Filtration & equipment for my 500 gallon reef tank. Total system volume is about 650 gallons.

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Most popular comments
for Filtration & equipment for my 500 gallon reef tank. Total system volume is about 650 gallons.

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Comments on YouTube

Peter Brizolas - 6 years ago

I found this video today. Best system I have ever seen. Well done and congratulations.
You are a reef champion.

Mike Roggio - 6 years ago

I really enjoyed this. I have a similar tank volume but a totally different way of doing things. This has inspired me to make a video. You've done great work but I'm definitely a critic of your wire management. The supplies to make that look tight and uniform are only a couple bucks.

slief - 6 years ago

Thank you. I hear you on the wire management. I am usually very meticulous about wiring but there are so many wires in this system with all the controller components and I've upgraded/added to the system continuously over the years and it's gotten a bit out of hand. One of these days i will go back and clean some of the wire mess up.

My Singing Monsters Gamer 97 - 6 years ago

Wow beautiful setup !!!!

Chris Bolli - 6 years ago

Where do you get the water change system from?

slief - 6 years ago

http://genesisreefsystems.com/products/automatic-water-change-systems/

wrmaldonado - 6 years ago

If you combined all that equipment, plus all the livestock/coral/reef rock, how much did all of that cost?
I'm going to say at least $10,000

slief - 6 years ago

A LOT more than that! LOL.. I've had this tank since 1995 and it was moved to this house in 1997 where it's been up and running ever since. It's seen a lot of upgrades during that time. $10,000 wouldn't even cover the cost of the main display and lights. Given the amount of coral in the tank and the size the coral has grown to over the years, the coral and fish alone would likely cost more than your estimate... There is over 700 pounds of live rock in the system as well that I have had for over 20 years which would cost a fortune today. Honestly, I wouldn't even want to add up the price to piece this system together. I am sure I could buy 20+ acres of river front property in Montana for what I have into this system.

Bruce Hoban - 6 years ago

Impressive system. What is your investment in this setup?

slief - 6 years ago

Thank you very much. In all honesty, I couldn't even begin to calculate. Frankly, not sure that I would either. I had the main display custom built in the early 90's and it's gone through a number of upgrades over the years in terms of the equipment. That last major upgrade was 2010 other than lighting, skimmer and pump upgrades to improve system efficiency and and coral health. I've got the system to the point where I am pretty much done with upgrades for the foreseeable future. As such, I don't anticipate more significant expenditures as it's kind of in cruise control so to speak. Truth be told that if I had to start all over and build this system as new, I couldn't afford to do it at this point in time.

Lito - 6 years ago

What a great hobby your system is beautiful...my girl has all but moved me out of the home along with my reef....lol

Lito - 6 years ago

I like watching Jim too...☺

Lito - 6 years ago

Honestly your an inspiration and i learn so much!!!!

10. comment for Filtration & equipment for my 500 gallon reef tank. Total system volume is about 650 gallons.

Lito - 6 years ago

Rich too!!!smart but rich omg that must be a fortune...bless your heart man...

slief - 6 years ago

Thank you for the compliments! In about 25 years of owning this tank, upgrades have come over time. I certainly couldn't afford to build this tank now. Especially with all the equipment.

Lito - 6 years ago

Gorgeous!!!!you very smart man

Bold 311 - 6 years ago

Great tank and thanks for taking the time to make videos. Just getting going in the hobby and have a 120 G bare-bottom with a tan colored HDPE board. My ultimate goal is a large tank with nearly the same dimensions as yours. My job will not afford the time for lots of daily or even weekly maintenance which is why I picked bare bottom. However, I really want the look of sand and all the things that go along with it like certain fish. How do you maintain your sand bed with minimal maintenance? Is the spray bar using the closed loop enough to keep things stirred up enough to not settle and therefore vacuuming not necessary? Any thoughts or comments would be appreciated. Thanks

Bold 311 - 6 years ago

Thank you again!

slief - 6 years ago

Thank you very much. I have very little sand in the main display and what little is there, I don't touch. Personally I prefer bare bottom from a cleanliness and maintenance perspective but the little sand I have is enough for my wrasses. The closed loop that returns under the live rock prevents detritus from settling down there and the closed loop and Tunze's are all programmed (via my Apex) to kick up into what I call "flush" mode which blasts one side of the tank at a time via the Tunze pumps while the closed loop kicks up to a much higher flow rate. That stirs anything up on the bottom. The Tunze's will alternate from side to side during this phase to suspend any detritus and get it into the path of the returns to sent into the overflow where the filter socks in the sump are waiting. The Flush mode kicks on several times a day. It works really well. Especially given that I have a lot of flow in the tank.

Yours Truly - 6 years ago

This is the most sophisticated setup I have ever seen anywhere, and it shows in the aquarium. All I can say is WOW

slief - 6 years ago

Thank you very much!

Demario Smith - 6 years ago

Wow! I heard that 1100 and i almost sold my equipment lol.
This is a gorgeous setup. Thank you for showing us.

Ronnie Dailleboust - 6 years ago

did you ever consider using a manifold plumbing setup instead of using so many pumps?

slief - 6 years ago

Not sure I am understanding you. My return pump runs the carbon and GFO reactors as well as my display fuge and frag tank. The pump I use maxes out at over 6400 gallons per hour at 230 watts. At the 150 watt setting, it has enough power to run everything and then some. That said, I wouldn't use my return pump for my closed loop. That is a big no no because of where the closed loop dumps out at. That needs to be a separate pump that is in a closed loop pulling from the back side of the tank and returning below the live rock. My power heads serve a very important purpose as well and again, the return pump wouldn't be suitable replacement for those. The produce fast pulses through the water and provide flow throughout the entire water column and not just the surface where the return lines exhaust. They also are programmed to flush the tank out several times a day to suspend detritus and send it over the overflow. In total, I have upwards of 35'000 GPH at my disposal in my main system and the return, closed loop and power heads all serve a dedicated purpose and one cannot replace the other. Alsio, my closed loop pump is programmed to go into high power output when my Tunze power heads kick into their flush cycle. This insures that anything that settled on the bottom of the tank is suspended since the close loop outputs at the bottom of the tank below the live rock.

Ronnie Dailleboust - 6 years ago

to run your reactors as well as for circulation you have enough flow from those pumps to do so

slief - 6 years ago

I use a manifold to feed my reactors, display refugium and frag tank which are fed from my return pump. I have a second pump that runs my closed loop and dumps out under my live rock to prevent detritus from settling there and also eliminate dead spots. It also feeds my UV Sterilizer. Because that dumps out under the rock, that cannot be connected to the manifold as a power failure could result in the tank draining. Beyond that, I have a skimmer pump which is designed for my skimmer and lastly power heads which produce more flow and different currents with the tank. There really aren't any pumps that could be eliminated safely that wouldn't impact another area of the system.Plus, the pumps I run are all VERY efficient and reliable.

Babak Khoshzamir - 6 years ago

$1100/mnth??? Good God man!

slief - 6 years ago

Yea, it was very painful!! I had no idea how much of an impact my tank was having on the bill until I did my upgrades and saw the bill drop by several hundred a month. Since my tank was moved here when I bought the house in '97, the bill was just something I accepted and expected.

OG`s Fishroom - 6 years ago

Hey whats up guy. Awesome!! content, & super impressive overall system.
I have a few questions.
What do you do for a living?
Have you ever had to reseal your display tank?
Have you ever tried the bubbling method?
Thanks

slief - 6 years ago

Thank you very much. I am in the computer business but also do some "moonlighting" in the aquarium industry. I have never had to reseal my display. IIt's acrylic and there is no re-sealing acrylic. I don't use the bubble method and really don't see a need for it in my system.

rob sool Aquatics - 6 years ago

excellent video swing by I'm building a 600-gallon multiple saltwater man cave at my home

John Gayle - 6 years ago

wow nice tank

20. comment for Filtration & equipment for my 500 gallon reef tank. Total system volume is about 650 gallons.

Crazygamer H20 - 7 years ago

Sweet tank dude its my goal to get a tank like that

Shawn Kelly - 7 years ago

incredible one of the best set ups Ive ever seen

Garry Thomas - 7 years ago

i have a constructive comment. All the equipment you are using, a huge amount of money. a load of money in the tank. lots of equipment, which you could do without, yet you dont have a chiller? that to me is silly

slief - 7 years ago

And, I could do without a lot of the equipment but my tank thrives and I only put about 2 hours a month into which includes feeding, making water, cleaning glass and running my tests. The automation takes most of the work out of maintaining a huge system. The quality of my equipment has also saved me tens of thousands in electricity and replacement costs over the years since my last major upgrade. My controller has saved my tank and home by notifying me of potential issues such as leaks, ATO issues among other things over the last 10 years so that is something I consider necessary. Same goes with the rest of the automation stuff. If I had to devote several hours a month to water changes, top offs, dosing and other maintenance that I've automated, the tank would suffer since I don't have the time for that kind of maintenance. Having the tank take care of itself and notify of me issues is hugely valuable with a system this large. Especially when II've had the tank as long as I have (23 years since having it first built). It's so much healthier now than it ever has been in all the years and the quality of equipment gives me peace of mind while also saving me with utilities.

slief - 7 years ago

I have a JBJ Arctica 1/2HP chiller in the garage that is plumbed into the system but it's not needed & never turns on. I've had the tank running here for about 20 years now. For the first 14 years, the chiller ran 12 hour a day until I upgraded my equipement to pumps and lighting that didn't transfer huge amounts of heat. This was back in 2010 and 2011. Back then my electric bill was about $1100 a month. Now with the upgraded equipment, my electric bill is $350 a month and my chiller hasn't run in years. Its there only for emergencies and essentially wasting space. The max my temp ever reaches even on the hottest days when I am not running my AC is 82* which is perfectly safe for a reef and my fish. In fact, most of the reefs where our corals originate from hit temps much higher than that in the summer months and I've also found that my best Coral growth is during the summer when the water in the tank is warmer. I also use fans for evaporative cooling which typically keep the tank well below 82 in the summer. In the winter my tank is typically around 78 but it's hit as low as 75 which again has never been an issue. Fortunately due to my water volume, the most my temp can swing in a 24 hour period is 1* which is slow enough that there is no harm to the fish or livestock.

Chris Hayes - 7 years ago

Simply great! Outstanding work. thank you for the knowledge share. Reefer madness!

Dee From Brooklyn - 7 years ago

hey. do you have a link for information on that top off pump you use? i want to run a stronger pump from my ro unit up to my tank

slief - 7 years ago

I use a Stenner 85M5 for my ATO pump. It's a beast and they are bullet proof but they are also noisy.
http://www.lockewell.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_6_20_25&products_id=127

Cali Fishliving - 7 years ago

Amazing reef, what's the cost of running that size of tank

slief - 7 years ago

My power bill is typically around $350-375 per month for my entire home which is about 2200 sq ft. It's a bit higher in the summer when we run the AC. The tank is very efficient as I have very efficient pumps and lights. Total power consumption is around 1500 watts when the light are on and around 800 watts when they are off.

Aaron Armstrong - 7 years ago

best display refugium ever

Garry Thomas - 7 years ago

Thank you for sharing.

sassporillo - 7 years ago

Dang

Anuar l33t - 7 years ago

perfect system. thanks for all the wonderful information

30. comment for Filtration & equipment for my 500 gallon reef tank. Total system volume is about 650 gallons.

mike waters - 7 years ago

I'm looking to put a 300 gallon reef in my house. Just curious what is your cost for this gorgeous tank?

mike waters - 7 years ago

+slief Thank you so much for the reply! I have a 75 gallon reef now. I am just not familiar with a tank of this magnitude lol gorgeous tank! I can see so much love for the hobby just watching this video! Amazing!

slief - 7 years ago

That is a really loaded question. You can easily spend tens of thousands of dollars on a tank that size. The tank alone can cost $3000 + depending on material, material thickness, overflow design, shipping etc. Then there is the stand and optional canopy. That doesn't include things like a large sump for a tank that size, refugium if you want one, media reactors, protein skimmer, pumps, lights, live rock or dead rock, water, salt, test kits, heaters if needed, chillers, controllers etc. Quality of equipment and the tank construction can have a huge huge impact on costs. It's best to determine a budget and work it backwards from there to see what you can build within that budget. My tank is 480 gallons at the display and the system is about 650g. In today's market, it would likely cost $30k to reproduce. I had my acrylic tank built over 20 years ago and had it built with very thick high quality material. Because of the quality and thickness of material. It's still in near perfect shape. The tank alone would cost over $6000 to build in today's market using the same material. Things add up very fast in this hobby.

004ner - 7 years ago

great video and description of equipment. I thought you skimmer was overkill in setup but after listening to your setup it matches your level of detail to provide a great environment for your critters.

anemones are to die for. super nice that large.

Rigel Martinez - 7 years ago

Man I wish you could come to my house and show me what I am doing wrong. I use Seachem Pro Salt( $$$$$), 50 gal Water changes every 2 weeks. RO/DI, small feeding, LEDs, sump, Reef Octopus skimmer and nothing ever lives. Phosguard, Carbon, filter floss, Mag 18, and the list goes on. Nutrients are low to 0. I even added a bag of lava rocks in my sum after washin it ofcourse. Ahhhhhh

Rigel Martinez - 7 years ago

Good deal. Didn't think about it that way. Ill try doing 5 gal x 3/week see how it works out. Thank you.

slief - 7 years ago

Lava rocks aren't necessarily a good thing in a marine tank. Some lava can have metals and other undesirable things in it. Large water changes depending on the system volume can also change the water quality or water parameters very quickly which can shock the inhabitants. I much prefer smaller daily water changes because it keeps things more consistent.

RAVINDER S Purba - 7 years ago

Hi Scott, Thank you for sharing this amazing informational video with us, I have learned a lot watching your videos and videos from LAFish Guy, Please if you can let me know how much DC return pumps cost and who is the authorized dealer for these pumps ?

slief - 7 years ago

Premium Aquatics sells the Red Dragons and they also sell them directly. If you are in the US, you can go to Royalexclusiv.com and if you are outside the US, royalexclusiv.net

Jake Volkmer - 7 years ago

Do you have a video or thread on one of the forums regarding your APEX programming? I'm getting back into the hobby after about a 10 year hiatus. I think you have the most sophisticated APEX set-up I've seen.

Jake Volkmer - 7 years ago

Awesome! Pretty impressive. Thanks for the link

slief - 7 years ago

I do not and my Apex setup is very complex. That said, all my programming can be viewed here: Just click the link to "Apex Program". https://www.reeftronics.net/sa/scott-l

427HISS - 7 years ago

Great tank, but please,....move the camera SLOWLY ! Especially recording the tank.

9Nails - 7 years ago

This was a very well put together overview of a truly inspiring system.

Andrew Siver - 7 years ago

6.7ph is way to low that's scidic

slief - 7 years ago

+Andrew Siver What are you talking about? The only thing that runs at 6.7 pH is my calcium reactor and that's supposed to have a low acidic pH to break down the media in the reactor in order to maintain good Ca and Alk levels in the tank. My tanks pH ranges from 8.06 to 8.2 depending on day or night.

archerhill64 - 7 years ago

Your a mad fish scientist.

Amin __ - 8 years ago

nice tank nice setting! organized however I don't understand why you used the water change system while you have the Apex system. by having an Apex you just have to add 3 float switches.

slief - 7 years ago

+Amin RB The Genesis Renew water change system is much more flixble than the Apex running the AWC. I have it set to do 5 gallons a day but if I want to change that, all I have to do is his a button to increase or decrease the amount in gallons. It's always spot on because there are two 1 gallon metering bins. Using float switches in theory is a novel idea but they lack the same kind of accuracy. There are always slight variances in where the float switch will change states. When you have a sump and refugium that totals over 180 gallons in capacity. The difference in as little as a 1/2 a mm in the float switch state change can result in salinity drift over time. Further, if I want to do a large water change, I can simply switch the Renew to continuous mode and select a number from 1 to 99 gallons and hit start. The Renew will then change out a gallon every couple minutes. To do the water changes with the Apex, it would have to be time based and not gallon based. If I used the Dos to do it, it would be painfully slow and require frequent calibration. Bottom line, for a system my size, the Renew is much more flexible, more efficient and more fool proof. especially since my Apex acts as a fail safe by monitoring salinity, float levels, water on the floor etc that are all used as part of my fail safes and will shut the Renew down if a problem arrises.

Hugo Snell - 8 years ago

Awesome tank. I actually based my Tunze 6040 flows off your apex profiles but instead of osc used 12 virtual outlets that turn on/off with the phases of the moon to try to mimic the tides a bit. :)

Usernam E - 8 years ago

That tank would look stunning if you would clean that awful strip of coralline along the whole bottom of the tank. A razor blade would do the trick.

Usernam E - 8 years ago

+slief Acrylic sounds like a major hassle. In my glass tank – because I don't have to worry about sand scratching the glass – I can just take the magnet cleaner all the way down to the sand every week when I clean the glass. So coralline never even gets a chance to start growing.

slief - 8 years ago

It's hard to imaging but what you see there is only a handful of months worth of coraline growth. There is also 40 linear foot of edge to clean between the top & bottom edges of the peninsula. Like I said, it's a lot of work. Especially considering I have short arms & the centers of the viewing panes among the bottom are extremely hard to reach.

slief - 8 years ago

I've actually been working on it. It's a several hour job & tough to avoid breaking corals & creating more frags. The coralline grows extremely fast in this tank. It's also acrylic so razor blades are out of the question but I do use the metal bladed coraline scrapers that are made for glass. It's just very time consuming are it requires laying on the top of the tank for hours on end. I'm about 1/3 of the way done with my scraping but the hardest areas to reach are what remain. Should be completed with the task (nightmare) over the next 3-4 weeks.

Josh McCloud - 8 years ago

Looks like u got it down!!! Great work

Allen Tarver - 8 years ago

Hey Scott..love your tank.I need some help with mine..Problem is i lost most corals and i was wondering how come.I have a 300 gallon tank which now only has mushrooms and kenya trees left.I have a huge sump ,refugium.protien skimmer and a wet dry filter.Tank has been running for over a year.Tank mates 7 damsels,cleaner rass,yellow tangs,purple tang.hippo tang,a chillies tang,moorish Idiol,emperor angle,flame angle,madrin,Pakistine butterfly fish and 3 more small fish..Calcium is good and dkh is good. Lights are just over a year old.I have ro/di filter and use that water to top off and change water.Help

slief - 8 years ago

+Allen Tarver I am sorry for your loss. There are way too many variables to even answer why that could have happened. Anything from lights to your parameters, pH, nutrients, water quality, predators such as flat worms etc. Would need to know an awful lot more and YouTube probably isn't the best place to figure that out. I would suggest starting a thread in the reef section at Reef Central. Include all the details of your tank including pictures, light info and settings, Alk, Ca, Mg, pH, Po4 levels, Nitrate levels, flow, types of corals that died etc. The more info you provide there, the better information you will get in return.

Cycnoches2012 - 8 years ago

love it ! You thought of everything it seems. I love that you have been at this for so long we can learn from you! can you tell me how you get your return to switch between your two SeaSwirls?

slief - 8 years ago

+Cycnoches2012 I have a 2" PVC line that goes from the pump to the top of the tank. It feeds the pair 1" Seaswirls. One is fed from an inline "T" fitting and the other is at the end of the loop hanging off an elbow. The T and elbow are both 2" which I reduced down to 1" at the Seaswirl side. The Swirls are joined to the line via a union. The elbow and the end of the loop coupled with the Seaswirl create enough head pressure at the end of the loop that the flow between the two Seaswirls is about equal. Here's links to a couple pictures. I just took these pictures. The tank lights were off. The pictures aren't great as a result but you shroud be able to get a better idea. The 2" PVC pipe is covered in a foam insulation sleeve which I added when I installed the swirls 15 + years ago.
http://s390.photobucket.com/user/shleif/media/Pumps/image_zpswlry2fe2.jpeg.html

http://i390.photobucket.com/albums/oo347/shleif/Pumps/image_zpswlry2fe2.jpeg

915Mang - 8 years ago

Amazing set up, Loving all the tech gear. Really well thought out, and thanks for sharing. AWESOME!

Rotter Tube Reef - 8 years ago

nice setup. if i had the money, i may add some of that stuff. i have been running with the more basic setup, Berlin filtration style.

Manny Reyez - 8 years ago

very nice tho

sbazain - 8 years ago

am using powder

sbazain - 8 years ago

or you mean 100 grams per day

50. comment for Filtration & equipment for my 500 gallon reef tank. Total system volume is about 650 gallons.

sbazain - 8 years ago

is reading the amount per 1 gram is 80 mg so your saying dose 100 MG daily

sbazain - 8 years ago

is asking me for 1140 grams from 1150 to 1350 that would mean two jars of 600 grams but how much should I put at one time so it won't freak out

slief - 8 years ago

I would raise it up to 100mg a day

sbazain - 8 years ago

thanks will do , thanks for the fast response

sbazain - 8 years ago

need to ask a question am confused my magnesium is at 1150 my calcium is not coming down now how many grams of reef advantage should I dose to raise 100 ppm daily is a 150 gal. but I got about between rocks and sand maybe 120 gallons can't come up with the math

slief - 8 years ago

Use this calculator http://reef.diesyst.com/chemcalc/chemcalc.html

Luke Strothman - 8 years ago

+Slief, that is awesome man! I have one question for you! Can you link me or tell me what articulating mounts the Kessil's are on? I'm looking for something similar for my build.

Thanks much!

slief - 8 years ago

+Luke Strothman The lights are about 8" from the water & the tank is 24" deep

Luke Strothman - 8 years ago

+slief that's good to know... I may have to give them a shot. If you don't mind me asking? How far above the water line are they on your tank. What intensity are you running them on, and how deep is your tank?

slief - 8 years ago

+Luke Strothman I love my kessils! My softies, LPS & SPS are growing great under them.

Luke Strothman - 8 years ago

Epic! Thank you so much! Are you still liking the Kessil's? I bought 3 marsaqua crap fixtures from eBay.... NOT A FAN! Been a year and stuff just isn't the same... Was considering buying 3 A360WE's and maybe a couple more down the road... What are your thoughts? I have a 220, 72x24x30H. PAR good on them?

slief - 8 years ago

They are also available from premium aquatics

slief - 8 years ago

Here you go. http://aquariumledmounts.com/Kessil-LED-Mounts_c2.htm

montgomery burns - 8 years ago

Your tank is awesome man :) Good work :)

Jeff K - 8 years ago

Thats about 100 times more complicated than my 125 gallon hap/peacock tank.

First Massage - 8 years ago

I need to rewatch this another 50 times... so much information!

Jeff K - 8 years ago

+First Massage
yup, long video with no rambling

Andrew - 8 years ago

Great video and beautiful tank. I've got a 450 gallon system that shares some of the same equipment and setups. I have a few questions, if you would not mind answering/responding. (1) When you ramp up your return or your recirculating pumps do you have any problems with your sump levels? I have the same skimmer and I love it, but it's sensitive to changes in the water level of my sump. I've been thinking about adding a dc return pump that I could use to vary the flow throughout the day, but I am concerned about the sump level and my ato kicking on and off unecessarily. (2) Can you tell me the model of your aquadriver setup? I have the same bubble king supermarin skimmer and have been looking for a neck cleaner and collection cup rinse system for a while without any luck. (3) Can you tell me what you are using to raise and lower your light rack? (4) Lasltly, I noticed your lemonpeel, have you had any problems with it nipping at any of your corals? Thanks for your time!

slief - 8 years ago

+Andrew I think the light rack install/hanging above the tank starts in episode 4 of that video I linked to in my previous reply. The previous parts cover the building of the aluminum rack itself.

slief - 8 years ago

+Andrew I don't ramp up my return pump. The return stays at a constant speed to avoid sump level changes. The Aquadriver is the 250mm version. The Supermarin or any other Bubble King 250 series skimmer would use a 250mm lid. A 200 series skimmer would use a 200mm lid and so forth. There is a new Aquadriver coming out and I will be the US distributor. The Aquadrivers are from Germany though and they are very expensive. The one for a 250 sized skimmer is around $600-$650 US. You could save a small fortune and get a Vertex Vectra with the 250mm lid. Run it once a day for 60 seconds and you will be set. No issues with my Lemon Peel. I've had it for years but I have a large well fed tank. I know they can be hit or miss. With regards to my light rack, I use an AC Powered winch. There is a 6 part LA Fish Guys video covering my original switch to LED's and the building of my new light rack. Here is a link to part 1 of that Episode. It covers the winch which was already installed and the new cable and pulley connections. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjDRBYweMJg

John Denny - 8 years ago

do you account for your jizz influx into your tank? It has to be at least 1 gal. / hr.

John Jp - 8 years ago

Damn love ur tank man i watch u from la fishguy u def got my dream tank bud!!! Keep the vids comin

Stephen Gordon - 8 years ago

What are the dimensions of your tank? glass acrylic? I am in the planning stages of making a similar system. My fish room will be in the garage sharing a common wall where the tank will be.

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

slief - 8 years ago

I thought I replied but I guess I did not. The tank is 4' x 8' x 2' tall.

slief - 8 years ago

Tank is 96"x48"x24" tall. 1.5" acrylic front & back. 1" sides, top & bottom. I had it made 20 years ago & it's still damn near perfect. One thing you can do surf acrylic is remove scratches. Somthing that isn't possible with glass.

cicero44bc - 8 years ago

One of the most interesting overviews, gorgeous setup!

mattdiscus - 8 years ago

awesome video Scott

Geoffrey Scott - 8 years ago

Dude....you are AMAZING! haha. your knowledge and "OCD-ness" is sort of what I am seeing in myself with my little baby Biocube 29 right now haha!!!! Thanks for showing us this video I hope the tank and you are both doing well! Please post more videos in the future!

DiepBlueC - 8 years ago

great vid, the system looks like it has evolved over time. Very healthy critters and a well thought out equipment list. That is impressive about your power bill!

Glen Hill - 8 years ago

I can only imagine what all your gear costs.............

jjiron706 - 8 years ago

This tank is a work of Art. You have thought everything . Thank you for sharing ! I Am now a fan and look forward to seeing more videos.

Daniel Salt - 8 years ago

so jealous...good stuff man

NEMO20G - 8 years ago

bril video!!

T Surro - 8 years ago

Very impressive setup, I guess u do this for a living?

slief - 8 years ago

Thank you very much. I don't do this for a living. Just a long time (29 years) hobbyist.

slief - 8 years ago

+T Surro No. I am in the computer industry but Ive been in the salt water aquarium hobby for nearly 30 years. Being a tech junky, I havee kind of evolved my tank over the last 20 years with new technology as it becomes available. That and I am lazy so automation plays a critical role in the health of my tank and insures that my laziness doesn't play a negative role with the health of my tank.

ChampionChad - 8 years ago

I'm going to save up and get a 500 gallon tank (I get like 20$ every 2 or 3 weeks lol) so how much does it cost in total with the stuff required for keeping piranhas? (filters,heaters,and other stuff)

slief - 8 years ago

To be honest, I really couldn't tell you. I built the system over the course of 20 years and there have been a number of refinements & upgrades over that time. Freshwater is certainly much simpler than salt water and much cheaper as a result.

Jeff & Colleen Tyler - 8 years ago

awesome system and walk thru. enjoyed it lots. One question what is your calcium levels running at constant?

slief - 8 years ago

+Jeff & Colleen Tyler No Miracle Mud for me. I was offered it by the manufacturer when I setup my refugium back in 2010. Miracle Mud requires that you replace a portion of the mud every several months. For me that was an immediate turn off. Instead I was able to acquire some fresh live Fiji mud that came from the bottom of fiji live rock bins from a local live rock reseller. I got a hundred or so pounds of that along with around 200 pounds of live sand and put the mud down in the refugium followed by live sand and live rock rubble. When I setup my refugium, it was part of a much larger sump swap that was done when my tank was actually full and stocked. It was recorded as part of an LA Fish Guys episode. This part of LA FIsh Guys Episode 80 covers the sump and refugium install along with the mud. https://youtu.be/pgH6NIrbtwo

If you watch the rest of the Episode 80 parts (I think 12 parts in total), there is much more coverage of my sump and refugium design (covered in part 5). I was also going through a massive ich outbreak at the same time which was also covered in this episode. That was brought on by a large water change with colder water. The ich battle didn't end well and I learned that there are no reef safe remedies for ich. A painful lesson but I wasn't willing to treat this tank with copper as it never could have been a reef again. Fortunately, I have never had ich since.

Jeff & Colleen Tyler - 8 years ago

+slief
thank you so much, I have some things to adjust for sure. are you doing anything monthly with the miracle mud?

slief - 8 years ago

Calcium is 450, Alk is 10 & Mag is 1350. With the calcium reactor I don't have to supplement anything.

Josh Tao - 8 years ago

Very nice and thorough Scott! Glad I found this on YouTube. I've always wanted to see a detailed equipment tour of your system, now I have. Thanks for sharing.

mackjr1969 - 8 years ago

You have a DOS machine like me., ! U forgot to talk about it! Lol but I'm thinking u used it as your water change since u have a cal reactor !

mackjr1969 - 8 years ago

+slief
I will have to locate that and watch that section! I shared your well detailed video! It's really help me when you first set up your system! I learned a lot! Keep up the good work!

slief - 8 years ago

I probably should have mentioned the Dos but given my weird use for it and the fact that it would've taken a fair amount of explanation as to how it works in my system, I decided to skip that subject. Especially given that I have a video in my library covering its use.

slief - 8 years ago

I use the Genesis Renew for my automatic water changer as I mentioned in this video. I covered the Dos and another one of my videos but here Is a link. http://youtu.be/kkmuvTREK6k

Syed Hasan - 8 years ago

Thanks for sharing this detailed update. It looks you are now going back to basics and simplification which is good.

mackjr1969 - 8 years ago

Nice video again Scott., lot of people forget to add the life support! I watch your tank install on la fish!

faisal shurafa - 8 years ago

This makes my nano reef equipment look like a joke, Love your aquarium keep at it!

wayne creech - 8 years ago

Looks great as always Scott.

abreezeducttesting - 8 years ago

wow, that's an awesome system. keep the videos coming.

slief - 8 years ago

I've been in the hobby over 29 years straight. Tank is actually pretty easy to troubleshoot but it pretty much takes care of itself & the Apex controller pinpoints most any issue.

slief - 8 years ago

Thank you. I started with salt water back in 1987 or '88.

pepenaker - 8 years ago

very happy to see a video of your tank and the fucking jim is not in ot

slief - 8 years ago

+JOSE CARLOS “PEPENAKER” PLANCARTE está todo bien! ;-)

pepenaker - 8 years ago

+slief sorry i think i was very rude i was kidding i really admire your tank and jims work any way sorry if my inglish is not ghat well im from mexico city and im always looking for your videos

slief - 8 years ago

+JOSE CARLOS “PEPENAKER” PLANCARTE, I do videos from time to time on the tank which I have on my YouTube page as well as my thread on Reef Central. Jim's a good friend of mine and it's always easier when somebody else is working the camera! ;-)

Smokkedandslammed - 8 years ago

Tanks for the tour, what's your favorite thing about your tank?

john 117 - 8 years ago

+slief wow that's great I'm trying to get to that point for my automation! I only have a 120 gallons and seems like constantly doing something on or to it lol ! I have the same lights as you and would love to know what you run them at ...photo period,ramp,intensity! you said 8" off the water mine are at 11" .I watch you on la fish guys all the time and was very happy to see your own channel!! Keep up the videos .Awesome tank !!

Smokkedandslammed - 8 years ago

+slief True that, my back to starts to hurt after standing in front my tank as much as I do lol

Automation is the way to go for sure, and that's a crazy impressive set up for sure. I've never seen a LFS with as much automation and equipment on a tank like you do.

slief - 8 years ago

Aside from staring at it a lot, it's the fact that I spend less than five minutes a day working on it. That includes feeding. In all seriousness after having this tank for over 20 years, I really like the fact that it's healthier and thriving more than it ever has and with the least amount of effort. All the automation on the tank saves me a lot of work and keeps the tank healthier than ever. The hardest thing is cleaning the viewing panes once a week and mixing water. I probably spend less than an hour total a month working on it including cleaning, feeding, mixing water etc.

About Filtration & equipment for my 500 gallon reef tank. Total system volume is about 650 gallons.

The "Filtration & equipment for my 500 gallon reef tank. Total system volume is about 650 gallons." video is part of the reef tank, salt water category, which contains similar videos like this one.