SuncrestReef's Red Sea Reefer XL 425 build

[Pablo reefcabar]

This is what happens to your aquarium's pH when you have 45 people at your house for a holiday party:

Lol . Can I have your attention . I would like everyone at the party to please stop breathing that'll be great!!.

 

[SuncrestReef]

Last month my BTA moved after nearly a year at the top of my rock work down towards the bottom. Now it’s on the move again but this time it’s heading towards a heavily populated coral area. I’ll need to check again in the morning to see where it ends up.

5pm:



8pm:



The clowns are just following along for the ride.

 

[Crabby48]

One of my anemone splits tried to move but when it hit the sand bed the female clown kept trying to push it back. In the morning the anemone was back to his spot and hasn’t moved.

 

[SuncrestReef]

I thought your not suppose to dose cal and alk at the same time? I dose mine alk for 10 hrs in pm then cal for 10hrs in am.

The only drawback to dosing at the same time is the chance of precipitation if the 2 parts come in contact before dispersing. To get around this, I have a small powerhead in my sump aimed right at where the dosing tubes drip, so the high flow disperses the liquids before they can precipitate.

The big advantage with this technique is you can tightly control your alk and calcium levels to avoid swings throughout the day.

 

[102ttran]

The only drawback to dosing at the same time is the chance of precipitation if the 2 parts come in contact before dispersing. To get around this, I have a small powerhead in my sump aimed right at where the dosing tubes drip, so the high flow disperses the liquids before they can precipitate.

The big advantage with this technique is you can tightly control your alk and calcium levels to avoid swings throughout the day.

Thanks a lot didn’t know about that. Always lean something new each day.

 

[lexinverts]

I love how the Apex reveals so much about what's going on in your tank:

I saw a similar effect when my daughter had 4 friends over for a sleepover and they all slept in the living room with the tank. Now that I am out of town for a few weeks, I am watching the pH get substantially higher than when we are home. It's amazing how much of an effect a few people in a house has on ambient CO2 levels!

 

[DavidBearWeber]

Starting build with the same tank. Tell me if you think the UV you have is adequate and if you feel its worth it or would you get something different.

 

[DavidBearWeber]

Tank status as of Oct 2019:

(original build thread begins below: )
---
After months of planning, I'm finally ready to start my official build thread. This will be my first aquarium, so please be patient with me as I'm completely new to this hobby.

A couple weeks ago I first joined R2R and posted my plans for feedback. Thanks to those of you who commented (in particular @Broadfield and @nvladik), I made a few suggested changes and think my plans will work. I'll start with a list of equipment I have purchased and a brief description of plans.

Aquarium
- Red Sea Reefer XL 425 with black cabinet
Flow
- Neptune COR-20 return pump
- Manifold with gate valves from COR-20 to supply the reactors and UV sterilizer
- Replace Red Sea return nozzle with dual nozzles
- Maxspect XF230 Gyre pump
Filtration
- Stock Red Sea filter socks with added filter pads on top
- Convert stock Red Sea ATO reservoir into refugium for chaeto

- Refugium fed by pump in filter sock chamber below​

- Refugium overflow drains into skimmer chamber​

- Nyos Quantum 160 skimmer
- Two AquaMaxx Fluidized GFO & Carbon media reactors
- AquaMaxx BioPellet reactor
- Pentair Aquatics UV 40 sterilizer AquaUV Classic 15W sterilizer

- UV sterilizer fed by return pump manifold​

Lighting
- Two Radion XR30w Pro G4 LED
- Chaetomax 2-in-1 9W Refugium LED
Heating
- Two Finnex TH-S 300W in sump, controlled by Apex
- Finnex HMX-S-150 in saltwater mixing tank, controlled by included Finnex controller
Controller
- Neptune Apex 2016
- Standard Apex probes in skimmer chamber
- Two Neptune FMM units

- Monitor flow on return pipe​

- Monitor flow on each media reactor​

- Monitor flow on UV sterilizer​

- Leak detection probe in sump cabinet​

- Leak detection probe under carpet below cabinet​

- Neptune DOS and DDR for dosing
- Neptune DOS for automatic water changes
- Neptune ATK
- Neptune AFS
- Neptune WXM
- Icecap Maxspect Gyre Apex Interface Module to control flow pump
- Apex connected to home network via CAT-5 cable hidden behind baseboard molding
Water Management
- BRS 5-stage 150GPD Plus Water Saver RO/DI system
- Two 75 gallon upright flat bottom tanks for RO/DI and saltwater
- PanWorld 150PS pump for mixing station
- Neptune DOS + ATK for water changes and top off

- ATO pumped via ATK to sump from RO/DI storage tank in garage​

- DOS drains from sump to utility sink in garage​

- DOS refills sump from saltwater tank in garage​

- 1/4” tubing run through wall from garage to sump and concealed behind baseboard molding​

- All pipes and tubes color-coded:

- Saltwater = orange​

- RO/DI water = blue​

- Waste water = gray​

Power Management
- Dedicated 20 amp circuit for aquarium
- UPS for immediate backup power (keeps Apex and other devices running before generator can start)
- Generac Guardian 22kW whole-home generator with 200A automatic transfer switch

The Reefer XL 425 will be placed in my living room along a wall that's angled at 45 degrees, which is just inside from the garage so it's only a short 15 foot run for plumbing to the mixing station and drain:

The RO/DI unit, mixing station, DOS and ATK will be in the garage:

I plan to build a manifold to feed the reactors and UV sterilizer. Here's a rough diagram of the water flow through the system:

I have ordered all the equipment and things are starting to show up, though I don't have a delivery date for the Reefer XL 425 yet. So for now, I'm working on the mixing station setup.

I live near Portland, Oregon, and found a local business that sells all sorts of storage containers. I picked up two 75 gallon tanks for $150 each which was cheaper than paying shipping from online vendors and I was able to look them over before purchase. If any of you are in the Portland area, you can find them at Green Concepts Container, 2227 NW Eleven Mile Ave, Gresham, OR.

They are 22" wide and 48" tall, and came with 1.5" bulkheads installed. Cooper (my black lab) helped me with the initial rinsing.

The first hurdle in my plans is that my garage did not have any drain pipe. It had a water source since the hot water heater is there, but no way for me to drain waste water.

I hired a plumber who drilled through the foundation to run a drain pipe under the crawl space to my main plumbing drain. I then picked up a small utility sink at Home Depot.

I also picked up a Husky heavy duty shelf from Home Depot to support the water tanks, and relocated the wall-mounted vacuum.

My RO/DI unit arrived today, so I quickly mounted it to the wall. I still need to connect the water tubing.

The water tanks have gallon numbers molded into the plastic, but they were difficult to see with white on white, so a simple touch-up with a permanent marker made a big improvement.

At this point I need to wait on all the PVC fittings and pumps to arrive before I can continue. Hopefully I'll have more updates later this week!

-John

I just got the same tank. What is your opinion on the UV. Do you think its worth it or would you get something different?

 

[SuncrestReef]

Starting build with the same tank. Tell me if you think the UV you have is adequate and if you feel its worth it or would you get something different.

I think the 15w unit is probably a bit underpowered for this size tank, but my water has remained clear and I've never had any fish pathogens, so I guess I can't complain. This was the largest unit I could find that would fit inside the cabinet while still allowing easy access to change the bulb, and I didn't want to place any equipment outside of the cabinet. That was the primary reason I chose this model.

Good luck with your build!

 

[mstgkillr]

Where did you purchase the Sch 80 1.25" threaded male to 1" slip adapters? I've looked everywhere!

 

[SuncrestReef]

Where did you purchase the Sch 80 1.25" threaded male to 1" slip adapters? I've looked everywhere!

Sorry, that was a mistake on my part. I actually used a 1.25” x 1” threaded reducer bushing along with a 1” threaded to slip adapter:

1-1/4" x 1" Schedule 80 Reducer Bushing 839-168

Buy 839-168 1-1/4" x 1" Schedule 80 PVC Reducer Bushing Flush Style at PVC Fittings Online and receive huge savings on all Schedule 80 CPVC, Schedule 80 PVC and Schedule 40 PVC fittings

www.pvcfittingsonline.com

1" Schedule 80 PVC Male 836-010

Buy 836-010 1" Schedule 80 PVC Male Adaptor at PVC Fittings Online and receive huge savings on all Schedule 80 CPVC, Schedule 80 PVC and Schedule 40 PVC fittings

www.pvcfittingsonline.com

 

[Huff747]

Maybe you posted it somewhere but what settings do you use for your radions for your BlueLights and WhiteLights settings? Updating mine for the MoonLights but thought I'd give your Blue and White settings a shot as well. Figure it'll at least be a good starting point.

Thanks.

 

[SuncrestReef]

Maybe you posted it somewhere but what settings do you use for your radions for your BlueLights and WhiteLights settings? Updating mine for the MoonLights but thought I'd give your Blue and White settings a shot as well. Figure it'll at least be a good starting point.

Thanks.

I no longer have the Radions (I switched to ReeFi DUO Extreme), but I still have the old Radion profiles in my Apex so here they are:

Did you see my tutorial on Lunar schedules?

 

[Huff747]

I no longer have the Radions (I switched to ReeFi DUO Extreme), but I still have the old Radion profiles in my Apex so here they are:

Thanks!

Did you see my tutorial on Lunar schedules?

Yup, that's where I got the moonlights version from and where I saw the Blue and White lights version and just didn't see the settings so figured it was worth a shot to ask.

 

[OceanDiver]

I no longer have the Radions (I switched to ReeFi DUO Extreme), but I still have the old Radion profiles in my Apex so here they are:

What is your schedule for each profile?


Did you see my tutorial on Lunar schedules?

 

[mstgkillr]

Which mixing pump did you go with for your saltwater mixing station? It looks like a Pan World.

How do you like the pump?

Would you get the same pump again and would you do anything else differently with the mixing station in general?

 

[SuncrestReef]

Which mixing pump did you go with for your saltwater mixing station? It looks like a Pan World.

How do you like the pump?

Would you get the same pump again or would you do anything else differently with the mixing station?

It's a Pan World NH-150PS. It works fine, no complaints. I think the only thing I would do differently next time is to build a sturdier platform for the mixing station. I still have the tanks on the metal shelf with temporary wood supports below it when it started to bend.

 

[SuncrestReef]

I haven't posted any macro photos for quite a while. Here are some new shots taken today:

 

[DS204]

Real nice, thank-you for sharing those macro shots!

 

[mstgkillr]

Another quick question(s) for you... Is the discharge of your ATO below the reservoir? If so, what did you do to reliably prevent siphoning.

I have the same water storage tanks, in the garage, directly behind the tank. When the tanks are full, the water level will be above the highest point in my tank, and I would prefer to add water to the sump anyways.