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Would like to know if any Squids have been harmed in this process I know you mentioned that your a Pro... But I think we need an investigation into this matter.
I want to minimize the number of pumps so I plan to plumb off the return with a gate valve and a flow meter. I haven’t received my UV and Deltec slimmer yet so I’ll have to wait to play around with the exact layout.I also have the pentair 25W UV. Have you thought about how you are going to plumb this? Off the return? I'm wondering how to best arrange this in the sump area of the 130.4 stand.
Read my lips. There was no sQuid Pro Quo. It is just lies from the fake Reef Central people. MARGA 2020!! (Make Aquarium Reefs Great Again) ;WootWould like to know if any Squids have been harmed in this process I know you mentioned that your a Pro... But I think we need an investigation into this matter.
I just received the Pentair 25 watt UV. OMG, I had no idea it was so big. I never bothered to look at the dimensions. The thing is a beast at 29" long and 3.5" diameter. I don't want it to dominate my sump area. I think I will save it for later after I finish my basement fish room project. I will probably feed it with a separate pump instead of teeing off of the return pump.I also have the pentair 25W UV. Have you thought about how you are going to plumb this? Off the return? I'm wondering how to best arrange this in the sump area of the 130.4 stand.
Yes, it is big. I may end up plumbing to the closet next to my tank if I can’t come up with a good way to mount it in the sump area.I just received the Pentair 25 watt UV. OMG, I had no idea it was so big. I never bothered to look at the dimensions. The thing is a beast at 29" long and 3.5" diameter. I don't want it to dominate my sump area. I think I will save it for later after I finish my basement fish room project.
Alright, I am calling this the "sQuid Pro Quo" build of a Waterbox 130.4. Why? Because I promised my wife that I would release the funds to buy her dream handbag (a Chanel) in exchange for letting me build my dream reef tank!
Warning: I travel alot for business so I expect progress to be very slooooow. Come back in February or March if you don't have the patience to watch paint dry!
About me: I have been in the hobby since 2000. Like most people, I started out small with a 15-gallon nano. I then upgraded to a 75-gallon mixed reef. Here is a picture of my old 75G:
I had to give up the tank when my company asked me to move to Japan. So I have been out of the hobby for nearly 14 years (I just moved back to Boston). Back then, I was a much poorer (but better looking) version of my current self. So everything was DIY. The lights was a retrofit kit of power compacts from Champion Lighting. I built my own stand with just a hand-held circular saw (I had Home Depot cut the big plywood pieces for me). The sump, float valves, ATO … everything was done on the cheap. The only thing that I splurged on was a EuroReef skimmer which cost me like a month's salary. Fast forward 20 years and I am happy to say that I am now financially secure (but worse looking) and I am ready to build my dream tank with no expenses spared.
My philosophy for the new tank:
- I may not live long enough to see another tank so I am going to build this one as if it were my last one.
- No more DIY. Life is too short and so are my skills. Some people are great with their hands and creating beautiful stuff. I am not one of those people.
- Full automation. I travel nearly 40% of the time so I need the reef to be as self-sufficient and bomb-proof as possible.
- Mixed reef with heavy emphasis on SPS and clams.
The “sQuid Pro Quo” Blueprints
Here I will just rundown the equipment list. I will explain the reason for each of my choices in subsequents posts as well as the alternative products that I did not choose. I have spent over one year researching and planning for this tank. And yet I still feel unprepared and constantly second guessing my choices!
Above the stand:
Under the stand:
- Tank: Waterbox 130.4 in white
- Lighting: Custom ordered Giesemann Spectra (48” inch, two 250w MH, four 54w T5s, integrated moonlight, custom metallic silver finish). This unit is wired for 220v so I am also buying a Krieger transformer rated for 1700 watts (Giesemann recommended a minimum of 1500 watts).
- Powerheads: A pair of Maxspect Gyre XF350 with controller
- Rocks: 180 lbs of Tampa Bay Saltwater aquaculture live rock
- Sand: Undecided; either TBS live sand or Tropic Eden aragonite. Enough for 2 inches or so.
- Salt: Tropic Marine Pro Reef
The Brains: The entire friggin' GHL catalog!! P4 Profilux, KH Director, ION Director, Doser 2.1 with 4 heads, leak detectors, flow sensors, the "oh gawd I spent too much money" sensor, the "holy crap how much electricity did I use" power monitor, etc, etc, etc.
- Sump: I will use the Waterbox sump on Day 1, but I plan to upgrade to Geo’s SU24R or perhaps a SU46R-Pro-Plus later down the road once I finish my basement fish room project.
- Protein skimmer: Deltec 1000i
- Skimmate locker: Avast Davy Jones Skimmate Locker
- UV: Pentair Aquatics 25w Smart UV
- Return pump: Abyzz A100
- Heater: Finnex 300w controlled by Ranco ETC1110000
- Cooling fans: GHL Propeller Breeze 3 (4-fan)
- Emergency back-up power: IceCap battery back-up for the Gyre’s
- Long-term back-up power: I am still planning this out, but the general concept is to use an inverter with a deep cycle marine battery with battery tenderer to keep the battery fresh.
- Controller cabinet: Undecided. The 130.4 does not give you a lot of space to work with on the dry-side. So this project may need to wait until I finish my basement fish room.
In the basement:
Miscellaneous:
- RODI: BRS 7-stage with water saver and booster pump with XP Aqua RO/DI Flood Guardian as failsafe
- ATO: Tunze Osmolator 3155 combined with GHL high and low sensors as failsafe
- Kalkwasser reactor: Geo KR618
- SW mixing station: This is about as DIY as I will go. Two Brutes with the re-circulating plumbing powered by Pan World 40px.
- AWC: GHL Maxi dosers for daily replacement of 2% of water volume (two gallons per day)
- QT: I will be re-using an old ADA 5.5-gallon planted tank that was another money-pit obsession I had back in the day. One of the perks about living in Tokyo was having direct access to ADA stores. Here is a bit of eye-candy for any of you guys that are into ADA equipment (yes, that is a picture of my tank):
Future projects:
- I will be using B-Ionic 2-part dosing to start with.
- Cleaning magnet: Tunze
- Test kits: Reef Foundation, Salifert, etc
- Frag system in the basement
- Refugium in the basement
Thanks for following along
Jim
I was looking at the same thing and so bummed it doesn’t fit. I will probably have one made at a place nearby that custom cuts starboard.Unfortunately it won’t fit. It is only 13” or so even if you remove the hinge assembly. There is an inside brace on the left side that takes up space. But... I wonder if you can rip the MD controller box down to size. Take an inch off each side or two inches off one side. The face plate would be easy, but I am not sure about the enclosure.
Let there be Light!
Life is full of choices. Should I become an accountant or a rock star? Coke or Pepsi? Get married or enjoy bachelorhood? But no choice is more difficult than picking lights for your reef tank. I selected the Giesemann Spectra and I will discuss why in this post.
My top three choices were:
1) Giesemann Spectra (total cost with shipping ended up being $2,057 for a customized 48" fixture with moonlight, dimmable T5 ballast, two 250w 21k Megachrome blue MH bulbs, two 54w Powerchrome actinic blue T5 bulbs, two 54w Powerchrome super purple T5 bulbs plus another $220 for a Krieger 1700 watt transformer)
2) Reefi Duo Extreme Led ($1,500 for two, but please note that they have a $100 discount per unit right now so the cost is actually $1,300)
3) Orphek v4 gen 2 ($1,540 for two)
You can find numerous examples of successful tanks being run on led and MH. So for me, it comes down to personal preference and aesthetics. I am not going to debate the technical merits of each light type. I just love Giesemann. I have always loved Giesemann. I will always love Giesemann. If Giesemann was female, I would marry her in an instant. The curves. The fit and finish. The refinement. Giesemann fixtures just exude sex appeal that I don't feel when I look at led fixtures. And you can't beat the shimmer of MH. 'Nuff said.
But I have to say that I was on the fence with led. The smaller form factor, energy efficiency, ability to dim and replicate dawn/dusk/moonlight as well as the ability to pick virtually any color from the rainbow spectrum were all appealing considerations. I will probably go with led for my future frag tank and the Reefi Duo Extreme will be my first choice.
So let me share with you some more details about my buying experience with Giesemann. Unfortunately, Coralvue no longer carries the Spectra model in the U.S. They only carry the Infinity which is similar except that the Infinity uses double-ended MH bulbs versus the single moguls in the Spectra. The Spectra also has larger reflectors for better light spread and uses external ballasts which removes the weight and heat from the fixture. Take my advice and spend the extra money on the Spectra. The buying process is pretty easy. You have to contact Giesemann Sales directly. I worked with Patrick at Giesemann and he was very patient answering my 20 different questions. Buying direct from Giesemann also allows you to customize exactly what you get. Here are some of the options and costs:
It took exactly 3 weeks from the date I ordered the fixture to when I received it (due to the custom paint job). Here are some pictures. I went for the Silver Metallic. I felt the iridium was too dark and the white would not stand out enough. I am very happy with the color.
- Of course the length. You can choose between 24", 48" and 72". I am using the 48" which is actually 47 1/2" which is just a tad longer than my 130.4 stand which is 47 1/4" long.
- 250w or 400w (the cost for 250w 48" fixture is Euro 1,135.40; the cost for 400w is Euro 1,343.70)
- Dimmable T5 ballast (extra Euro 77.50 for each set of T5 or Euro 155 in total)
- Moonlight (extra Euro 49.58)
- Special colour (extra Euro 167.23 if you do not want the standard iridium metallic or pure white )
- Suspension kit (extra Euro 16.72)
- Giesemann will include all the bulbs for "free"
- Giesemann charged Euro 60.82 for shipping and customs (for 48” fixture)
- It comes wired for 220v with ballast as standard but probably you can ask them to send it with just the quick connect to attach to your own ballasts (I recommend the LuxCore 250w/400w switchable ballast if you go this route). I kept the 220v because it eliminated another cord (according to Giesemann). I purchased a separate step-down transformer. Giesemann recommended at least a 1500 watt transformer. I went with Kreiger for its high quality. I don’t trust those cheap ones manufactured in China.
The little dot in the middle is the moonlight:
Here you can see the two power cords, moonlight cord and 0-10v plug to control the dimmable T5 ballast:
It came very well packaged:
Cheers
Jim