Finally about to get wet!! Adding water plan

[WvAquatics]

Ok I plan to start filling my 120g this weekend. My plan was to mix 30g of saltwater then add to tank but this will take over a week. So new plan

1st- fill with rodi to about 3/4 full.
2nd- run wave pumps full blast and add salt slowly over a few hours to reach right salinity.
3rd- add live sand and let mix.
4th- add 30g of premixed saltwater to check for leaks in overflow.
5th- Get full to full sump where water no longer flows in the sump.
6th- Turn on return pump final leak test.
7th- mark line where the return section levels out for fill line.

I'm thinking it will take 3 days to do this. Does it sound like a good plan?

 

[Dr. Phil]

Have you leak checked everything with plum water? If not, I would do that first. Much cheaper to throw away a tank full of tap water than it is to throw away a tank full of rodi water with salt mixed in.

Congrats on the new tank!

 

[Cjud7982]

sounds like a solid plan.

when I filled my 180, i took my rodi unit off of my mixing station and rigged it up at the tank and ran the outlet of the rodi unit right into the tank, waste out the window near my tank, and used a garden hose adapter to feed the rodi. took about a day and a half to fill and get my sump level close. I got a few buckets of rodi water, fired up the return pump and added water until the overflows and sump levels were correct. checked shut off drain level in the sump to make sure it wouldnt over flow. Once that was good, in went the power heads and started adding salt to the system to get to the desired salinity. once there, then your off and running. Of course leak test the sump and tanks prior with just tap water (preferably outside or in a garage) before final rodi water. And check for plumbing leaks before adding salt to minimize any wasted salt or messes from salt water.

this works if you are scaping with dry sand and base rock where it can sit dry for extended period of time. if using live sand and live rock, you may have to wait until salinity is up and do your scaping wet.

 

[Phil D.]

Or, as I did, fill with tap water, let sit and check for leaks. Drain, then fill 1/4 with RO/DI, add sand then add 5 gallons of hypersaline to keep live sand from dying off, then fill completely. Add salt letting mix in between until salinity is reached.

 

[UCF Alum]

couldn’t resist. Good luck with the new tank!

 

[Camaro Show Corals]

Where you at in WV? I’m in Wheeling

 

[WvAquatics]

Well I have leak tested everything but plumbing. So I imagine in a worst case scenario I lose a couple gallons of rodi. I will use tropic edens live sand and don't want to kill it. It will be dry rock for a few weeks before adding live rock.
So I'll leak test down the overflow and return lines then add salt and then sand then finish filling. Sump. So I'll run it full enough to use return pump to mix salt. The top off

Where you at in WV? I’m in Wheeling

Charleston.

 

[Camaro Show Corals]

Well I have leak tested everything but plumbing. So I imagine in a worst case scenario I lose a couple gallons of rodi. I will use tropic edens live sand and don't want to kill it. It will be dry rock for a few weeks before adding live rock.
So I'll leak test down the overflow and return lines then add salt and then sand then finish filling. Sump. So I'll run it full enough to use return pump to mix salt. The top off

Charleston.

Very nice there’s quite a few of us scattered around here.

 

[WvAquatics]

Very nice there’s quite a few of us scattered around here.

A few figure deeper into it the more I will meet.

 

[WvAquatics]

Question before I start filling. I ran the system for 20 minutes finding all the leakes in tubing and realizing that I cannot run hose too high.

My question is if I get a slow flow into the rodi system is that the flow I get out of the di chamber?

I get 10 tds out of stage 4. So I plan to run the waste water line closed more than I'll open. With some flushing to help pressure. That sound like it will work? I plant to start filling first think in the morning because the time it take to get a full take I will have the plumbing finished. I have 2 pieces to cut and cement in.

 

[Camaro Show Corals]

If you have tds coming out that’s very bad you need to add stages. You should have 0 tds all the time. Even 1 tds is bad. I have to run a 7 stage unit being in wv too. Long long story short I lost about 10k in coral from a 4 stage unit not being enough for me. So unfortunately you will not be able to fill the tank in the morning.

 

[WvAquatics]

If you have tds coming out that’s very bad you need to add stages. You should have 0 tds all the time. Even 1 tds is bad. I have to run a 7 stage unit being in wv too. Long long story short I lost about 10k in coral from a 4 stage unit not being enough for me. So unfortunately you will not be able to fill the tank in the morning.

Oh that's before di. Di is 0. I get 10 tds before the di resin.

 

[WvAquatics]

Dunbar water is 56 tds tap

 

[Cjud7982]

I would try and get the rodi unit as high as possible then to keep the outlet of the rodi lower than the filers, it really shouldn't matter because it is all pressure driven. The amount of flow in doesn't necessarily translate to the rodi water outlet. This is because most rodi units are a 2:1 or at best 1:1 waste to rodi water ratio. So at best half of the water into the unit will make its way into your tank. That valve is usually open or close based on what your doing.

As long as you are getting 0tds out of the rosi unit you'll be good to go, just might have a higher rejection rate with the waste line.

 

[Camaro Show Corals]

Oh that's before di. Di is 0. I get 10 tds before the di resin.

Okay good lol!

 

[WvAquatics]

I would try and get the rodi unit as high as possible then to keep the outlet of the rodi lower than the filers, it really shouldn't matter because it is all pressure driven. The amount of flow in doesn't necessarily translate to the rodi water outlet. This is because most rodi units are a 2:1 or at best 1:1 waste to rodi water ratio. So at best half of the water into the unit will make its way into your tank. That valve is usually open or close based on what your doing.

As long as you are getting 0tds out of the rosi unit you'll be good to go, just might have a higher rejection rate with the waste line.

I figured I would leave waste line closed besides some flushing to reduce pressure

 

[WvAquatics]

Couple of blow outs. Whoever said filling a big tank would be fun lied. Haha 6 hrs later

 

[Cjud7982]

Well it's progress!!! And what do you mean blow outs!?!? That doesn't sound good!!

 

[WvAquatics]

Where the pvc returns into the tank through the bulkhead. I was thinking about being lazy and not cement them in. But yes progress will take another week to fill hahah

 

[WvAquatics]

Oh and blow outs from the inlet of the rodi and too much pressure