The Money Pit - 75 Gallon Build

[Wild Bill]

This will be my 75 gallon build.

Found a stand on a local classified that had some engineered flooring as a finish. I removed the flooring and reskinned the outside.

Finished the exterior with a clear polyurethane. Primed and painted the inside with a good paint that dries hard as nails.

Got the plumbing installed inside the overflow also.

(Tank was standing on its side when I took the pics).

Hopefully next weekend I can get the plumbing done inside the cabinet and get the water flow zeroed in so I can bring the money pit in and get it set up.

The Sump.

 

[stella1979]

I LOVE the natural wood showing through on the stand!!! Looking great so far Bill! A money pit indeed, but it will be a beautiful one. Hope the build continues to go smoothly for you.

 

[fa4960]

Looking great.

How solid is your stand and how big is the tank? Normally I would expect to see support also in the middle front of the stand? I know this will prevent you from adding the sump but then open the stand at one of the ends so you can still get the sump in place, and out again in case you for some reason need to. The last thing you want is the tank to be unsupported at the middle front when supported everywhere else.

 

[Wild Bill]

It’s a 75. The previous owner sold the 90 that used to sit on it.

 

[Wild Bill]

Here’s the skimmer: eSsence S-130 Internal Protein Skimmer - Reef Octopus

Lights:

Plumbing is ordered, going with red pipe and gray fittings. That should pop inside the white cabinet.

 

[Wild Bill]

Everything should be here Monday, just gotta find time next weekend to put it together.

 

[Wild Bill]

Went on a drooling trip to the lfs yesterday. Seen this guy. He’s a vampire (dragon, it’s one of those) wrasse. He’s gorgeous, yet very deadly to other fish as an adult. When fully grown, they look nothing like this. You can even see their teeth sticking out from their lips.

 

[Wild Bill]

Got the back of the tank painted today. Gotta love Lowes and their sample paints for 2.00. Also got the RO/DI installed today. As soon as the tank is plumbed and zeroed in everything will be moved into place, then the fun begins.

Forgot to post the pic.

 

[Wild Bill]

I’ve been a busy boy today.

 

[Wild Bill]

Week 51: What you need to know to cure fish disease & parasites | 52 Weeks of Reefing #BRS160 something every water keeper should be aware of.

 

[Wild Bill]

Gotta get busy, got lots of work to do.

 

[Wild Bill]

Been working on my stocking plan, let me know what you think. I still haven’t decided on a centerpiece fish.

Inside the refugium,
1 inch of mud, with 3 inches of sand on top.
Chaeto
Ulva
Codium
1 or 2 mangroves
Nart, I’d like your input here.

For fish,
5 green chromis, I will keep the 1 blue damsel he joins with the 3 green chromis I have now and isn’t aggressive towards them (surprisingly).
1 YWM goby with a paired shrimp
2 O clowns (paired)
CUC

 

[Nart]

hahaha "the money pit" love that thread title.

Input on your refugium?
I'd personally save the money and ditch the mud and sand. Just use the refugium portion to grow nothing but chaetomorpha. kind of the KISS method, but that's just me.
Also - this way, when it comes time to maintenance your fuge. you don't have to deal with all the mud and sand. easier to keep clean once in a while.

 

[Wild Bill]

What is the KISS method?

 

[fa4960]

Keep It Simple Stupid - no offense intended

 

[Wild Bill]

none taken. Thanks.

 

[Culprit]

Oh yeah, I can't wait to see this money pit form into a beautiful money sucking reef!

 

[stella1979]

Hmmmm, I'm wondering what you had in mind when planning a DSB in the fuge? I'm also of the mind that the KISS method with a load of chaeto is a great way to go. I believe the huge fuge full of chaeto is the method currently being used with the BRS 160.

I'll say it again... the stand is beautiful Bill!

 

[Wild Bill]

Thanks Stella. The DSB is to help with nutrients in the water column. Been doing massive reading lately about it. Learned some, forgot some already. Lol. There’s lots of conflicting articles on it.

 

[stella1979]

Interesting. I haven't looked into DSB's much, but I do sometimes wonder if I'm missing some of those nutrients that we don't test for. For example, I haven't been able to identify why softies don't do so great in my tank.

I did briefly bring up the DSB here, and got some good info on how one might do it with a jawfish in mind. Perhaps not really the same as what you're talking about, but in case you're interested.... KinsKicks wrote me a good recipe for a DSB here.
Jawfish / Deep Sand Bed