Replacement Reefer 425 XL G2

aaron186 · Aug 22, 2023

My original build was a Reefer 350 V1. I moved, left tank empty for a year, and then restarted the tank. Here’s the original build after I moved to my new house:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/reefer-350-with-trigger-plat-sump-and-uv-sterilizer.952103/
I spent hours working on the custom plumbing only to have it suffer from the Red Sea Seam Burst

Red Sea gave me a discount and I was foolish enough to take it. So here’s my next attempt at something that hopefully isn’t next big mistake….

aaron186 · Aug 22, 2023

I decided to go a little bit bigger and went with the Reefer 425 XL. I put my aquascape in bins and reused it without modifications. I decided to keep the sump this time and sold the trigger plat sump. I replaced the filter roller with a Red Sea ReefMat. I wanted to keep the UV so I went with custom plumbing again. This time I purchased the Red Sea plumbing conversion kit. I’m also running dual returns in it with a Cor 20 plumbed into the UV and a cor15 on the other side

aaron186 · Aug 22, 2023

Equipment list:

Red Sea Reefer 425 XL G2
ReefMat 500
Reef Octopus Elite 150sss
Cor20 and Cor15 return pump
Pentair 20w UV sterilizer
INKBIRD controller and BRS heaters x 2
Tunze chic submersible fuge light
MP40 x 2
Custom lid from clear view
Avast marine plank autofeeder
Apex with auto water changes
Lights upgraded to Reefi Uno Pro 2.0 x 3

aaron186 · Aug 22, 2023

I originally had XR15 gen 6 Pros over the tank. The par was terrible. After a lot of discussion here I went with Reefi Uno Pro 2.0s.

Here’s a current shot of the front of the tank. Par is great on them. I decided to add a 3rd for better spread (2 was already very good) to avoid future shadowing issues. I’m getting 500 par at the top of my rocks with them at about 60% so I will tune them when my 3rd arrives.

aaron186 · Aug 22, 2023

Here’s a pic of the mixing station in my garage. I’m running an apex and ATK for auto water changes. Tubes are run to the tank and to the sink. I forgot to put lids on for the pic. There’s multiple sensors and a solenoid to keep the RO bin between a high and a low level and sensors in the salt bin to shut off water change if the level drops too low.

aaron186 · Aug 22, 2023

All of my live stock is from Dr Reef’s Quarantined Fish. I decided I didn’t want to quarantine myself this time and would pay someone to do it. So far I’ve been very happy with their fish

Current stock is:
Royal Gramma
2x Snowflake Clowns
Coral Beauty
Pink Spot Watchman

I have on order currently:
Melenarus Wrasse
Purple Fire Fish
1 Spot Foxface
Whitetail Bristletooth Tang
Bicolor blenny

Once I get the algea eaters in the tank I plan on turning the lights on

This has been almost a year in the making do to my first attempt at restarting my tank leaking at the very end of a 2 month cycle.

aaron186 · Aug 22, 2023

Current sump pic. I ditched the kessel tuna 160 due to light spread and creating algea all over the sump. So far the tunze submersible light seems to be growing chaeto better and with less hair algea. I’m thinking of throwing a tuxedo urchin in the sump for a while to clean up the mess the kessel made

exnisstech · Aug 22, 2023

Your braver than I. I have two redsea tanks running and love them but I don't think I'd be able to add another after experiencing a failure like yours.
Nice looking set up. Much neater than mine that's for sure :face-with-hand-over-mouth:

aaron186 · Aug 22, 2023

It was a price/availability thing mostly. The Waterbox had just come out with new version and it was a 2-3 month wait. My wife is pregnant so trying to start a tank and handle a new born wasn’t realistic. Plus the original tank was stored in a hot Florida garage for a year so I’m hoping that was part of it. It was also 1,000 cheaper than everything else. And lastly I knew I would be able to customize the plumbing and run tubes behind the tank since I had already done it. I wasn’t confident about other tank/stands. Praying I didn’t make a bad choice but so far it looks better made than the last

Gumbies R Us · Aug 22, 2023

At least you were able to get a new tank! Best of luck to you!

JTN · Sep 3, 2023

aaron186 said:
I decided to go a little bit bigger and went with the Reefer 425 XL. I put my aquascape in bins and reused it without modifications. I decided to keep the sump this time and sold the trigger plat sump. I replaced the filter roller with a Red Sea ReefMat. I wanted to keep the UV so I went with custom plumbing again. This time I purchased the Red Sea plumbing conversion kit. I’m also running dual returns in it with a Cor 20 plumbed into the UV and a cor15 on the other side

Where did you purchase the the Red Sea plumbing conversion kit from?

aaron186 · Sep 3, 2023

JTN said:
Where did you purchase the the Red Sea plumbing conversion kit from?

https://fishtanksdirect.com/red-sea-custom-pipe-connector-for-170g2-300g2-reefers/
Match to your tank size

joeoliver · Sep 5, 2023

Nice setup. I ordered the same tank (425 XL G2) and return pump (Cor 20) earlier today. Will I need a conversion kit to plumb the pump to the tank's return line?

I was also planning to use Reefi Uno 2s. Was hoping two would provide enough spread (for a mixed reef). Maybe you can share before and after pics when you set up the third light?

Please keep sharing your progress.

aaron186 · Sep 5, 2023

Not sure if conversion is needed. I didn’t use the stock plumbing. The pump is 1.25 inch outlet so I used a 1 inch reducer after the thread to slip union l. I then put a barb into the reducer followed by a short piece of silicone tubing to reduce noise. Then that connects to my 1 inch piping to the UV and then is reduced again at the tank as the return line in .75 inch

On my second Cor15 pump I just reduced to .75 after the union and used .75 inch barbs and tubing.

aaron186 · Sep 5, 2023

joeoliver said:
Nice setup. I ordered the same tank (425 XL G2) and return pump (Cor 20) earlier today. Will I need a conversion kit to plumb the pump to the tank's return line?

I was also planning to use Reefi Uno 2s. Was hoping two would provide enough spread (for a mixed reef). Maybe you can share before and after pics when you set up the third light?

Please keep sharing your progress.

Forgot to answer second part. 2 is plenty most likely. You can also change to 120 deg reflectors to up the spread if you like. It comes at the cost of slight light spill but still better than my xr15s. I paid a premium for no light spill since I have this in my living room. With the 90 degree stock reflectors almost all of the light is focused into the tank.

As far as PAR goes, they are super powerful so you’ll never get them close to 100% even with 2 and the wider reflector

joeoliver · Sep 5, 2023

Excellent. Thanks for the info.

aaron186 · Sep 11, 2023

aaron186 · Sep 11, 2023

joeoliver said:
Nice setup. I ordered the same tank (425 XL G2) and return pump (Cor 20) earlier today. Will I need a conversion kit to plumb the pump to the tank's return line?

I was also planning to use Reefi Uno 2s. Was hoping two would provide enough spread (for a mixed reef). Maybe you can share before and after pics when you set up the third light?

Please keep sharing your progress.

I added the third light. Still have to program it and play with the par meter to get it right.