rsumner's 450gal Home Office Reef
- Monster Build
- Thread starter rsumner
- Start date
- Tagged users None
OP
OP
Thanks, @lubeck. Interesting timing on the humidity question: I spoke with a friend of mine who owns an HVAC company this weekend and he suggested I install a minisplit and an exhaust fan. My office is just under 200sft with 12ft ceilings, so I think a 15K BTU unit would probably be sufficient, but could bump up to a 18K BTU unit that has a dedicated dehumidifier setting.
With the two A200 pumps, the A100 pump, 200w of UV, and 1150w of display lighting, I'm more concerned about my water temps vs my ambient temps. We keep it pretty cool in our house even during the hot Texas summers (72 to 73 degrees), but my existing 100gallon tank easily runs 6 to 7 degrees hotter than ambient. I'm able to lower temps by hitting the surface of the water with fans that I have installed in my light hood, but this causes a ton of evaporation and humidity. With a tank 5x this size, this won't be an option.
So rather than relying on ambient temps, I'm thinking I'm of going with a 3/4 to 1hp chiller to keep water temps under control and then go with a ceiling-mounted dehumidifier. I definitely need to keep researching this, but may wait until I have the system up and running so I have some real-world numbers to use in designing a solution.
As for other updates: my stand from Framing Tech should be delivered on Wednesday. Unfortunately, they weren't able to source the HDPE sheets/panels for the top and bottom, but I found a supplier here in Austin that has them in stock and will cut them for me. Sump, tank, and skimmer are all still being built.
I need to call an electrician and a plumber this week to come out for a little work. For electrical: there's an existing dedicated 20amp breaker for all the plugs in this room, but need to get that upgraded to a 40amp. For plumbing: I want a drain line installed that is tied into my sewage for the drain of the skimmer auto washdown, water changes, and Neptune Trident. I'm also going to have a fairly large ATO container, so I need freshwater for the RODI I want to tie to that and for the exterior collection cup portion of the skimmer auto washdown.
OP
OP
Things are starting to happen. The skimmer arrived a few weeks ago from RK2 Systems. It was shipped on a pallet and packed really well.
The skimmer is a beast measuring about 56" tall and required a bit more length and width than I originally planed for, so I'm going to have to get creative on hiding it in cabinetry. The quality and craftsmanship from RK2 is amazing. The customizations they did for so I can control the rinse down with my Apex is awesome and the Abyzz A200 pump is super sexy mounted to those Hayward ball valves. I can't wait to get water running through this puppy.
The extruded aluminum stand required more focus and attention than I originally thought would be required. After 3 or 4 times, I was able to finally get the stand built. After that, I had to get the courage to cut $300 sheets of HDPE. First, I had to rip about 1/2" off the length with a circular saw to bring it down to 96" flat:
Then, measure and cut the slots on the bottom shelf with a jig saw:
I'm happy with the finished product and ready to drop the sump in the bottom and the tank on the top:
Most of the equipment has arrived, but a few things got delayed and others I haven't ordered yet:
And we've gotta zoom-in on the Abyzz boxes. Yes, that's three A200's and one A100:
The sump was supposed to ship today, but I have a feeling it will be delayed. I'll post more once things start coming together.
The skimmer is a beast measuring about 56" tall and required a bit more length and width than I originally planed for, so I'm going to have to get creative on hiding it in cabinetry. The quality and craftsmanship from RK2 is amazing. The customizations they did for so I can control the rinse down with my Apex is awesome and the Abyzz A200 pump is super sexy mounted to those Hayward ball valves. I can't wait to get water running through this puppy.
The extruded aluminum stand required more focus and attention than I originally thought would be required. After 3 or 4 times, I was able to finally get the stand built. After that, I had to get the courage to cut $300 sheets of HDPE. First, I had to rip about 1/2" off the length with a circular saw to bring it down to 96" flat:
Then, measure and cut the slots on the bottom shelf with a jig saw:
I'm happy with the finished product and ready to drop the sump in the bottom and the tank on the top:
Most of the equipment has arrived, but a few things got delayed and others I haven't ordered yet:
And we've gotta zoom-in on the Abyzz boxes. Yes, that's three A200's and one A100:
The sump was supposed to ship today, but I have a feeling it will be delayed. I'll post more once things start coming together.
OP
OP
I shared a quick video of the skimmer on Instagram too.
Talk about draining the bank account.Things are starting to happen. The skimmer arrived a few weeks ago from RK2 Systems. It was shipped on a pallet and packed really well.
The skimmer is a beast measuring about 56" tall and required a bit more length and width than I originally planed for, so I'm going to have to get creative on hiding it in cabinetry. The quality and craftsmanship from RK2 is amazing. The customizations they did for so I can control the rinse down with my Apex is awesome and the Abyzz A200 pump is super sexy mounted to those Hayward ball valves. I can't wait to get water running through this puppy.
The extruded aluminum stand required more focus and attention than I originally thought would be required. After 3 or 4 times, I was able to finally get the stand built. After that, I had to get the courage to cut $300 sheets of HDPE. First, I had to rip about 1/2" off the length with a circular saw to bring it down to 96" flat:
Then, measure and cut the slots on the bottom shelf with a jig saw:
I'm happy with the finished product and ready to drop the sump in the bottom and the tank on the top:
Most of the equipment has arrived, but a few things got delayed and others I haven't ordered yet:
And we've gotta zoom-in on the Abyzz boxes. Yes, that's three A200's and one A100:
The sump was supposed to ship today, but I have a feeling it will be delayed. I'll post more once things start coming together.
JumboShrimp
5000 Club Member
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2018
- Messages
- 5,806
- Reaction score
- 8,226
Stand looks great! And look at that skimmer-gizmo-contraption... all that to pull 'gunk' out of the water! LOL. 
OP
OP
John at Advanced Acrylics sent me some pics today of the sump and ATO as he wraps up and does his leak tests. It's looking great!!!
First a few of the sump during the earlier build stages:
And some pics closer to the final product. Note, the poly lids are clear, but they have protective film on them that make them look white. The red plugs are wire holes so I can run pump wires out of the sump while keeping the lids on nice and snug.
And the matching ATO reservoir with John Guest fittings and wire holes:
First a few of the sump during the earlier build stages:
And some pics closer to the final product. Note, the poly lids are clear, but they have protective film on them that make them look white. The red plugs are wire holes so I can run pump wires out of the sump while keeping the lids on nice and snug.
And the matching ATO reservoir with John Guest fittings and wire holes:
OP
OP
Quick updates for this morning:
I also finished my first design of the frame that will hold all of my Orphek iCon lights. My current plan is to skin the frame and suspend it from the ceiling making it a very slim floating canopy. I'm not a huge fan of suspension wires, so I originally tried to figure out a way to attach it to the wall, but I'm struggling to figure out how to do that without visible supports (miters or cables) to maintain that "floating" look. I also have the goal of having the entire canopy on linear actuators to move it up 12" to 18" at the push of a button. Doing this on the wall would require tracks (ugly eye sores), so unless I hear from anyone with ideas, I may have to suspend it.
To design the frame, I started with the dimensions and weight of the Orphek iCon. Each light weighs about 15.5lbs and the 4 x M8 bolts that are on each of the four corners of the light are at 585mm x 210mm. I did some deflection tests of different extruded aluminum profiles and found that either 1.5" (15-series) or 40mm-08 profiles will be sufficient for up to 7 lights with minimum deflection. Per my discussion with @Hydrored in his build thread, he explained the M8 bolts on the Orpheks would fit perfectly into either of these profiles. I confirmed this once my Orpheks arrived by measuring the screws/bolts and compared those measurements to the breakout diagrams of the 15-series and 40mm extruded aluminum profiles. Here are the measurements of the bolts and a dimensional diagram of the lights I took from the owners manual.
Screw Posts: 7.95mm
Screw Lip Diameter: 13mm
Screw Lip Height from Base: 4.7mm
So, I decided on the 40mm-08 profiles since the dimensions of the Orpheks were in metric making it much easier to determine spacing on the frame so the profiles would align perfectly with the four post-screws on the top of the light. Note: most extruded profile suppliers have 40mm profiles in either 8mm slot openings or 10mm slot openings. I wanted the tightest fit around those corner bolts on the lights, so I went with the 8mm slot opengins. Here's a drawing of the final product:
And here's the shopping list I sent over to Framing Tech to have them review and then quote for materials, labor (cuts and machining) and shipping:
40mm-08 Profiles
- Sump: Waiting for confirmation from Advanced Acrylics on shipment. I assumed it would ship last Wed, but waiting to get responses to my text messages.
- Display Tank: I emailed Glass Cages yesterday for an update and, of course, got a reply same-day. It sounds like my tank could ship in about 2 weeks. Joe says the build is complete, but it needs another week to cure before they do vinyl and QA. Getting close!!!
I also finished my first design of the frame that will hold all of my Orphek iCon lights. My current plan is to skin the frame and suspend it from the ceiling making it a very slim floating canopy. I'm not a huge fan of suspension wires, so I originally tried to figure out a way to attach it to the wall, but I'm struggling to figure out how to do that without visible supports (miters or cables) to maintain that "floating" look. I also have the goal of having the entire canopy on linear actuators to move it up 12" to 18" at the push of a button. Doing this on the wall would require tracks (ugly eye sores), so unless I hear from anyone with ideas, I may have to suspend it.
To design the frame, I started with the dimensions and weight of the Orphek iCon. Each light weighs about 15.5lbs and the 4 x M8 bolts that are on each of the four corners of the light are at 585mm x 210mm. I did some deflection tests of different extruded aluminum profiles and found that either 1.5" (15-series) or 40mm-08 profiles will be sufficient for up to 7 lights with minimum deflection. Per my discussion with @Hydrored in his build thread, he explained the M8 bolts on the Orpheks would fit perfectly into either of these profiles. I confirmed this once my Orpheks arrived by measuring the screws/bolts and compared those measurements to the breakout diagrams of the 15-series and 40mm extruded aluminum profiles. Here are the measurements of the bolts and a dimensional diagram of the lights I took from the owners manual.
Screw Posts: 7.95mm
Screw Lip Diameter: 13mm
Screw Lip Height from Base: 4.7mm
So, I decided on the 40mm-08 profiles since the dimensions of the Orpheks were in metric making it much easier to determine spacing on the frame so the profiles would align perfectly with the four post-screws on the top of the light. Note: most extruded profile suppliers have 40mm profiles in either 8mm slot openings or 10mm slot openings. I wanted the tightest fit around those corner bolts on the lights, so I went with the 8mm slot opengins. Here's a drawing of the final product:
And here's the shopping list I sent over to Framing Tech to have them review and then quote for materials, labor (cuts and machining) and shipping:
40mm-08 Profiles
- 2 x 2358.4mm w/Quick Connectors on both ends
- 2 x 625mm
- 3 x 545mm w/Quick Connectors on both ends
GBRsouth
Valuable Member
If you design a light rack stand to have space from the tank and it's stand. You could have a false wall/splashback between the tank stand and light rack stand. If the false wall/splashback is to the height of the canopy, it will hide the light rack stand, giving the light canopy a floating look.
OP
OP
Hrmmm...Interesting idea, @GBRsouth. If you look back at the first pictures in this build thread, I do have an arched window behind the tank that I really want to cover with drywall anyways. That would be a perfect place to hide any sort of supports and/or rails I would need for a linear actuator.
The biggest challenge with this strategy is getting my wife to approve removing the shutters and drywalling over the opening. I've been unsuccessful in convincing her thus far. I think it will look better overall without having the distraction of the shutters behind the tank (that will never be open).
I'll start doing some research on square rail linear guides which are commonly found on TV mounts. Thanks again for the feedback.
OP
OP
It's definitely oversized for my application too, but since its external I have complete control over how much water and air I'm feeding it. RK2 does have smaller versions, but they lack a lot of the features their commercial/industrial line has: https://www.xflo.com/skimmers.php
t5Nitro
Valuable Member
Maybe they'll make me a one-off small version to match the looks of the commerical ones. The Xflo probably isn't much more of a skimmer than my Lifereef. I sent them an email. If anything, I learned about Hayward flow valves from you on the skimmer. I have my new tank and sump, waiting on the stand. So that gives me some cool equipment to start plumbing! Too bad they don't make any gate valves. Looking forward to seeing how you plumb yours since it might be a while until my stand arrives. I can use some pointers!
OP
OP
Good luck on your discussions with RK2. If you do decide to go with the XFLO and RK2 isn't willing to customize it for you, I'm happy to collaborate with you to help you understand the flushing system they add to the commercial lines and how you could modify the XFLO yourself.
The Hayward industrial ball valves are absolutely awesome and they're made in the USA. I also wish Hayward made gate valves, but the only option they have for that type of large-volume granular flow control is their DAB Diaphragm valve. I contemplated using the diaphragm vales instead of gate valves to tune my overflows, but the dimensions are huge when you need to control flow through a 1.5" pipe. The but the good news is the Spears gate valves are also made in the USA and really good quality, so that's what I'm going with.
I think fine tuning and perfecting the plumbing on a system is one of the most enjoyable parts of a build. I will definitely have more detailed posts on my plumbing design and the reasons behind all of my decisions in the very near future.
t5Nitro
Valuable Member
They can cut the RK5AC reaction chamber length to a certain extent. Not sure if I bring it to 36" it would still be massive for the volume I'd be using it on, maybe 200 total gallons.
Edit: Ahhh, if we cut the reaction chamber to 36", then you don't see any reaction chamber as the rest is covered by the HDPE base. Bummer! I guess the solution is to add mega water volume to the system!!
Edit: Ahhh, if we cut the reaction chamber to 36", then you don't see any reaction chamber as the rest is covered by the HDPE base. Bummer! I guess the solution is to add mega water volume to the system!!
Last edited:
OP
OP
Sump has arrived!! Lift gate service was a problem due to the crate being 8ft long, but the driver and I muscled it into the garage and then the teenager next door helped me move it into the house using shoulder dolly straps.
OP
OP
I spent yesterday hanging the custom light fixture and mounting the five Orphek Atlantik iCon lights to it. I still need to move them up about 12" before the tank gets here.
To mount the Orphek lights directly to the bottom of the 4040 profile frame, I replaced the 56mm stainless cheesehead screws with 65mm ones on the four corners of the light. This gave me the needed length I needed for the screw to extend far enough into the frame. I also replaced the four thumbscrews with M4 drop-in quarter turn t-nuts.
The frame is suspended from the ceiling using 3/32" 17x9 stainless steel aircraft cable. I used stainless sleeves on the ceiling so the cable could move freely without chewing-up my sheet rock. I used GripLock tension cable locks to attach to the frame. I tried to find ones that were threaded so I could attach them directly to the frame without any corner brackets, but they were just too hard to find online so I went with the forked ones. A 5/16" stainless steel clevis pin makes easy work of attaching the cable lock to the corner brackets.
I decided to get a head start on the plumbing. More on that next.
To mount the Orphek lights directly to the bottom of the 4040 profile frame, I replaced the 56mm stainless cheesehead screws with 65mm ones on the four corners of the light. This gave me the needed length I needed for the screw to extend far enough into the frame. I also replaced the four thumbscrews with M4 drop-in quarter turn t-nuts.
The frame is suspended from the ceiling using 3/32" 17x9 stainless steel aircraft cable. I used stainless sleeves on the ceiling so the cable could move freely without chewing-up my sheet rock. I used GripLock tension cable locks to attach to the frame. I tried to find ones that were threaded so I could attach them directly to the frame without any corner brackets, but they were just too hard to find online so I went with the forked ones. A 5/16" stainless steel clevis pin makes easy work of attaching the cable lock to the corner brackets.
I decided to get a head start on the plumbing. More on that next.
Looks great! I’m curious if there was a specific reason you went with that stand height? Maybe it’s the pictures but the sump access looks tough. Let me know if you need any more Orpheks before you buy any additional
OP
OP
Thanks! I chose the 38" stand height aiming for a healthy balance of being able to see the tank both sitting and standing since the tank is 30" tall. In hindsight, I wish I would have went two inches taller or shaved two inches off the sump height (20") because I'm already struggling with the 10" of sump access that I have. Designing the plumbing to accommodate six drain lines has also been a "puzzle" as I try to limit the amount of overhead pipes within the sump area that could consume more of my limited space. Any maintenance in the sump is definitely going to be a back-breaking experience.
I will definitely reach out if I decide I want to add more Orpheks.
Similar threads
