Melev's new 280g Starfire tank thread - Page 26

melev · 02/16/2006, 02:22 PM

Kimo, thanks for chiming in. The horses are both still eating as of this morning. And kudos to you for reading this entire thread, as that is quite a (two week!) task.

I think it is time for my Diadema urchin to move on. It chewed on yet another couple of SPS overnight, slowing down the growth progress those had made. I hope to find a large tank to keep it in.

shane 1111 · 02/17/2006, 03:30 PM

two weeks is fast!

Stile2 · 02/17/2006, 04:33 PM

Well, according to melev's time reality. Two weeks is all you need to build a 280 gallon system.

I which I had as many hours in the day as melev does.

Keith

Lunchbucket · 02/17/2006, 06:03 PM

it does seem like out buddy melev has a lot of time....or he just spends ALL his free time here

Lunchbucket

melev · 02/17/2006, 07:30 PM

My days are longer at Melevs Reef.

Lunchbucket · 02/17/2006, 08:15 PM

longer at Melev's reef?? what you mean...thought there was not life for you beyond RC

Lunchbucket

melev · 02/19/2006, 09:04 PM

For a long time, I hated the returns on my tank. InterAmerican drills the return hole in the overflow box, below the teeth. On a larger tank like mine, a couple of inches equals a lot of water in the sump. So I solved it by adding twice as much locline, and had it shaped in an arch. At the apex of the arch, I drilled three holes in the underside to break the siphon and stop draining so much water. This worked great, until about 6 months ago when I soaked the locline in muriatic acid, which cracked the joints and allowed more water to seep out quietly.

This is what it looked like (right side of tank):

I replaced it with this today (left side of tank):

It was something I'd been wanting to do for a while. So here are the pieces. I used 1" PVC to help keep the flow unrestricted, even though I added two elbows doing this. However, I prefer this method to just going up over the top of the overflow, as that plumbing inside isn't glued and I don't want it blowing apart nor permanently glued inside.

The PVC parts were colored with a black Sharpie, which is reef-safe. Over time, even if it comes off coralline will cover it. Threads were covered with Teflon tape, with three or four full rotations (clockwise). When screwing in the fitting, the teflon should not peel off or unscrew off the threads. If it does, it was wrapped incorrectly.

Here is the layout for it to be assembled to fit my overflow.

Almost done.

Two anti siphon holes were drilled, which remain beneath the normal water level in the tank.

When the tank refills (return pump on), water squirts out the holes into the tank. This is a good way for you to verify they are not clogged. Remember, if your tank siphons too much water out, it could be that the holes are clogged and need to be cleared again.

Done. It looks so much better than before. When the return pump is off, the siphon is quickly broken and less water drains to the sump.

I made one for both sides of the tank, and it makes the reef look so much cleaner. The reason the bulkheads were removed for this project is because I was unable to screw in the new PVC fittings with them in place. There was no room for 360 degree rotations, so it was better to disassemble everything and pre-assemble them as a unit.

It only took me 1.5 years to finally get around to this modification.

Micki · 02/19/2006, 09:10 PM

I love it! I've often thought about adding some length to my over flows.

TheCoralNabber · 02/19/2006, 11:25 PM

nice marc, didn't know that sharpies are reef safe.... good thing to know. Not a huge fan of the white pvc look although it does eventually get covered in coraline anyway.

melev · 02/20/2006, 02:52 AM

I love the new look with the shorter locline. I must have had 12 or more sections before, where now it is just 6 pieces, plus the threaded socket and the nozzle.

When it was time to feed the tank tonight, it only drained 1" or less. Success!!

melev · 02/20/2006, 03:04 AM

So I was looking at the sun corals thinking they need to be fed, and stumbled across this little guy in the front of the tank.

So I figured I should find the other one, and here he is, behind the Mandarin Diner.

Off to feed the corals...

NexDog · 02/20/2006, 06:59 AM

Those shrimp are totally surreal.

Marc, how often do you feed your sun coral?

melev · 02/20/2006, 02:41 PM

About once a week, but I'm trying to get more in the habit of feeding every other day. My tank actually seems like it needs more food when I observe how the corals are looking. I have less fish, less waste, and feed less than in the past. I rarely dose phytoplankton as well.

I fed them last night.

Lunchbucket · 02/20/2006, 03:08 PM

Marc - great mod. didn't know that IA drilled thier returns like that...they suck that way.

only 1.5yrs. better now then after a flood

i've used sharpie before...great tool to help hide pvc

Lunchbucket

melev · 02/21/2006, 10:52 PM

I have something different I'd like to show you today. I took apart my Pico tank tonight to siphon out all the detritus. My seahorses are in a hospital tank, so it was rocks, zoos, a dendrophyllia and a cleaner shrimp. I pulled everything out and picked off any fat bristleworms, as well as any razor caulerpa that continues to spread and annoy me.

Then I found one of these. Plucked it off while being angry I'd not seen it before. Then as I added stuff back into the tank, I found a larger one!!!!!!!! It too is down the drain.

These eat zoanthids, if you didn't know it. I'd not seen one in my tank in months, but the zoos have died off a little bit at a time. Looks like I found at least one of the reasons.

Airman · 02/21/2006, 11:21 PM

If it has eight legs I call it a spider.

Airman · 02/21/2006, 11:24 PM

Thanks for the fingerprint. Perhaps I'll run it and see if you have any other hobbies.

asnatlas · 02/21/2006, 11:27 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Airman
Thanks for the fingerprint. Perhaps I'll run it and see if you have any other hobbies.

LOL

Qwiv · 02/22/2006, 12:26 AM

I was planning on using loc-line in my new tank. Do you think the end nozzles are required?? Seems like they wouldn't need to be.

1.5 years to fix the return line. ETA on hood???

melev · 02/22/2006, 12:47 AM

I thought about giving you part of my fingerprint, but I can trust you guys.

The woodwork will be done....

melev · 02/22/2006, 01:04 AM

Pictures have been altered.

Snakebyt · 02/22/2006, 03:08 AM

great idea on the returns, and the pic of the zoa eating spider thing is really cool.. so far all i have found are nudis and they are bad enough

jnb · 02/22/2006, 08:02 AM

did some one say nudi's? I have been plucking these out one by one when I see them which is about two a week - are they bad? btw I use the wonderful but modified (enlarged the hole so larger food (and nudi's) could pass through) Kent sea squirt to suck them right off the glass. They are typically less than 1/4 inch long

TheCoralNabber · 02/22/2006, 08:24 AM

Nasty looking alien buggers, that much is for sure.

LOL on altering the pics.

We all need to promise to not read Marc's thread until he gets the woodwork done, or maybe if we give him a hard enough time he'll decide to shut us up and finish it

selgado · 02/22/2006, 10:40 AM

I say we all take up a collection and hire a local contractor.

02/17/2006, 04:33 PM	#628
Stile2 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Yucaipa, California (some little town you've never heard of) Posts: 1,624	Well, according to melev's time reality. Two weeks is all you need to build a 280 gallon system. I which I had as many hours in the day as melev does. Keith __________________ If you have a college degree, you can be sure of one thing. You have a college degree! Superman owns Chuck Norris Pajamas!! Current Tank Info: 77 Gallon Custom peninsula 3 sides viewable, DIY Steel Stand, OM Squirt, 2 x 250 w MH, 2 x 95 w VHO, DIY Skimmer

02/17/2006, 06:03 PM	#629
Lunchbucket Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Brookings, SD Posts: 12,924	it does seem like out buddy melev has a lot of time....or he just spends ALL his free time here Lunchbucket __________________ Trying to lose weight by walking is like trying to bake a cake w/ a cigarette lighter - Lunchbucket - "Nancy-Boy Extraordinaire" - maxxII- Current Tank Info: 58gal Oceanic RR, 2x400w MH (20k XM and 10k XM), Deltec PF601 Ca Rx, Deltec AP701 skimmer, mag950 return, iwaki 55rlt w/ an Oceansmotions 4-way unit, Tunze 7300 and 6000 each w/ controller, fluidized po4 rx

02/17/2006, 08:15 PM	#631
Lunchbucket Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Brookings, SD Posts: 12,924	longer at Melev's reef?? what you mean...thought there was not life for you beyond RC Lunchbucket __________________ Trying to lose weight by walking is like trying to bake a cake w/ a cigarette lighter - Lunchbucket - "Nancy-Boy Extraordinaire" - maxxII- Current Tank Info: 58gal Oceanic RR, 2x400w MH (20k XM and 10k XM), Deltec PF601 Ca Rx, Deltec AP701 skimmer, mag950 return, iwaki 55rlt w/ an Oceansmotions 4-way unit, Tunze 7300 and 6000 each w/ controller, fluidized po4 rx

02/19/2006, 09:10 PM	#633
Micki Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Ohio Posts: 7,163	I love it! I've often thought about adding some length to my over flows. __________________ Micki... Western Ohio Reef Club Click the red house for my 125 progress! Current Tank Info: 125 gal. reef, 90 gal. sump, 10 gal. fuge, 40 gallon. 150 gallon fish only.

02/19/2006, 11:25 PM	#634
TheCoralNabber Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Durham, NC Posts: 554	nice marc, didn't know that sharpies are reef safe.... good thing to know. Not a huge fan of the white pvc look although it does eventually get covered in coraline anyway. __________________ This spot for rent for frags! Back at it... Watch out or I'll Nab your Corals! Current Tank Info: 12g nano been going since '04 has been mostly FO but not adding some more corals

02/16/2006, 02:22 PM	#626
melev Moved On Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Ft Worth, Tx Posts: 43,217	Kimo, thanks for chiming in. The horses are both still eating as of this morning. And kudos to you for reading this entire thread, as that is quite a (two week!) task. I think it is time for my Diadema urchin to move on. It chewed on yet another couple of SPS overnight, slowing down the growth progress those had made. I hope to find a large tank to keep it in.

02/17/2006, 03:30 PM	#627
shane 1111 Premium Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: RI Posts: 2,562	two weeks is fast!

02/17/2006, 07:30 PM	#630
melev Moved On Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Ft Worth, Tx Posts: 43,217	My days are longer at Melevs Reef.

02/19/2006, 09:04 PM	#632
melev Moved On Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Ft Worth, Tx Posts: 43,217	For a long time, I hated the returns on my tank. InterAmerican drills the return hole in the overflow box, below the teeth. On a larger tank like mine, a couple of inches equals a lot of water in the sump. So I solved it by adding twice as much locline, and had it shaped in an arch. At the apex of the arch, I drilled three holes in the underside to break the siphon and stop draining so much water. This worked great, until about 6 months ago when I soaked the locline in muriatic acid, which cracked the joints and allowed more water to seep out quietly. This is what it looked like (right side of tank): I replaced it with this today (left side of tank): It was something I'd been wanting to do for a while. So here are the pieces. I used 1" PVC to help keep the flow unrestricted, even though I added two elbows doing this. However, I prefer this method to just going up over the top of the overflow, as that plumbing inside isn't glued and I don't want it blowing apart nor permanently glued inside. The PVC parts were colored with a black Sharpie, which is reef-safe. Over time, even if it comes off coralline will cover it. Threads were covered with Teflon tape, with three or four full rotations (clockwise). When screwing in the fitting, the teflon should not peel off or unscrew off the threads. If it does, it was wrapped incorrectly. Here is the layout for it to be assembled to fit my overflow. Almost done. Two anti siphon holes were drilled, which remain beneath the normal water level in the tank. When the tank refills (return pump on), water squirts out the holes into the tank. This is a good way for you to verify they are not clogged. Remember, if your tank siphons too much water out, it could be that the holes are clogged and need to be cleared again. Done. It looks so much better than before. When the return pump is off, the siphon is quickly broken and less water drains to the sump. I made one for both sides of the tank, and it makes the reef look so much cleaner. The reason the bulkheads were removed for this project is because I was unable to screw in the new PVC fittings with them in place. There was no room for 360 degree rotations, so it was better to disassemble everything and pre-assemble them as a unit. It only took me 1.5 years to finally get around to this modification.

02/20/2006, 02:52 AM	#635
melev Moved On Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Ft Worth, Tx Posts: 43,217	I love the new look with the shorter locline. I must have had 12 or more sections before, where now it is just 6 pieces, plus the threaded socket and the nozzle. When it was time to feed the tank tonight, it only drained 1" or less. Success!!

02/20/2006, 03:04 AM	#636
melev Moved On Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Ft Worth, Tx Posts: 43,217	So I was looking at the sun corals thinking they need to be fed, and stumbled across this little guy in the front of the tank. So I figured I should find the other one, and here he is, behind the Mandarin Diner. Off to feed the corals...

02/20/2006, 06:59 AM	#637
NexDog Snail Killer Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Kyushu, Japan Posts: 4,804	Those shrimp are totally surreal. Marc, how often do you feed your sun coral? __________________ Laurence Flynn 340g In-Wall Envision Tank and 150g Sump. Current Tank Info: Deltec 902, PFO hood with 3x400w Radium 20k and 4x96w PC's. Hammerhead closed loop - and 2 x Tunze 6105 (and Vortech still sucks).

02/20/2006, 02:41 PM	#638
melev Moved On Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Ft Worth, Tx Posts: 43,217	About once a week, but I'm trying to get more in the habit of feeding every other day. My tank actually seems like it needs more food when I observe how the corals are looking. I have less fish, less waste, and feed less than in the past. I rarely dose phytoplankton as well. I fed them last night.

02/20/2006, 03:08 PM	#639
Lunchbucket Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Brookings, SD Posts: 12,924	Marc - great mod. didn't know that IA drilled thier returns like that...they suck that way. only 1.5yrs. better now then after a flood i've used sharpie before...great tool to help hide pvc Lunchbucket __________________ Trying to lose weight by walking is like trying to bake a cake w/ a cigarette lighter - Lunchbucket - "Nancy-Boy Extraordinaire" - maxxII- Current Tank Info: 58gal Oceanic RR, 2x400w MH (20k XM and 10k XM), Deltec PF601 Ca Rx, Deltec AP701 skimmer, mag950 return, iwaki 55rlt w/ an Oceansmotions 4-way unit, Tunze 7300 and 6000 each w/ controller, fluidized po4 rx

02/21/2006, 10:52 PM	#640
melev Moved On Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Ft Worth, Tx Posts: 43,217	I have something different I'd like to show you today. I took apart my Pico tank tonight to siphon out all the detritus. My seahorses are in a hospital tank, so it was rocks, zoos, a dendrophyllia and a cleaner shrimp. I pulled everything out and picked off any fat bristleworms, as well as any razor caulerpa that continues to spread and annoy me. Then I found one of these. Plucked it off while being angry I'd not seen it before. Then as I added stuff back into the tank, I found a larger one!!!!!!!! It too is down the drain. These eat zoanthids, if you didn't know it. I'd not seen one in my tank in months, but the zoos have died off a little bit at a time. Looks like I found at least one of the reasons.

02/21/2006, 11:21 PM	#641
Airman Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Boise, ID Posts: 643	If it has eight legs I call it a spider. __________________ What is man, that thou art mindful of him?...:) Current Tank Info: 55 Gal, DSB, protein skimmer, UV light, Sump/Refugium

02/21/2006, 11:24 PM	#642
Airman Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Boise, ID Posts: 643	Thanks for the fingerprint. Perhaps I'll run it and see if you have any other hobbies. __________________ What is man, that thou art mindful of him?...:) Current Tank Info: 55 Gal, DSB, protein skimmer, UV light, Sump/Refugium

02/22/2006, 12:26 AM	#644
Qwiv Persistant Perspective Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Belmont, CA Posts: 2,168	I was planning on using loc-line in my new tank. Do you think the end nozzles are required?? Seems like they wouldn't need to be. 1.5 years to fix the return line. ETA on hood??? __________________ If I knew keeping fish would be so hard, I would of had kids by now. Current Tank Info: 50Cube + 250DD + Nano

02/22/2006, 12:47 AM	#645
melev Moved On Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Ft Worth, Tx Posts: 43,217	I thought about giving you part of my fingerprint, but I can trust you guys. The woodwork will be done....

02/22/2006, 01:04 AM	#646
melev Moved On Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Ft Worth, Tx Posts: 43,217	Pictures have been altered.

02/22/2006, 03:08 AM	#647
Snakebyt Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Lubbock Tx Posts: 2,141	great idea on the returns, and the pic of the zoa eating spider thing is really cool.. so far all i have found are nudis and they are bad enough

02/22/2006, 08:02 AM	#648
jnb Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: S.E. Florida Deerfield Beach Posts: 2,581	did some one say nudi's? I have been plucking these out one by one when I see them which is about two a week - are they bad? btw I use the wonderful but modified (enlarged the hole so larger food (and nudi's) could pass through) Kent sea squirt to suck them right off the glass. They are typically less than 1/4 inch long

02/22/2006, 08:24 AM	#649
TheCoralNabber Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Durham, NC Posts: 554	Nasty looking alien buggers, that much is for sure. LOL on altering the pics. We all need to promise to not read Marc's thread until he gets the woodwork done, or maybe if we give him a hard enough time he'll decide to shut us up and finish it __________________ This spot for rent for frags! Back at it... Watch out or I'll Nab your Corals! Current Tank Info: 12g nano been going since '04 has been mostly FO but not adding some more corals

02/22/2006, 10:40 AM	#650
selgado Premium Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Toledo, OH Posts: 1,526	I say we all take up a collection and hire a local contractor.