Jesse's WB Infinia 150.4 Build

[JHSteepat]

Update, I am barely keeping up with the alk usage. Dripping kalk and have a Versa pump and 5g hdpe container on order. That shoul be good with occational Mg supplement for a good while. Eyeballing Geo Ca reactor if I cannot keep up with the usage with kalk, but I am nowhere near that now.

No real corallne growth at the moment, but the chalice has 3-4 more yellow eyes, and the candycane is looking like it is splitting soon. Lepastrea looks good and the favia is healthy but not really lokking like it is expanding yet. The candycane I almost killed with peroxide is doing well but still recovering.

WB tank will be delivered in about 10 days. I am squarely in the ugly stage, with a good bit of hair algae and no real nutrient export, even for the little amount of reef roids I am feeding (and the dead snail or two). Floating some Chaeto, putting directly under the light (for refugium in new tank). Not sure it will out compete the hair algae in this temporary setup, but hoping to get it started. I also am dimming the white spectrum, so maybe that will help with the uglies, but it won’t help the chaeto either. Hopefully the chaeto will survive the next two weeks until I have a sump to put it in.

 

[JHSteepat]

Lots happening, DT is getting delivered FINALLY in 4 days!! Now to start the fun part.

Need to move the 75g out of the way. It’s on a gorrila-glued 2x4 overbuilt stand so should slide relatively easily once I put some water in a Brute can.

Then I need to set up and anchor the Ikea storage units in place. They are so cheaply made (I do woodworking, too, so it kills me to use these) but will be sturdy-enough once leveled and anchored to wall.

I’ll need to eventually move the light hanging from the ceiling a few inches over and out from the wall. Probably will screw white-painted boards into available joists then hang from that as I don’t trust drywall and wall anchors for ceiling weight-bearing. Will do that after tank setup to center everything.

 

[JHSteepat]

Just ordered Hydros Waveengine and 2x Octopulse 4 pumps, with XP8, to control most equipment. Will use 0-10v to control the RO Regal skimmer. Will eventually order x4 pro pack with some sensors and a second XP8.

Sicce sdc9 and Xstream, and orphek light will have separate apps. Bad planning……though I love the light, and don’t really need it to be controlled and monitored like pumps and heaters. Maybe not having everything controlled by the same controller is a bonus.

Just bought batteries, connectors, and battery cases for the Xstream as backup in case of power outage.

 

[JHSteepat]

I got a bit paranoid about floor sag and loss of leveling. The tank will be in the middle of a wall with joists running lengthwise, on a hardwood floor above a crawlspace. Rather than losing sleep, I got four jack screw posts at the Orange store, some concrete pads, and cut an 8’ 4x4 in half, which I used to span the joists under both ends of the tank. I placed the posts right under the two joists holding the tank. Seemed very solid, if not overkill.

I’ll check on this once the tank is installed and filled to make sure we have good pressure on all posts, and plan to check on it occasionally, in case there is some compression of the 4x4s.

 

[JHSteepat]

FINALLY, the tank is delivered and leveled. Filled with IO and got the sump running fairly quietly. The Sicce 9.0 is running at only 22% and I have great flow. I set up the Hydros Waveengine with two RO Octopulse 4s. They are providing significant flow, but currently are located at one end of the tank. Corals are now in the main display and look happy.

I need to set up the skimmer, kalk dosing, ato, and electrical. I built a plywood board with a foot and a shelf to mount the powerstrips and Hydros gear inside the sump. Details to follow.

 

[Thehogfather]

It’s looking awesome! Neat to see the rock work in place, and I love the way the Orphek light looks.

 

[JHSteepat]

It’s looking awesome! Neat to see the rock work in place, and I love the way the Orphek light looks.

When is yours due?

 

[oceanslide]

Looks good! What are your options on the tank? Interested in getting the same one.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

FINALLY, the tank is delivered and leveled. Filled with IO and got the sump running fairly quietly. The Sicce 9.0 is running at only 22% and I have great flow. I set up the Hydros Waveengine with two RO Octopulse 4s. They are providing significant flow, but currently are located at one end of the tank. Corals are now in the main display and look happy.

I need to set up the skimmer, kalk dosing, ato, and electrical. I built a plywood board with a foot and a shelf to mount the powerstrips and Hydros gear inside the sump. Details to follow.

Glad to see the tank is up and running!

 

[JHSteepat]

Looks good! What are your options on the tank? Interested in getting the same one.

Everything seems well-made with the WB. Other than the black base, I bought the "optional" stuff separately, based on what's on sale, and my controller choices. My return pump is the Sicce SDC 9.0, which aside from an annoying hum (sounds like an air pump) at low speed, seems great, maybe a little on the side of too strong. I am running it at 22% and the output is plenty.

I also initially got an SDC Xstream, both of which were to be controlled by Apex, but I decided to go with Hydros control. That said, the Sicce ContrAll app is robust, and they will be plugged into a Hydros power strip for "oversight". I now have a Hydros WaveEngine and two Octopulse 4s, which, with the return pump, and Xstream, provide plenty of movement, and the option of adding one or two more pumps is needed (I doubt it). The OP4s are maxed out at 40% (sine wave) because I they are quite strong and were affecting the overflow in the semi-random mode.

I am using the smaller refugium (plenty large) with a Tunze Eco Chic refugium light. I need a skimmer stand for the RO Regal 150INT. I probably will not use the filter socks with the refugium and skimmer.

I am very happy with the Orphek Atlantik Icon, and it seems plenty for the LPS on a 4' tank, although once I use a par meter, and get through the ugly stage, to support SPS, I will re-evaluate adding one or two blue/near UV spectrum OR3 or quanta bars because the Orphek can provide plenty of white, shimmery light.

As to the size, I wanted a large sump, and the sump plus ATO reservoir leave only 4" underneath. Plan accordingly! I will have some posts coming up as to what I am doing with that limited space.

 

[Thehogfather]

When is yours due?

It came last Friday. I left town the following day to visit family, so it’s waiting for me when I get back at the end of the month. I’m planning on posting a build thread, but the aquascape is finished so I’ll be able to start the cycle as soon as I get it put together.

I’m definitely curious to see what you do with the limited space in the cabinet, I haven’t figured out how I’m going to navigate that yet.

 

[JHSteepat]

It came last Friday. I left town the following day to visit family, so it’s waiting for me when I get back at the end of the month. I’m planning on posting a build thread, but the aquascape is finished so I’ll be able to start the cycle as soon as I get it put together.

I’m definitely curious to see what you do with the limited space in the cabinet, I haven’t figured out how I’m going to navigate that yet.

I have Ikea cabinets I’m setting up next to the tank. One has a 5g “hedpack” I will use to dose kalk.

I built a 30 x 18 x 1/2” plywood board with a 4” wide foot to go into the main cabinet next to the ATO reservoir, to attach the Hydros components, powerstrips, and ballasts. I’m debating if I should hang a heavy plastic sheet from the bottom of the tank between the water and electronics, just out of an abundance of caution.

 

[JHSteepat]

Set up refugium with some Amazon ceramic media on bottom and some Chaeto with Tunze Eco chic. Had Chaeto with that light in 10g transfer tank and it doubled in size in a week.

Also built skimmer stand from eggcrate and 3/4” pvc.

 

[JHSteepat]

I built this, from 3/4” plywood and I am thinking of removing the shelf as it is just in the way, and I have no purpose for the shelf (yet).

Goal is to organize this, plus two more power strips and some pump/skimmer controllers in addition to the Wave engine.

Time to assemble the skimmer!

 

[JHSteepat]

At least Alk is pretty stable. Doubling water volume seems to help!

 

[JHSteepat]

The Versa plus kalk is keeping up with alk loss, so that’s a win for now.

Had a scare yesterday. Hear strange water noose from the tank. The hose blew off the return pump and dumped about a quart of water into the cabinet. Fortunately the return pump was on 22% and I had no ugly skimmate because the skimmer is just being broken in and I am keeping the tank fallow for a while longer.

Got stuff tonight to hard-plumb the return pump. The Waterbox-provided “hose” while quiet, is not inspiring confidence. The LFS who delivered suggested I may want to hard plumb the pump, and now I know why.

I also need the Hydros up and running with the sump level sensor turning off the skimmer and osmolator. Not sure how to use automation to address the return plumbing suffering catastrophe….hopefully it won’t be an issue once hard-plumbed.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I built this, from 3/4” plywood and I am thinking of removing the shelf as it is just in the way, and I have no purpose for the shelf (yet).

Goal is to organize this, plus two more power strips and some pump/skimmer controllers in addition to the Wave engine.

Time to assemble the skimmer!

I kinda like the shelves haha

 

[JHSteepat]

I kinda like the shelves haha

I’m using the shelf for the heater control and to keep some power bricks off the bottom of the cabinet. The bottom is just a foot to hold it ipright, but it also can keep stuff offnof the floor in case of a leak.

 

[JHSteepat]

well, I’m a big dummy. Put my ato reservoir a few inches higher than my sump. Glad it wasn’t more than a few inches higher, and siphoned only a gallon or so extra RODI into the sump before they leveled off. Need to figure out a siphon break but for now the ato is going ip into the display (yes the end of the tube is well above water level…..

Good news is the controller shut off the skimmer and osmolator when the sump level get too high. I initially thought it was the osmolator, but measured the levels of the ato reservoir and sump from the floor and they were exactly the same. Letting the extra water evaporate before turning osmolator back on. Still dosing kalk at a rate lower than evaporation rate.

 

[SpyC]

For the ato, I have my tubing going a good 2 feet above both the Reservoir and the sump and the tube output is close to the top of the sump so air goes into the tube when the pump shuts off. This prevents a siphon from forming. You can also use a float valve as a secondary mechanical failsafe.