I still had to build the canopy for the tank, but at this stage
I felt it was more important to get water flowing through the aquarium,
then concentrate on the canopy. I purchased the sump some 3 years
ago and had it custom made for my exact needs back then, and it
was going to be just fine for my new design as well.
The space to work was tight, but I measured and calculated exact
with my blueprints, so I was pleased I was able to make the most
of the space I had.
The sump measures 48 inches long, 24 inches tall, and 24 inches
wide - your typical cube 120g aquarium dimensions. Toss in a few
baffles, a lid to eliminate salt creep and splashing on the walls,
and a hole for the return pump intake, and you've got a nice sump.
From the image you can tell I also plumbed in the needle wheel skimmer,
calcium reactor, and Nielsen reactor, all of which is Geos Reef
hardware. Future additions to this photo are the 20 gallon refugium
and flow-through carbon reactor.
A Mak4 pump runs as my return pump, and also feeds the skimmer
and calcium reactor, and refugium. Two Sequence Hammerheads are
at the ready for closed loop circulation.
Inside the aquarium I had to install the two closed loop intakes
and plumb the overflows. The overflows were fun. I had already cut
the stand for the pipes, it was just a matter of installation. So
I crawled underneath and made the connections.
Once all the connections were made, it was time to make a test
run with tap water.
Neat photo I think. Kind of like that moment of truth. All went
well with the test run and no leaks were recorded. Hey, I'm good!
The very first trickle of water enters the sump. Here you can easily
see the baffles of the sump.
With the aquarium ready for operation, it was time to put Steve
in the aquarium for a final wipe down before the sand gets added.
The time had come to add the first bag of sand. Several hundred
pounds were added in all.
Once the sand was in it was time to work my aquascaping magic.
I had live rock curing in my home for several weeks now and it was
ready for use. Under the close watch of Aztec I picked through my
stash of rock for the best pieces.
One by one I added the rocks and cemented them into place.
Once the rock was ready to go it was imperative to get it back
underwater ASAP. A water line was run from the garage to my aquarium
-
and before long I had a saltwater aquarium!
To view all the images from the
plumbing album click here, or the
filling album click here.
To continue along the process to the
canopy building click here.
Delivery Day
~ The Plumbing
~ The Closet~
The Stand ~ The
Tile ~ Move In
~ The Canopy ~
Filling
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