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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 08 2015 at 6:45pm
Thanks!

Taking the day off tomorrow so I can get water in this thing.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 08 2015 at 6:47pm
Hi Molli

I am using BRS rock and buying some live from from Aquatic in Orem. Is the BRS rock like the Marco? They look the same to me but I don't know the difference.

Thanks!

Marcos
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Studboyt Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 08 2015 at 6:51pm
Originally posted by Molli Molli wrote:


If I were you I would use phosphate remover from the moment you add water to your tank.  I love marco rock, but my experience with it in my last tank as that it releases phosphates for MONTHS.


So true, I used Marco and it took months to get to where I would put corals in. Which, let's be honest isn't a bad idea anyways.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Molli Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 08 2015 at 6:52pm

Originally posted by Marcoss Marcoss wrote:

Hi Molli

I am using BRS rock and buying some live from from Aquatic in Orem. Is the BRS rock like the Marco? They look the same to me but I don't know the difference.

Thanks!

Marcos


I'm not sure.  If it is dead rock from an old reef I'd run phosphate remover to be cautious.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 10 2015 at 11:05am
Okay, new update. I decided to go with all live rock instead in hopes of getting things going sooner, and have a look I want immediately.

That said, I finally added water last night. I was very nervous to do this as my RODI is not working so I had to get water from our LFS buckets at a time. I ended up coming home, dumping water in a Brute, and going back with empty buckets to get more water. I mixed salt in the Brute and in the little buckets; I thought I was for sure going to be way off in the SG but after 12 hours the tank is at 1.024 SG. So, I guess I mixed correctly. 

Here is what the tank looked like last night at 11 pm:


I ended up finding a small leak in some plumbing so I had to make a late night Walmart run and found some clamps to help out. Still trying to work out the small leak though...I am not super worried at this point.

This is what I woke up to, although, I turned the lights on for the photo:





Its hard to tell from the images, but I have a couple of shelves with darker/less light areas below. My wife fell in love with a coral that needs very little light, so I built a darker areas for it.

I also decided to use a Gyre versus the Vortech's I originally planned. The Gyre seems awesome so far. I can see stuff moving in the sand one the opposite end of the tank and things hanging off the rock is moving on every part of the tank. I must say it makes a slight annoying sound you can hear in the room, but outside of it you cannot hear it. My tank actually makes a lot of noise which I think is associated with the leak I am working on.

Here is what the tank looks like with no lights on:


Thanks!

Marcos
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote relethg Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 10 2015 at 12:26pm
Hi Marcos, Do you have any leaks (small seeps) at the bulkhead fittings? All three of mine leaked and it was because the threaded part to the bulkhead was to long and would not compress the rubber gaskets enough. I had to cut the threaded portion a little and the worked great.

Glenn
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 10 2015 at 1:05pm
Originally posted by relethg relethg wrote:

Hi Marcos, Do you have any leaks (small seeps) at the bulkhead fittings? All three of mine leaked and it was because the threaded part to the bulkhead was to long and would not compress the rubber gaskets enough. I had to cut the threaded portion a little and the worked great.

Glenn


Glenn,

You're brilliant; that is exactly what is happening. I thought it was a leak but it's a small seep from two of the three bulk heads. I thought I didn't hand tighten them enough so I took that approach first. Now the leak is limited to a small drip. The part thay confuses me is that when I turn the pumps off- the seep stops. I don't see how the pumps going off makes a difference since the area it is leaking from always has water in it.

Besides cutting the pipes; can I use some sort of temporary sealer/caulk to put around the fittings? I'm afraid to take the whole thing apart now since I'm not super handy.

By the way; do you have this tank too? It's very pretty and so far I love it.

Thanks!

Marcos
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote relethg Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 10 2015 at 1:20pm
Thanks Marco, but it is just a lesson learned. I have the 45 gallon shallow reef and love it. Has had water in if to 4 weeks. Can see some pics here.


 
 The pressure in the overflow is less because there is less water in there when the pump is off. This is what I did and suggest you do it so you don't have seep in the future. Turn off pump and drain the overflow. Remove all the bulkheads and screw them back together (not installed) and check the gap between the fittings against the glass thickness. Trim the threaded piece so there will be a tight fit on the glass and the rubber gaskets will be compressed. I know this is a pain and was for me, but you will have a permanent fix and will not need to worry anymore. This is common on the Cadelights.
I also modes the sump so the fugue is bigger. I took out the media chamber.


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Molli Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 10 2015 at 2:18pm
You two should definitely put a negative review about this problem on the cadlights website.  Clearly they must know about the problem, yet continue to sell tanks without fixing this problem.  They deserve to have prospective buyers read about this.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote relethg Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 10 2015 at 2:27pm
Originally posted by Molli Molli wrote:

You two should definitely put a negative review about this problem on the cadlights website.  Clearly they must know about the problem, yet continue to sell tanks without fixing this problem.  They deserve to have prospective buyers read about this.

You are right Molli, I provided them direct feedback and this has been discussed at length over on Nano-Reef.com. Their plumbing sucks and they know it. They use china plumbing that is metric and non-standard making it hard to support at plumbing supply stores. Not sure why such I nice tank maker would do this. I would pay the extra $$ to get standard good plumbing. 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 12 2015 at 6:47pm
Originally posted by relethg relethg wrote:

Thanks Marco, but it is just a lesson learned. I have the 45 gallon shallow reef and love it. Has had water in if to 4 weeks. Can see some pics here.


 
 The pressure in the overflow is less because there is less water in there when the pump is off. This is what I did and suggest you do it so you don't have seep in the future. Turn off pump and drain the overflow. Remove all the bulkheads and screw them back together (not installed) and check the gap between the fittings against the glass thickness. Trim the threaded piece so there will be a tight fit on the glass and the rubber gaskets will be compressed. I know this is a pain and was for me, but you will have a permanent fix and will not need to worry anymore. This is common on the Cadelights.
I also modes the sump so the fugue is bigger. I took out the media chamber.



Glenn,

Thank you very much for the information. You hit the nail on the head with your assessment of the leak. I am still tinkering around with fixing this. The seep is so small and just falls into the sump that it does not bother me a lot, but I want to fix it incase it causes permanent damage. I might end up sealing it with some sort of sealer, the stuff you use for building tanks. This is just a semi permanent solution that I could cut off with razor blade should I need to. I like the added measure of safety given how crappy the plumbing is.

I am thinking of doing the same for the sump; its kind of awkwardly small. They tried to create too many compartments in a small area. I have decided to not use a refugium in my system. I am trying to stick to keeping it simple. I will only have a reactor down there with carbon/GFO, the skimmer, and a couple of heaters, and maybe a small powerhead to keep water moving. I do not plan on adding any macro algae or ruble/rock or live sand. I know most people recommend this but I am trying to stay away from forums and what many people suggest. I mostly come on here to see what people build and look at the classifieds. Wink

I have seen a lot of awesome tanks that do not have anything, and a lot that do. I decided to just take the route of not having anything in the refugium, seeing how it performs, if I find out I need it, I could always add it.

Anyway, I am going to follow your thread. It looks like you are about 1 month ahead of me. I am excited to see how your tank comes out. I really wanted the 45G but they wanted an extra few hundred for the white stand so I just went with the bigger tank for the same cost with a white stand. 

Thanks Glenn!

Marcos

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 12 2015 at 6:48pm
Originally posted by Molli Molli wrote:

You two should definitely put a negative review about this problem on the cadlights website.  Clearly they must know about the problem, yet continue to sell tanks without fixing this problem.  They deserve to have prospective buyers read about this.

Hi Molli,

Oh, they probably know me by name at Cadlights. I am probably a pain in their eyes, but as a newby I need the extra help and thought I was buying something high quality.

The tank and stand are awesome so far. The only crappy part I have noticed is the plumbing and the return pump. The return pump works but just feels/looks low quality. The skimmer seems to skim like a banshee.

Thanks again!

Marcos

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote relethg Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 14 2015 at 3:57pm

Marcoss,

     Just my two cents. I would spend the time now to fix the bulkheads just for piece of mind. I didn't want to be worrying about leaks when the tank is cycling or when I am away. It only takes an hour and you don't need to drain the tank, just the overflow. I think they could cause problems down the road if you leave them how they are even with something sealing them on the out side. When you work in the sump and you pull or move the plumbing it will cause new leaks. I will try and get pic posted of my tank tonight.


Glenn

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 14 2015 at 8:22pm
Originally posted by relethg relethg wrote:

Marcoss,

     Just my two cents. I would spend the time now to fix the bulkheads just for piece of mind. I didn't want to be worrying about leaks when the tank is cycling or when I am away. It only takes an hour and you don't need to drain the tank, just the overflow. I think they could cause problems down the road if you leave them how they are even with something sealing them on the out side. When you work in the sump and you pull or move the plumbing it will cause new leaks. I will try and get pic posted of my tank tonight.


Glenn


Hey Glenn,

I totally agree. I actually started thinking about that yesterday. I called Cadlights this morning and went back and forth on the issue. The rep stated that they knew of the issue and we got into a small argument about it. They know about the issue, but yet do not fix it prior to sending the tank out. The rep explained they had a circular saw, or some tool, just to fix the issue when it arrises.

I don't understand why they do not simply dismantle the plumbing kits they have, chop the extra few threads, and send out the correct items. It seems as though they produce a great product, yet, do not implement basic items that will keep them around for long term. They are very reactive to issues, which is good, but should be proactive in anticipation of issues.

Although I love our tanks, I found that Red Sea just came out with very similar looking, rimless, tanks. Thats going to be my next tank, a shallow one from them.

Anyway, thanks for the concern. I am in agreement with fixing this as soon as the piece comes in, Friday.

Marcos

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Molli Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 14 2015 at 8:27pm
Originally posted by Marcoss Marcoss wrote:

[/QUOTE

Hey Glenn,

I totally agree. I actually started thinking about that yesterday. I called Cadlights this morning and went back and forth on the issue. The rep stated that they knew of the issue and we got into a small argument about it. They know about the issue, but yet do not fix it prior to sending the tank out. The rep explained they had a circular saw, or some tool, just to fix the issue when it arrises.

I don't understand why they do not simply dismantle the plumbing kits they have, chop the extra few threads, and send out the correct items. It seems as though they produce a great product, yet, do not implement basic items that will keep them around for long term. They are very reactive to issues, which is good, but should be proactive in anticipation of issues.

Although I love our tanks, I found that Red Sea just came out with very similar looking, rimless, tanks. Thats going to be my next tank, a shallow one from them.

Anyway, thanks for the concern. I am in agreement with fixing this as soon as the piece comes in, Friday.

Marcos

[/QUOTE]


By the time you are ready to purchase your next tank you likely aren't going to need or want to purchase an all in one package.  I have a custom made shallow tank from Cadlights that is so beautiful, but that is all they produced -- just the glass..  Everything else for the tank was purchased separately.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 14 2015 at 8:38pm
Originally posted by Molli Molli wrote:

Originally posted by Marcoss Marcoss wrote:


Hey Glenn,

I totally agree. I actually started thinking about that yesterday. I called Cadlights this morning and went back and forth on the issue. The rep stated that they knew of the issue and we got into a small argument about it. They know about the issue, but yet do not fix it prior to sending the tank out. The rep explained they had a circular saw, or some tool, just to fix the issue when it arrises.

I don't understand why they do not simply dismantle the plumbing kits they have, chop the extra few threads, and send out the correct items. It seems as though they produce a great product, yet, do not implement basic items that will keep them around for long term. They are very reactive to issues, which is good, but should be proactive in anticipation of issues.

Although I love our tanks, I found that Red Sea just came out with very similar looking, rimless, tanks. Thats going to be my next tank, a shallow one from them.

Anyway, thanks for the concern. I am in agreement with fixing this as soon as the piece comes in, Friday.

Marcos


By the time you are ready to purchase your next tank you likely aren't going to need or want to purchase an all in one package.  I have a custom made shallow tank from Cadlights that is so beautiful, but that is all they produced -- just the glass..  Everything else for the tank was purchased separately.

[/QUOTE]

Hi Molli

I am starting to feel like that too! I was looking at the tank in more detail, hoped online, and could have found the parts I needed so easily. I just didn't know any vocab or anything until recently. Next time I will buy an awesome looking tank, have a LFS drill some holes, and just buy the plumbing. 

Is there a spot that all of the members have posted images of their tanks? It would be awesome to see what Utah's tanks look like. 

Thanks!
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Originally posted by Marcoss Marcoss wrote:


Hi Molli

I am starting to feel like that too! I was looking at the tank in more detail, hoped online, and could have found the parts I needed so easily. I just didn't know any vocab or anything until recently. Next time I will buy an awesome looking tank, have a LFS drill some holes, and just buy the plumbing. 

Is there a spot that all of the members have posted images of their tanks? It would be awesome to see what Utah's tanks look like. 

Thanks!


You can check out the tank threads on the boards.  Also if you decide to purchase corals off the board you will see lots of tanks.  The club also has a reef tour that individuals sign up for and allow people in their homes to see their tanks.  I think that tour occurs in the summertime.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 15 2015 at 6:33pm
Added a Tunze ATO tonight. I have it feeding from a 10G Petsmart tank. So far, it works very well and the sensors are very accurate.

Here is the tank inside of a cabinet I bought for the side:


Here is the tank next to the stand:


The ATO and Gyre control:


I am hoping to add fish one day. This process is pretty damn slow...

Marcos

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 15 2015 at 6:34pm
Originally posted by Molli Molli wrote:

Originally posted by Marcoss Marcoss wrote:


Hi Molli

I am starting to feel like that too! I was looking at the tank in more detail, hoped online, and could have found the parts I needed so easily. I just didn't know any vocab or anything until recently. Next time I will buy an awesome looking tank, have a LFS drill some holes, and just buy the plumbing. 

Is there a spot that all of the members have posted images of their tanks? It would be awesome to see what Utah's tanks look like. 

Thanks!


You can check out the tank threads on the boards.  Also if you decide to purchase corals off the board you will see lots of tanks.  The club also has a reef tour that individuals sign up for and allow people in their homes to see their tanks.  I think that tour occurs in the summertime.


Thanks for the suggestion. I will keep an eye out!

Marcos

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 17 2015 at 2:00pm
So, I finally added some life today! I am pretty sure I completed a cycle, or at least I am really hopeful! 

Here is what I added this morning, picked up a few items from Aquatic Evolution:

20 Astrea Snails
10 Blue Leg Hermits
1 Emerald Crab
2 Bullethole Clown Fish


Here they are acclimating:


A couple of images of them swimming around:



The fish are pretty damn fast, so they are hard to photograph. I am going to bring my camera home one day so I can take some much better pictures.

Marcos

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