for you on the skimmer. When you turn the red feed valve on to the green hose for the skimmer, start around 1/3 open not full and then work from there. Otherwise you will have trouble with the skimmer like I did for weeks!

Frizzles7 · Mar 1, 2018

Thanks! I see how you did that. I like that a lot.

Yeah the skimmer has been fun. I’ve got it at about 1/3 right now. I’m curious to see how crazy everything goes when I move all my current livestock in.

Frizzles7 · Mar 11, 2018

Big update. My lid arrived on Friday from @ArtFully Acrylic. Beautiful lid!! Here are some pictures, including the packaging.

I love this lid. It was totally worth the wait, and the customer service was awesome.

Now that the lid arrived, I spent all of Saturday transferring my rocks and livestock to the new tank, and breaking down the old tank. Here are a few pics of the new tank. I still have some frags to place.

So happy to have everything in the new tank!!

Frizzles7 · Mar 18, 2018

Well it took a week after the move, but Butterscotch finally came out of the sand.

Frizzles7 · Mar 18, 2018

I also got the orange lens filter from BRS to help with my pictures. On the new tank the photos were way too blue, but the filter makes Such a difference.

Frizzles7 · Mar 31, 2018

Here’s a full tank shot now that I have everything mounted and in place. I also have my dosers set up. Trying to get everything stable before I add more corals. Man the wait is hard!

Still have a couple more weeks to wait on my pajama cardinals and goby in QT.

SPR1968 · Apr 1, 2018

Frizzles7 said:
Here’s a full tank shot now that I have everything mounted and in place. I also have my dosers set up. Trying to get everything stable before I add more corals. Man the wait is hard!

Still have a couple more weeks to wait on my pajama cardinals and goby in QT.

All looking very nice @Frizzles7 !

I think you need to go shopping and fill the beast up! Lol

Exciting times

Rakie · Apr 1, 2018

Oh man, everything looks great but there's one thing I'd like to warn you about!

I've had plenty of friends run into issues mounting their electronics / control panels / Apex stuff inside the sump area. I've also had friends with no issue whatsoever.. but the few that have had equipment failures due to rust have made me very nervous of equipment down there.

Sorry to come in sounding negative, but be careful with the apex EB8 down there. If you need inspiration for building a cabinet, there's more than a few threads here, and it can be as easy as going to ikea and getting a little cabinet with doors for $20 and mounting it all inside. It can look not-ugly!