Travi's 225 RR to Peninsula Conversion

Sltloser · Apr 30, 2020

Travi said:
@Sltloser , thanks for the input! I've got a roadtrip today and I imagine I'll spend most of the 6 hours on the road pondering your suggestions.

Also, I'll look into the gyres...I've been mostly staying away from them because I've heard some horror stories about maintenance, but getting proper flow and setting things up right from the beginning is the top priority.

The maintenance is certainly a hassle from my limited use and what I've heard from others. I personally think tunze would be the best way to go for your set up. You can push a ton of water and direct it wherever you would like. They're also extremely easy to clean and have phenomenal customer service.

Good luck on the road trip!

Travi · Apr 30, 2020

Sltloser said:
The maintenance is certainly a hassle from my limited use and what I've heard from others. I personally think tunze would be the best way to go for your set up. You can push a ton of water and direct it wherever you would like. They're also extremely easy to clean and have phenomenal customer service.

Good luck on the road trip!

The Tunze does look nice...I always loved their pumps, especially back when your only other choice was maxi-jet.

I had one of their waveboxes on a 75g way back about 15 years ago and thought it was really cool.

Travi · Apr 30, 2020

Some of the "fun" stuff has started to arrive!

I'll be honest stand building is not my forte, nor is it very enjoyable for me, so it's been really hard for me to not cut some corners so I could get to playing with new toys.

I've been able to pick up a fair amount of gear from folks used which is keeping the budget manageable but I do have a sizable order from BRS that I'm eagerly anticpating.

Also, big shout out to @SuncrestReef - got to say I've stolen quite a few ideas from him, including his AWT setup and Apex programming -plus, very grateful to the links he provided for stuff like pipe, fittings, cords, etc...super helpful!

SuncrestReef · Apr 30, 2020

Travi said:
Some of the "fun" stuff has started to arrive! I'll be honest stand building is not my forte, nor is it very enjoyable for me, so it's been really hard for me to not cut some corners so I could get to playing with new toys.

I've been able to pick up a fair amount of gear from folks used which is keeping the budget manageable but I do have a sizable order from BRS that I'm eagerly anticpating. Also, big shout out to @SuncrestReef - got to say I've stolen quite a few ideas from him, including his AWT setup and Apex programming -plus, very grateful to the links he provided for stuff like pipe, fittings, cords, etc...super helpful!

I love it when people steal my ideas! Always glad to help. Looking forward to your build.

Travi · May 5, 2020

Sorry for the lack of updates, but I had to get some hydro therapy

With the COVID, I haven't had a chance to get back in the water in a while, so it was good to take a weekend and get some fun in!

Travi · May 5, 2020

Back to the tank updates, I did get the 2x6 framing for the stand done, so now I just need to put the top on and finish it, then the tank can go up!

And got a goodie box from BRS!

bdehlin · May 5, 2020

Following this thread, looks great so far! I did the same thing setting up a new tank while riding out this COVID-19 thing while WFH, and it's been great having a distraction

Travi · May 5, 2020

bdehlin said:
Following this thread, looks great so far! I did the same thing setting up a new tank while riding out this COVID-19 thing while WFH, and it's been great having a distraction

Thanks! I was bad this morning and started looking at fish online...I guess it's at least good motivation to get this done!

In all seriousness, though, I am forcing myself to go slow and think everything out while researching a ton. Also in the works, are a DIY rollermat and DIY algae scrubber...the list keeps growing and growing, lol.

Sltloser · May 5, 2020

Travi said:
Sorry for the lack of updates, but I had to get some hydro therapy

With the COVID, I haven't had a chance to get back in the water in a while, so it was good to take a weekend and get some fun in!

Some deep diving? Or just to increase bottom time? Cozumel had great diving when I was there in 2009, but then the hurricane hit and I've heard it hasn't quite made a full recovery. Have you seen the same thing?

IMO I would stick with the ATS (I've found that they're better nutrient control, and a good place for pods to populate allowing for more free coral food in the forum of larvae and eggs), if you do both that and the roller mat I think you'll completely strip your tank of nutrients and particulate matter for coral health. In the end I think you'll have issues with keeping enough nutrients in the aquarium to keep the corals happy and healthy. I've seen this happen frequently on the forums. People then start dosing nitrate and phosphate but they could probably just increase feeding or cut back some of their filtration equipment and have the same result rather than spending more money on dosing, it just seems counter intuitive to me. Just my 2¢!

Travi · May 5, 2020

Sltloser said:
Some deep diving? Or just to increase bottom time? Cozumel had great diving when I was there in 2009, but then the hurricane hit and I've heard it hasn't quite made a full recovery. Have you seen the same thing?

IMO I would stick with the ATS (I've found that they're better nutrient control, and a good place for pods to populate allowing for more free coral food in the forum of larvae and eggs), if you do both that and the roller mat I think you'll completely strip your tank of nutrients and particulate matter for coral health. In the end I think you'll have issues with keeping enough nutrients in the aquarium to keep the corals happy and healthy. I've seen this happen frequently on the forums. People then start dosing nitrate and phosphate but they could probably just increase feeding or cut back some of their filtration equipment and have the same result rather than spending more money on dosing, it just seems counter intuitive to me. Just my 2¢!

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Mainly just wanted to get some more hours on my rebreather. The lake we were at isn't that deep, so we only went to 124' or so but it was fun to just kick around some. We actually just got back from Cozumel the week before COVID hit. I'd say the reefs have recovered nicely. We usually go every year and we've had some really great dives the last two years.

Thanks for the ATS only suggestion. My thought in the rollermat was just to clean large particles and debris from the water while the algae scrubber takes care of the nutrients. I'm not running a skimmer, either, so I wanted to have one mechanical and one chemical filter, if that makes sense.

TX_Punisher · May 5, 2020

Looking good. Peninsulas are nice. Longer ones tricky to get flow to the end. I wouldn't mind one but i'm looking at 84" which takes up a good amount of space.

Sltloser · May 5, 2020

Travi said:
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Mainly just wanted to get some more hours on my rebreather. The lake we were at isn't that deep, so we only went to 124' or so but it was fun to just kick around some. We actually just got back from Cozumel the week before COVID hit. I'd say the reefs have recovered nicely. We usually go every year and we've had some really great dives the last two years.

Thanks for the ATS only suggestion. My thought in the rollermat was just to clean large particles and debris from the water while the algae scrubber takes care of the nutrients. I'm not running a skimmer, either, so I wanted to have one mechanical and one chemical filter, if that makes sense.

Nice! I'm certified to advanced open water diver (PADI) so 142' feels like forever to me haha. I'm glad to hear that the reefs seem to be doing better in Cozumel!

Oooo that makes sense, I missed the no skimmer portion. If you want to check out my current 40 breeder build, I'm not running any mechanical filtration, only biological ( https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/custom-40-breeder-aio.698257/ ). I have recently had to add some filter floss because my new jawfish is apparently trying to dig it's way to the opposite end of the earth

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Travi · May 5, 2020

TX_Punisher said:
Looking good. Peninsulas are nice. Longer ones tricky to get flow to the end. I wouldn't mind one but i'm looking at 84" which takes up a good amount of space.

Yeah, right now I'm thinking a combination of a closed loop with a Tunze stream. Hopefully, that'll be a good start.

Travi · May 5, 2020

Sltloser said:
Nice! I'm certified to advanced open water diver (PADI) so 142' feels like forever to me haha. I'm glad to hear that the reefs seem to be doing better in Cozumel!

Oooo that makes sense, I missed the no skimmer portion. If you want to check out my current 40 breeder build, I'm not running any mechanical filtration, only biological ( https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/custom-40-breeder-aio.698257/ ). I have recently had to add some filter floss because my new jawfish is apparently trying to dig it's way to the opposite end of the earth .

Great, I'll definitely check that out! If you ever want to get back to Coz, our shop runs about 2 trips a year out there and would love to have you!

Sltloser · May 5, 2020

Travi said:
Great, I'll definitely check that out! If you ever want to get back to Coz, our shop runs about 2 trips a year out there and would love to have you!

Thank you for the invite! I would absolutely love to get back sometime soon. I'll let you know if I book a trip!