Reef Bruh's 600 Gallon Upgrade

It's time for an upgrade. I love my 225 gallon reef with all my heart but I am looking out for what is best for my fish, corals, and future stocking.

This whole build will be a DIYkinda. To start off, the tank will be 84"L x 48"W x 24"H(The dimensions have changed to 96"L x 48"W x 24"H) and drilled with a closed loop. (Changed my mind. Not going to happen)
The main circulation will be a Reeflo Hammerhead and will be running four 1" Sea Swirls.
If I don't like the flow I will add 2 MP60's into the mix.Since the tank will not have 360 degrees of viewing, I didn't want any obstructions so all the powerheads will be placed on the back wall.

The overflow will be a calli flow with 4 drains done with the bean animal overflow. I am still deciding on either doing a 1 1/2" or 2 " drain going into the sump.This has been changed to having two 2" drains which will be setup as a Herbie.

The closed loop will have two 2" drains going into a Reeflo Dart pump and returning with six 1" returns.
That idea has been totally deleted by choice.

The sump will be 72"L x 36"W x 24"H. Here is a picture of the sump I will be building but without the baffles. In stead, I will be adding a refugium.I had a custom sump built (48"L x 28"W x 18"H) and was going to use the original sump as a refugium after I had cut it down. I ended up not having enough room under the stand thus the reason why the water volume drastically decreased. So the refugium will be a 55 gallon tank additional to the sump.

For the Skimmer I will be getting the Reef Octopus Recirculating Skimmer.
Reef Octopus FDNW 400 Recirculating Protein Skimmer 16" dia.4 Pumps* - AquaCave
I ended up getting a Hurricone Cat 3 Protein Skimmer for a killer and I mean killer deal that I will be using for this setup. I might also place an internal skimmer into the mix running it with a dry skim and the external with a wet skim.

Screen-Shot-2011-08-05-at-34855-PM.png picture by waynelscott2010 - Photobucket
Originally used this diagram for my original sump but since then had one custom made.

The stand will be about 44 - 46 inches high and made with a combination of 2" x 6"s and 2" x 4"s.
The stand will be to tall for this build so It will be 40 - 41 inches high and will be made out of 2 x 8s for the top brace and the rest of the stand will be made from 2 x 4s.

As for lighting I will be doing a DIY with approximately 270 LEDs. It will be a 50/50 mix of actnics and cool whites with some UVs added(probably).Nothing has changed much here. Its just that I don't know if I am going with a custom LED build or buying actual fixtures. Depends on budget and pricing.

I will be transferring my current livestock to this tank and I assume it will take about 5 or six months depending on how much of my original tank water I will use to start this tank with. This plan is still a go except I have some bad fish that wont make it to the upgrade. Also the new build will be running for about 3 months and I am going full Zeo. Then once everything is stable chosen inhabitants will get moved over.

I will have about a 2" - 3" sand bed and continue to use the black sand. I believe 300 lbs should be suffice. I will add another 200 lbs of dry rock and what ever is left over will be broken down and put in the refugium.
The sand bed will be no higher than 2" max. I loved the black sand in my original tank but I noticed that it also absorb alot of light and the corals did pop. I will be going with a white or some sort of lighter sand to help reflect light.

This will be a slow build as I have budgeted a few dollars a month to put this together. I will build the sump and stand first, the tank, and then accessories along the way.

3reef has been very good to me and I will love all comments and suggestions to help or improve my setup. I hope everyone enjoys the setup so lets get this party started.

 

I started building the sump and all was going good until I dropped the Weldon 4 can. But this is what I have done so far.

2011-09-04_10-03-01_17.jpg picture by waynelscott2010 - Photobucket

2011-09-04_10-03-01_17.jpg picture by waynelscott2010 - Photobucket

2011-09-04_10-03-01_17.jpg picture by waynelscott2010 - Photobucket

2011-09-05_10-32-57_652.jpg picture by waynelscott2010 - Photobucket

 

I wish I could blow money on a tank like this....
Any ideas for a skimmer?

 

Great looking start and the plan sounds solid. Hope the drop causes no problems.

 

Awesome!!! Congratulations on the upgrade! Can't wait to watch it develop. Those are very similar dimensions to what I want to go to next.. But I'm not upgrading till I move into a new place. And I'll buy both the house and the tank dependent on one another!... I find myself judging every house I go in by how easy it would be to fit a large tank and filtration room.

 

Sounds like a really well thought out plan. I wish I could do something like that, I had a hard enough time convincing my wife to let go to a 40 gallon breeder lol. Good luck to you.

 

When I saw the title of this thread, I was like "nah..., really??" I dont have balls to make my own tank. Congrats!!!!

One thing, if you use code you can do like this:
[img]http://i1207.photobucket.com/albums/bb476/waynelscott2010/2011-09-04_12-31-33_741.jpg
It's easier for others to see

Definitely following!!!!

 

Subscribed, building a house next spring, and will be going about 600gal as well just curious what are your plans for water flow? And pump?

 

This is going to be a fun build.

Congrats on the upgrade! Definitely following along!

Do you have a wife by chance? She let you do this?

 

He said he would have six 1.5" 'overflows' for the closed loop hooked up to a reeflo dart pump with six 1" returns ad 1.5" seaswirls. Then two MP60s if the closed loop isn't enough.