The little Red Sea 170 that could
 

Well, I'm bored.

Since i picked up the aquarium late last year, i've been working at slowly collecting and building what i hope to be the perfect little system with nothing over-looked. I didn't think about a build thread until just this morning. so hopefully i can get some constructive criticism helping me towards my end goal.

Last year i shut down and sold off my 95 gallon in anticipation to sell my townhouse and move. but with the market and now everything else going on in the world, i've decided to stay put and downsize. That being said, this is now my 5th set up and i realized with the last one that there was a laundry list of things i wanted to do differently. Now that i've downsized to the 170 i'm going to focus on attention to detail to hopefully limit the constant tinkering i did with the 95.

The tank still isn't wet, but hope to get there in the next week or two. For now, Here's one of the last photos of my old aquarium, and one of the new 170 in place

http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/sho...d.php?t=105649
^^build thread that i slacked off on with the 95

Enjoy:mrgreen:

https://i.imgur.com/J6YGA2A.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/0EKbgb0.jpg?1

Great time to be sitting at home working on a tank:mrgreen:

How did your yellow tang do in your 95? I'm looking at tang options for my 110 tall.

i had a blue and a yellow tang at first, and ill be the first to admit...not the best decision. the blue tang was survived by the yellow. About a year later i picked up a bristletooth because i couldn't let go the idea of having two tangs... probably not the greatest decision either in hindsight, but it ended up working!

i had to put a piece of egg crate down the middle of the tank for the first week or so and feed a variety of food off multiple algae clips. The yellow was definitely the more aggressive of the two in the beginning, but they were happy up until the shutdown and sell off.

One would be fine IMO, if you attempt more i would recommend they are the same size and introduced at the same time. even still you may encounter some issues.

Before i get to far ahead of myself, whats the verdict on wether or not to remove the black vinyl on either side of the overflow on the 170's?



not my photo
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1818/...033912aa_h.jpg

Leave the back black. Helps hide your powerheads too. Plus makes the colors in the tank pop more. And it hides the algae build up better so you can have lazy weeks and not scrub the back of the tank haha

All good points, thanks and i think you are right. i suppose if i do change my mind i would have an opportunity to slide the tank out a tiny bit in the future if i did a massive water change.

Update time. Long weekend means get water in the tank, right?

wrong.

i posted in the aquascaping thread some advice so ill offer up mine that i completed a week ago. Made a mock 170 out of the cardboard box the tank came in and mulled over every move i made for a few days before i set it all together. Hacking the box up into a tank also helped me consider things like flow and space between glass and structure.

For people who like to glue or cement their rock work together, i highly recommend the Aquaforest Stone fix cement. I was able to lift and shake so i was confident it wasn't coming apart midway through the lift into the tank.

https://i.imgur.com/niQIut5.jpg?2
https://i.imgur.com/FnFuvuG.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/j5CN9QH.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/o6pXk9e.jpg?1

Step #1 to less future tinkering

Automatic water changes. Yesterday i went to town pulling water lines up from the basement (more on downstairs later)

I pulled 3 lines. ATO which will sit downstairs, NSW from mixing bin downstairs, and a discarded SW line that runs to drain in utility room. I also pulled a USB for Apex so i can have an FMM with optical sensors, my apex DOS downstairs, and 12/2 Lumex for a dedicated receptacle.

https://i.imgur.com/JVTgjKT.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/WU0JnR8.jpg?1

Lookin good dude. Is that the Walt Smith rock, or some equivalent?

Sweet, following along!

Carib sea life rock. expensive but worth the startup with no pests!

Nice work man,coming along nicely

Much appreciated :mrgreen: its been great having all this extra time to get stuff done.

It's also a great distraction from all the noise these days. Hopefully there is lots getting checked off the 'to do lists' in the reefing community. it would be nice to see a resurgence of activity on the forums and tank journals as a result of new found time from covid.

Another Update. and wow are red sea fittings ever cheap. cracked one this morning threading in 1" adaptor so i can run my own gate VS. the garbage reefer valves

https://i.imgur.com/H3C9jS1.jpg?1

Also got the reefer reservoir drilled out and covered on bottom and side for light transfer into the sump. more or less doing this because im not sure what else to do with such a small tank. i have a feeling this is too small to make an impact on a 40 gallon system, but it looks cool.

https://i.imgur.com/b0ZLPix.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/SZpxQyS.jpg?1

the bulkhead being "backwards" shouldnt make a difference as long as the seal is on the proper side? i hope
https://i.imgur.com/yKC5MlC.jpg?1


then got creative with the old stock reefer float location and made a strainer fitting for the waterline that will pull old water out and discard downstairs to drain. should i have a siphon break on this line? i dont believe the DOS will allow siphon through it?

https://i.imgur.com/4IMeMzQ.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/kGfHXPR.jpg?1

In regards to the bulkhead, the gasket should be on the wet side... but why did you install it backwards?

the seal is on the wet side. i reversed the bulkhead because it allowed for the 3/4 drain to drop down into the sump about 2" closer than if i used it properly.

Another update tomorrow morning about what got done over the weekend. i placed my last order for a while last night on Reefsupplies for a couple titanium heaters and a new media reactor for the RODI in the basement. Also picked up a DOS for AWC

planning to start fill and cycle this week. which brings me to my question... Is there experience here with anyone using any Brightwell Aquatics products to aid in cycling?

You know the fittings are metric right? 1 inch shouldn't thread right in and that is likely why it was cracked ?

#1 simple reason to me why Waterbox aquariums are superior to Red Seas. there's tons of information on adapting Red Sea's online though.. I've now used a 3/4" MPT to 1" slip adaptor now properly.

at first because the parts are hard to find in grey schedule 80 - i used a 3/4'' MPT to 1'' MPT nipple and then a 1'' FA. Mix that with using too much Teflon tape and a cheap ABS red sea fitting and whoops.

Why
 

Why did you buy red sea then ?

Also I picture them complaining about waterbox tanks over in Europe with their stupid standard fittings ... Lol

i would have bought Waterbox in a heartbeat if they were easier to get in Canada. Unless you ship to the boarder and go pick up, or you arrange the shipping yourself they are tough.

many advantages though... better sump designs, all glass overflow teeth, better plumbing for us Canadians, Star-fire glass, generally more room in the stands.

i got a great deal on the 170 that i wouldnt pass up even if it were offered to me again today, and i do like them despite feeling like Waterbox outclasses them. Waterboxes also do cost a little more for comparable red sea sizes.

Did some more stuff over the last few weeks and got the tank filled. Begun cycle using the brightwell Microbacter products so wish me luck.

https://i.imgur.com/9wXnz86.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/wxhctpg.jpg?1
little equipment hub since the stand of the 170 doesn't offer up a whole bunch of real estate. there's a second grille in the bottom, and a fan running for air circulation when the stool is closed. space below the panel for power bricks and a few controllers i didn't want inside the stand.

https://i.imgur.com/ihBwME4.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/jPa4Kr3.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/vEmMq00.jpg?1

That rum and coke is probably your most important piece of equipment :mrgreen:

:biggrin: one of the more important pieces for sure. Also.. the one that has never let me down

How is your cycle going? I started mine on April 27th with Brightwell XLM Start and Quikcycl and still have ammonia and nitrite. I'm also using Caribsea liferock and bare bottom.

nice, following alonghttps://babang.xyz/assets/10/o.png

Nice and tidy little build, loving it! Does the equipment hub double as an ottoman?