Boderreef's 135g piece of the reef

Hello, my name is Bob, and I'm a reefaholic.
I started nearly 20 years ago when I converted my 20g long fw to a softie nano reef. From there got a 45g tall at Petco's $1/gallon sale, and used the 20 as the sump. A little over a year ago (did i mention this is a long build) I came across a 135g tank for $100 on Craig's list. Picked it up, and it sat for a couple of months. Drilled the back for bean-style overflow and closed loop, and it sat for a few months. Built the stand and canopy, and, you got it, it sat for a few more months. Right before Christmas I broke down the 45 and moved everything to a temporary setup. While I don't have any pics leading up to this point, I can now share with everyone my progress since the breakdown.
Photobucket just failed, so I will try to post pics in a while. sorry to keep everyone hanging.
 

Bearjohnson

Well-Known Member
PREMIUM
RS Ambassador
Sounds Great! Welcome aboard RS!

Lots of great people and equally tons of great advice. Can't wait to see some pics.
 

PSU4ME

JoePa lives on!!!
Staff member
PREMIUM
Sounds like you are quote handy and have a nice plan! Can't wait to see it in action!
 
Here's some pics. I know, they suck, but all I have is my crackberry.
Sand and water finally go in. This is the duststorm even after rinsing the sand first.
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All clear after 2 days of changing filter socks.
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Temporary sump until I build my new one.
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Temporary setup for the livestock.
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In the sump I have an RKL controlling: 6x 80watt T5s and two fans and moonlights, ATO on a float switch and timer, 800w finnex heater, dosing pump for vinegar. Also monitors ph, temp, and salinity. I am running gfo, gac, and feeding the skimmer with a Mag18 return pump and manifold.
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It's really messy down there right now, but I keep telling myself it's only temporary. It's only temporary. It's only temporary...
 

tnwillia

Well-Known Member
Hey Bob, I'm guessing your one of the few that has a "working" DA Salinity probe! LOL. Great looking system!
 
Hey Bob, I'm guessing your one of the few that has a "working" DA Salinity probe! LOL. Great looking system!
I guess you can call it "working". I calibrated it using air/DA calibration fluid. Put it in the tank and it was way off. Verified against my refractometer. So I recalibrated using air/Pinpoint calibration fluid. Off 1.5ppt. I recalibrated again this morning and still off 1.5ppt. Whatever. As long as it stays that way I'll have a quick rference. I hear DA will have a replacement for us sometime this decade.
 
So here's where we are tonight. Today, being my day off, I transfered my livestock to the big tank. Note that this is not the final placement or scaping. I will be going with taller pillars and more defined aislands at some point, but there is time for that later. Once again, please excuse the crappy pictures from the Blackberry. Maybe someday I'll get a real camera. I just wish the color didn't get so washed out.
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Looking Good!
Thanks. And thanks for following. The rock is about 60% diy from the 45g. When I first made it it took about 4 months of soaking and changing the water till the alk was safe to use. It was very grey, but did not take long to color up. I was trying to drill some for pegging when I was first putting it into this tank, but split two of the largest pieces. I think I'll use foam and vip ties when I begin the final scaping.
 
Lovin the DIY, that's what it's all about :D looks good!
Thanks so much.
I'm as addicted to the diy as I am to the reef. I'll build something, and it will work perfectly fine. Then I see what someone else did and say,"i can do that." Then I'm tearing out what I did 6 months ago to do it again.:smack:
 
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