Shaun's 2000 Litre (530 USG) Living Reef & Red Sea Max S 650 LED Design & Build

SPR

Well-Known Member
Just an update on the Neptune Apex ATK, Neptune confirmed after running some tests with me the pump had failed and they are sending me a replacement

I appreciate these things happen and to be fair they sorted the issue in less than 24 hours so I can say the customer service is faultless, certainly in my case.
 

Nobbygas

Well-Known Member
Not content with flooding the local area during your leak test you are now going to cause a power blackout for the whole of the North of England !

With the battery backup's I can only see one cable connected? Is this correct or do you still have to plug things into it?
 
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SPR

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Not content with flooding the local area during your leak test you are now going to cause a power blackout for the whole of the North of England !

With the battery backup's I can only see one cable connected? Is this correct or do you still have to plug things into it?
Your funny! lol

The battery backups plug in to the mains, the Ecotech Vortechs also have a plug into the mains so there are 2 adapters. The actual Vortech controller lead plugs into just the battery backup so when the power goes off it just continues running.

I realised this because when I plugged it in to the battery, I spent a good few minutes wondering why the pump was running when the power was off!
 

SPR

Well-Known Member
So all of the plumbing Is finished and I’m just awaiting the new Tunze Osmolator ATO and Tunze socket which means I can run a longer hose on it and a more powerful pump. I’ve chosen the Eheim compactON 2100 for this. I’ve got one already to pump RODI water to the reservoir on the S650 and it’s a nice powerful little pump.

The new eco Teco 2000e chiller is installed but probably won’t be turned on until spring/summer next year. It’s got a WiFi module but I don’t think I’ll need to bother with that so it’s plugged in but just sat on top at the moment.

The saltwater for auto water changes is in the water tank, currently heating up as it’s cold outside, and when ready I’ll start a sequence of water changes on the S650.

Here’s a few pictures of the final plumbing. The pipe right a the back of the sump is from the UVC, the one in front is from the chiller, and the Apex DOS new saltwater tube is fastened to these with zip ties.

The manifold pipes with red ball valves from left to right are a spare for any future requirements, the chiller and the UVC, the latter of which is located outside in the fish room (thats what we shall call it from now rather then the shed’! Lol)

i can’t tell you how useful zip ties of different sizes are with a build like this


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Nobbygas

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Just make sure you measure the flow going through the Chiller. If it's too low it can cause damage to the Chiller. Where is the Chiller venting out? You've probably already told us, but remember, I'm blonde.
 
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SPR

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Just make sure you measure the flow going through the Chiller. If it's too low it can cause damage to the Chiller. Where is the Chiller venting out? You've probably already told us, but remember, I'm blonde.
There’s a 1” flow sensor on the ‘in’ pipes of both the chiller and UVC to monitor flow. You can just see the top of one of them on the right UVC feed pipe above

‘The chiller vents into the cabinet which is open backed
 

Nobbygas

Well-Known Member
There’s a 1” flow sensor on the ‘in’ pipes of both the chiller and UVC to monitor flow. You can just see the top of one of them on the right UVC feed pipe above

‘The chiller vents into the cabinet which is open backed
OK, but it is worth remembering the hot air rises, and you could in fact be heating the tank from underneath with the exhaust while it is attempting to cool it ! I think you may have to put a bit more thought into this bit.
 
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SPR

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OK, but it is worth remembering the hot air rises, and you could in fact be heating the tank from underneath with the exhaust while it is attempting to cool it ! I think you may have to put a bit more thought into this bit.
I think this will be a 'wait and see' but the cabinet is fully vented and open at the back and there's also a duct outlet to the fish room just below the chiller allowing fresh air so I would hope it will be fine.
 

Nobbygas

Well-Known Member
I think this will be a 'wait and see' but the cabinet is fully vented and open at the back and there's also a duct outlet to the fish room just below the chiller allowing fresh air so I would hope it will be fine.
You could test it now. Put a container in the sump that holds say 20 litres. Connect a pump to feed the water into the chiller and place the output from the chiller into the container, so creating a mini loop, and run the Chiller. You could warm the water up first, so the chiller has to cool it down. This will at least give you some indication of the amount of hot air expelled from the chiller.
Go on, it's Wednesday and you're bored.
 
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SPR

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You could test it now. Put a container in the sump that holds say 20 litres. Connect a pump to feed the water into the chiller and place the output from the chiller into the container, so creating a mini loop, and run the Chiller. You could warm the water up first, so the chiller has to cool it down. This will at least give you some indication of the amount of hot air expelled from the chiller.
Go on, it's Wednesday and you're bored.
No! lol

Trust me, with this project I am never bored!
 

Nobbygas

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I like the scape, however, IMHO I would like to see it a little higher, or do you still have rock to add? I particularly like the 'overhangs' near the front side.
 
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SPR

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I like the scape, however, IMHO I would like to see it a little higher, or do you still have rock to add? I particularly like the 'overhangs' near the front side.
You are the most impatient person I have ever known! lol Well no, actually that's my wife!

Its not finished yet, wait!

I'm just teasing you with the first picture, more to follow
 

Nobbygas

Well-Known Member
Although I like the overhangs, they will probably disappear when you add the sand, unless you can just 'lift' them a little bit higher?

and, all that time you wasted today watching Loose Women and Homes Under The Hammer could have been used for the 'Chiller test' !
 
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Nobbygas

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Are you glueing/cementing the rocks or are they just placed for now?
Common sense says you are just placing them for now as it is 100% the possibility you will want to re-arrange them :)
 
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SPR

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Are you glueing/cementing the rocks or are they just placed for now?
Common sense says you are just placing them for now as it is 100% the possibility you will want to re-arrange them :)
I’ve been planning the aquascaping for months, or at least the basic design so no the rocks are all cemented into place as I go. I didn’t cement much on the S650 apart from the high bits when I got nervous

What I actually do is place a few and then when I’m happy I cement them. I usually do a layer at a time so there solid foundations ready for the next layer the day after.

All rocks have arrived and I’ll finish the aquascape this weekend
 
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