Waterbox 7226, resistance to upgrading was futile

[dragon99]

When I first looked at the Waterbox tanks I was a little worried about the etched logo in the glass (not a fan of nameplates and such on products), but it's fairly small and unobtrusive. It shouldn't be noticeable once the tank is full of coral.

 

[Peach02]

When I first looked at the Waterbox tanks I was a little worried about the etched logo in the glass (not a fan of nameplates and such on products), but it's fairly small and unobtrusive. It shouldn't be noticeable once the tank is full of coral.

I didn't even know they had one and I've seen a waterbox 7226 in a store that was empty so Ill second that

 

[coseal]

setup looks awesome! i am considering a light upgrade and came across this thread. love the ati! you had good success with a 6 bulb on your reefer 350 what made you go with the 8 on this build? depth of tank?

 

[dragon99]

8-bulb is probably overkill, but it was available. The 6-bulb hybrid is a special order which would probably take forever and I'm not patient. Having the 8-bulb also lets me run a couple pure Actinic bulbs without sacrificing anything.

 

[dragon99]

Still not wet yet... I'm struggling to glue rocks together. Definitely my least favorite part of putting up a tank.

Finally got the PAR meter out and took a few measurements. Fixture 13" above tank right now (~34" to sensor on the bottom). Was shocked at first at the numbers, then I remembered that I had to adjust for measuring in air since the MQ-510 is corrected for water.

T5 only, 8 bulbs, 2 Pure Actinic, 3 KZ Super Blue, 3 KZ CoralLight II

LED only @100%, max fluorescent color

 

[Peach02]

Still not wet yet... I'm struggling to glue rocks together. Definitely my least favorite part of putting up a tank.

Finally got the PAR meter out and took a few measurements. Fixture 13" above tank right now (~34" to sensor on the bottom). Was shocked at first at the numbers, then I remembered that I had to adjust for measuring in air since the MQ-510 is corrected for water.

T5 only, 8 bulbs, 2 Pure Actinic, 3 KZ Super Blue, 3 KZ CoralLight II

LED only @100%, max fluorescent color

sounding good, you might want to check the par with led and t5 since thats what I'm assuming you will run normally

 

[dragon99]

So I spent all last week filling the tank, only to find that I needed to drain and re-level the stand :mad: It was about 5mm low on the far end.

So tank filling, round 2!

I originally planned to use a Vectra M1 for the return, but then ended up buying a Sicce ADV 7. The problem I'm having is that it's too much flow. The sump sounds like Niagra falls going from the refugium section to the skimmer. SInce the Sicce isn't adjustable, I'll either have to add some flow restriction or maybe go back to my original thought of using the Vectra.

Meanwhile, the skimmer is assembled and ready for duty. Lifereef SVS2-24 with a Skimz Leopard L90 pump.

 

[Aaron-A2]

Watching this thread! I'm looking at the 7226 myself and I'm itching to pull the trigger.

Can you show me your current electrical setup? I haven't seen a lot of images of this tanks electrical cabinet.

 

[dragon99]

Watching this thread! I'm looking at the 7226 myself and I'm itching to pull the trigger.

Can you show me your current electrical setup? I haven't seen a lot of images of this tanks electrical cabinet.

Not much to look at yet. My Apex and Vortechs are stilling running my current tank. So I'm just using a power strip at the moment. I have to figure out how to get this tank up and functional without moving everything over until I'm ready to take down the current tank.

For stand lighting I went with this LED strip, IP65 rated and comes with 3M adhesive backing for only $10.

 

[dragon99]

Finally salty! Started out with a box of HW Reefer salt I've had laying around for awhile. The whole box only got my salinity to 26ppt (1.020) which is actually perfect for building up the bacteria. I dosed a bottle of Fritzyme 9 to kick start things and added a bit of ammonium chloride. Hopefully if the NH3 gets down low enough this weekend I can add a fish.

Plugged the lights in for a photo, but now it's lights off for the next few weeks.

 

[Aaron-A2]

Beautiful! Did you by chance measure your par with both t5 and leds on? Also, is 13" off the water level a bit high?

 

[dragon99]

Beautiful! Did you by chance measure your par with both t5 and leds on? Also, is 13" off the water level a bit high?

I haven't yet. I was waiting till I had water in the tank, but right now I've loaned out my Par meter.

 

[Spanky05]

I haven't yet. I was waiting till I had water in the tank, but right now I've loaned out my Par meter.

You sure seem like a nice guy loaning put your par meter like that.....

 

[dragon99]

You sure seem like a nice guy loaning put your par meter like that.....

And I already have a second person lined up to borrow it. No worries, I know that I can turn on the 8 T5's and grow anything. The LED's are just a bonus for effect. I won't be trying any corals in the tank till the new year anyway.

So I had my first flood this morning. Nothing like waking up at 7am to your wife yelling "water on the floor!". The hose came off of the return pump :mad: :mad: Fortunately it only dumped about 3gallons before it tripped the circuit breaker because of water spraying under the stand onto the power strip. Might have fried a brand new Tunze ATO though, it was pretty damp.

 

[Aaron-A2]

And I already have a second person lined up to borrow it. No worries, I know that I can turn on the 8 T5's and grow anything. The LED's are just a bonus for effect. I won't be trying any corals in the tank till the new year anyway.

So I had my first flood this morning. Nothing like waking up at 7am to your wife yelling "water on the floor!". The hose came off of the return pump :mad: :mad: Fortunately it only dumped about 3gallons before it tripped the circuit breaker because of water spraying under the stand onto the power strip. Might have fried a brand new Tunze ATO though, it was pretty damp.

Shiiiiit. Any idea of why the return pump popped off?

 

[RobertP]

Where in Texas are you located?

 

[dragon99]

Shiiiiit. Any idea of why the return pump popped off?

Because I was lazy. I didn't put a clamp on it because I was planning to redo the plumbing a bit soon. Everything survived and it just took a couple hours to clean up the mess. Tubing is now fully seated and clamped in place. I've been checking it daily...

Where in Texas are you located?

College Station. Your not too far away, although I'll admit I had to look up where Friesburg was.

 

[dragon99]

My fish tank finally has fish! After a couple weeks of cycling ammonia and nitrite have zeroed out. I started with Fritzyme 9, but got impatient when nitrite wasn't dropping so I moved over a marinepure block from my current tank. I also added Brightwell Start XLM for an added boost of AOB/NOB bacteria.

Starting out with a Swallowtail Angel (Genicanthus melanospilus) and Orange Spot Rabbitfish (Siganus guttatus). Also added but not pictured is my clarkii clownfish from my nano.

Redid some sump plumbing, swapped the Sicce ADV 7 for a Vectra M1 that's running at 60% and the overflow noise is much improved although not silent.

 

[LadyMac]

Lovely!

 

[dragon99]

The patience required to start a new tank is brutal. It doesn't help when my family keeps asking when I'm moving the rest of the fish....

Water is little cloudy at the moment, but otherwise looking good.