My Blue Heaven - Reefer-S 850 Build - First Saltwater Tank

[Daniel@R2R]

I see why people have a fish room - I have no clue how I am going to stuff all these electronics into that small of a space. Rant over....

Plumbing for the UV complete. Not as clean as I would like but I think it’ll work just fine.

I’ve added the APC PDUs to the slide out controller board - still unsure of how this is going to work out with all the other controllers but we will see.

Ooo!! I want one of those Red Sea roller mats so bad for my next build!

 

[swallace]

Nothing better than filling your tank and sump then realizing that you plumbed in the main and emergency drain backwards in the overflow . Once I get this fixed i'll send over some pics of the tank all filled up and running.

 

[swallace]

Ooo!! I want one of those Red Sea roller mats so bad for my next build!

It seems promising. I am looking forward to seeing it in action.

 

[swallace]

Its been a fun 7-10 days getting everything all prepped and ready but I finally have the tank filled and all equipment installed and turned on.

As someone who has never done this - getting the levels right in the overflow and sump is a challenge. So many little factors to contend with.

For instance - I didn't realize that my Vectras were only running at 4% so I thought I had the levels right until I turned them up to 50% and quickly watched all hell break loose. Pumps running dry, overflow draining way to much or not enough and almost overflowing the ReefMat because there was a crazy torrent of water rushing through it. So stressful!

I have things close to normal right now but still struggling a bit with the flow from the returns. Its definitely a bit of a balancing act.

Anyway - here are some pics of the tank and sump. I still need to add in the ATO and doser (which I wont need for quite a bit) along with some sump media.


Hard to tell with the 2d image but I tried to keep the rock work at no more than 50% of the height of the tank so that I have room for growth and there are caves and large passes in all 3 main pieces.

Need to fix that UV run

 

[jake royston]

Its been a fun 7-10 days getting everything all prepped and ready but I finally have the tank filled and all equipment installed and turned on.

As someone who has never done this - getting the levels right in the overflow and sump is a challenge. So many little factors to contend with.

For instance - I didn't realize that my Vectras were only running at 4% so I thought I had the levels right until I turned them up to 50% and quickly watched all hell break loose. Pumps running dry, overflow draining way to much or not enough and almost overflowing the ReefMat because there was a crazy torrent of water rushing through it. So stressful!

I have things close to normal right now but still struggling a bit with the flow from the returns. Its definitely a bit of a balancing act.

Anyway - here are some pics of the tank and sump. I still need to add in the ATO and doser (which I wont need for quite a bit) along with some sump media.


Hard to tell with the 2d image but I tried to keep the rock work at no more than 50% of the height of the tank so that I have room for growth and there are caves and large passes in all 3 main pieces.

Need to fix that UV run

Love it! The overflow took me a couple hours of fine tuning also. With such a large volume of water, it takes some adjustment and waiting 20-30 minutes for it to settle. Once i got mine tuned it was smooth sailing. Vectras are so quiet! Im planning on the reef mat upgrade also, i think my clarisea is a bit overwhelmed. Ive got a 10 gallon ATO on my 900, it lasts about 6 days. Hows the flow through your extension sump with those solid weir covers? I wish my tank included them, i really dont understand why they dont include them with the 900. My skimmer is in my extension portion since it didnt fit well in the main sump

 

[swallace]

Love it! The overflow took me a couple hours of fine tuning also. With such a large volume of water, it takes some adjustment and waiting 20-30 minutes for it to settle. Once i got mine tuned it was smooth sailing. Vectras are so quiet! Im planning on the reef mat upgrade also, i think my clarisea is a bit overwhelmed. Ive got a 10 gallon ATO on my 900, it lasts about 6 days. Hows the flow through your extension sump with those solid weir covers? I wish my tank included them, i really dont understand why they dont include them with the 900. My skimmer is in my extension portion since it didnt fit well in the main sump

The flow through the extension is pretty solid. Its not a torrent but you can definitely see it. We will see how it does in a few months when I bring the fuge online.

 

[swallace]

First two inhabitants getting used to QT and while I am excited, I am also a bit torn on which way to go for QT. I had this grand plan of treating them and then moving them to the DT when done but after talking with my LFS (Pure Reef here in ATL) and watching more videos, I cant decide if it really makes sense to proactively treat these two. While I have most of what I need here to go down the eradication method these two seem pretty happy and healthy and I feel like with me being so new - I'll end up killing them by trying to treat them. I would love to hear what others are doing in my situation.

Enjoy the fishy pics - these two are a mated pair that came out of a someones tank after two years. They were at the LFS for about 2 weeks and are a blast to watch. Still working on a names.

 

[bdouglas119]

Nothing better than filling your tank and sump then realizing that you plumbed in the main and emergency drain backwards in the overflow . Once I get this fixed i'll send over some pics of the tank all filled up and running.

If it makes you feel better I did the exact same thing to S-1000. But to make it worse I thought the diaphragm valve was the issue, so I ordered a gate valve, all the connectors/adaptors and switched it all over only to then realize I had them backwards in the box

 

[beesnreefs]

I’m planning on getting the same tank. So excited!

Is it plumbed for redundant return pumps? Or did you have to make adjustments to have two? Are you happy with the Vectra L2s?

 

[swallace]

I’m planning on getting the same tank. So excited!

Is it plumbed for redundant return pumps? Or did you have to make adjustments to have two? Are you happy with the Vectra L2s?

It has an adapter so that the returns can be used independently or together. As for the pumps, I think the Vectras are great, they are easy to configure and feel very well built. Both of mine are running around 40% and that seems like plenty of turnover. I will say - with two of them there isn't much room left in the return section of the sump though.

I really like this tank fwiw.

Thanks for stopping by.

As for an update - there really isnt one. Tank is cycling and the two clowns are living happily in QT.

The ReefMat has been working great and has kept the water crystal clear and im using around 25cm avg a day right now with nothing in the tank but I can see all the dirt on the fleece so, I am happy.

I'll post another update soon.

 

[swallace]

Not much of an update as I’m following the advice of others and moving slowly.

The two clowns come out of quarantine this week so my tank will officially have some fish in it. I’m definitely excited about that.

In preparation for the fish I did pick up the Red Sea diy net kit and that turned out ok. I’ll post some pics later this week when I put them in.

In an effort to diversify the life in my tank and get a good ecosystem going, I did start a phytoplankton culture today. This will ultimately feed the apex pod culture that I’ll be starting next week.
Here is my Frankenstein experiment on day 1.

On a side note; the Reef Mat has been a champ and the tank is crystal clear.

more updates to come this weekend.

 

[swallace]

Two new additions to the family.

Max my Magnificent Foxface who has only been in qt for about 48 hours and is just starting to come out of his shell.

Gump who I am told is a blue spot goby. What’s not to love about this face?

Both seem to be doing well and it was nice to see Max start finally eating tonight.

 

[swallace]

Just received my order from IPSF with a nice bio starter pack for the tank. Bunch of amphipods, mama mia worms, brissle worms, mini stars, some snails and hermits. I also ordered the live sand activator and wundermud as I started with nothing but dry sand and rock. Gonna see how things look in a few days but its really nice to start seeing some diversity in the tank.

Pics to come when the tank clears up.

 

[beesnreefs]

Just received my order from IPSF with a nice bio starter pack for the tank. Bunch of amphipods, mama mia worms, brissle worms, mini stars, some snails and hermits. I also ordered the live sand activator and wundermud as I started with nothing but dry sand and rock. Gonna see how things look in a few days but its really nice to start seeing some diversity in the tank.

Pics to come when the tank clears up.

I’m also starting a Reefer S 850 build and planning doing the same thing - a nice biodiversity package from IPSF after cycling.

Can’t wait to hear how this goes for you!

Where are you placing the live sand activator? In the display or sump? What about the mud?

 

[swallace]

I’m also starting a Reefer S 850 build and planning doing the same thing - a nice biodiversity package from IPSF after cycling.

Can’t wait to hear how this goes for you!

Where are you placing the live sand activator? In the display or sump? What about the mud?

Live sand went into the DT and just mixed it with my current sand. The mud went into a tray that I put in the sump

 

[beesnreefs]

Live sand went into the DT and just mixed it with my current sand. The mud went into a tray that I put in the sump

This is going to be my first time with a sump system so forgive my ignorance

Why did you place the mud in a tray in the sump?

 

[swallace]

This is going to be my first time with a sump system so forgive my ignorance

Why did you place the mud in a tray in the sump?

No forgiveness needed This is my first reef tank (sump also)

We have the same sump so for me the reef mat is in the first chamber - then in the sump extension first chamber I put a small plastic tray with some cuts in it (watch this guys video IPSF addition) then I have the refugium section in the other part of the extension where my macro algae goes then my skimmer and then my return section.

Hope that helps

 

[beesnreefs]

No forgiveness needed This is my first reef tank (sump also)

We have the same sump so for me the reef mat is in the first chamber - then in the sump extension first chamber I put a small plastic tray with some cuts in it (watch this guys video IPSF addition) then I have the refugium section in the other part of the extension where my macro algae goes then my skimmer and then my return section.

Hope that helps

Great video - thanks for the link!

 

[Av8tor2]

What have I done! Just starting my journey with this TANK.

 

[swallace]

What have I done! Just starting my journey with this TANK.

It’s definitely a labor of love. Good luck on your journey.

I haven’t posted any status updates In awhile but I have some coming soon. I’m currently about to start dosing and getting params stable so I can add coral.

Right now my nitrates and phosphates are starting to dip too low, despite pretty heavy feeding for my 4 fish.