Mission Impossible: Reefer 250, 3 reactors, refugium, skimmer, lights, action! Pic heavy.

[Butuz]

Breaking news! Just got a pic from John at Advanced Acrylics in CA. My ATO is done, he is working on matching dosing containers. Here is a pic he texted me. He nailed the color combo (I asked him to use his judgement, full autonomy, after he saw my build pics). Can’t wait to get my hands on this. The hole on the left is for RODI float valve. Since the tank is small, I will simply connect and refill the ATO once a week, instead of having a permanent connection. The depth is 15 inches (due to Red Sea hinge on the right of the cabinet). The dosing containers are 3 inches wide and will sit between the ATO and sump.

 

[Oshengems]

Lord Jesus!!!! (Bows down)..... this build is looking excellent, I would definitely 2nd the left island being too high not danger wise since you seen to set them well but real state that top piece won’t keep much since it’s so close to the water level, think about tank maintenance water changes or if your return pump fails, I had a similar issue with my blue Tort and green slimer during maintenance was a hassle constantly making sure to wet them to not keep them exposed for too long to dry air

 

[Butuz]

Lord Jesus!!!! (Bows down)..... this build is looking excellent, I would definitely 2nd the left island being too high not danger wise since you seen to set them well but real state that top piece won’t keep much since it’s so close to the water level, think about tank maintenance water changes or if your return pump fails, I had a similar issue with my blue Tort and green slimer during maintenance was a hassle constantly making sure to wet them to not keep them exposed for too long to dry air

Makes sense. Sorry, have not grown a single coral yet! The top piece is below the overflow, so I think the only danger is water changes then? Alternatively, I can leave the very top piece coral free, will take a while before I start running out of space anyway. Btw, here is a pic from above showing those layers/plateaus at various depths. Should give me plenty of room, I hope. Btw, for those interested, those two extending corals on the right) that look like a human hand were secured with 1” acrylic rods. Cut pieces of acrylic rod into 4-5” pieces, 1” drill, snug fit. They create a nice overhang. Same with the piece all the way on the left. Did the same with a few other pieces just for extra support, including rocks stacked vertically. 1” acrylic rod was from Amazon. Longer pieces seem fragile, but 4-5” piece is as rigid as needed.

 

[Oshengems]

The good thing is that piece seems easy to remove in the future if you decided to, very easily..... plz give us that satisfaction of seeing some water in there that’s almost like a high fresh start lol I’m sure there have been a few in here probably more eager than you to wet this tank lol... I know is probably far but have you thought about corals and fish yet the must have

 

[Oshengems]

Makes sense. Sorry, have not grown a single coral yet! The top piece is below the overflow, so I think the only danger is water changes then? Alternatively, I can leave the very top piece coral free, will take a while before I start running out of space anyway. Btw, here is a pic from above showing those layers/plateaus at various depths. Should give me plenty of room, I hope. Btw, for those interested, those two extending corals on the right) that look like a human hand were secured with 1” acrylic rods. Cut pieces of acrylic rod into 4-5” pieces, 1” drill, snug fit. They create a nice overhang. Same with the piece all the way on the left. Did the same with a few other pieces just for extra support, including rocks stacked vertically. 1” acrylic rod was from Amazon. Longer pieces seem fragile, but 4-5” piece is as rigid as needed.

You have some great cliffs for some tabling acros

 

[Butuz]

Here are a few better pics showing real estate for corals.

The good thing is that piece seems easy to remove in the future if you decided to, very easily..... plz give us that satisfaction of seeing some water in there that’s almost like a high fresh start lol I’m sure there have been a few in here probably more eager than you to wet this tank lol... I know is probably far but have you thought about corals and fish yet the must have

Haven’t thought yet about corals and fish in detail yet. As a father of two boys (13 and 8), a pair of picasso clownfish is a must. Also, a few wrasses, gobys, shrimp, - something with character. Tank is small for larger fish like tangs. For corals, I’d like to cover one of the plateaus with high end zoas. I also like to see movement, so perhaps GSP on the back wall, highly controlled so it doesnt jump over.

Other than that, I’d like to pick some great looking, rare stuff - since space is limited, I’d like every single fish and coral to stand out, yet in harmony.

If you guys have any suggestions, please feel free to share!

 

[Fritzhamer]

This is a really impressive build and you're quite talented. It's nice to see someone with that OCD touch (I mean that has the highest compliment) when it comes to the under the tank stuff. I like to look under my tank (and others) as much as I do at the display tank. I wonder though how much head pressure you're going to be creating with the manifold. In my experience the Octo 6 wasn't enough for my 90 gallon and I've got a one inch run going four feet up and one foot over with six 90 degree elbows. All those bends and gate valves, while beautifully and artistically done, I can't imagine being practical in use.

When I did run reactors I daisy chained them together; the output of one direct into the input of another. I placed a valve after the last reactor to control flow. I'd run them in order of highest capacity for flow to lowest and that worked well for me. It took up less space, used less pipe and in my case I was able to run all the reactors off one small AC pump. This setup used far less wattage than trying to get the same flow off a "T" from my return pump. I'm curious if that will be the case for you, perhaps not but it may be worth planning in case it is an issue. Again really well thought out and gorgeous build. I'm excited to see how it progresses.

 

[Butuz]

This is a really impressive build and you're quite talented. It's nice to see someone with that OCD touch (I mean that has the highest compliment) when it comes to the under the tank stuff. I like to look under my tank (and others) as much as I do at the display tank. I wonder though how much head pressure you're going to be creating with the manifold. In my experience the Octo 6 wasn't enough for my 90 gallon and I've got a one inch run going four feet up and one foot over with six 90 degree elbows. All those bends and gate valves, while beautifully and artistically done, I can't imagine being practical in use.

When I did run reactors I daisy chained them together; the output of one direct into the input of another. I placed a valve after the last reactor to control flow. I'd run them in order of highest capacity for flow to lowest and that worked well for me. It took up less space, used less pipe and in my case I was able to run all the reactors off one small AC pump. This setup used far less wattage than trying to get the same flow off a "T" from my return pump. I'm curious if that will be the case for you, perhaps not but it may be worth planning in case it is an issue. Again really well thought out and gorgeous build. I'm excited to see how it progresses.

Thanks, absolutely, I do take it as a compliment and fully agree. I don’t know what excites me the most, the actual (future) tank with its inhabitants or the setup below that makes it happen. I plan on enjoying both! On pressure, that was a concern as well. BRS did an episode and it appeared that it wasnt a critical loss, just marginal. Also that was the main reason I went with Varios 6 just for extra power for 65g tank.

In terms of reactors, the flow will be controlled and low: bio pellets with low tumble, carbon/gfo and the third one with miracle mud which will have super low flow. To your point, I also added a spare valve that has a hose sitting in the skimmer area to keep stuff suspended, I can always dial it back using that to generate extra flow into the tank.

I am, though, worried about my main drain pipe. Its 3/4”, same as pump return. I dont think return will be at full capacity into the tank, so controlling overflow/main drain should’t be a problem, I hope. However, I do have a 1” pipe with a valve ready in case if I need to up the main drain.

 

[Butuz]

This is a really impressive build and you're quite talented. It's nice to see someone with that OCD touch (I mean that has the highest compliment) when it comes to the under the tank stuff. I like to look under my tank (and others) as much as I do at the display tank. I wonder though how much head pressure you're going to be creating with the manifold. In my experience the Octo 6 wasn't enough for my 90 gallon and I've got a one inch run going four feet up and one foot over with six 90 degree elbows. All those bends and gate valves, while beautifully and artistically done, I can't imagine being practical in use.

When I did run reactors I daisy chained them together; the output of one direct into the input of another. I placed a valve after the last reactor to control flow. I'd run them in order of highest capacity for flow to lowest and that worked well for me. It took up less space, used less pipe and in my case I was able to run all the reactors off one small AC pump. This setup used far less wattage than trying to get the same flow off a "T" from my return pump. I'm curious if that will be the case for you, perhaps not but it may be worth planning in case it is an issue. Again really well thought out and gorgeous build. I'm excited to see how it progresses.

Wow, thats genious. I actully didn’t even think of daisy chaining the reactors that way. I would have easily connected at least biopellets and carbon together, would have saved me a little more space.

 

[Butuz]

Quick update guys, preparing for getting this tank wet in a week or so, installed the RODI system (from BRS). Snug fit under a small sink in our half bathroom (next to the tank). Worked out well for water top offs to ATO.

Set this up with fixed connections to water supply and waste, so I dont have to mess with a faucet connection every time. Btw, the tee to connect to water supply line from BRS is bad quality. Bought this replacement one from Amazon, stainless steel coated in plastic. Didnt want something under constant pressure to be a flimsy plastic piece. Drilled a small hole for waste drain above the p trap.

Finally, setup a tee between RO and DI. This one can be used for drinking water sypply if needed, taking it after RO but before DI as DI is bad for drinking. The line from DI will be used to connect to ATO float valve for weekly refills.

 

[eLReef]

Wow!! this tank is looking amazing! For this being your first tank I can’t imagine what your next tank will be 2-3 years from now. You have natural talent. I have the same exact tank except with the white stand. I unfortunately wasn’t patient enough to not get my hands wet first lol.. now almost 3 months into my tank will be getting all my hard plumbing parts this week that I ordered to customize the sump. I will definitely be following your build and shoot some ideas. As far as the aquascape being to high it’s a preference thing. Mine is just as high if not higher it pokes out of the water a little. If water changes might be a concern just pull some water out of your sump to prevent Corals from exposure to the air to long. As for ideas for corals well I can already tell by the equipment you have and by you mentioning the word “Rare” Corals in what direction you are heading lol. Once you go rare you’ll never go back. I would avoid the GSP and pulsing xenia at all cost. I also use MP40’s at 50% I tried to upload my schedule but it didn't let me. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong. It's an .evg file from ecosmart live.

 

[Butuz]

Wow!! this tank is looking amazing! For this being your first tank I can’t imagine what your next tank will be 2-3 years from now. You have natural talent. I have the same exact tank except with the white stand. I unfortunately wasn’t patient enough to not get my hands wet first lol.. now almost 3 months into my tank will be getting all my hard plumbing parts this week that I ordered to customize the sump. I will definitely be following your build and shoot some ideas. As far as the aquascape being to high it’s a preference thing. Mine is just as high if not higher it pokes out of the water a little. If water changes might be a concern just pull some water out of your sump to prevent Corals from exposure to the air to long. As for ideas for corals well I can already tell by the equipment you have and by you mentioning the word “Rare” Corals in what direction you are heading lol. Once you go rare you’ll never go back. I would avoid the GSP and pulsing xenia at all cost. I also use MP40’s at 50% I will send you a copy of my schedule. It has been working great for me.

Awesome, many thanks! Looking forward to receiving the schedule, as I havent programmed them yet. Much appreciated!

 

[eLReef]

I can't figure out how to upload a copy of my schedule. Has something to do with the type of file(.evg). Does anyone know how to upload it? Here is a screen shot of it. See if that helps.

 

[Butuz]

I can't figure out how to upload a copy of my schedule. Has something to do with the type of file(.evg). Does anyone know how to upload it? Here is a screen shot of it. See if that helps.

Thanks! Very helpful.

 

[Butuz]

Solved the problem above with the line from ATO to the pump area. Picked up this 1/4” bulkhead connector from Amazon, fits nicely into the Red Sea drilled ballast hole in the pump area. Since it matches the pump, wont bother painting this black or red, but itching to do so. Also, thanks for everyones feedback on siphoning issue, I think I have an easy fix. I will be running this red line from ATO through the cable raceway, which runs higher than the top of the ATO level , so shoud be good even if the other end is submerged for some reason. This coupled with eKoral optics sensor for water level and rules I have setup, should offer triple layer protection.

 

[Oshengems]

My 2 cents on fish since it’s on smaller scale I Feel some of the most underrated fish are green chromis!, but i have a thing for fish I been constantly buying fish and selling them a few months down the road but I added 4 to my 75g and they gave my tank life it feels more alive how they stay close together especially when there’s a lot of movement in the room, another think I like they kinda show my new fishes how to accept prepared food... sometimes their blue sometimes their blue lol all depends on the angle lol.

Also love how they hide in my acro colonies

 

[Butuz]

My 2 cents on fish since it’s on smaller scale I Feel some of the most underrated fish are green chromis!, but i have a thing for fish I been constantly buying fish and selling them a few months down the road but I added 4 to my 75g and they gave my tank life it feels more alive how they stay close together especially when there’s a lot of movement in the room, another think I like they kinda show my new fishes how to accept prepared food... sometimes their blue sometimes their blue lol all depends on the angle lol.

Also love how they hide in my acro colonies

Awesome, thanks, will add them to my list to consider! The guys at WWC replied to me as well with their reaction/recommendation on desirable corals. They got some great stuff. Will be exciting to choose both fish and corals to stock this thing.

 

[Oshengems]

Awesome, thanks, will add them to my list to consider! The guys at WWC replied to me as well with their reaction/recommendation on desirable corals. They got some great stuff. Will be exciting to choose both fish and corals to stock this thing.

I’m telling you is sort of high, that new coral/fish feeling in the tank lol

 

[Butuz]

Just got these pics from John at Advanced Acrylics. Should have these delivered early next week, can’t wait. Really like the way both the ATO and matching custom doser came out.

 

[Butuz]

Guys, they have finally arrived. John at Advanced Acrylics nailed it. Fits like a glove, perfect color match. Will get the ATO hooked up this weekend and I think she will be ready for water! Never thought I’d be able to jam this much essential stuff into Reefer 250 cabinet. ATO reservoir is apprx 10g.