Follow Up Sump Work

I took the opportunity today to give the sump and DT a quick vacuum.  While I was at it, I drained the sump completely (as much as I could) in order to put the baffles back in place and silicon them in.

They are still drying, and I only had enough silicon to do the first two baffles.  The third should be OK, but we'll see.

I'll fill it back up tomorrow and see how it does.  Hopefully they don't collapse, otherwise I'm going to need more silicon ;)

Here are some shots from today:

Daylight Update

Still in the photo taking mood.  Here's some shots w/ the daylights on.  Nothing else, just pics.

August Update

It's been a few weeks since my last update.  That's about the time the "sump build" started.

Utilizing days off, plus other random moments here and there, I've finally completed the sump... mostly.

Still on the to-do list is to get the baffles worked out.  I went with the "weather stripping" method and got less than stellar results.  Once the baffle situation is worked out, I am going to (once again) attempt to move my HOB skimmer to the sump.  After the skimmer is gone (if possible), I'll then move my heater to the sump.

Other than that, it's up and running.

A couple days ago I ended up (finally) removing the Chaeto from my display tank.  I trashed all of it (about two grapefruit sized balls) except for about a golf ball sized piece.  I threw that down in the sump so as not to have to look at it anymore.  I'm hoping with the new changes, it doesn't last long ;)

Took a few shots tonight.  Didn't get any of the sump (here is my sump gallery), but I did get a few close-ups after lights-out with just the actinics.

Everything is still going well.  I'm not sure if it's the new RO/DI system installed or the sump (perhaps a combination of both), but I've been feeling good thoughts from the tank.

Just before installing the sump and water system, I completed removal of a vast majority of the substrate. Last week's water change consisted of 10 gallons and about 30 minutes.  Such a nice change of pace for cleaning the tank.

Today's water change also included the sump since it'd been working for about a week now.  I utilized the power head I purchased for my salt storage container.  I used it to suck up the detritus on the bottom of the sump and had it pump it through my gravel vacuum tube into a bucket.  The sump took about 5 gallons, and the tank another 10 gallons.  ASW was already made (had been for about 4 days), so I headed down to the basement with three buckets, filled them up, and brought them back up to the tank.

I utilized the same power head to pull water from the buckets into the sump.  The whole process took about 30 minutes again.  Now with all the things I have in place, I KNOW I'm removing much more of the detritus than I was 30 days ago, and I KNOW that I'm not adding anything with my water.

Removing crap and not replacing it while filling with water is a really nice feeling, I must say.  Probably why I was in the snapshot mood tonight.  I have a restored feeling of pride in the tank.

Just about there

So today a spent a lot of time on the tank...  and as life would have it, it doesn't look like it.

Once again I siphoned more sand out.  I probably got another 3 gallons out.  Almost everything except for the sand underneath the anemone bowl.  I ended up changing about 25 gallons of water today (33%) and it looks like crap.

I also took this opportunity to see what siphoning a bare bottom would be like.  It was actually pretty easy.  Water changes are going to be a lot quicker and will use less water in the future.  I bet I can cut the water changes from 20 gallons (27% change) to 10 or 15 gallons (13-20%), depending on how many hermit crabs are in the way.

Had a good day at the LFS today as well.  Had a nice chat with the owner about what I was wanting to do.  Ended up purchasing a RO/DI unit (about damned time), an HOB overflow, three more powerheads (2 x 425 gph and 750 gph), and a return pump rated at 750 gph.  That takes my display flow to 3625 gph (tank turnover of 48 times per hour).  This amount of flow should keep detritus suspended nicely until it is drawn into the sump.  The flow rate for the sump is much lower to allow that detritus to settle there.

Later I stopped by Home Depot with my return pump and overflow to figure out the plumbing.  All my pipes are purchased as well.

So I have everything I need except for the sump container itself.  I'm still undecided between a glass tank, a DIY acrylic box, or a rubbermaid tote.  If I could plumb two totes together, that would be even better.  I have about 36" of width that I'd like to fill, which would give me 12" of storage in the cabinet still.

More later as the build progresses.

Jax's Reef - The Way it Should Have Been

So I've been trying to decide these last couple of months whether or not to breed clowns.  If I decide not to, there are still some upgrades I'd like to do to the display tank...

Perhaps it's that I'm inexperienced in a majority of aquarium equipment.  And then again perhaps I know precisely what I'm looking at when shopping for equipment and stuff is just really that expensive.

So if I decide to breed the clowns, I'm looking at an initial investment of about $1,000.  Granted, about half of that is equipment I would want regardless of breeding or not - like a RO/DI unit ($300), refractometer ($60), return pump ($100) for a sump installation (either breeding or on the current display tank).  So these are the common items.

If I decide to breed, I'll also require a couple of HOB overflow boxes ($120); microalgae, brine shrimp and rotifer cultures from Florida Aqua Farms ($175), larvae catcher ($100), breeding jugs for the food, air pump ($75), misc plumbing, lights, timers, etc.

If I decide to install a sump, I'll still need one HOB overflow box ($60), misc plumbing parts, light, timer, etc.

Breeding will require an unknown amount of daily time, probably at least a half hour or so.  I really don't think I want to spend money and time on something additional.  Perhaps when/if I retire and need a hobby.  But I currently have plenty to keep my hands full.

I've been back and forth for the last couple weeks.  But today is the day I put my foot down and decide.

I think I've decided NOT to breed, but to make the display tank as it should have been initially - with a sump for convenient nutrient export, housing equipment, and water polishing.

Installing a sump will be no simple or quick task, and while I'm "in there" there are a couple other things I'd like to get done:

• Remove the display tank so that the sump can be dropped into the cabinet from the top.  This will make installing the sump tank easier than going in from the back and removing the rear vertical support.
• Level the stand.
• Removing the remainder of the substrate from the display tank

More plans and thoughts on the matter will follow.

More Siphoned Sand

Today I did a water change.  I didn't test before changing so I don't have any pre-change data.  I had an opportunity to remove more substrate so I took it.

I ended up removing the rocks in the right third of the tank in order to remove the substrate from that area.  Those rocks are now sitting on bare glass.  When I put them back I wasn't too concerned about how it looked, so it doesn't look all that hot.  After all, those rocks will need to be removed again to make room for the anemone bowl so that I can remove the substrate from underneath it.

About 3 gallons of substrate was removed today along with 25 gallons of water.  I can't believe how much crap there was in the substrate at the edge of the rocks...  Brown powdery crap that would have sat there for a millennia.

Like I said, I'm not happy with the rocks, but I'm happy with the journey.  Once I get the substrate from under the anemone bowl I can concentrate on visual appeal of the placement of rock.  Or, who knows... I may have a sump by then with the currently-unsightly rocks in the sump.  Doubt it though ;)  I need something for the coral to grow on.

That's it for now.  Any pictures posted prior to the end of this journey will definitely be work-in-progress pictures.

A Slight Juggling Act

So I have a couple things going on salt-water-wise:

Due to the availability of nutrients in the tank for algae (nitrates and phosphates) I've begun removing substrate from the tank.  During my last water change of about 25 gallons, about 4 gallons of substrate was removed.

I decided to remove the substrate for a couple of reasons.  Substrate is (at least partially) the cause for my phosphate levels (feeding is another).  I do not wish to change my feeding habits, so in order to make the single most possible impact with just a single action, substrate removal is my plan.  It's the biggest bang for my buck toward getting nutrients under better control.

Removing substrate will also help with nitrates in an indirect way.  There will be little if any hidden detritus to decay (contributing to both nitrates and phosphates).  This will assist with husbandry, and subsequently will assist in keeping those nutrients in better check.

It's also almost time to begin acquiring breeding equipment.  That will probably take at least a couple of weeks to acquire.  Maybe my goal of grabbing a July clutch is slightly unrealistic...  but definitely an August clutch is possible.