"New" 275G Custom Peninsula Build

[AKReefing]

The view through both sides of the aquarium--2 inches total. Good enough for water.

 

[AKReefing]

Well, I heard of a pro on R2R with a handle of "AKReefing" -- perhaps you can give him a call? Anyway, it took 2 guys ~6 hours to buff my 8x3x2 tank. It would take me several weeks (if I'm lucky) with lots of blood, sweat, and tears!

Dude, that's my handle, and this is my thread. I'm not a pro.

You're not worried about scratching it later? On my new build, I'm going to go bare bottom just to make sure I won't pick up some sand; otherwise, it will be a very bad day!

Of course I am. I've had a large acrylic tank in the past. After seeing all of the scratches inside this tank, it was clear to me the previous owner didn't realize what she was doing by dragging sand up from the bottom during cleaning.

 

[AKReefing]

Ok, slight delay in progress due to 13 straight 12-hour shifts. The OT helps, though. So as part of prep for the move I had to remove the bulkheads. They were glued to the plumbing below, so I had to cut them loose (see the picture). Glue or no glue, I would always recommend replacing bulkheads any time you remove the old ones. Cheap insurance. One of the replacement bulkheads ended up with a piece of stray plastic between the rubber seal and the bottom of the bulkhead. I discovered it during a leak test. The nut was destroyed during removal, and the rubber seal ended up with a small tear due to the plastic fragment. Fortunately, the bulkhead seller sent a free replacement. I'll install the new one today and recheck for leaks.

 

[AKReefing]

Ok, the replacement bulkhead showed up after 2 weeks... Nice customer service. Leak checked good.

 

[AKReefing]

I installed the plumbing. The return water is split into two streams. There was enough of the original red and blue PVC pipe for reuse, but I had to supplement with white Sch 40. Notice all of the unions. Cheap insurance when you need full access underneath. The original owner had gate valves and transitions to smaller diameters on the drain lines for some reason. I'd never consider restricting drains for any reason. Pardon the mess, but that purple PVC primer gets everywhere, espeecially when you don't care. It works.

Notice the unions are offset from each other. Offfsets allow easier access without pinching fingers between them.

The red and blue pipes are actually parallel in this pic. The optics makes them appear tilted.

 

[Jimbo327]

Doh, I did the same thing and use the purple PVC primer. Next time, we should use the clear PVC primer.

It's not too bad because I keep my stand doors closed. LOL.

 

[AKReefing]

Doh, I did the same thing and use the purple PVC primer. Next time, we should use the clear PVC primer.

It's not too bad because I keep my stand doors closed. LOL.

Apparently, it can be wiped off with clear primer. Low priority, but I may try it sometime.

 

[AKReefing]

Leak checks are complete. Time for rockwork. Unfortunately, living in earthquake-prone Alaska, I couldn't build a tower of rock. Fortunately, I had enough space in this peninsula tank to go fairly high by starting with a wide base, which also has the benefit of providing more surface area for direct lighting.

 

[Nonya]

Leak checks are complete. Time for rockwork. Unfortunately, living in earthquake-prone Alaska, I couldn't build a tower of rock. Fortunately, I had enough space in this peninsula tank to go fairly high by starting with a wide base, which also has the benefit of providing more surface area for direct lighting.

I like the island effect. Once the rock is covered in corals you'll still have the island for visual appeal.

 

[AKReefing]

Angled valley between the two structures to reduce dead space.

 

[AKReefing]

Finally--rock, sand, salt and water! The return pump is programmed for a reef surge and running. Time for a 30-day run before starting the cycle.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Best of luck to the cycle coming up soon!

 

[AKReefing]

Bottom cabinet is in place. The doors have been installed since this was taken.

Baby steps.

 

[AKReefing]

I checked out the two MP60s that came with the tank. Both needed new dry sides. The magnet on one had split. The other one had some vibration. One wet side refused to work, despite unplugging it from the controller and plugging back in. Same response when connecting it to the other controller. This is getting expensive. I have one dry side on order and two wet sides. I probably should have gone with Gyres.

 

[AKReefing]

I ordered everything I think I need to get the biome going:
- Galaxy Pods & Live Phyto Combo from Algae Barn
- AF Life Source mud
- Ocean Direct Live Reef Sand

I want to introduce as much variety in the biome as possible.

 

[AKReefing]

Heaters will be two 500W Hygger heaters with digital display, over-temperature protection and auto power-off. I'll also have them connected to an Inkbird wi-fi temperature controller with dual temp probes. I use one on my existing tank.

​

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I ordered everything I think I need to get the biome going:
- Galaxy Pods & Live Phyto Combo from Algae Barn
- AF Life Source mud
- Ocean Direct Live Reef Sand

I want to introduce as much variety in the biome as possible.

That was the same sand I used in my tank!

 

[AKReefing]

That was the same sand I used in my tank!

I hear it's popular

 

[AKReefing]

The new heaters showed up. Pretty nifty. You can mount them facing the glass, and the digital readout is pretty cool. It shows actual temperature, desired temperature, and watts being used. It also indicates a couple of other parameters/alarms.

 

[AKReefing]

And off we go! I've added Dr Tim's, Galaxy Pods, AF Life Source mud, and Ocean Direct Caribbean Live Sand to the sump rubble and to the display. It looks like crap for now, but it's getting the biome going. It'll be a few weeks before I get the lights going.