What size Eheim heaters did you get and what temps do you keep them set at? Any problem with the dials matching the true water temp?Well here goes my DIY 40B w/ 20L DIY sump...
I’ve been wanting to get into reefing for years, as my older brother has been at it for over 20yrs. The opportunity sprang when we were closing down one of our Fire Stations due to renovations. The tank was drained and left to rot, as nobody wanted to start it back up after the renovation. The setup was an old school 40L but it came a CPR HOB overfill, large sump box, stand and other misc items used during its freshwater life. To me, I saw an opportunity to make something out of nothing
After realizing the old 40L wasn’t up to be a reefer, I opted to buy a 20L and breakdown the older 40L and use the glass for sump baffles. Trolling around on R2R and the net I came up other this...
My home has lots of windows, so a large display was out of the question due to a lot of natural light penetration. So I opted for a PetCo special 40B.
With me being a firefighter and working odd and lengthy hours. My plan was to junk the CPR HOB overflow and reuse the acrylic for an internal overflow box to alleviate any water overfilling issues. I also painted the bottom and back of the DT satin black
My initial plan was to only have one 1.5” drain but I couldn’t make it quite enough after a wet run. I went so far as to cutting the already glued piping and removing the 90*, adding a modified t-fitting w/ a 1/8th drilled plug with still no luck. I then drained the entire tank and drilled another 60mm hole slightly below the initial hole in hopes of making a effective Herbie drainage setup... Success!
I then drained the entire tank and drilled another 60mm hole slightly below the initial hole in hopes of making a effective Herbie drainage setup... Success!
The 1/2” return is pumped back up with a SICCI 2.0, several union fitting and a anti-drain fitting.
I tried to get creative and heat up the PVC and mold it to the curvature of my likings and to prevent unnecessary sharp bends.
Having seen my brothers trial and errors, the DT was going to be bare bottom and cycled with natural dry rock. The rock I decided on was the Amazon special “Nature’s Ocean” in 40lbs. I initially purchased (1) box and was surprisingly pleased with what I got I ordered another box. The rock is filled with cool fossilized sponges and shells, to include massive tunneling. It comes in (3) chunks per box but nothing mini-Thor and a chisel can’t handle. What’s more pleasing than something you sculpted to your liking.
The DT flow is made by (2) Maxspect XF330 and a Vortech MP10 positioned low and as far back as possible to keep the back clean.
Lighting is done with (2) AI Prime 16HD. I’ll attempt to use BRS settings but time will tell
The sump includes (2) Eheim heaters placed in the refugium, a 5” Red Octopus 110SSS, MarinePure bio-media and a complete Chaeto starter kit from AlageBarn, feed by a 24w ACKE grow light
I’m currently running a Tunze Nano ATO w/out any issues. I mistakenly purchased the Nano instead of it’s larger brother.
As with any Reef Tank wiring is mayhem!
The tank started the cycle process a month ago with Dr. Tim’s and a the dead shrimp sitting in the tank for only (2) days. I’m currently at 0-0-20 but still holding off on livestock as I just recently seeded my tank with AlgaeBarn 5280 pods and trying get this Chaetomorpha to get established
All in all, it’s been a fun DIY and trying to get everything right the first go around. But we know how Murphy’s Law works
Appreciate the kudos and apologize for the lengthy post, but most of all I would like to thank all the contributors for making this almost to easy nowadays
-Matt
What paint did you use on your pipe and fittings and how did you do it?
