chimera Posted November 22, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2004 ok bro, not overly interesting but i took a heap of plumbing pics for ya. something here may help, perhaps not. very simple setup, pipe goes down, pipes goes up. pipe goes down, pipe goes up... plumbing down. coming outta the main tank, through a ball valve then down through the floor... through the floor then a 90 degree heading across the house... another 90 into the sump room... across the sump room and into the refugium... Plumbing back up. Outta the Iwaki into pressure piping, a couple of 45's then straight up... into another couple of 45's to get around the floor joist... and back upstairs to the main tank... and you've seen the pic's into the sea-swirl. My mate (a builder) got me some polystyrene sheets today. They will line the walls around the sump room. I will then cover the outside "wall" (which is actually under the house so not directly exposed to "mother nature") with sheets of cheap thin ply or similar. This will cover up all the electrical work (as seen in the 3rd and last photo above). My sparky mate has given me shit and said he wont sign his work off til I do it!!! The skimmer is an in-sump skimmer and sits in the left hand side of the sump just prior to water going over/under/over 3 baffles. The calcium reactor currently sits in a separate tank (tank essentially sitting on the floor) Water flows from the fuge into the reactor then dripped into the sump right next to the skimmer (recommended into the skimmer so any excess co2 is skimmed out or something?) Still have to do the plumbing between fuge and sump properly. There will be a 3 way ball valve between the two which directs flow either from fuge to sump or fuge to sink for water changes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted November 22, 2004 Report Share Posted November 22, 2004 Cool thanks James. How about a few pics of the sump with the skimmer and CA reactor? Pie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted November 22, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2004 sweet as. nothing flash here though, in-sump skimmer sitting on a "reef rack" to get it at the recommended manufacturers optimal height and the reactor is just sitting in a tank on the floor. check up again tonight and i'll put some more pic's up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted November 22, 2004 Report Share Posted November 22, 2004 Cheers. I am getting close to having to think about what I will need to do. I have 250 litres in the garage waiting to enter the system, and Steves pump arrives this morning, so hopefully I will have water circulation today! Pie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AW Posted November 23, 2004 Report Share Posted November 23, 2004 What model Deltec Pump is it? Rating? Cheers Andrew Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted November 23, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2004 my skimmer? its a deltec ts1060, rated for 1,000 litres. more pic's: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetskisteve Posted November 23, 2004 Report Share Posted November 23, 2004 the air taps that are missing should be set at about 2 oclock :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted November 23, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2004 yeah well, seems to work ok. might go get some taps tomorrow for it. when i bought it, it never had any plus its missing the weir plate. still skims out heaps of crap though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted November 23, 2004 Report Share Posted November 23, 2004 Thankyou James, that helps me out a bit. Any reason why the CA reactor is way down there? How do you feed it (like where does the water come from?). I am considering drilling another hole through the floor (sorry jane) and gravity feeding the pipe down from the main tank overflow into the reactor, that should give it MEGA pressure. Pie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted November 23, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2004 coz thats the only place i could fit it for now i'll be pretty much leaving it close to where it is now. Its currently gravity fed and will continue to be gravity fed when its in its final position. Water runs from the fuge to the reactor then down into the sump. Im going to increase the size of the pipe between fuge and sump (as well as putting in the 3 way ball valve) I plan on tapping into that pipe to gravity feed the calcium reactor. The instructions said something about having the reactor sitting below the water level of the sump? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted November 23, 2004 Report Share Posted November 23, 2004 I think its just nessessary for water to be PUSHED into the rector so the motor that is used for circulation isn't used to SUCK water into it. As I understand it anyway. Pie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted November 30, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2004 I added more plumbing and a 3-way ball valve between the refugium and sump on Sunday (will post pic's up tonight) Basically, the refugium tank valve is 25mm and used to go into a 25mm flexible pipe to the sump (about 1.2 metres long) I couldnt make the fuge tank valve larger because the hole drilled in the overflow would only fit 25mm valve max. So I added an expander on so the tank valve steps up from 25mm to 32mm then along a 40mm pipe then back into a 32mm ball valve then out through 40mm piping. The water level in the fuge overflow dropped considerably due to the extra pipe size. I dont believe there is any restriction due to the 25mm tank valve (just by looking at the water coming out it and the water level in the fuge overflow is very low - no standpipe ) The next step is to put in the 2nd hand laundry tub i bought, plumb up a waste pipe and add a water supply/tap for cleaning to it. The 2nd exit from the ball valve will go straight down the sink for water changes. You'll see what I mean when I post pic's tonight!!! Just for anyone else's interest, I would only get a 2 way ball valve next time (rather than 3-way) and still be able to hook it up for water changes. Basically due to cost - the 3-way is very expensive (5 times the price of a 2-way) Here is how you could do it (next post will show photo of how I actually set it up) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted November 30, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2004 pic's of the new plumbing between refugium and sump. see above design on how I would have done it if i'd thought about it sooner!!! The handle is removed on the 3-way ball valve, but essentially turning left or right directs water either to the sump or down the drain. The sink isnt installed yet but essentially the pipe going straight down will be to the drain and the pipe off to the right is to the sump. compare this to the ugly and annoying flexible tubing shown in the pic's at the top of this page! Piping that heads off to the right, directed into the sump. The pipe into the water is simply "pushed on" rather than glued incase I need to remove the sump tank. Im picking up two Iwaki 30rxt's tomorrow to replace the eheim 1060's that I have temporarily setup for closed loops. This increases flow from 2280l/hr to 3600l/hr (1320l/hr more each!) Then, its time to start saving for some streams... :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted November 30, 2004 Report Share Posted November 30, 2004 Whats the pipe on the front of the sump holding the skimmer the points down but isn't connected to anything? Looks like maybee some kind of disconnected bit without any bung or stopper on it. Pie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted November 30, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2004 thats the emergency "oh crap, my sumps overflowing" pipe. That will also go into the sink. Its basically a maximum fill level on the sump. Should the sump fill up too high, it overflows into that tank valve then down and into the sink (currently just empties into a 3 foot tank sitting on the floor - same tank that the calcium reactor is in) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted December 1, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2004 i picked up 2 x Iwaki 30rxt's today to replace the eheim 1060's on my closed loops. i will be doing the plumbing for this using pressure piping and done as tidy as possible but not until later on as i want to consider my options. its most likely i wont use the SCWD's at this stage due to their design not fitting the needs of my setup (as pies says, great for smaller tanks say 3 or 4 foot). so, for anyone interested in buying a SCWD, Ive got a 2nd hand one for sale for $100 and brand new one for $115. PM if interested (brian, i think you were?) Additionally, I am considering the oceans motions if it can be purchased at a good price. check this out for a professional setup! http://www.oceansmotions.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=222 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted December 1, 2004 Report Share Posted December 1, 2004 im still looking at getting one, i have family in america though so i have to check the prices through them (oh and my wife said the baby needs some kindof small person bed so i have to buy one of those cot things :roll: ) thanks for the offer, ill probably get back to you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted December 2, 2004 Report Share Posted December 2, 2004 (oh and my wife said the baby needs some kindof small person bed so i have to buy one of those cot things ) Don't you have a spare tank laying around somewhere you could use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted December 2, 2004 Report Share Posted December 2, 2004 yep one but its a four footer and i think Cyps might have something to say about that one (flashback to the pupy breast feeding fiasco) at the mo the only cost i have for setting up the perfect nano is a tank(nice dimante on two sides) new pump and the scwd (plumbing bits as well) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Posted December 2, 2004 Report Share Posted December 2, 2004 You could easily say that you are just getting the baby use to a water bed Alan 104 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted January 16, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2005 just a quick update for anyone interested: finishing the tank has been on hold for a couple of months now :-? i've been doing major rennovations on my house with a mate for the last 3-4 weeks. the lounge, kitchen and dining walls have been extended plus a new kitchen going in. the living area is all open plan now which makes the tank looks HEAPS better. it now looks like it belongs there!!! the plasterer is in today and all inside should be painted by the end of the week. this should make the tank look alot more effective than having half-plastered half-painted gib around it! i've decided to get some streams (havent told the wife yet - its her birthday today so i should have bought some streams instead of tickets to 'quidam' :lol: ) the corraline algae has taken off considerably in the last few weeks. still need to regulate dosage from the calc reactor as its on 24x7 at the moment (need a cheap solenoid!) as soon as the living area is rennovated, i'll post some pic's of the 'in-wall' tank as it should look alot sharper! the rock work can then be finished and i can relax a bit and enjoy adding some new corals etc Quite funny, here is a pic of the old 4 foot "in-wall" tank that i found in my archives... looks better than my 5 footer does currently!!!... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted January 16, 2005 Report Share Posted January 16, 2005 Very exciting, sounds good. Happy new year, glad to see your still at it. Piemania Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted January 24, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2005 here's an update of my new closed loop idea i know, changes every 5 minutes!!! i figure that a single aquamaster 3000 pump capable of 12,000 litres per hour passing through an oceans motion 4-way is a clean setup. tunze streams will be added at a later date too. here's a pic of the closed loop idea: There will be one stream at each end of the tank as well. The largest advantage of this system is that if my downstairs Iwaki packs out, I can go without the closed loops and use the larger pump in it's place. Also this idea, while more expensive, keeps the plumbing simple due to the design of the Oceans Motion 4-way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetskisteve Posted January 24, 2005 Report Share Posted January 24, 2005 I dont think you know the meaning of the word.....Simple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeBlog Posted January 24, 2005 Report Share Posted January 24, 2005 Hi Chimera- I would suggest T-ing off the spray bar prior to the 4-way and add an additional hole up in the water column area of the tank for the 4th outlet of the 4-way. The outlets from the 4-way (or to the tank, that is) are 3/4", which may be undersized for the pump anyway (depending on the drum configuration you decide for the 4-way). I think that if you are able to drill another hole (or even possibly do an over the back for the last outlet), you will be able to use the pump, the spray bar and the 4-way (in wave making ability) to their optimum. IMHO, that is. Cheers, Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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