Finally my own build thread!!!!

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Ok..

Chiller, Most of the time sits outside your tank so it can draw in fresh air, inside the cabinet it'll get to hot. So you sit the chiller next to your tank and drill 2 holes for the hoses.
Like so.


I dont know how hot it gets where you live, But if your planning on having MH with a hood (even with vents) and having a full reef then i'd say you need a chiller. I got mine off ebay for $187 Aussie dollars, Rated to 600L. Perfect for my tank. (4x2x2). Have a look around, its not like you have to rush and go get one. They're other ways to go about it, you could add fans blowing the surface of the DT. Also add RO/DI ice blocks into you sump. But a chiller is a non worry item. Will not have to worry about temp fluctuating.

My tank is open hood, And still temp rised 2c at the end of the MH lighting period.

As for the hoses, I think run hoses in your sump to PVC pipes. Imho, PVC piping done right looks neat and good. Tubing looks not as neat i dont think.

I just don't want anything outside the stand. I talked to my LFS (They rock) and they said I may have to add a fan or two but it should not be an issue. I am mounting pendants on top of the canopy. I would rather add a couple of fans than a chiller

BTW it was 100 today in South Carolina with 80% humidity outside. my house was 73 with 10% humidity(y)
 
Ahhk, Well you can always test it and if temp starts going up and down alot then you can look at chillers.
I did the same thing, But then realized a chiller makes life so much easier.
 
Good for you, dannyb, denial is the first sign of reef fever! I to believe that if you look around a chiller is not all that expensive and worth the peace of mind it brings.
 
Hahaha.

Well ill tell you this, I can go out on hot summer days to the beach and enjoy myself while i know i will not loose anything in my tank due to heat.

And if you get into SPS, They're very sensitive to temp changes.
 
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If you keep your house @ 73-ish year round, I can't believe you'd need a chiller. Cheap fan on the sump maybe
 
Big fan, big savings. I have a 400 dollar monthly electric bill( most likely from all the pond electronics i'm running, not my aquarium stuff) and my tank still runs up to nearly 84 degrees on T5 alone. Fan brings it down to 80.
 
ok. I got alot finished today but I will show you where we stand.

1. the stand is black and looking good. I thought about repainting with less gloss but I sort of like it.
 

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Nice! Deeeyum! That's a pretty tall tank. You in to stacking rocks? Is this going to be a full reef? Sorry.. i didn't read the first pages.. lol.
 
OK. now the plumbing. everything was goin great. I even had a little help
 

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The trickle filter is temporary. I was just doing a leak test. everything was going great. A return with nothing but 1 Tee. flow on the Siccie 5 was incredible.
 

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Filling the tank...Filling the Tank....Filling the Sump.....Filling the Sump....

Bulkhead failure...:confused: things were going so well. I filled the overflows first to make sure they held. then I started filling the tank as I poured alot of water into the overflows until I could test the pump. then...Bulkhead failure. I think the compression fitting was pulling it too hard cause when I released it it stoped. I am not going to give up on the compression fittings yet i think it might be the best way.
 

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:bad-words:ooooof. Going to bed...Wine + new tank set up....AWESOME!!!!
Wine + new tank setup with a leak after filling the tank half way...not so much.:drinking::bad-words:
 
That stinks. Hope you get it figured out. You should also clean off your camera lens :p

Ya mean my phone lens:D Yes it is done. I didn't take pictures cause it is the same setup I just needed a little longer pipe. the only thing in the whole return is 1 tee. I loose 1' there but it is great. If I need to fix a leak. it is easy and with the compression fittings everything is so easy to fix. pictures of it up and running tomorrow.

Next step is lights. 925.40 at aquacave. I could go with t5 and it would be MUCH cheaper but I truely believe this is the perfect setup.
 
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