I went shopping...

Sk8r · 02/28/2007, 03:11 PM

Facing a move, and the necessity to put my sump and pump in the basement, I went shopping. I have a 54 [I'm now told] bowfront, and a 10g sump with an Aqua C EV120 skimmer and a mag 9.5 pump with 900gph flow. This won't handle what comes next.

I'm drilling two holes in the corner of the living room floor, to the basement. One 1 1/2 inch pipe from near the carpet to the basement, where I'll have a stand and the sump. That feeds into the sump via a short hose. Next, a 1 inch pipe from downflow top of the tank through the floor and down to the basement, where it will connect to my new pump. It was hard to explain to the plumber I want to hire [I don't trust my joints in such a long run] that this non-code arrangement would not be connected to city water. He finally understood when I said closed loop.

The shopping part: a 30 gallon sump with ample room for the EV120 and a refugium, plus an Iwaki pump adequate to send that water upstairs with about 1500 to 1100 gph. At that hard pipe upstairs, is a downward elbow and a bifurcate head, one to a seaswirl, one to a directable nozzle. The pump and sump weren't cheap, but they'll be so much better than what I have. I'm getting new sand.

Plus the lfs is going to keep my fish and corals while I have a mild cycle, plus frag a couple of my larger corals that are getting too large---I'm going to give them the frags for the favor. AND they're going to drill my sump for the Iwaki external pump, which is one more job I don't have to do.

I'll be so glad when I'm through this, but I think it's going to be an excellent system, and much more stable. That'll give me much more water, and a refugium, and more flow, all in one. Happy un-birthday to us!

techreef · 03/01/2007, 08:38 AM

Sounds like you're getting a small taste of the thrill of building again, Sk8r. I hope it all works out well!

Re: your new return pump, if you haven't already ordered the Iwaki, take a look at the Sequence line of pumps. (Marlin UNO, Barracuda, Dart, etc.) The build quality of the motors is very highly regarded (I too was an Iwaki lover in a previous life), and many of the pumps will consume less electricity if you dial them back with a ball valve, which makes them a bit more flexible for other applications than Iwaki's, in my opinion. Pricewise, they cost less too. (Sequence Marlin UNO pump @ 2050gph for $300 vs. Iwaki 100RLT @ 2000gph for $354) prices from Premium Aquatics.

Either way, I wish I could do what you're doing and quiet down my living room by making the sump remote like yours will be. Very cool!

Sk8r · 03/01/2007, 08:45 AM

I have ordered the Iwaki---Japanese motor, which I'm told is better---because that's what I can get from the fish store that is holding my fish and corals for me while my tank cycles, such as it will. But thank you so much for the info. I'm so looking forward to this arrangement. I can't believe I'm drilling into the living room floor, but this is going to be so much easier to service, down right next to the laundry room on a concrete floor with a big drain.

Deep breath. They're doing the appraisal today: I can't believe there'll be any trouble or glitch now. We've had all the nailbiting moments we deserve...

techreef · 03/01/2007, 11:30 AM

"yeah, honey? you know about the reef tank, right? yeah, i know; i've been spending a lot of time tinkering with it. yeah, and money. the corals and fish CAN start to really add up, right? oh, and i know I promised that I'll get that 44G Brute trashcan out of the hallway as soon as I can do the waterchange. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that I need to drill some holes in the floor. For the aquarium. I'm going to pump water up from the basement into the tank." RUN, sk8r!!

techreef · 03/01/2007, 11:33 AM

oh, and just as a heads up, be aware that the Iwaki pump will come w/ a power cord that doesn't have a plug end on it. It's just the cut cords poking out the end of the black insulation. At least, my Japanese 100RLT came that way. I don't want you thinking (logically, BTW) that it will be plug-and-play out of the box.

Sk8r · 03/01/2007, 11:47 AM

Lol!
And thanks for the heads-up on the plug. I can add a plug, no problem. Hopefully I can site the sump/pump where I won't have a long run on the plug-in. Or I run an extension until I can get an electrician to drop a socket into range. I'll handle anything until it gets to a main house wire: then I figure it's the pros' job, because I really hate splicing into that loop. A) I've been knocked into blue air by touching a live 'un and B) I trust my joining only on the small wires.

techreef · 03/01/2007, 12:37 PM

i truly thought when i first started researching SW tanks that y'all were crazy when you kept saying "you'll be moving up to a bigger tank in no time." people w/ 125G tanks were saying this! i'd read this over and over in threads, roll my eyes, and think about all the rich people that this country has in it.

then i started building my 90G...

it's been up over six months now, and I'm already chafing at the fact that I can't stock alot of the fish that I want (most tangs, iffy on doliatus rabbit, etc.) due to minimum tank sizes that are bigger than my 90. this hobby is disgusting.

but we need to move into a house w/ a concrete floor before I'm getting anything bigger than what we have now.

barbra · 03/01/2007, 01:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by techreef
"yeah, honey? you know about the reef tank, right? yeah, i know; i've been spending a lot of time tinkering with it. yeah, and money. the corals and fish CAN start to really add up, right? oh, and i know I promised that I'll get that 44G Brute trashcan out of the hallway as soon as I can do the waterchange. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that I need to drill some holes in the floor. For the aquarium. I'm going to pump water up from the basement into the tank." RUN, sk8r!!

LOL - this is awesome. I frequently read how you guys have trouble getting the other half in your life to accept the tank and it's the funniest thing. It's the same for women, let me assure you. I don't even let my boyfriend hear the tank gurgle in the background when we're on the phone, it's an instant argument. Luckily he got a DUI and can't drive to my house for 9 more months. If he knew that I also own a 125g and I just haven't picked it up yet I'd be a dead woman

02/28/2007, 03:11 PM	#1
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	I went shopping... Facing a move, and the necessity to put my sump and pump in the basement, I went shopping. I have a 54 [I'm now told] bowfront, and a 10g sump with an Aqua C EV120 skimmer and a mag 9.5 pump with 900gph flow. This won't handle what comes next. I'm drilling two holes in the corner of the living room floor, to the basement. One 1 1/2 inch pipe from near the carpet to the basement, where I'll have a stand and the sump. That feeds into the sump via a short hose. Next, a 1 inch pipe from downflow top of the tank through the floor and down to the basement, where it will connect to my new pump. It was hard to explain to the plumber I want to hire [I don't trust my joints in such a long run] that this non-code arrangement would not be connected to city water. He finally understood when I said closed loop. The shopping part: a 30 gallon sump with ample room for the EV120 and a refugium, plus an Iwaki pump adequate to send that water upstairs with about 1500 to 1100 gph. At that hard pipe upstairs, is a downward elbow and a bifurcate head, one to a seaswirl, one to a directable nozzle. The pump and sump weren't cheap, but they'll be so much better than what I have. I'm getting new sand. Plus the lfs is going to keep my fish and corals while I have a mild cycle, plus frag a couple of my larger corals that are getting too large---I'm going to give them the frags for the favor. AND they're going to drill my sump for the Iwaki external pump, which is one more job I don't have to do. I'll be so glad when I'm through this, but I think it's going to be an excellent system, and much more stable. That'll give me much more water, and a refugium, and more flow, all in one. Happy un-birthday to us! __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

03/01/2007, 08:45 AM	#3
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	I have ordered the Iwaki---Japanese motor, which I'm told is better---because that's what I can get from the fish store that is holding my fish and corals for me while my tank cycles, such as it will. But thank you so much for the info. I'm so looking forward to this arrangement. I can't believe I'm drilling into the living room floor, but this is going to be so much easier to service, down right next to the laundry room on a concrete floor with a big drain. Deep breath. They're doing the appraisal today: I can't believe there'll be any trouble or glitch now. We've had all the nailbiting moments we deserve... __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

03/01/2007, 11:47 AM	#6
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Lol! And thanks for the heads-up on the plug. I can add a plug, no problem. Hopefully I can site the sump/pump where I won't have a long run on the plug-in. Or I run an extension until I can get an electrician to drop a socket into range. I'll handle anything until it gets to a main house wire: then I figure it's the pros' job, because I really hate splicing into that loop. A) I've been knocked into blue air by touching a live 'un and B) I trust my joining only on the small wires. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

03/01/2007, 08:38 AM	#2
techreef Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Montclair, NJ Posts: 1,046	Sounds like you're getting a small taste of the thrill of building again, Sk8r. I hope it all works out well! Re: your new return pump, if you haven't already ordered the Iwaki, take a look at the Sequence line of pumps. (Marlin UNO, Barracuda, Dart, etc.) The build quality of the motors is very highly regarded (I too was an Iwaki lover in a previous life), and many of the pumps will consume less electricity if you dial them back with a ball valve, which makes them a bit more flexible for other applications than Iwaki's, in my opinion. Pricewise, they cost less too. (Sequence Marlin UNO pump @ 2050gph for $300 vs. Iwaki 100RLT @ 2000gph for $354) prices from Premium Aquatics. Either way, I wish I could do what you're doing and quiet down my living room by making the sump remote like yours will be. Very cool!

03/01/2007, 11:30 AM	#4
techreef Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Montclair, NJ Posts: 1,046	"yeah, honey? you know about the reef tank, right? yeah, i know; i've been spending a lot of time tinkering with it. yeah, and money. the corals and fish CAN start to really add up, right? oh, and i know I promised that I'll get that 44G Brute trashcan out of the hallway as soon as I can do the waterchange. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that I need to drill some holes in the floor. For the aquarium. I'm going to pump water up from the basement into the tank." RUN, sk8r!!

03/01/2007, 11:33 AM	#5
techreef Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Montclair, NJ Posts: 1,046	oh, and just as a heads up, be aware that the Iwaki pump will come w/ a power cord that doesn't have a plug end on it. It's just the cut cords poking out the end of the black insulation. At least, my Japanese 100RLT came that way. I don't want you thinking (logically, BTW) that it will be plug-and-play out of the box.

03/01/2007, 12:37 PM	#7
techreef Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Montclair, NJ Posts: 1,046	i truly thought when i first started researching SW tanks that y'all were crazy when you kept saying "you'll be moving up to a bigger tank in no time." people w/ 125G tanks were saying this! i'd read this over and over in threads, roll my eyes, and think about all the rich people that this country has in it. then i started building my 90G... it's been up over six months now, and I'm already chafing at the fact that I can't stock alot of the fish that I want (most tangs, iffy on doliatus rabbit, etc.) due to minimum tank sizes that are bigger than my 90. this hobby is disgusting. but we need to move into a house w/ a concrete floor before I'm getting anything bigger than what we have now.