Drauka99's "I Lost My Mind" 240 Build

[Drauka99]

Started this thread on a local forum and decided to port it over here as well.

Please bear with me while I catch it up.

Yes, you read that right. I bought a 240 gallon tank. 8'x2'x2' standard dimension tank. Does not have built in overflows (that's a plus since I want a slim internal box and a BeanAnimal style drain system). Tank is pretty much scratch free. Going to do some cleaning one day soon to see which side is going to become the front. This is going to be a slow build since I am also remodeling a house right now for a move. The tank won't be setup till I am close to the big move. Hopefully I can get it setup for a few weeks and have it cycling before I move the current tank into that system.

Equipment plans currently:

Lighting - Thinking seriously about 2 - 6 bulb 4' long T5 fixtures along the back part of the tank and 3 - Kessil 360we's across the front slightly angled toward the back. The bracing does not lend itself to single point lighting to well, so the T5s will be the main lighting and the Kessils mainly for night viewing and some shimmer. (this may change drastically before the tank is setup)

Return - seeing all the locals with the Varios 6 pump, I am thinking about going with the Varios 8, looks like it will be a good fit, also planning on tank end of the return lines going into 1" SeaSwirls.

Skimmer - Reuse my Vertex 180i until the bio load becomes an issue. Undecided on final skimmer, might go with a Lifereef

Sump(s) - Need to measure the "fish room" adjacent to the tank but it appears I can comfortably fit 2 of the rubbermaid stock tanks, One will be a dedicated refugium the second as a skimmer and return pump and whatever other equipment i throw at this beast.

Stand - Reuse the existing stank so long as it passes my inspection (I will likely add a sheet of foam insulation between the stand and the tank for peace of mind)

Rock/Sand - Mixture of BRS Pukani and TBS cultured rock (about 50lbs of their rock to seed the dry rock)

Flow/Powerheads - For now I have a spare Mp40 and a Gyre 130 and some other misc powerheads that should provide enough flow. Will likely try 2 of the Jeabo WP60 (or whatever is their MP60 equivalent) in the future. Possibly try one of the new Maxspect Gyre 280 models.

a couple pics





MP40 on the end of the tank for scale, that's a Gyre 130 on the side too.





Thanks to Lobstergrabber (Richard) for his help getting the tank home.

 

[Drauka99]

As for the overflow I am looking at, the Shadow overflows are very very tempting but I want a bit more surface skimming area than a 16" box has and a 20" box doesn't seem to be enough to me either. This one is 36" and I feel will be enough to keep the water film free.

 

[Drauka99]

Small update,

Powerheads - a friend of mine up north has a "Box full of Tunze pumps" turns out there are 3 - Tunze 6105's, 1 - Tunze 6205 and a Tunze 7095 controller. 2 of the 6105's need new shafts but all the rest are otherwise good. He is going to mail me the whole box of stuff for use on the 240. there is also another Tunze pump in there but I don't think I will need it with what amounts to 4 strong powerheads in the tank for flow.

Return pump - The Reef Octopus Varios 8 has been ordered.

 

[Drauka99]

The Heart of the system arrived last night.

 

[Drauka99]

So with the 93 busting a seam I am moving ahead with the 240 build a bit faster than I had hoped. (I was considering ordering a custom tank instead or a 180)

I ordered the overflow box. the company has a new kit that was just coming on the market when I was looking before. When I emailed them my questions and requests they basiclly said - here's the new model that covers all those ideas.

Modular Marine 3600gph overflow - 36" internal box

This weekends plans include some repair on a big sump I have, placing stabilizing stands under my house (off grade residence) where the tank and sump is going, and possibly beginning the stand build. Most of the stuff I need to do the build wont be here till next week so I might as well knock out what I can.

 

[Drauka99]

Thanks again to Lobstergrabber (Richard) for coming up to the middle of nowhere and helping build a stand on Saturday.

IMG_20171104_125924 by drauka99, on Flickr



got one coat of primmer/paint on it on Sunday. Stand will be skinned in oak and stained to match the rest of the trim in the house.

IMG_20171105_130651 by drauka99, on Flickr



All lumber is 2" x 8". The plywood is 3/4". To say it is built like a tank might be an understatement.

 

[Drauka99]

The last of my order from BRS made it last night.

100 lbs of Pukani dry rock

2016 Apex

Apex Auto Top Off Kit

New RO/DI filters

and a few other odds and ends

One of which was a new pressure gauge for my RODI, funny thing is the water system i am on now is tiny compared to Valp BUT - the TDS is a good 50ppm lower and the pressure is a good 15psi higher and I am on the end of the line for this water system. No wonder my RODI has been working so fast.

 

[Drauka99]

Figured it was time for some updates.

Progress has been slow but it has started moving now and a plan has come together.

Plumbing was causing me some headaches since the fish room is beside the tank, not behind it which is ideal. I also wanted the sump up off the floor in the fish room so that added to the plumbing fight. I think I have it all straight now.

Here is the plan for the sump stand

received_10215510248686634 by drauka99, on Flickr

this will hold a 40 breeder refugium and a custom 125 (dimension not standard) sump, like this

received_10215510046761586 by drauka99, on Flickr

the three red pipes are the drains from the display tank, obviously they will be routed down into the refugium.

I am currently waiting on a drill bit to get the sump and refugium drilled for them to be connected together.

received_10215546285187524 by drauka99, on Flickr

I added a few more filler "legs" under the stand after this picture was taken, as well as cleaned up the tank.



I also came up with a plan for the Apex to be mounted above the sump on the wall with a layout of all of the modules. I worked on that some this weekend.

received_10215614953024177 by drauka99, on Flickr

One thing you might notice, 2 return modules. I decided to go with 2 of the Varios 8 pumps instead of just one and splitting it. Mainly for redundancy and head loss.

received_10215617421085877 by drauka99, on Flickr

 

[Drauka99]

Ok all caught up.

The refugium and the sump is at a local glass shop today, getting glass cut for some modifications and the holes drilled to connect them together.

The Apex board is up on the wall and has 2 of the EB8s mounted, but I need to buy some more screws before i mount everything else.

I have 2 - 1" Sea Swirls for the returns, I didn't have the right brackets for the tank so I ordered the right ones. they should be here tomorrow.

 

[Drauka99]

Picked up the refugium and sump Thursday afternoon. Silicone in all the baffles and new weird for the refugium. Refugium calculates out to around 35 gallons of water volume.

Mounted most if the modules on the board this morning.

2018-04-29_11-33-03 by drauka99, on Flickr

 

[Drauka99]

IMG_20180501_191209 by drauka99, on Flickr

Got the sump and refugium in place.

 

[Drauka99]

Got most of the plumbing done this weekend. Picture doesn't show it but the return pumps are connected with vinyl hose to dampen vibrations.



2018-05-14_07-06-41 by drauka99, on Flickr

 

[Breadman03]

I have one small critique on what looks like a well thought out system and nicely executed build. I've had rust start to appear on some of my Apex gear that was near water. I'd keep an eye on the lower modules just to make sure they are staying dry.

Small update,

Powerheads - a friend of mine up north has a "Box full of Tunze pumps" turns out there are 3 - Tunze 6105's, 1 - Tunze 6205 and a Tunze 7095 controller. 2 of the 6105's need new shafts but all the rest are otherwise good. He is going to mail me the whole box of stuff for use on the 240. there is also another Tunze pump in there but I don't think I will need it with what amounts to 4 strong powerheads in the tank for flow.

Return pump - The Reef Octopus Varios 8 has been ordered.

I'm a bit jealous of your Tunze score. I'm in the process of swapping my 4x MP40's for Tunze because their flow pattern just doesn't work well on a 36" cube.

 

[Drauka99]

Will definitely keep an eye on the Apex gear. I can't imagine it will be any more rust prone than when its mounted under a tank close to the sump. The lowest stuff is a good 18" above the water so I am hopefully in the clear.

On the Tunze pumps. I'm looking forward to using them. Need to get the parts ordered for them and get the controller and such mounted under the tank.

 

[Drauka99]

It's Alive!!!!

2018-06-11_12-37-59 by drauka99, on Flickr

2018-06-11_12-37-30 by drauka99, on Flickr

Did some leak testing this weekend (passed all with flying colors) and Ended up filling the tank up with tap water (ours is surprisingly low TDS) onto the dry rock I had. Going to let it soak for a week or so and then do a 100% water change with good RO/DI water and get it cycling.


I did go a bit overboard on my return pumps. 2 Varios 8's are a bit much. even with 1-1/2 drains they struggle to keep up. I have both set on the lowest setting on thier controller and there is a bunch of flow through the sump.

2018-06-11_12-39-13 by drauka99, on Flickr

 

[Drauka99]

Few more updates.

Tank is running with salt. Upped the Varios 8s to setting #2 on the 1-5 (5 max) they only pull about 44 watts each and move a lot of water.

Hung the lights over the weekend. I like them.

2018-07-09_12-38-25 by drauka99, on Flickr



Also got the mixing station plumbed. Using an external pump, can direct the flow into either barrel to either mix or move water as needed. Should be able to do some water changes pretty fast.

2018-07-09_12-41-33 by drauka99, on Flickr

the barrels are completely open top so i can remove the lid and dump in salt easily or inspect the inside of the barrels easily from a step stool.

 

[Drauka99]

Did a 45 gallon water change on Sunday afternoon. The best part.... NO BUCKETS!!!! Setup one of the switches on the APEX breakout box to turn off the return pumps, heater and skimmers. Mixed and warmed up ~55 gallons of new saltwater in the #2 barrel, turned on the mixing pump with the other switch on my APEX breakout box. Calculated after the water level settled to where the water line would be on the display for the 45 gallon change, Hooked up the Phyton water change hose to a faucet and pulled out water to the line. Shut that off. Flipped off the mixing pump and hooked up a hose to the pump out port on the mixing station. Flipped a few valves, filled the sump to where I was comfortable and then switched back on the returns with the same switch that turned them off (the skimmers and such are on a delayed start). Once I hit my normal sump level I flipped the mixing pump switch off and flipped a few valves to refill the mixing barrel. Did that with one more flip of a switch and then put everything away. Tonight I'll get the rodi barrel completely refilled and be ready for another water change when its time. A few kinks that need to be worked out but for that large of a water change it went very smoothly and probably took less than an hour. I'll time it next time. 45 gallons is about 15% of the total system volume.

 

[Drauka99]

Did the second water change with they system in place. Takes 45 minutes to do a 45 gallon change. That could theoretically be cut in half with me refilling as the sipon was pulling water out but 1 gallon a minute total time seems fair to me and with no buckets its mostly just watching the water levels. Just a few hoses and flipping a few switches