New to Planning Plumbing, Wiring, and Installation

[ElussssvReefSD]

Hello fellow aqua-nerds...

As the scheduled arrival date of my new tank gets closer (see build thread in sig for details), the true scope of what I'm going to need to do and plan in order to get this tank up and running successfully is starting give me a bit of anxiety. I am going to need advice on the following points:

1) This tank is going to be 9ft long x 3ft wide x 30in tall being custom-built by Crystal Reef Aquatics. I have measured my doorway to ensure that it'll fit through the front door. Beyond that, how the heck am I going to get this beast into the house and mounted on the stand safely?!? Should I reach out for help to an LFS? Local forum? Moving company?

2) I will be using MH lights as my primary lighting source (3 Hamilton Cozumel Sun 400W Pendants) and supplemented by Kessil A360X LEDs. I will be hanging these lights from the ceiling over an open top, and they will be about 12inches off the water surface. The room in which the tank will be located is a large, open, air-conditioned space, so I will start with a DIY cooling solution consisting of computer case fans. My question is, since my preferred cooling method will be evaporation, for a system of this size (approx 475gallons DT + sump), what would be a reasonable size to plan for an ATO reservoir to account for evaporative losses.

3) Plumbing, I will be looking through this thread for tips and tricks in regard to plumbing, but any advice will be greatly appreciated. This is the aspect of the new tank that I am most uncomfortable with myself, so may just hire a professional anyways. However, if it really isn't overly complicated and just takes patience and being careful and precise, I am willing to try DIY.

4) Regarding wiring, I very much want to avoid the "rat's nest" and keep things organized. I have some ideas already regarding how I want the wiring organized, but any tips and tricks would be appreciated. Also, I am having a separate line run from the junction box so that all tank components are running separately from the rest of the house's electricity. I have asked for 6 outlets to placed next to the tank. Is this overkill? Do I need more? Less?

If there are any specific threads regarding these issues (as I'm sure there are) I apologize for being repetitive. Just haven't had a chance to comb through everything to find what I need yet, but will be doing so when the opportunity arises.

Thanks again and I appreciate this site and those individuals who are willing to spend the time to give advice and help to those like me that are clueless and in-experienced but have a will and desire to do it right and learn from other's mistakes and wisdom.

 

[Reefnoobz90]

You're going to need a few people to move that beast, with suction cup movers as it's going to be heavy and hard to hold.

I'd guess between 3 and 5 gallons a day evap depending on the season.

Just a thought but if the wiring isn't done yet maybe have the electrician add a generator plug outside and a manual switch to run the tank and maybe the fridge and lights.

 

[ElussssvReefSD]

You're going to need a few people to move that beast, with suction cup movers as it's going to be heavy and hard to hold.

I'd guess between 3 and 5 gallons a day evap depending on the season.

Just a thought but if the wiring isn't done yet maybe have the electrician add a generator plug outside and a manual switch to run the tank and maybe the fridge and lights.

What's a generator plug?

 

[JoshH]

1) This tank is going to be 9ft long x 3ft wide x 30in tall being custom-built by Crystal Reef Aquatics. I have measured my doorway to ensure that it'll fit through the front door. Beyond that, how the heck am I going to get this beast into the house and mounted on the stand safely?!? Should I reach out for help to an LFS? Local forum? Moving company?

Your tank is more than likely pushing 1200+ pounds, what obstacles are in your way aside from a doorway? I would first look at your LFS and your local fish forum, look for people who have specific experiences moving extra large tanks, then moving companies last. Look for height adjustable moving carts. You'll probably need 2-3 of them but they can make the job MUCH more easier.

3) Plumbing, I will be looking through this thread for tips and tricks in regard to plumbing, but any advice will be greatly appreciated. This is the aspect of the new tank that I am most uncomfortable with myself, so may just hire a professional anyways. However, if it really isn't overly complicated and just takes patience and being careful and precise, I am willing to try DIY.

Plumbing is something that intimidates a lot of reefers but it really isn't nearly as bad as most think. Dry fitting things can make it A LOT easier. Clear PVC Primer and glue, some fine grit sand paper, maybe a dremel as well to round off edges of cuts. Incorporate lots of either threaded ends and/or unions for easy removal for cleaning or trouble shooting.

 

[redfishbluefish]

That's a 9 foot glass aquarium....ouch, that sucker is heavy. I'm not sure what @4FordFamily had...glass or acrylic...but I know it was 10 foot long. Hopefully he can add in his two cents.

 

[JoshH]

What's a generator plug?

A generator plug on the outside of your house will allow you to plug a generator into your home electrical system and incase of a power outage all you need to do is plug a generator in to the plug outside, slide the transfer switch to the generator side and start it up. You can run multiple circuits on your generator depending on how powerful it is.

 

[blitzkragz]

I recently had a 12' tank of 3/4" glass delivered. It took the full strength of 10 burly men (plus scrawny me) to get it in. Here is the planning that went into it:

Make a rectangular footprint of your tank out of thin lumber and tape, and pretend you are bringing it in. Luckily I did this and discovered it was not going to make it into the foyer. So I had the route planned to come in from the back porch.

The men came from hiring a local moving/logistics company. Don't expect them to have any equipment and whatnot. They picked it up from a freight station in a van. When they got here, I needed two drills and a sledge hammer to un-crate it. Make sure you have star, square, and philips bits.

I had 10 sets of suction cups. BE READY with them. They are a must have for a tank your size. I rented them from customaquariums.com and returned them after the tank was in place.

I made my stand and had it ready. Not sure if you already have a stand or if it is coming with the tank. If it will be on a hard floor, I highly recommend having felt under it, it makes it way easier to slide and adjust. I cut and used this felt. Not to mention leveling. My floor looks straight, but it was anythnig but. I used this wood veneer to make perfect gradual shims. But if your stand has adjustable feet you can just use those.

 

[blitzkragz]

please delete this, accidental click

 

[ReefChef19]

Hello fellow aqua-nerds...

1. I would say talk to and price a moving company, but also talk to you lfs, and start to find local reefer buddies. I had 1 recently come and help me move my reefer 750. You can get soone good buddies that way also.

2. Check out advanced acrylics, they are a bit pricey but have some nice looking stuff. I forget who it was, but someone on here has something like a 74 gallon ato! You can also look into some decorative items, like tall vase just for example.


3. Plumbing should be scary, but don't over think it! Like stated above, dry fit everything. Measure 3 times and cut once. You can get clear glue and primer of Amazon. Just make sure you have a design before you stay the plumbing, other wise you've lost already. But this past can be very rewarding, depending on how nice you want it to look.

4. I think 6 plugs should be enough, are they all on the same circuit, how many amps, and are they gfci protected? Look into transfer switches and back up power options in case of power failure.

5. Just browse around member tracks, you'll get so many ideas and see so many great set ups.


Will the tank be on a concrete pad, or second floor, wil you need floor supports???


Good luck on your build!!!

 

[4FordFamily]

My 10 foot tank was acrylic. Still took 6-8 men (we had to go downstairs) to move. Glass will
be much heavier. We had to blow out the wall to get it down there as there wasn’t enough space at the bottom of the stairs and it was too tall to stand on end.

This is an awesome build, I can’t wait to follow it! My build thread is in my signature

 

[JoshH]

3) Plumbing, I will be looking through this thread for tips and tricks in regard to plumbing, but any advice will be greatly appreciated. This is the aspect of the new tank that I am most uncomfortable with myself, so may just hire a professional anyways. However, if it really isn't overly complicated and just takes patience and being careful and precise, I am willing to try DIY.

Oh and BTW if your looking for more plumbing help or would like someone to help walk you through your whole setup including where to buy what you need, feel free to PM me I'd be more than willing to answer any questions you have.

 

[ElussssvReefSD]

A generator plug on the outside of your house will allow you to plug a generator into your home electrical system and incase of a power outage all you need to do is plug a generator in to the plug outside, slide the transfer switch to the generator side and start it up. You can run multiple circuits on your generator depending on how powerful it is.

Gotcha. Do you know if you can hook batteries up to it as well? Getting a few power walls installed for the solar system, would serve as a nice back-up.

 

[ElussssvReefSD]

Your tank is more than likely pushing 1200+ pounds, what obstacles are in your way aside from a doorway? I would first look at your LFS and your local fish forum, look for people who have specific experiences moving extra large tanks, then moving companies last. Look for height adjustable moving carts. You'll probably need 2-3 of them but they can make the job MUCH more easier.



Plumbing is something that intimidates a lot of reefers but it really isn't nearly as bad as most think. Dry fitting things can make it A LOT easier. Clear PVC Primer and glue, some fine grit sand paper, maybe a dremel as well to round off edges of cuts. Incorporate lots of either threaded ends and/or unions for easy removal for cleaning or trouble shooting.

I will post a picture of the path that this beast will need to take from the doorway to the install location, but it should be a pretty straight shot. I will def reach out to my LFS. Where would I find a height-adjustable moving cart?

By "dry fitting" you mean measuring and putting it together ahead of time correct?

 

[ElussssvReefSD]

I recently had a 12' tank of 3/4" glass delivered. It took the full strength of 10 burly men (plus scrawny me) to get it in. Here is the planning that went into it:

Make a rectangular footprint of your tank out of thin lumber and tape, and pretend you are bringing it in. Luckily I did this and discovered it was not going to make it into the foyer. So I had the route planned to come in from the back porch.

The men came from hiring a local moving/logistics company. Don't expect them to have any equipment and whatnot. They picked it up from a freight station in a van. When they got here, I needed two drills and a sledge hammer to un-crate it. Make sure you have star, square, and philips bits.

I had 10 sets of suction cups. BE READY with them. They are a must have for a tank your size. I rented them from customaquariums.com and returned them after the tank was in place.

I made my stand and had it ready. Not sure if you already have a stand or if it is coming with the tank. If it will be on a hard floor, I highly recommend having felt under it, it makes it way easier to slide and adjust. I cut and used this felt. Not to mention leveling. My floor looks straight, but it was anythnig but. I used this wood veneer to make perfect gradual shims. But if your stand has adjustable feet you can just use those.

I really like the idea of making a footprint ahead of time, def going to use that thank you. When you say suction cups, how big do these suction cups need to be to hold all that weight without losing suction???

The stand is already here on-site, just waiting to be assembled and put in place. Isn't it recommended to use some sort of foam pad on the stand to make sure there aren't any hot-spots when you put the tank on top of it? I will def use shims because I specifically asked for a staff without leveling feet (I had nightmares of the little feet punching holes through the vinyl flooring).

 

[blitzkragz]

I really like the idea of making a footprint ahead of time, def going to use that thank you. When you say suction cups, how big do these suction cups need to be to hold all that weight without losing suction???

The stand is already here on-site, just waiting to be assembled and put in place. Isn't it recommended to use some sort of foam pad on the stand to make sure there aren't any hot-spots when you put the tank on top of it? I will def use shims because I specifically asked for a staff without leveling feet (I had nightmares of the little feet punching holes through the vinyl flooring).

The suction cups were BIG vacuum cups. They were similar to this

My tank did come with a thin foam pad to set the tank on.

 

[ElussssvReefSD]

My 10 foot tank was acrylic. Still took 6-8 men (we had to go downstairs) to move. Glass will
be much heavier. We had to blow out the wall to get it down there as there wasn’t enough space at the bottom of the stairs and it was too tall to stand on end.

This is an awesome build, I can’t wait to follow it! My build thread is in my signature

Awesome looking tank! Def tagged your build thread thanks. ESP love the Majestic Angel, personally my favorite fish, and will DEF have one of those beauties in my system.

 

[SuncrestReef]

Sounds like this will be an awesome build! I'll toss out a bit of advice on wiring:

• Use the shortest cables possible to avoid needing to coil up excess cord length. I replaced the stock 6 foot power cords for my Radion power adapters and 6 foot AquaBus cables with these 1 foot cables:
  
  
  
  
  
• If you conceal your cabling inside channels or attach them to the cabinet with clamps, make sure you have an easy way to remove a cable in the future if you need to replace a component or remove it for maintenance.
  
  
• Label each end of every cable for quick identification when troubleshooting or in case anything becomes disconnected.
  
  
• If you have an Apex, keep your salinity probe cable away from any power cords. The salinity probe is very sensitive to electromagnetic interference, so if it's right next to your return pump power cord the reading may be inaccurate.
  
  
• Be sure to leave drip loops on any cords near electrical outlets.

Good luck with your build!

 

[ElussssvReefSD]

Oh and BTW if your looking for more plumbing help or would like someone to help walk you through your whole setup including where to buy what you need, feel free to PM me I'd be more than willing to answer any questions you have.

DM'd

Sounds like this will be an awesome build! I'll toss out a bit of advice on wiring:

• Use the shortest cables possible to avoid needing to coil up excess cord length. I replaced the stock 6 foot power cords for my Radion power adapters and 6 foot AquaBus cables with these 1 foot cables:
  
  
  
  
  
• If you conceal your cabling inside channels or attach them to the cabinet with clamps, make sure you have an easy way to remove a cable in the future if you need to replace a component or remove it for maintenance.
  
  
• Label each end of every cable for quick identification when troubleshooting or in case anything becomes disconnected.
  
  
• If you have an Apex, keep your salinity probe cable away from any power cords. The salinity probe is very sensitive to electromagnetic interference, so if it's right next to your return pump power cord the reading may be inaccurate.
  
  
• Be sure to leave drip loops on any cords near electrical outlets.

Good luck with your build!

Thank you for the advice! All good points, I hadn't thought of the identification piece for sure. Didn't know about the possibility of interference between the salinity probe and power cords either... Man, you guys are awesome, I LOVE this site. My anxiety level is decreasing already (albeit only slightly haha ).

 

[ElussssvReefSD]

Alright, here is the route through the house that this beast will have to take before it reaches its final destination (warning: pic-heavy posting):

 

[ElussssvReefSD]

I already know that I will have to remove the little side-window by the front door... otherwise anyone see any obvious pitfalls? I'm hoping the railing by the stairs is far enough from the front door to allow us to angle it past a bit... then three steps down to the area outlined in blue tape.

The television is surviving by the way, just mounting up on the fireplace on a hinging arm so can still see from couch. Ah the things we do for our finned friends...