Hoppy’s build thread-

[hoppy]

I am new to R2R- I introduced myself in the NY sub category and was asked to start a build thread-

I am just really getting started so it’s the perfect time- I am just getting back into the hobby after a sabbatical and ended up buying our another reefer who was getting out-

Here are some pics of system prior to me dismantling to take home- 65g drilled DT-

That was an all day project- now starting to reassemble

The day the tank was set in place- Missing 1 kid in this photo-

Moving stuff to basement-

Apex mounted, put under plastic sheeting to save from random water-

New 200gpd rodi all plumbed in-

Salt water mixing

Was a productive weekend-
I’ll keep things updated as i progress- it’s a labor of love

 

[LanM]

Impressive setup!

 

[Greybeard]

Welcome aboard And... welcome _back_ to the hobby.

 

[Mal11224]

Welcome to R2R.. nice setup. Make sure you invest in a good dehumidifier for that area in the basement. Summers will be tough.

 

[hoppy]

My basement is ALWAYS wet- has a drain around the perimeter that has standing water at all times- 2 dehumidifiers there now- had 2’ Of water in it a week ago with the warm up, snow melt and rain and my sump couldn’t keep up. I keep all equipment mounted to walls or up on blocks-

Entire space is not usable for living or much storage- will be fish room again, and continue to be my kids RC racetrack

 

[hoppy]

Made a little progress today night. Been slow going working 60hrs a week and 3 active kids.

Still working on water mixing station- was able to get to the point of running RODI water tonight- hoping to have water moving by end of weekend but that may be ambitious of me to achieve.
Positive thoughts.

Framing

Mix pump and manifolds mounted

Added rock to my 30gal to “seed” to be ready for transfer.

 

[hoppy]

So aquascape takes more epoxy than I planned- and sand took forever to rinse- top prices still need to be epoxy down but I’m thinking this is how it’s going to be- lots of shelving for corals and open areas for a few fish-

Starting plumbing and dedicated electrical

I think I have a hiccup with my apex- not sure yet so looking for info
I ordered a used wxm to connect my 2 mp40’s and 2 xr30’s- very different connector- my apex has what look like cat connectors and the new wxm is the usb type aquabus- are these compatible in any way?

 

[hoppy]

Another weekend down and still not wet [emoji853]

Aquascape done and sand- all drilled, pinned and epoxied in place.

All under tank electronics mounted and plumbing through floor to basement. Still working on cable management.

Stand built in basement to hold frag tanks, fuge, equipment and 2 sumps

One more full day of plumbing and I should be able to have water movement- then probably another weekend at least to sort out electrical and teach myself to manage a used apex.

 

[hoppy]

Was able to get it wet today- didn’t have much time this weekend so still a ton to do but water is moving-
Still need to plumb in the fuge, and do all electrical and apex- my goal was to get it wet and start the cycle process-

 

[hoppy]

Been working on canopy- was a bit rotted so I skimmed w/ gel coat- then mounted the radions on drawer slides to be able to adjust-

 

[hoppy]

Let there be light!
Making progress- spent hours tonight trying to link radions and mp40’s to wxm with out success- got 1 mp40 to connect and nothing else- I’m sure it’s a learning curve- this week will be learning to program and finish setting up apex- tank is cycled but until I know how to run it nothing alive will call it home.

 

[hoppy]

Still no luck getting WXM functional.. been through my diatom cycle- have a few hermits and snails- ordered pods and phyto today from algae barn.

 

[hoppy]

Wow- can’t believe how far it’s come from the above posts- have a pair of percs, a six line wrasse and a yellow tang for fish, lots of inverts and corals corals everywhere- well kinda [emoji2]
Have a splatter jammer, Duncan’s, candy canes, a few zoas, an island of gsp, an Acan, couple unidentified, 2 acros. A monti and a chalice. Have the bug for sticks- once I successfully keep the acros I have a while I will order the true eye candy.
I am also in the process of acquiring equipment for a smaller system for my office at work.
JBJ 45, upgraded return pump to sicce 2.0 (noise than I expected) xr30 g3pro w/ rms, tunnze 9004 dc skimmer, 2 brs dosed pumps for 2 part-
Still looking for an apex, 2 MP10’s and a pump for ato. Hopefully to set this up after the holidays- I have it running with freshly water to learn the quirks of the tank-
I’ll post pics of the tank in this thread later- lights are ramping down now-