Its Nanotime!

thank icons

I should have an update for everyone later tonight... But, for now, I just have questions!!! Thanks ahead of time for answering! And, sorry for the length!

Equipment:

- Titanium heaters.... Are they a must?
- Circulation in a fuge... what do you all reccommend? (it will be about 7 gallons - 12x11.5x12)
- ATO resivoir placement... Is there any issues with it being above the sump? (I'm going to have an aqualifter attached to a dual float switch)
- Does anyone know how deep of water the Coralife 65gal superskimmer operates best in?
- PVC connections to pumps... What is the best way to do it?
- PVC connections to bulkheads... What is the best way?
- Overflow drain pipes... Is there an issue with putting T's or 90 degree Elbows on these? (I don't have access to flex pvc.)
- New equipment (PH's, pumps, heaters, Skimmers, etc...) what's the best way to break these in, and should you clean them before you start using them in "production" in your tank (if so, how?)....?
- When doing a full-blown wet test of the whole system, is RO water nessicary or reccommended?

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Live Stock:

- I plan on having a DSB of 3-4" in my fuge, should I put any type of clean-up crew in the fuge as well?
- When should I introduce the clean-up crew?
- At what point should I add in cheato to my fuge? (before cycle, after, during?)
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LRock, Sand

- I've got some carib sea sugar-fine dry sand coming, do I need to wash this stuff before putting it into the tank?
- If the LR I buy is cured, is there any need to wash it before I put it in my tank?

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Filtration

- Carbon - Would it be good to drop the bags of it in my aquaclear 70 that I can attatch to my sump instead of just putting it directly into my sump. This way, I can maintain the flow going through it more easily.

BTW... I've been told by several people now that carbon really loses its effectiveness after 24-48 hours. And, after that, its basically a bacteria farm.

- Should I run a mechanical filter of some sorts during the cycle process?
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I think this is it for now! LOL.. Thanks again for taking the time!

-JD

Errrr... If you would, please reply to the above post in this thread.

Thx!

Small update!...

I've been working on my tank's WANTED POSTER... aka desired stock list.
For now, I think I've decided to stay away from SPS.


And, here is what I've came up with so far... Please feel free to throw in sugguestions as to which animals may not do well with others, and what order these might should be added (if there is an order).

Fish:
- A pair of True Perc. Clowns
- Lawnmower Blenny
- Royal Gramma
- Maybe... 1 or 2 VERY small gobies that my LFS has in.. these guys are 1" or less, and don't grow very much.
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Corals -
- FrogSpawn
- Hammer Coral
- Sun Coral (maybe)
- Branching Hammer Coral
- LOTS of Zoanthids
- Platygyra pini - Brain
- Richordias (Several)

I'm sure that there will be more of these later.
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Cleanup Crew:
- Mainly Snails
- A couple Blue Leg hermits
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If I've listed anything here that is bad or won't work in a 20gal, please let me know.

I've got an update coming in the morning!

Also, any comments or thoughts on the stock list?

-JD

Here we gooooo!!!

I've gotten some more construction done! I've gotten the door put on the stand. As well as cut out the last of the wood I'll need for the canopy front and sides and gotten 2 coats of stain on those. I've also gotten my first coat of poly on the canopy. Last night, I installed the first stage of my power center.

Also, I put the first 2 pieces of acrylic in the sump tank. They were secured with Silicone 1. I Learned last night just how big of a pain it is to work with silicone in a confined area such as an aquarium... I made a huge mess with it, and haven't even gotten to some of the real tight areas, yet.

So, if you all know a good method to securing these baffels with silicone, by all means, please enlighten me!!!

Here's some more pix!!!

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt009.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt016.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt018.jpg


http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt023.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt024.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt025.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt026.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt027.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt028.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o...n17updt029.jpg

Hate to burst your bubble bud but in case you didn't know silicone does not stick well to acrylic. You may or may not have problems with those baffles staying in place.

Don't worry about the silicone not sticking to acrylic. It'll be fine. It's one of my biggest pet peeves on message boards when people tell others that they need to use glass baffles because silicone doesn't stick to acrylic. I've made sumps with acrylic baffles and I can pick up the sump by the baffles. Since almost all of the pressure is horizontal pressure, having a good bead of silicone on the glass holding the acrylic in place is just fine seeing as it's lateral forces acting on the baffles.

In a nutshell, don't worry about it.

Eric

No, I knew it didn't stick the best, but I figured itd stick well enough.

Eric, you tried the epdm, didn't you? Would that work okay for my middle baffle of the bubble trap? I think getting it sliliconed properly in a 1" space will be a PAIN!!!

Yeah, I used the EPDM. It works pretty slick. I should have made the baffles a TINY bit bigger though to apply more pressure. I ended up bracing them with some egg-crate to make sure that it didn't collapse, kind of a just-in-case thing.

You could try it for your middle baffle. Another thing that I like to do (and that I did on the last couple sumps I made) is attach some "spacers" to the middle baffle. Makes sure that your baffles are spaced correctly.

Here's a picture of my "spacers". They ensure that the baffles are 1.25" apart, and one side also holds the center baffle 1.25" off of the floor of the sump...

http://www.ericfeige.com/gallery/alb...01/baffle4.jpg