Not to jump in with a 'me too' post (sorry, Serk), but this weekend I finally started digging into setting up a display refugium beside my main tank.
Why? Nitrate export. I've been having consistent nitrate issues that water changes haven't been able to keep manageable. I've been changing 20g every week (tried 15g, didn't really make a dent.) Nitrates are consistently 40-80ppm.
I wonder if part of my problem is lack of live rock (only have about 170lb in a 175g tank) or maybe the size of the rock (most of it is softball sized at max- not enough anerobic areas.)
Anyway.. So I got a great deal on a reef ready 55g tank, stand, canopy, and lights. Picked it up a couple of weeks ago, and started planning. I had thought about supplying it with water via one of the overflows from the main tank, but once I got the tank home, I realized that the bottom of the overflow was only about an inch higher than the output pipe in the 55.
Thanks to Serk, I decided to treat it like a second tank, but using the same sump. Drop another pump in the return section, and have it dump along with the main tank into the same sump.
I took a closer look at the tank, and I realized someting.. it didn't start life as a reef ready, and someone didn't really know what they were doing when they converted it. The bulkheads were installed upside down, and to account for that, someone glommed a bunch of silicone around the nuts for the bulkhead. Once I peeled that off, I realized that I had compromised the seal around the overflow box. Doh! So I finished tearing it out, cleaning it up, and reset / resealed both the overflow box and two new bulkheads.
While the silicone was curing, I dropped by home depot and picked up three bags of pavestone crushed limestone. Talk about a mess to rinse. I ended up washing and dumping in two bags after the silicone had cured for about 24 hours. This gave me a 4-5" sand bed. I still haven't decided if I'm going to add that third bag.
Last night after work, I hit the local hardware store and left with a fistful of plumbing components, a length of 3/4" ID tubing, and a few joints of 1" pipe.
This morning I picked up a pump from the LFS, and got started. I built my first durso standpipe from 1-1/4" pipe, and plumbed a 1" bit of pipe for the output. (I had to go up to 1" pipe to account for the mess that the bulkheads were in, when compared to the hole drilled in the overflow box. (Ended up having to re-drill the 3/4" hole to fit a 1" pipe.)
I did a double 45 degree section to raise the anti-siphon to within 1/2" of the surface of the water (thanks, Marc), and reduced it to 1/2" pipe for a spray bar. Once the top side was done, I got out the chop saw and started on the bottom. On the durso bulkhead, I screwed in a 1" FPT - 3/4" barbed fitting, and ran the tubing to the pump in a 5g bucket.
On the drain side, I installed a 1" union, which caused me to have to do some jiggery pokery. I drilled a hole in the back of my stand to accomodate my current sump that is raised up on a stand. The height of this hole was actually higher than the bottom of the union fitting. I used a couple of elbows to raise it up to about 2" above the hole. This gives me about 1/4" per foot of slope. I installed a tee, valve, and a union in the middle of the drain line (so that I could temporarily dump into the same 5g bucket that the pump was sitting in. The other end went into the hole in the stand and will eventually dump into the sump.
I leak tested the overflow chamber.. no leaks.. wait.. slow drip.. tighten bulkhead.. NO LEAKS
I filled up the tank with tap water, watching for any leaks.. none so far. I finally got up the nerve to turn on the pump and.. one leak. I installed the teflon tape on the threaded to barbed fitting the wrong way. Easy fix. Tried it again, and... wait.. wait.. no leaks! woot! And no flushing or slurping, even with fresh water. I thought about taking a picture then, but.. well.. I didn't rinse the pavestone as well as I should.. so it was a tank full of milk.
I'm still trying to decide if I'm going to black out the side of my display tank. Like Serk, I had originally thought to run the lights in a reverse photoperiod, but I'm afraid the light will interfere with the circadian rhythm of the main tank.
I'm going to fill it up with saltwater tomorrow, work permitting. I'll probably let the sandstorm settle for a few days once I get it filled, before setting it running inline with the main tank.
Here's a pic of the tank with a few pieces of LR for perspective.
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And the spray bar..
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And the plumbing below..
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Why? Nitrate export. I've been having consistent nitrate issues that water changes haven't been able to keep manageable. I've been changing 20g every week (tried 15g, didn't really make a dent.) Nitrates are consistently 40-80ppm.
I wonder if part of my problem is lack of live rock (only have about 170lb in a 175g tank) or maybe the size of the rock (most of it is softball sized at max- not enough anerobic areas.)
Anyway.. So I got a great deal on a reef ready 55g tank, stand, canopy, and lights. Picked it up a couple of weeks ago, and started planning. I had thought about supplying it with water via one of the overflows from the main tank, but once I got the tank home, I realized that the bottom of the overflow was only about an inch higher than the output pipe in the 55.
Thanks to Serk, I decided to treat it like a second tank, but using the same sump. Drop another pump in the return section, and have it dump along with the main tank into the same sump.
I took a closer look at the tank, and I realized someting.. it didn't start life as a reef ready, and someone didn't really know what they were doing when they converted it. The bulkheads were installed upside down, and to account for that, someone glommed a bunch of silicone around the nuts for the bulkhead. Once I peeled that off, I realized that I had compromised the seal around the overflow box. Doh! So I finished tearing it out, cleaning it up, and reset / resealed both the overflow box and two new bulkheads.
While the silicone was curing, I dropped by home depot and picked up three bags of pavestone crushed limestone. Talk about a mess to rinse. I ended up washing and dumping in two bags after the silicone had cured for about 24 hours. This gave me a 4-5" sand bed. I still haven't decided if I'm going to add that third bag.
Last night after work, I hit the local hardware store and left with a fistful of plumbing components, a length of 3/4" ID tubing, and a few joints of 1" pipe.
This morning I picked up a pump from the LFS, and got started. I built my first durso standpipe from 1-1/4" pipe, and plumbed a 1" bit of pipe for the output. (I had to go up to 1" pipe to account for the mess that the bulkheads were in, when compared to the hole drilled in the overflow box. (Ended up having to re-drill the 3/4" hole to fit a 1" pipe.)
I did a double 45 degree section to raise the anti-siphon to within 1/2" of the surface of the water (thanks, Marc), and reduced it to 1/2" pipe for a spray bar. Once the top side was done, I got out the chop saw and started on the bottom. On the durso bulkhead, I screwed in a 1" FPT - 3/4" barbed fitting, and ran the tubing to the pump in a 5g bucket.
On the drain side, I installed a 1" union, which caused me to have to do some jiggery pokery. I drilled a hole in the back of my stand to accomodate my current sump that is raised up on a stand. The height of this hole was actually higher than the bottom of the union fitting. I used a couple of elbows to raise it up to about 2" above the hole. This gives me about 1/4" per foot of slope. I installed a tee, valve, and a union in the middle of the drain line (so that I could temporarily dump into the same 5g bucket that the pump was sitting in. The other end went into the hole in the stand and will eventually dump into the sump.
I leak tested the overflow chamber.. no leaks.. wait.. slow drip.. tighten bulkhead.. NO LEAKS
I filled up the tank with tap water, watching for any leaks.. none so far. I finally got up the nerve to turn on the pump and.. one leak. I installed the teflon tape on the threaded to barbed fitting the wrong way. Easy fix. Tried it again, and... wait.. wait.. no leaks! woot! And no flushing or slurping, even with fresh water. I thought about taking a picture then, but.. well.. I didn't rinse the pavestone as well as I should.. so it was a tank full of milk.
I'm still trying to decide if I'm going to black out the side of my display tank. Like Serk, I had originally thought to run the lights in a reverse photoperiod, but I'm afraid the light will interfere with the circadian rhythm of the main tank.
I'm going to fill it up with saltwater tomorrow, work permitting. I'll probably let the sandstorm settle for a few days once I get it filled, before setting it running inline with the main tank.
Here's a pic of the tank with a few pieces of LR for perspective.
And the spray bar..
And the plumbing below..