Red Sea Reefer 450 - Dream Build

[Reef Able]

Hey Guys
I feel very excited to finally start a build thread on my dream tank. It is going to be a Red Sea Reefer 450 which i will be picking up tonite from a local reefer in GTA. I am cutting no corners on the equipment list on this tank as i believe you do it right the first time. Set It and Forget It...lol...The plan is to have a Mixed Reef so far we will see what the future entails...On the aquascape i like islands however i have found myself changing the aquascape down to wall scape since it looks more natural to me and gives you tons of real estate to mount corals. Ofcourse you gotta have good flow behind the rocks to keep those nutrients in check...Here is the equipment list so far which i have ordered and probably will be delivered in a week's time....

Light:
- ATI 48" 6 bulb non dimmable high output T5 supplemented with
- 1 x 48" Reefbrite XHO

Flow:
- Return Pump : Ecotech Vectra M1
- 2 x MP40 QD
- Vortech Battery Back Up for MP40 PUMPS.

Filtration:
- Skimmer : Reef Octopus DC- Regal 150-SSS
- 1 x GFO reactor
- 1 x Chaeto Reactor

I do not have any pictures yet however as things gets available to me i will upload the pictures. All my current live stock will be moved from my IM50 Lagoon to the new system over the span of months as i am in no rush to move them or sell my existing system. Patience and taking each step at a time is the key.

For all those structural nards lol: The tank will sit on the main floor above my basement on an exterior wall. The Joists on the floor are running perpendicular across to the tank. So the tank will span out over 3-4 joists. Weight and structrual integrity of the floor has been taken into consideration after consulting with a structural engineer who ran some mathematically formulas and gave me a thumbs up...wait a min did i said math i am confused lol....need a coffee now long write up....

So thats it for now...let the fun begin...pics to follow for now i have to get some help tonite to pick up the tank....asta la vista....

 

[Brew12]

Hey Guys
I feel very excited to finally start a build thread on my dream tank. It is going to be a Red Sea Reefer 450 which i will be picking up tonite from a local reefer in GTA. I am cutting no corners on the equipment list on this tank as i believe you do it right the first time. Set It and Forget It...lol...The plan is to have a Mixed Reef so far we will see what the future entails...On the aquascape i like islands however i have found myself changing the aquascape down to wall scape since it looks more natural to me and gives you tons of real estate to mount corals. Ofcourse you gotta have good flow behind the rocks to keep those nutrients in check...Here is the equipment list so far which i have ordered and probably will be delivered in a week's time....

Light:
- ATI 48" 6 bulb non dimmable high output T5 supplemented with
- 1 x 48" Reefbrite XHO

Flow:
- Return Pump : Ecotech Vectra M1
- 2 x MP40 QD
- Vortech Battery Back Up for MP40 PUMPS.

Filtration:
- Skimmer : Reef Octopus DC- Regal 150-SSS
- 1 x GFO reactor
- 1 x Chaeto Reactor

I do not have any pictures yet however as things gets available to me i will upload the pictures. All my current live stock will be moved from my IM50 Lagoon to the new system over the span of months as i am in no rush to move them or sell my existing system. Patience and taking each step at a time is the key.

For all those structural nards lol: The tank will sit on the main floor above my basement on an exterior wall. The Joists on the floor are running perpendicular across to the tank. So the tank will span out over 3-4 joists. Weight and structrual integrity of the floor has been taken into consideration after consulting with a structural engineer who ran some mathematically formulas and gave me a thumbs up...wait a min did i said math i am confused lol....need a coffee now long write up....

So thats it for now...let the fun begin...pics to follow for now i have to get some help tonite to pick up the tank....asta la vista....

Congrats on the new system!

 

[CC13]

For all those structural nards lol: The tank will sit on the main floor above my basement on an exterior wall. The Joists on the floor are running perpendicular across to the tank. So the tank will span out over 3-4 joists. Weight and structrual integrity of the floor has been taken into consideration after consulting with a structural engineer who ran some mathematically formulas and gave me a thumbs up.

Smart.

Can't wait to see these pictures! Subscribed.

 

[Chrisfish]

Congratulations on your new system, looking forward to seeing those pictures

 

[NY_Caveman]

Hey Guys
I feel very excited to finally start a build thread on my dream tank. It is going to be a Red Sea Reefer 450 which i will be picking up tonite from a local reefer in GTA. I am cutting no corners on the equipment list on this tank as i believe you do it right the first time. Set It and Forget It...lol...The plan is to have a Mixed Reef so far we will see what the future entails...On the aquascape i like islands however i have found myself changing the aquascape down to wall scape since it looks more natural to me and gives you tons of real estate to mount corals. Ofcourse you gotta have good flow behind the rocks to keep those nutrients in check...Here is the equipment list so far which i have ordered and probably will be delivered in a week's time....

Light:
- ATI 48" 6 bulb non dimmable high output T5 supplemented with
- 1 x 48" Reefbrite XHO

Flow:
- Return Pump : Ecotech Vectra M1
- 2 x MP40 QD
- Vortech Battery Back Up for MP40 PUMPS.

Filtration:
- Skimmer : Reef Octopus DC- Regal 150-SSS
- 1 x GFO reactor
- 1 x Chaeto Reactor

I do not have any pictures yet however as things gets available to me i will upload the pictures. All my current live stock will be moved from my IM50 Lagoon to the new system over the span of months as i am in no rush to move them or sell my existing system. Patience and taking each step at a time is the key.

For all those structural nards lol: The tank will sit on the main floor above my basement on an exterior wall. The Joists on the floor are running perpendicular across to the tank. So the tank will span out over 3-4 joists. Weight and structrual integrity of the floor has been taken into consideration after consulting with a structural engineer who ran some mathematically formulas and gave me a thumbs up...wait a min did i said math i am confused lol....need a coffee now long write up....

So thats it for now...let the fun begin...pics to follow for now i have to get some help tonite to pick up the tank....asta la vista....

Nice! Good luck getting the tank!

 

[Antics]

Sounds like it's going to start off great! Can't wait to see progression.

 

[Reef Able]

Nice! Good luck getting the tank!

Thanks buddy....

 

[Reef Able]

Sounds like it's going to start off great! Can't wait to see progression.

fingers crossed...lets hope.lol..

 

[Reef Able]

So after a lot of impatient moments it was time on Monday evening to go pick up the tank. Alongwith me came in my brother and friends to pick it up. The tank needed to be picked up from the 2nd floor of a office plaza with Big Als store in the same plaza. Ofcourse as a hobbyist we went in to Big Als first to go check out the stores and there they had a beautiful Reefer450 as their display tank full of corals, clams. It gave me an idea on how i can set up my tank as well and how much potential a Reefer450 has. I believe its the perfect size where you dont have to worry about the weight on your floor and yet give you lot of space for fish and corals...

I was lucky enough to get a flat bed trolly from work and some shipping supplies i.e. Shrink Wrapp, Gloves etc. Anyways once we arrived at the office on the 2nd floor we saw the tank and was able to load in my friend's van. After a 45mins trip the tank was finally offloaded on my drive. A quick rinse was enough to remove any old dust etc. We brought the tank from my back yard as it was easy and a big help to avoid any stairs. Here are couple of shots now the tank in place....long way to go still....

 

[Antics]

Nice!

 

[Evan28395950]

Congratulations! Hopefully I’ll get there someday. Following

 

[Reef Able]

Congratulations! Hopefully I’ll get there someday. Following

Soon bro i was lucky to find a sweet deal from a local reefer...hence jumped on it as it was always a dream to own a redsea tank...

 

[Reef Able]

So finally i was able to accomplish a lot of work this weekend. Went ahead and hard plumbed the return line coming out of my Vectra M1 pump. The instructions in the Vectra's manual says to use ABS Cement for gluing the pvc pipe however i used the PVC Glue and it works just fine. I wanted to have a red and white theme on the plumbing however nobody locally carried any red plumbing parts so i decided to do a bit of a DIY. I bought all the plumbing parts from Lowes which were just white in color and than used a Valsar Paint Can which bonds to pvc. Laid down all the parts in my garage and spray painted the parts i wanted to paint in red color. After 24hrs of curing the pvc parts were ready to go. Finished plumbing the manifold and did a quick test Boom a leak one on of my union valve...After inspecting it closesly i found out it was not fully closed...Tighten it up a bit and thts it no more leaking...While the pvc parts were being dried out in paint i was preparing water for the tank as well and was done by sunday evening...Also added 34lbs of dry rock and seeded it with one of the live rock from my existing lagoon system...I am dosing Seachem Stability which did wonders in my lagoon while it was cycling...At the same time i added pure ammonia to the tank for the bacteria to feed...Now its a waiting game....Wait not yet i have to now work on the electrical board, install my lights, install my vortech pumps, connect the vortech pumps to my wxm module....lots more to come...hope it works all good....here are couple of pictures of the original layout of the plumbing part at the Lowes and the final product.....

 

[Reef Able]

Congratulations on your new system, looking forward to seeing those pictures

Thank you...pics are being uploaded..the tank is now getting cycled....hurrayyy...

 

[Reef Able]

So give me some suggestions for adding a refugium....i have narrowed down to two options to create a refugium:
Option # 1 - create a refugium using the ATO Tank provided by Redsea and drill a 1" hole for water to overflow into the sump using gravity OR
Option # 2 - create the refugium in the main chamber of the sump where skimmer sits using some egg crate to seperate the refugium with the skimmer.

Let me know what route to go with. I prefer not to go with option no.1 due to the fact of drilling the hole in the ato tank (i usually like to keep the things the way they are bought).

Peace.

 

[Reef Able]

After adding Pure Ammonia at the start of the cycle, Aug.26th i was able to see Ammonia the next day Aug.27th...Took the reading again yesterday...I dont see much difference seems like between 2-1ppm...what do u think of the pic...

 

[newbreefer316]

So give me some suggestions for adding a refugium....i have narrowed down to two options to create a refugium:
Option # 1 - create a refugium using the ATO Tank provided by Redsea and drill a 1" hole for water to overflow into the sump using gravity OR
Option # 2 - create the refugium in the main chamber of the sump where skimmer sits using some egg crate to seperate the refugium with the skimmer.

Let me know what route to go with. I prefer not to go with option no.1 due to the fact of drilling the hole in the ato tank (i usually like to keep the things the way they are bought).

Peace.

I'll have to find the link, but theres a builder in the UK who makes acrylic baffle kits for the 450. I just picked up a used 450 and was thinking about getting one for myself as well.

 

[Reef Able]

I'll have to find the link, but theres a builder in the UK who makes acrylic baffle kits for the 450. I just picked up a used 450 and was thinking about getting one for myself as well.

That would be awesome...share the link once u find it...and congrats on the reefer450...

 

[newbreefer316]

That would be awesome...share the link once u find it...and congrats on the reefer450...

https://littleocean.co.uk/shop/reefer-450-baffle-kit.html

Here's the link. if you end up liking the idea we may be able to try to get a little group buy going to cut the cost down

 

[Reef Able]

https://littleocean.co.uk/shop/reefer-450-baffle-kit.html

Here's the link. if you end up liking the idea we may be able to try to get a little group buy going to cut the cost down

Thanks buds..i will look into it...