Melev's new 280g Starfire tank thread

[meijino]

Just wanted to say great job and to let you know this post is being followed from Puerto Rico.

[Steven M]

Great job in two weeks, my tank sat on the stand in my carport for 2 month

[Knyght]

Boy that 55 looks small now huh

[Dk Coral]

Originally posted by weatherson

The black acrylic prefilter covers is a good idea. I have all kinds of sponge and critters growing in my boxes. They've become great little mini-eco systems themselves.

So are mine Lots of wierd low light sponges are on the sides of mine along with feather duster and so

[melev]

Originally posted by carpetride
I've followed the thread fromt the start so if I missed this I apologize---for your closed loop are you going to use an Oceans Motion or something similar? Just curious.

No, I don't think so. I'm toying with the idea of putting a spraybar behind the rockwork in the back center section. However, the flow coming out of the returns right now is amazing. Once I get the two Tunze Streams working again, I don't even think a closed loop is necessary. Regardless, it is plumbed and ready for a pump should I pursue it.

[melev]

Originally posted by electric130
the old ones used to be. the newer "HQI" type are not. they'll run anything. if they look like this, you have the newer ones:

Mine looks exactly like your top blue ballast. How do you know if it is HQI? What does that stand for anyway? I don't see a model number on this one. I took a picture of it, in case you need to see it, but all the writing appears to be identical to yours. So I can use pretty much any MH? Please tell me if it is Pulse or Probe start, so I don't make that mistake.

[bulkhead]

Marc, they are electronic ballasts......will work on any single ended mogul socket MH or double ended bulbs.... Pound for pound, just about the best ballasts out there.....they are what I'm using....if that carries any weight ....I guess better yet, they are what Weatherson is using....

[melev]

Originally posted by weatherson
Marc,
Macro shots... remove the paint (?) from your back pane and create a sheet of black acrylic. Then you can shoot from the back too and see in when maintaining the tank.

Is there a reason you didn't Muriatic acid the tank before placing it? That would have saved you a lot of time cleaning.

The black acrylic prefilter covers is a good idea. I have all kinds of sponge and critters growing in my boxes. They've become great little mini-eco systems themselves.

It's all looking great and you are to be commended for all your efforts. Monster House has nothing on you.

Joseph

The back of the tank seems to have some type of black background, more than just a paint. I'm not going to try removing it at this point. I may ask Mitch what it is, in case anyone asks me.

I didn't want to clean the tank with muriatic acid because I didn't want to create a cycle. The LS was left in the tank, as there was only 1", and all the coralline algae was scrubbed and chipped back into the water. After a few hours, the majority of the water was pumped back into the tank, and there are no detectable NO3 readings currently. Plus, I had people like Evan that offered to clean the glass excitedly, while I ran across town getting plumbing parts. Evan was very proud of how clean the glass was, and I was proud of him doing so with nary a scratch.

The black acrylic covers are your idea, as far as I know. I won't have to drill a hole for the durso cap, because mine don't come up that high. For some reason, InterAmerican put some black eggcrate on edge, glued on top of the overflows (2 squares high) to act as teeth. I'd like to simple remove those and let the water flow through smoothly, and put he black acrylic horizontally on top of the opening with a 1/2" to 3/4" gap. What do you think about that?

Thanks for the compliment.

[melev]

Originally posted by cmiannay
Hey Marc! I feel your excitement. It wasn't that long ago for us.

I have a question sort of off the subject. I'm asking you here instead of our thread 'cause I figured I'd get a quicker response. We are getting everything together to start making our own Phyto. We're also going to start making the "mush" you recommend. We were wondering if you feed both, why, and how often?

Cathy/Cindy

Hi Cindy and Cathy,

I feed the pureed food every day, between 8:30 to 9:30 pm. The fish know my schedule. Well, my two reefs do, the new guys look hungry all the time and I have such a soft spot for them in my heart that I'm having a hard time not feeding them tons. 5 tangs and all the other new fish - I don't know how much to put in there! With my 2 reef tanks and my son's 29g, I break of a small piece smaller than a Reese's Butter Cup (and not as thick), and thaw that in the microwave in some water for 10 seconds. Then I take a fork to break it up so it thaws quickly. I fork in the larger chunks into all three tanks. Then I go back to my 2 reef tanks, and pour in the liquid food that the fork didn't pull out so that all the livestock has a chance to eat the tiny stuff. This has worked well for me for a long time.

Phyto is fed every other day. Since you are starting from scratch, you feed a little bit at first, then in two days, feed again with a little bit more. You'll keep increasing the amount until you reach your maximum level. On my 55g I feed 1 cup of phyto every other day. Since your tank is a 135, you'd probably feed 2.5 to 3 cups every other day. Of course, your population isn't as dense as my 55g. I would start with 1 cup, then 1.5, then 2, then 2.5. From then on, 2.5 cups.

It's a good idea that you grow your own, because that much phyto is costly.

Btw, if you are buying DT's phytoplankton, it is much more concentrated. 2 tablespoons of DT's is the same as 1 cup of home-grown, ime.

[melev]

RGibson, I don't know if the pump is running hot or not. It feels warm to hot, but I've never owned one before and don't know if that is the normal operating temperature. It runs quietly, which I'm happy to say.

Thanks, Gerard & meijino

StevenM, this is Day Seven. Not Day Fourteen.

Knight, the 55g looks like a baby. I'm glad the 29g is across the room!

bulkhead, thanks for the information. Still, is it Pulse or Probe start?

[gab24m3]

Marc I have the exact same 250 watt electronic ballast and it turns on gradually, I'm assuming that it is a Probe start.

Never heard of those terms Pulse or Probe start .

I guess this is why we suscribe to threads is to learn.

Any more pics tonight Marc, hopefully!

[melev]

Okay, here's the lastest update. Today the walls went up. I was hoping to have it sheetrocked in, but the walls took forever to go in, because nothing in my garage is square or true. It was very frustrating, as the ceiling has many major issues and we had to make adjustments for just about every board. It would have been nice to just build two walls on the driveway, bring them into the garage and secure them, but that wasn't possible. Even the garage floor is sloped, but I'm pretty sure that is intentional so that those that desire to wash their garages out once a year can do so.

Then when everything started working out well, the 2x4's were too short. Back to Home Depot. I was able to take back the extra plumbing fittings I didn't need, and the credit I obtained equaled the amount the longer 2x4's cost.

Evan and Kaveh spent the evening helping me get the walls in, and put one more piece of sheetrock on the fish room ceiling. I framed the door opening to fit a 32" door (opening is 36" x 83" - so any framers out there can confirm that was correct?), with a header and cripples... pretty much the works. Overkill I know, but if the ceiling comes down around me, that door frame and corner will be my salvation.

My son Phillip took all the lights and fans off the old canopy. Scott came over around that time, and offered to help. He went ahead and rewired the two 6' actinic VHOs and we put these over the tank so we could see in there. The 55g's MH has been lighting up the front of the 280g nicely, but it was nice to have some light shining down from above.

All the fish are doing well, and the fighting conch was rescued from a predicament he was in and now is submerged in a nice sandy spot. There are still a lot of microbubbles, and I had to pause and remember the advice I've been giving out for some time now: "new plumbing takes 2 weeks to slime over and break in." I'm sure it will be fine. The sand is really moving around with the little bit of LR that was put in the tank.

For those of you that liked the Golden Eel, I'm pleased to report that it did eat a piece of deli shrimp that I put in the tank near him. I was told he would only eat from his feeding tongs, which are broken and ancient history. I took a small piece of shrimp and thought I'd be able to lower it near the eel with a piece of rigid airline tubing, but it didn't hold. So I held it in my fingers, and swished it in the water for a few seconds, waited 10 seconds, and did it again. My son's tiny eel came out into the open, so I gave the shrimp to it. I put it right near where its head was, and watched. The little snowflake eel took the piece in his mouth and pulled it back out of sight to eat in privacy. Now that I had no food for the big Golden eel, I went to the kitchen to get another thawed piece (I was feeding the BTAs as well, so it was ready.) When I came back, the Golden Eel's body was visible, but his head was in the area that the snowflake had gone. I watched, and the eel went in deeper. Not knowing who would win that one, I put another piece of shrimp in the same spot I put the first, and watched closely. The Golden eel backed out and literally smelled the new piece of food. Then it pulled back and smelled the rock nearby, then a snail shell, then the food again. After about 90 seconds, it finally determined that piece of shrimp must be dinner, and he gulped it down. His neck was mishapen for a few seconds, then it did this thrusting swallow. I was happy to see it eat anything, because I was told it eats silversides and had not had anything for a week. Now if it coughed it back up later, I don't know. I'm hoping for the best.

So here are a few pictures. This is the IceCap ballast we've been discussing. It is a 250w MH ballast, and I have three of them.



Here's Evan perched on the ladder. You can see the Actinic VHOs glowing above the tank. They are sitting on the glass euro-bracing, and can't fall in. The VHOs use an IceCap 430 ballast.



Kaveh loves power tools, and helped cut all the boards for the walls. He enjoyed using the framing gun too. As you can see, the garage is so full of stuff that we hardly have room to work. I can't wait for it to be done so I can get things organized and recover the lost space.



And here I am, not looking at my best. This was a very frustrating job, but it is ready to sheetrock. For those of you looking too closely at the studs, remember this is not a load bearing section and that the house has trusses. I just need to stop the external temperature of the garage from affecting the tank.



The room is roughly 8' x 7', and feels nice and spacious. I probably could have made it larger to hold all the extra stuff we accumulate taking care of our tanks, but I'd prefer it be a functional area more than a storage locker. I'll have things accessible on the walls, and at least one water storage container.

[thewuf]

Marc-

About your ballast...Directly from IceCap's website....

*Available in 120V, 220V and 277V models

*Fully electronic platform, not a hybrid

*Will ignite ANY 250W Metal Halide lamp

[JB NY]

Marc, You're good on the ballast. That IC will fire all the lamps. Progress is looking good BTW!

[Dracunculus]

Marc,

Just offering my congratulations...you have been doing a great job. My first contact with you was on the rec.aquaria.marine.reefs newsgroup and you have always been an inspiration as well as a help. I would never have thought of building my own sump if it had not been for your webpage...and it has been working well for over a year (although I have been thinking of making a new one lately, to have a larger refugium area...I am sure you are familiar with the constant desire to improve ). One of these years when I get a larger tank (although I am sure it will not be a 280 gallon monster) I will try to take these lessons to heart as well. Thanks for sharing the experience, and I hope you have many years of enjoyment from the new tank.

[rjwilson37]

Fantastic, things are looking good!

[delta]

Marc,
Assuming you using an exterior 32"x 80" door your rough should be about 35 x 83 depending on the exact door you purchased

Say it’s a therma tru door then it would be 34 1\2 x 82 1\2 so you should be fine with that at 36 x 83. Worst case leave your sheet rock a little long so you can put a plywood strip in, this best if your are going to be using a small trim don’t want to cut it too close.

Then again that is what board stretchers are for

[minfinger]

Nice job Marc...!

[quiksilver]

Man, missed work to build that room with Marc yesterday... Can't believe I haven't been fired yet.

[thewuf]

Evan, aren't we all really Marc's apprentices?

[Copperkid]

Nothing was cooler than the framing gun! When marc builds his new sump I'm gonna take out the old sump with the gun (and no safety).

this is kaveh

[quiksilver]

Originally posted by thewuf
Evan, aren't we all really Marc's apprentices?

LOL... yes we are, but I think when you spend an entire week at his house building stuff you earn the official title especially when you do this like 5 times.

I am the padiwan, he is my obi wan

[thewuf]

I was there in spirit - that makes me like, ummmm, YODA!

[SaltNutz]

Originally posted by melev
The back of the tank seems to have some type of black background, more than just a paint. I'm not going to try removing it at this point. I may ask Mitch what it is, in case anyone asks me.

Mine has the same thing. Some sort of mirror paint.

[sansui]

Nice work !!!