Oldcabin's Reefer 525 XL

[Oldcabin]

Hi all,
Excited to announce that after moving around for many years, I've finally got the opportunity to stay put long enough to start another build (in Alaska of all places)!

Just took delivery of a Red Sea Reefer 525XL (~110 gallons) that I plan to make an SPS dominant minimalist reef.

I'm still fairly new to the hobby, but have learned some along the way and hope to continue learning from the forum community as well.

So far, I've gotten the stand put together and the tank plumbed.
Extremely pleased with the ease and quality of construction of this tank. So far, only minor hiccups throughout the process!

Also, thanks to member "neiltus" for the tips in tricks on the plumbing process. They were spot on and saved me the time of troubleshooting myself!

Next step will be mounting the lights and aquascaping.

Lots of equipment on order and should be arriving through the next week or so.
Equipment list thus far:
(3) AI Hydra 26 HD (white)
(2) Ecotech MP40's
(1) Ecotech M1 return pump
APEX Gold
Aquamaxx CO-2 skimmer

Future:
Tunze ATO
Doser
APEX modules

Pictures (to avoid a worthless thread):

The beginning:


Getting closer:





How it looks today (8/11/16):

[Brieninsac]

I have sump envy. How many gallons is it?

[Oldcabin]

Thanks. According to Red Sea the sump is 31 gallons.
Seems plenty large enough for what I'll need, but it's a tight fit in the cabinet.
Hoping it won't cause issues with wire/equipment management.

[jmiotke]

So awesome. I'm building along with you Brieninsac. Im just a few steps ahead of where you are at now.

[neiltus]

Nice!!! Excited for you.

In our PMs I said same footprint as 350...I was thinking of the 425, not the 525.

I too have sump envy. Also, the inside of your cabinet is black...did you do that or did it come that way?

[Oldcabin]

Thanks guys.

jmiotke - I've been following your build as well, can't wait to see your progress!

neiltus - Thanks again for the help thus far. The cabinet came with a black interior. I also thought this was very odd (and I almost called Red Sea to tell them they sent me the wrong color), but then I saw pictures online where other 525's had the same. So I guess for some reason they didn't both to paint them. I was bummed at first, but now kind of like it. Hoping it'll help hide my mess of wires, etc. Will just need a really good light so I can see while working down there.

[Oldcabin]

Let there be light!
What a PITA this was.....too much measuring for this simple man! The center light was the worst as the plumbing interfered with the adjustment knobs. Small shim for clearance and back in business.

Very pleased with the the lights on initial setup. The AI interface is nice and basic, just the way I like it.




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[Brieninsac]

Those lights look sharp!

[SCARYBO]

Nice tank

[Oldcabin]

Thanks all!
So I need some help.
Trying to figure out the best way to handle the wire management for a clean/organized cabinet.
I'm trying to wire an Apex Gold along with all the other standard equipment. Seems the most challenging aspect is that I've got so much excess in the cords there isn't a good place to hide or route it. I'd also like to have a nice display board for the Ecotech drivers and Apex screen while leaving room for future dosers/ATO, etc.
What's the easiest way to build a simple mounting rack?
TIA.



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[GXPKY]

Coil em up and zip tie, wire staples help as well...can always hang the coils under the tank

- Dennis

[Defiant Arms]

Originally Posted by Oldcabin

Let there be light!
What a PITA this was.....too much measuring for this simple man! The center light was the worst as the plumbing interfered with the adjustment knobs. Small shim for clearance and back in business.

Are those the 6061 mounts? thinking of going with them for my GHL Mitras.

[368]

Your setup looks beautiful. It's so clean.

[Aslam Abraham]

Coming along really nice.

[neiltus]

I used zip ties to keep the hot mess from getting worse. It's all contained in the cabinet. I would love a nice 3-4" hole in the partition, but don't want to drill it as it's load bearing. It's probably fine, but don't want to be the tester.

Some people build mounting boards for electronics...there are a couple examples in the reefer thread.

[Oldcabin]

Appreciate the wiring suggestions. I have a tentative plan to build a simple mounting board....we'll see how it pans out this weekend. Even though failure is highly likely, I'll post the results for your entertainment!

Originally Posted by Defiant Arms

Are those the 6061 mounts? thinking of going with them for my GHL Mitras.

Yes they are. I have nothing but great things to say about them. They're really well designed and of high quality. For the Hydra's, I love that I can run them "parallel" to the tank and completely hide the wiring. Well worth the $$$.

Originally Posted by 368

Your setup looks beautiful. It's so clean.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by Aslam Abraham

Coming along really nice.

Thanks. This is the fun part for me. I'm sure progress will slow as I'm forced into aquascaping and hauling water

[Ron Reefman]

Oldcabin, I'm just starting the process with a 125g CadLight Artisan that is very similar to the RS Reefer 525, so I'm following along.

I was surprised at the black inside to your stand as well. It made me go look for images of mine to see if it was black or white! Mine is white, we'll see if it's the gloss white like outside or a flat or matte white inside.

I love your light mounts. They are so clean looking. I want something similar for the Reef Breeder Photon 50 V2 I just got. I'm going to ask 6061 if they are willing to do a custom fabrication.

As I said, I'm just getting started as I had to do a lot of cleanup and repairs while I have been waiting for my tank to arrive on Tuesday. So I'm looking over other people's Red Sea and 125g system designs and builds. Yours is one I will certainly be following! My build thread here is "Downsizing??? Really???".

[Oldcabin]

Thanks Ron. I've been following your progress as well. I was deciding between those two tanks myself, but availability here in Alaska made the RSR easier. Can't go wrong either way, they're both gorgeous tanks.

I hope 6061 can accommodate you, I'm certainly more than impressed with their products and craftsmanship.

Can't wait to see your progress. You'll soon be way ahead of me with all your existing livestock and equipment to move over.

I'll be following!


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[brad65ford]

Sub'd love the nice always wanted one

[Oldcabin]

Okay everybody....last update for a bit as I'm heading out of town at the end of this week. I'd hate to complete the initial fill and then let my wife deal with any hiccups (which I'm sure there will be plenty!).

Accomplished a lot of the little things.
1) Built simple control panel (don't laugh!)
2) Cleaned up with wiring the best I could
3) Built and installed skimmer
4) Hung motion sensing LED's in cabinets
5) Initial APEX setup complete and probes in place (temporary)
6) Heater installed
7) MP40's and M1 installed
8) Aquascaped

I tried the KISS method of aquascaping. I've done the rock wall in the past and grew tired of it. Figured I can always add more later if needed!
Since I plan to keep mostly SPS, I'm hoping they'll fill in the negative space (since I'm such a fantastic reefer it shouldn't take long :|)
Still playing with it and will probably change it slightly, but overall happy with the result. Especially since I was able to reuse all my old rock without having to purchase more.

Aside from being out of town, I'm waiting on a few final parts before I can finish up. One of the downsides to living in Alaska -- shipping takes forever.

Need a new RO membrane (on the way). I've been struggling to get my old RODI functioning properly. Then I can start making water when I get back.









Left side.


Right side.

[neiltus]

Looks very very neat!

How long does it take ground to get up there from the 48?

[Oldcabin]

Thanks.

Very little comes by ground, almost exclusively air or barge.
For reference, it takes about 5 days to drive from Seattle to here!

[spearofthor]

Awesome! I'm getting my 525 tomorrow.

[Oldcabin]

OK guys. I need help again!
I'm firing up my return pump for the first time (Ecotech M1).
No leaks or any issues that I can see, but the pump simply drains the return section of my sump. The herbie drain is wide open, but it doesn't seem to keep up with the pump even on it's lowest setting. What am I missing here? I've probably overfilled the sump a bit trying to figure this out, but can't troubleshoot very long before I risk running the pump dry.

Any thoughts?
Thanks!

[neiltus]

What is your water height in your overflow? It should be an 1" or 2" below the emergency drain. To me it sounds like there is not enough water in the system if it is pumping dry and not draining down.

Also check that your not pumping too fast. That is a DC pump...what are you running it at...I run mine at about half speed, if I crank it up too much it will over pump the sump...