New 265 gallon Perfecto

[BubbaWPB]

Well, folks, I found a Perfecto tank today that I couldn't pass up - a 265 gallon reef ready. I had been thinking alot about the AGA 210 reef ready, but I happened by a pet shop today (fish are a sideline to the unscented skunks, aardvarks, hedge hogs, and other critters, so I won't call this place a LFS) that had the tank for a very reasonable price, so it's coming home to Bubba tomorrow... I'm just sort of curious why none of the LFSs sell Perfecto tanks....

I've decided to enjoy the process with this tank. Instead of trying to get it up and running and buffed in a short period of time, I'm going to take it slow, and enjoy the process of setting it up myself and seeing what I can do, just for the heck of it.

I've found several plans for DIY stands and hoods. Maybe I'll wind up with a stand that actually holds all the "stuff" underneath (we don't have basements in FL where one can put mega sumps and noisy stuff).

While I'm building the stand, I thought of trying to make some Aragacrete® rocks for the tank. Building the stand will give me time to make the rocks and let them cure for 6 weeks to wash out all the nasties from the concrete. Or, if I look at it from the other side, taking the time to make and cure the rocks will give me enough time to get thoroughly frustrated with woodworking and give me enough time to order a stand before the rocks are cured!

I still have some major decisions to make regarding "equipment" before I start the setup. I've been reading Delbeek and Sprung's (Whatever the Title Is), Vol. 3. It has incredible info on lighting, plumbing and other practical stuff to set up a tank. I haven't decided yet whether or not to go with a plenum, and/or how deep to make the sand bed and what size gravel or sand. Decisions, decisions.... I guess the good news is, that there is evidence to believe that whatever I choose should work.

I've got a 75 gallon beat up, scratched acrylic tank that someone gave me after the hurricanes last year when he lost everything and tossed in the towel. His lovely wife insisted he get the @#%^$ tank out of the garage, so I just had to take it from him, being the good friend that I am. I thought I'd make this into a sump/refugium. Yeah! Another project! Thanks to everyone for the posts on baffle design.

Now for some of the questions:
1. Has anybody tried to hang a Tunze Stream off a corner overflow instead of off the side of the tank? If I wanna do Tunze streams, does it make more sense to go with gravel instead of sand?
2. The tank is 7 feet long and 30 inches deep... I plan to keep SPS and clams (and some fish, of course) so what do y'all think of lighting - 3 400W DE MH? or 4 250W MH? 10K? 14K? 20K? I'm sure I'll add some PC actinics, too, since I do like the less intense blue light in the morning and at night before bed. (Does that sound like I sleep in the tank?)
3. If I find an appropriate wattage 6 foot retrofit light kit, would that be adequate on a 7' tank?
4. Not many people here talk about GARF Grunge... has anyone tried it?
5. Does anyone here use a plenum system?

I appreciate everyone's help and advice on this!

Bubba

[charlie]

I'll pitch in on the lighting Bubba. I think you would be really happy with the 400w double ended, color as per your preference. Your electric bill will see a boost, but you'll get some nice coverage with the double ended bulbs. A 6' fixture will be fine, that way you'll have a little room on either side for some lower lite stuff.
Can we get a pic of it tomorrow?

CONGRATS, I know you have been looking for a bigger setup!!!!!

[johnny gray]

I use a magnet with my tunze 2 attached to my over flows. I also use sand and have a sexy series light on my 210
best of luck with your new tank

[BubbaWPB]

Your electric bill will see a boost, but you'll get some nice coverage with the double ended bulbs.

You think the 400 W bulbs will be able to compete with the heater on the pool when it comes to the power bill?!?

[charlie]

You think the 400 W bulbs will be able to compete with the heater on the pool when it comes to the power bill?!?

When we get to this point who the &*%$ really cares!!

We are not mad, we are crazy.

[BubbaWPB]

I use a magnet with my tunze 2 attached to my over flows. I also use sand and have a sexy series light on my 210
best of luck with your new tank

Thanks for letting me know about the Tunze's. Duh... what's a "sexy series light"?

P.S. How's the calcium reactor working?

[johnny gray]

sexy series is made by aqua medic its a ocean light it has 3 250 de and 2 150 de but its pricey and i had to add 4 2 1/2 fans
reactor is working grate now that i have mg up to 1300
I never new how important mg was but live and learn

[charlie]

sexy series is made by aqua medic its a ocean light it has 3 250 de and 2 150 de but its pricey and i had to add 4 2 1/2 fans
reactor is working grate now that i have mg up to 1300
I never new how important mg was but live and learn

You wouldn't happen to have a pic of that, would you?

[Poseidon]

Sounds COol Bubba! Keep us posted on the progress! I'll bet you will do just fine!

[BubbaWPB]

Can we get a pic of it tomorrow?

Bubba and his tank...

[charlie]

So that is what a Bubba looks like. The tank looks great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Boostable]

Bubba...

Congrats Man!!!! Im so jealous, I have not reacieved my tank yet..

Looks like we will be setting up two 200+'s at the same time.. very cool.. Im sure we can learn from each others mistakes along the way... ;)

Jack

[BubbaWPB]

Jack,
I'll let you know my mess ups if you let me know yours! I don't think I'm that far in the lead.. it's not even in the house yet!

Bubba

[Boostable]

LOL... sounds like a plan!.. Count me in..

Jack

[zhenya]

Congrats on the new tank, Bubba.
I think I'll add an idea for the lighting as well, if you are going to DIY your canopy. I think 3 400w bulbs, even single ended, in this reflector will be more than adequate for your set up.
As far as stand, I would probably have some one to build me a steel tubing stand and than I would try to cover it with some wood panels and what not. If it was my tank, of course.

[charlie]

Nice choice on the reflector Gene, I dream of that reflector sometimes...................................
Seriously Bubba, I have seen those in action and Gene is right on, they are the best DIY reflector out there, IMO.

[Ninong]

Bubba,

Congrats on the new tank!

Here are a few random thoughts for you to consider:

Warranty
Get a copy of the manufacturer's warranty from the vendor. The last time I saw Perfecto's warranty it was 5 years against manufacturing defects IF purchased with a Perfecto stand or 90 days if purchased without a Perfecto stand. If that's still their warranty (and it probably is), then you may want to consider purchasing a Perfecto stand or, if not, you should at least fill the tank with freshwater and allow it to stay full of water for several days to make sure your seams are OK -- especially if you plan to take more than 90 days to build your own custom stand. It's difficult to keep up with the various tank manufacturers' warranties because they seem to get rewritten every time there is a change in ownership. Perfecto has changed hands three times within the past 18 months or so. In 2004 they were owned by United Pet and then United Pet was bought out by United Industries. Then in January 2005, Rayovac purchased United Industries. As far as I know, Perfecto is still owned by Rayovac.

Skimmer
There are several excellent skimmers on the market. Don't skimp in this department. A good skimmer is an excellent investment. Get one rated for at least a 400-gal tank. That's because their ratings are bogus. For a reef tank, you want an excellent skimmer.

Calcium reactor
This would be a good investment for a tank of that size.

Auto top-off
You will want an automatic top-off system so that you don't have to worry about adding water every day.

Lighting
This depends on exactly how you are setting up the tank and where. I like the ready-made fixtures (especially the German ones) but these aren't designed for a fully-enclosed hood. For a fully enclosed hood, you are better off going with DIY lighting. You could possibly use one of the ready-made fixtures with a hood if you cut a hole in the top of the hood about an inch smaller all around than the dimensions of the fixture and then set the fixture on top of the hood so that the fixture itself is outside the hood. I have seen this done before.

My tank has an open top with a a black acrylic "hood" to block light from the fixture. The top of my tank is fully open. There are advantages and disadvantages with this sort of setup. One problem is that you end up with a lot of evaporation and a lot of heat in the room. I think open-top setups are best when the tank is built into a wall with an equipment room, so that the tank itself sits in the equipment room.

If you go with a ready-made fixture, the 6-ft fixtures would be adequate for a 7-ft tank. The new Aqua-Medic sexy series fixtures are nice. They're cheaper than the Aquaspacelight series and they have remote ballasts. The onboard ballasts in the Aquaspacelight, Aquastarlight and Aquasunlight series add a lot of weight and heat to those fixtures. The sexy series avoids that problem by having remote ballasts. I believe they offer those with four 250w HQI DE lamps; three 250w HQI DE lamps plus two 150w HQI DE lamps; and three 250w HQI DE lamps with four T5 actinics.

You will want at least 250w halides for a tank that is 30" tall. You could go with 400w halides but that's a lot more heat. Either way, you will probably need a chiller in Florida unless you keep the room very cool.

Good luck!



P.S. -- If you go with DIY lighting, the reflectors zhenya linked are excellent!

[Poseidon]

You look like a proud PAPA!

I would say 3 of the reflectors Zhenya linked too, and IF you do a DSB then 250's would probably do just fine. (Because the DSB will reduce the effective depth.)

I like the look of the XM 10k's myself. I have used those bulbs with great success for 2 years now.

Being a 265 I don't think wood is an option, if I did a DIY then I would go with 4x6 lumber, and that is not cheap!

[charlie]

Being a 265 I don't think wood is an option, if I did a DIY then I would go with 4x6 lumber, and that is not cheap!

Better to be safe than sorry!!!!

[Boostable]

Would this really be that much of an issue for a wood stand?

Here are some numbers for refrence.

My 220 weighs in at the following..

Tank width:72 in
Tank height:30 in
Tank depth:24 in
Sand depth:2 in

Water volume:209.60 USG
Water weight:1,786.40 lbs

Sand volume:14.97 USG
Sand weight:198.73 lbs

Total volume:224.57 USG
Total weight:2,112.74 lbs

Surface area of 1728 sq in, so a distribution of 1.22lbs per.


The 265 comes in as follows:

Tank width:84 in
Tank height:30 in
Tank depth:24 in
Sand depth:2 in

Water volume:244.53 USG
Water weight:2,084.13 lbs

Sand volume:17.47 USG
Sand weight:231.86 lbs

Total volume:262.00 USG
Total weight:2,464.86 lbs

Surface area of 2016 sq in, so a distribution of 1.22lbs per.


So if my numbers are correct then the weight distrubution is exactly the same. I can't find it but im pretty sure that 3/4" ply has a much higher rating then that, so it should be fine on a wood stand.

Now im not positive on my calculatoins, so feel free to correct me if im wrong.

Jack