My 500G Osama Reef-2

[Ricardo18]

Very nice looking tank and best of luck with the build....
May I ask ; looks like Marco dry rock. If so, did you treat it prior to placing in the DT?
I am in South Florida and I love the look of Marco, but I hear caution is advised.

[reeftanknewbie]

Originally Posted by Osama

Reeftank: regarding the sump layout it is all planned by and installed by my LFS whom I had known for over ten years. Plumbing is extremely neat and none will be visible to the viewer once he is done with the install and cabinet and rebuild of the walls...
Sump setup is something like this.
Four compartment: Left & Right compartments are returns from each of the 65g tanks that are on either side of the sump (frag tank & a refuge tank). Water flows over filter material sitting on a raised egg-crate. Back compartment has four returns from the main tank and a feed return from the skimmer into which drips my doser/chemical my Kalk my CR etc all located in the closet at the end of the tank. Front sump compartment houses the four pumps. Two for main tank one for the two 65g and forth for the skimmer.. Hope that with the pictures on previous pages helps...

Thanks that does help a lot. I was having a hard time figuring the sump out from the pics you posted. What kind of filter media are you planning on using on top of the egg crate? I was guessing carbon.

[albano]

Originally Posted by Ricardo18

May I ask ; looks like Marco dry rock. If so, did you treat it prior to placing in the DT?
I am in South Florida and I love the look of Marco, but I hear caution is advised.

High phosphates?

[Osama]

Hi Albano. Bought the dry rock from Florida. I am not sure if it is OK to give you the site name and seller name here or in a private message. I will do whichever is OK by RC and you... I like the dry rock and I ordered very large pieces. they will almost custom cut pieces to size. Of the 1000 lbs of LR I have 250lbs dry rock. I placed the dry rock in the sump basement with corals and LR for about 2 months and noticed no negative effect on the corals. I have just moved the rock into the main tank and I have yet to check the chemistry... Have a couple of shrooms that are surviving without yet to be placed lights on the tank...
It seems that the rock is A OK.. here is a quote from the seller when I asked about seeding/curing the rock ".. This rock doesn't need curing. so your seeding process will be simple.." I trusted him and everything seems OK so far. Will be testing all water parameters once the built is done in 2-4 weeks. Meanwhile on with the construction.. Thanks for our interest.

[Osama]

Hello Reeftanknewubie... You are welcome. For now The returns from the two small tanks are on top of egg-crate with floss material to catch any construction debris from those two tanks. The main tank will have socks attached only when we are doing a major stirring of the surfaces of rocks and bottom sand layer as part of major maintenance. After a year I prefer to rely on natural filtration and only use the socks whenever I have energy to do a major surface turnover/cleanup . I Hope that helps. I will have installed on my system two GFO's for carbon & Phosphate removal (If I ever need them is a question mark for now) but for such a large system/expense I will have them available along with a UV lights... All three just installed yesterday

[Osama]

Yesterday Matt installed the Skimmer and UV as shown here in the control closet which is located at one end of the tank and had a deeper section where the UV & skimmer are located and front section to the right of the skimmer section where the GFOs CR Kalk etc will be located.Tank is to the right of this picture. Next install not till Tuesday.



GFOs hooked up



Pump Controls is work in Progress. Will be firmly positioned next week with ballasts shown on the ground.



Longitudinal view of top of tank with controls at far end



Following are two views from family room with Aquascaping as work in progress and 65% complete.





lastly for this segment. Conduit is in wall to be wired next week.


to all thanks for viewing...

[Ricardo18]

[QUOTE=Osama;22108398]Hi Albano. Bought the dry rock from Florida. I am not sure if it is OK to give you the site name and seller name here or in a private message. I will do whichever is OK by RC and you...

You can refer to suppliers all the time..that is one of the main reasons for the forum .

[Osama]

Thanks Ricardo.. I am now deciding on sand bed or no sand bed? Any thoughts?? I am inclined to go for a sand bed and if I do what is now the practice deep sand bed of four inches or just one-two inch sand bed. Appreciate your input /thoughts

[Newbie Aquarist]

I would say the 1-2". Easier Maintenance.

[Osama]

thanks Newbie the old school of reefing was for the deeper sand bed and I did it for my previous tanks.. I am for a sand bed as I do not like the looks of a tank without one. So 1-2 inches would do it for me. Just not sure of what I am loosing with the shallower bed.. Any info on this subject or where to look for it

[Ricardo18]

Originally Posted by Osama

Thanks Ricardo.. I am now deciding on sand bed or no sand bed? Any thoughts?? I am inclined to go for a sand bed and if I do what is now the practice deep sand bed of four inches or just one-two inch sand bed. Appreciate your input /thoughts

Bare bottom (bb) is the healthiest for a tank, as the flow can be directed along the bottom with more force (to keep junk suspended) without moving sand all over. Do you like the look??..it's not for everyone ! I am (and will be using for my 500) a shallow sandbed (2") with heavier grain sand which allows maximum flow over it without lifting the sand into suspension.
Deep sand beds are SO EIGHTIES!!

[Osama]

I bought some 90 lbs LS that is fine grain. I also gor some florida beach sand 40lbs that looks fine grain as well. I do like a sand bed in my reef tank and I will be adding one soon. I like your thought about heavier grain sand. What size are U considering.?

[Osama]

Are these kind of bubbles in an expensive Starphire 500g tank OK. Tank is full of water & LR and not leaking for almost one week. Does this mean tank should be OK for the longer run??? Is this normal or is it poor workmanship?

[Ricardo18]

I tried Carib Sea Special Grade Sand ( 1-2mm) in my 150 and I like it.
I will go with this in the 500.

[Ricardo18]

Who did you buy your tank from?
(It's Ok..really!)

..Oh..glass cages

[Osama]

Continuing with the build.. I will use some of the fine grained LS I already bought in the small tank that will be used as refugium. I bought a few different types of sand to see how they look and how I like the look. First bag into the fuge is 20lbs CaribSea Arag-Alive Fiji Pink .. Cleared 70% within one hour. Does not look pink to me!!! But with moderate flow looks like it will be OK in the refuge and I won't have to throw this fine grain sand away. I think I will do as Ricardo and go for larger grain sand for the main tank 1-2 mm &/or 0.5-1.5mm.. Will report as work progresses further..

[bubblewood]

Looking great sir! I'm tagging along for the ride!

[Osama]

Thank U Bubblewood and ALL for your interest and I will keep you all informed of progress.

[Newbie Aquarist]

I would call your builder and send pics to him of those air bubbles. I would do that for just piece of mind.

[Osama]

Builder is the one who recommended and bought all equipment on my behalf. He will be here Tuesday and will talk. Meanwhile has anyone else had experience with large glass tank build and are bubbles the norm or should I be seriously concerned. Setup looks great so far and hopefully will be Pk for the longer term. Please chime in with your experiences and thanks

[dave.m]

Bubbles are a weakness in the join. The presence of bubbles does not guarantee a failure of the join, they just represent a potential for failure. The tank may hold well for several years but that potential for failure is always there and may possibly shorten the life expectancy of the tank. That is why people try to act quickly to have these joins redone or the tank replaced. You want to have peace of mind, not just now but five years from now.

Dave.M

[SPotter]

were those bubbles there before you started filling the tank or did they appear after you filled it with water? Either way those bubbles are unacceptable for a large tank like yours. I would be on the phone with either Glass Cages or the people you bought the tank from right away. If this was my tank, I would hold off on doing anything new to the tank until its fixed.

[Newbie Aquarist]

Originally Posted by SPotter

were those bubbles there before you started filling the tank or did they appear after you filled it with water? Either way those bubbles are unacceptable for a large tank like yours. I would be on the phone with either Glass Cages or the people you bought the tank from right away. If this was my tank, I would hold off on doing anything new to the tank until its fixed.

+1 on that.

[Osama]

I am seriously disappointed, I trusted the LFS /Installer/buyer but for him to have the tank in the shop on display for one month to cure (as he told me) before bringing it in and filling it and not take care of these weaknesses in the joints.. Now the tank is full of water & 1000 lbs of Live Rock.. I almost have to use it as is. I know what I will get from my guy.. It will be OK. I'll see what he says on Tuesday. Thanks for your valuable input.. Reason I raised the question is that I feared it is a weakness in the joints for a 500g it must be bad..and it occurs at several places/spots..

[Osama]

Spotter : Those bubbles were here from before the tank was filled.. A bit of comfort in that the tank is holding water for NOW!!..no leaks .. Almost wished it leaked before we completed the fill and the rocks