Miracles 600 Build Thread - Angels & Acros

[djkms]

Beautiful tank - love the aquascape and angels! I'm also a sucker for angels in a reef tank.

Thanks. The challenge with the aquascape was trying to hide the closed loop returns in it (I have 4 total, 3 in use). I basically had to build 3 towers to hide them since I didnt want pumps on any of the viewing panes. I wished it turned out better to be honest as I wanted more difference in height but I had to get the returns high enough to push the flow towards the front of the tank. There is a ton of rockwork I still need to cover with corals but thats not a cheap task with how big the tank is!

 

[djkms]

Tanks looking killer! I had mine setup the same way with flow but the sticks didn’t like the end view without high flow.. I ended up putting a couple vortecs on the viewing end and the tank was much happier! Just something to think about as the tank grows out! I wished I didn’t rush and put a closed loop on the end for that reason..

I have 2 Vectra L2's in a closed loop pushing water through the front of the tank. I have the one on the right turned down to 60% right now for the torches. As things grow in I will pump it up. Hoping not to have to put pumps on any viewing panes. It gets cooking on the front end when the pumps are going full blast, I just did the video when the pumps happen to be on their lower end in reef crest mode I guess.

 

[backbayreef]

I have 2 Vectra L2's in a closed loop pushing water through the front of the tank. I have the one on the right turned down to 60% right now for the torches. As things grow in I will pump it up. Hoping not to have to put pumps on any viewing panes. It gets cooking on the front end when the pumps are going full blast, I just did the video when the pumps happen to be on their lower end in reef crest mode I guess.

I’ve never done a closed loop and likely will never will. It’s so nerve wrecking knowing that a bad ball valve / pump can drain all the water! Glad that you can make yours work.

I have 4xMP60s on the back wall and two of them only run at 25-30% for the torches.

 

[areefer01]

I’ve never done a closed loop and likely will never will. It’s so nerve wrecking knowing that a bad ball valve / pump can drain all the water! Glad that you can make yours work.

I get bottom bulkhead fear, it is real. However, a closed loop can all be done internally so one can sleep better at night. It will take a bit of extra effort to both conceal and allow access for maintenance but it can be done.

Edit: Probably nothing you didn't already know though - sorry. Sometimes I hit reply too quick...

 

[Troylee]

I get bottom bulkhead fear, it is real. However, a closed loop can all be done internally so one can sleep better at night. It will take a bit of extra effort to both conceal and allow access for maintenance but it can be done.

Edit: Probably nothing you didn't already know though - sorry. Sometimes I hit reply too quick...

Yeah it simple enough to leave the strainers and outlets just slipped in so you can shove a long pipe “above the water line” in there for Maintence under the tank if something happened.. if the bulkhead leaks then yeah it’s all bad! lol.. I’ve ran them and it kinda worried me but I will say I’ve never had a bulkhead fail to be honest.. just the thought sticks no matter what lol

 

[djkms]

I do understand the fear of a bulkhead leaking but I look at it as the same realm of a seam leaking. Can it happen? Sure. Will it happen? Probably (hopefully!) not. All my bulkheads are extra heavy duty Hayward bulkheads, I do believe mainly used for pools.

I also have all Hayward Ball valves. I also have leak sensors all around my tank should something fail and also a bunch of water level sensors should something be off. I will say though, if the closed loop fails, especially at the returns which are on the bottom of the tank, I dont think there will be much I can do but cry.

 

[backbayreef]

I do understand the fear of a bulkhead leaking but I look at it as the same realm of a seam leaking. Can it happen? Sure. Will it happen? Probably (hopefully!) not. All my bulkheads are extra heavy duty Hayward bulkheads, I do believe mainly used for pools.

I also have all Hayward Ball valves. I also have leak sensors all around my tank should something fail and also a bunch of water level sensors should something be off. I will say though, if the closed loop fails, especially at the returns which are on the bottom of the tank, I dont think there will be much I can do but cry.

Very cool - yes, I've seen many builds (similar to yours) and have not come across total tank leak due to bulkheads leaking. It's just my personal phobia of tank leaks, bullets, and sharp objects. Anyway, I do get the value proposition (flow, simplicity, no pumps inside tank, etc) of closed loops though but today's powerful wavemakers can compensate for flow.

I'll cry if I get 50 gallons on the floor; however, if I get 500 gallons on the floor? Hmmm... my wife & her divorce lawyer will laugh hysterically!

Keep up the great work - this is a very cool build! I might come see you for Apex help in the future as well...

 

[djkms]

Very cool - yes, I've seen many builds (similar to yours) and have not come across total tank leak due to bulkheads leaking. It's just my personal phobia of tank leaks, bullets, and sharp objects. Anyway, I do get the value proposition (flow, simplicity, no pumps inside tank, etc) of closed loops though but today's powerful wavemakers can compensate for flow.

I'll cry if I get 50 gallons on the floor; however, if I get 500 gallons on the floor? Hmmm... my wife & her divorce lawyer will laugh hysterically!

Keep up the great work - this is a very cool build! I might come see you for Apex help in the future as well...

Towels, lots and lots of towels. Come to think of it, I don't think I have enough towels to clean up 600 gallons!

 

[backbayreef]

When your reef tank’s volume is larger than your kids’ pool, we know where are your priorities! lol

 

[djkms]

When your reef tank’s volume is larger than your kids’ pool, we know where are your priorities! lol

Well the pool is 12,000 gallons so I have a ways to go there.

If your statement became true I would have those divorce papers you talked about!

 

[backbayreef]

Well, you can convert your pool into this? ;) A few of us local reefers are trying to stalk the owner for a group tour...lol

 

[djkms]

Well, you can convert your pool into this? ;) A few of us local reefers are trying to stalk the owner for a group tour...lol

I love my wife and value my marriage.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I love my wife and value my marriage.

Tell her she can be a mermaid and get to experience swimming with fish.

 

[djkms]

It is pretty remarkable how much my Goldflake has changed in 2 months.


05/17/2025

07/25/2025

 

[backbayreef]

Love it! That’s my dream fish

 

[areefer01]

It is pretty remarkable how much my Goldflake has changed in 2 months.


05/17/2025

07/25/2025

Is that a captive bred/raised? Pretty. Thank you for sharing the change.

 

[djkms]

Is that a captive bred/raised? Pretty. Thank you for sharing the change.

Yep, captive bred

 

[areefer01]

Yep, captive bred

Thanks. I did not want to assume. Appreciate the over time pictures. Have you noticed a behavior change as it matures?

 

[djkms]

Thanks. I did not want to assume. Appreciate the over time pictures. Have you noticed a behavior change as it matures?

Not really, I have only had it for a couple months. It's always been an active, curious fish.

 

[djkms]

So I am trying to get a handle on the best value for DI resin. I used to manually refill cartridges on my last tank and it seems no matter how hard I tried I would always get channels in the resin and it would burn out quickly. I have been buying the aquaticlife cartridges which come in a 3 pack for $55 roughly, and they seem to be doing OK. Based on my math I seem to be getting around 300 gallons per cartridge. So Roughly 900 gallons per $55 or 6 cents per gallon to make RO/DI water.

The water going into the DI averages 2tds (sometimes its 1 sometimes its 3). I have 2 SpectraPure® SpectraSelect Plus 99% Rejection RO Membrane 90GPD.

I have 3 stages of DI canisters. Why? Well at least 2 so once one burns out its still 0 TDS coming out and the 3rd one is a silica buster which removes any residual silica coming out of the first 2 DI chambers. Even though they would read 0 TDS I was still testing silicates from ICP-MS in my RO water which this solved.

I also have 2 Neptune Solenoid Valve SV-1's hooked up between the membranes and the DI canisters so I can flush the TDS out for 10 minutes then the "TDS" valve closes and the DI valve opens. This keeps the TDS going in to the DI cartridges low and prevents the initial backflush from burning out the DI resin with high TDS for the first few minutes.

Anyways I am trying to get a more accurate measurement of how much RO/DI water is being processed so I picked up a HM Digital Flow Monitor which should keep track of how much water is being made.

I am now also trying Blue Dragon Color-Changing DI Filter Cartridges to see if they will do any better than the aquaticlife cartridges. I had an SpectraPure® Enduro DI High Performance Cartridge - DI-MB-ENDI-10HC a while back but I dont feel it out performed 3 of the pre packed cartridges but one of these will be on my shopping list next go around and I will also try the bulk color changing resin from bulk reef again to see if that may be the best bang for the buck because their 1.5 gallon fills six cartridges for $70. We shall see. I will update my thread as I get the data in.