Hi All

V

Voidrunner

Joined
13 Feb 2012
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Location
Kempton Park
My name is Mark Sayers
I've had a few FW tanks before, one of them 400L. In the next few months I will be setting up 2 marine tanks that will filter with one sump. I will try a new idea of adding venturies to the return pump pipe that suck on the top half of the current pvc piping overflow system. I'm planning to mitigate the bubble problem that sometimes cause these siphon systems to fail. Wish me luck.
I'm looking into adding a deep sand bed to both the tanks and the sump, if that works well I'll see what stock I will put into the tanks. I hope we all can help each other here, as I've found the forum very informative.
Thank you,
Mark Sayers
 
Hi Mark,

Welcome to MASA.

Hope your marine tank will bring you more joy than frustration!!!

Cheers,

Carla
 
HUH?
Voidrunner said:
I will try a new idea of adding venturies to the return pump pipe that suck on the top half of the current pvc piping overflow system.
Click to expand...

sorry, where is my manners.
Welcome

Why not just drill the tank and fit an overflow?
 
Overflow

RiaanP said:
HUH?


sorry, where is my manners.
Welcome

Why not just drill the tank and fit an overflow?
Click to expand...

I've been thinking of that, but I'm really interested to see if my setup with the venturi will work. Furthermore, spending too much money on these two tanks is not my plan, They will eventually be quarantine tanks for when I get a nice large tank like a 9 footer or something. I'm actually more interested in corals and stuff. These two tanks might just be the right thing to start me off.
 
id suggest starting off right from the word go. there is so much to learn as it is, doing it as if its your end tank, just smaller, would make sence to me
 
Welcome to MASA. Some reading for you below ;)
 
Voidrunner said:
but I'm really interested to see if my setup with the venturi will work.
Click to expand...
Test that on big 50 or 60L plastic bucket for a month. That is cheaper.

I had overflow system with venturi suction taking out bubbles that go in. Believe me, something will block the venturi line. And it will fail. Been there. Done that. Got the tank drilled at the end of the day.

Can drill it and built overflow box for R200 or less. Normally drill my tanks at Idol Marine.
 
LOL...ok guys...I went ahead and drilled the tank...not so difficult after all, just need patience a steady hand and a little water....I've added a pane of glass in the corner for the overflow box, is that ok...I hope so...I already siliconed it. It will allow me to have 2 50mm drains, I only drilled 1 hole so far, but I guess it will be safe to add the other one for an emergency if the first is blocked. I've got about 15mm clearance between the overflow and the top of the tank, I was wondering if that will be enough, anyways, the cool thing is that if you have a 100lt tank and a 100lt sump it allows you to really play around with the sump, as the little overflow from the tank after a powerfailure will hardly make a difference to the sump's level.
 
Welcome:1:
 
Tanks are up, no leaks, drilled a siphon break into the inlet, almost thought the tank leaked but then realised the inlet pipe is causing a siphon effect when the power is off....Anyways, now to get some ro/di water sand and salt :)
 
congrats mark, nice to know its all sealed up and ready to roll. i see you are in jhb and i know that Idol marine were running a fantastic special on salt, maybe they still are. they are in midrand and you can find them on the sponsors page:) also a great bunch of guys you'd do well to ask questions of.
 
Thank you crispin,
The tank is up and running, it cycled for a week now and after re-dosing it with ammonia 2 days ago it reads 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, 100+ nitrates, now for a large water change, and I'm ready. Just looking for somebody to help me with some seeding from their tank. I'll post a thread in the beginner discussions.
Mark
 
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personally id wait a good while longer than 2 weeks for the cycles to ballance out. The readings you areb getting of 0 and the 100+ just dont add up to me, id either check your test kits or have the water tested by someone else as well. there is a process to cycle a tank and a process to mature a tank, and its greatly to a systems long term advantage if ytou let the cycles ballance, bacterial populations expand and things like pods to grow out. Dont rush the beginning of a system, it just leads to trouble.
 
Hi Crispin, I cycled with arag-alive and LR, I got more than 4 ppm ammonia, then the ammonia started going down and then the nitrites went up, then the nitrites went down and the nitrates went up, I added a pure ammonia source to over 2ppm, the ammonia disappeared in 24 hrs, nitrite spiked, and nitrate went past the scale. Did a 50% water change and retested, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrates about 50ppm, so I guess I will need to do some more WC to get nitrate down to at least 20ppm. With no ammonia source, waiting for 2 weeks will kill the bacteria. So I'll add some shrimps and maybe a few snails, and feed once a day. I will also keep my eye on the parameters. I know it sounds too quick for a tank to cycle, but according to me the tank is cycled, I already tested all the Salifert test kits at a friend to compare and they test correct. The only reason why I do not get ntrates to 0 is because my sand bed is not mature enough yet to remove the nitrates from the system. So I have to remove them with water changes. I would probably only add any corals or fish in about 3 months time when the sandbed is crawling with critters and all 3 readings are 0.
 
OK, tank for the past 2 weeks now reads 0 amonia, nitrites and nitrates, the 2 shrimps 3 snails and 2 damsels are doing well and eating a lot. Cheato is growing nicely and LR has all kinds of stuff on them, trees, coraline algae and featherdusters I'm going to add little pieces of LR to help seed the sandbed some more as I think most creatures on the LR died off with the cycling of the tank.
 
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