Gregg @ ADP
Valuable Member
A few months ago, I posted this thread https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/how-about-a-nightmare-build-thread.468020/ , which chronicled my misadventures in managing a 380 gallon that was poorly designed and installed (to put it very mildly) by another ‘premiere professional aquarium design company’.
Many of you really seemed to enjoy the thread, despite the fact that the experience has brought me so much pain and personal anguish. If you haven’t read the thread, feel free to do so now. My only recommendation is that you make sure you have a drink handy. If you don’t drink, this would be a good time to start.
Well...now it is time to exorcise some of the demons from this reef. Now, before anybody asks, tearing it down and putting a new tank in is not an option, so I’ve got to make what I’ve got here work.
I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do or how I’m going to go about doing it, but here’s a general rundown of my plan of attack:
1. Drain all water from tank, preserving as much as possible. Fish and coral moved into the sump
2. Rock removed. Most rock kept viable in bins with water, some pieces used for building new structures left out
3. Sand = adios. Add new sand before refilling
4. Rock walls w/ledges built using egg crate, mortar, acrylic rods, live rock pieces
5. Covering the ‘rear’ panels/overflow with dark blue acrylic
6. Removing (hopefully) all dry wall and extraneous structure above the tank (yikes)
7. Building permanent rock structures using mortar/rods/etc to move away from the ‘rock wall’ look and open the tank up a lot more
8. Revamp of filtration in sump (you’ll see)
9. Completely (or as completely as possible) buffing out all interior acrylic
10. Adding everything back to the tank
11.
I have no idea how long this is going to take, but the client is out of town for 2 months, so I’m just going to be coming and going quite a bit for the next couple of weeks. I’m doing most of this for free as a gift for being such an amazing client. Hopefully the project doesn’t get away from me.
Welp....enjoy the ride!
Many of you really seemed to enjoy the thread, despite the fact that the experience has brought me so much pain and personal anguish. If you haven’t read the thread, feel free to do so now. My only recommendation is that you make sure you have a drink handy. If you don’t drink, this would be a good time to start.
Well...now it is time to exorcise some of the demons from this reef. Now, before anybody asks, tearing it down and putting a new tank in is not an option, so I’ve got to make what I’ve got here work.
I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do or how I’m going to go about doing it, but here’s a general rundown of my plan of attack:
1. Drain all water from tank, preserving as much as possible. Fish and coral moved into the sump
2. Rock removed. Most rock kept viable in bins with water, some pieces used for building new structures left out
3. Sand = adios. Add new sand before refilling
4. Rock walls w/ledges built using egg crate, mortar, acrylic rods, live rock pieces
5. Covering the ‘rear’ panels/overflow with dark blue acrylic
6. Removing (hopefully) all dry wall and extraneous structure above the tank (yikes)
7. Building permanent rock structures using mortar/rods/etc to move away from the ‘rock wall’ look and open the tank up a lot more
8. Revamp of filtration in sump (you’ll see)
9. Completely (or as completely as possible) buffing out all interior acrylic
10. Adding everything back to the tank
11.
I have no idea how long this is going to take, but the client is out of town for 2 months, so I’m just going to be coming and going quite a bit for the next couple of weeks. I’m doing most of this for free as a gift for being such an amazing client. Hopefully the project doesn’t get away from me.
Welp....enjoy the ride!
)
