My 300 gallon starphire SPS tank w/125 gallon macro/mangrove refugium

[aquavista99]

After months of waiting without a tank, my new 300 gallon custom three sided starphire glass aquarium built by Marineland (Perfecto) has finally arrived. Special thanks goes out to Verper(Scott), jjoos99 (Jeff), rmstevensiii (Mitch), UDJustin (Justin), JustCoral (Scott Wilson), Matt, Brian and Ari for helping me move the new aquarium into our basement.












With a "high flow" theme in mind, the substrate for my new aquarium will be a mixture of Tonga reef sand (Tropic Eden) and coral fragments (GEN-X).





Flow will be powered by four Vortech pumps with three battery backup units. I recently added two new Vortech pumps to go along with my two existing Vortech pumps.





With any new build, lots of reef salt will be needed!

[bigfalcon36]

i want pictures of people straining and sweating to get this beast into the basement.

Awesome Tim, I am happy for you.  Wait, now that you bailed on the Tunze...what are you going to do with them? 

[aquavista99]

i want pictures of people straining and sweating to get this beast into the basement.

Awesome Tim, I am happy for you.  Wait, now that you bailed on the Tunze...what are you going to do with them? 

At least one of the volunteers requested that I would not post pictures of the move on the Internet, sorry. My new 3 foot wide, 300 gallon aquarium was very difficult to move into the basement (especially the first time around). Special thanks goes out to Verper (Scott) and jjoss99 (Jeff) for providing three pairs of large suction cups to help us move the aquarium.

For the past year or so, I ran both Tunze 6100 stream pumps with Vortech pumps on my 210 gallon aquarium (which now belongs to Viggen). At one time, I only used Tunze pumps for flow on my previous reefs. Tunze makes one of the best pumps for flow, period. However, after a year of using Vortech pumps, I developed a new preference and sold my existing Tunze pumps to Logzor on Cincyreef.

[olsaltybastard]

Very cool!!  I will be following this thread with enthusiasm.  Nice to see you back in action.

[bigfalcon36]

At least one of the volunteers requested that I would not post pictures of the move on the Internet, sorry. My new 3 foot wide, 300 gallon aquarium was very difficult to move into the basement (especially the first time around). Special thanks goes out to Verper (Scott) and jjoss99 (Jeff) for providing three pairs of large suction cups to help us move the aquarium.

For the past year or so, I ran both Tunze 6100 stream pumps with Vortech pumps on my 210 gallon aquarium (which now belongs to Viggen). At one time, I only used Tunze pumps for flow on my previous reefs. Tunze makes one of the best pumps for flow, period. However, after a year of using Vortech pumps, I developed a new preference and sold my existing Tunze pumps to Logzor on Cincyreef.

So, in your opinion, what are the pros of the Vortech over the Tunze...I guess what changed your mind?

[lazylivin]

Wow man, that is going to be off the hook.

[aquavista99]

So, in your opinion, what are the pros of the Vortech over the Tunze...I guess what changed your mind?

I like the flow patterns better on the Vortech pumps and I like to keep as much electricity outside the reef as possible. The wires on Vortech pumps remain outside the aquarium which is a plus for me. I am not a big fan of the new Tunze Stream design. I preferred the older version Tunze pumps with the large magnets. Both pumps can be controlled and you can adjust a Tunze pump in multiple directions whereas the Vortech pump will produce random flow in one direction only. You can't go wrong with either pump.

[bigfalcon36]

I'm going to be interested to see your pump placement on this display.  Have you gave it any thought?

One other thing, what did Perfecto do with the defective tank? 

[aquavista99]

Very cool!!  I will be following this thread with enthusiasm.  Nice to see you back in action.

It is nice to be back, Brian. All my corals and fish still reside in a temporary 300 gallon Rubbermaid tub for about another two weeks. I should be able to provide some nice top down pictures of the corals soon before I move them into the new aquarium.

[aquavista99]

I'm going to be interested to see your pump placement on this display.  Have you gave it any thought?

One other thing, what did Perfecto do with the defective tank? 

The Perfecto engineer and the two tank builders who built my new aquarium removed the existing tank from my basement, one glass panel at a time. The first tank had some silicone gap issues, but Perfecto immediately agreed to fix the problem. They were very helpful and friendly. One of the tank builders requested the contact information from the carpenter who built my custom, solid oak stand and canopy. He really like the new stand.

The vortech pumps will be placed  near the top sides of the aquarium (two pumps on each side).

[aquavista99]

Wow man, that is going to be off the hook.

Thanks for the compliment, Lazylivin! l plan to use  much of the same equipment for the new aquarium as I used on my last aquarium, which includes access to five Lumenarc III reflectors, 400 watt Icecap ballasts, a large GEO calcium reactor and a large Euroreef RC 500 skimmer.  Right now, everything is still hooked up to the Rubbermaid tub until I finish painting the background on my new tank and do the plumbing. The electrical work was completed months ago by a licensed electrician.

[Blown76mav]

This is going to be sweet, can't wait to see it up and running.  One day I'll have a big boy tank.  But I'm going to need a new house first.

[MechanicalEngineer]

Very nice...as always!   

[aquavista99]

This is going to be sweet, can't wait to see it up and running. 

Thanks! I am looking forward to finally having a tank again. My next project will be finishing the painted background and doing some plumbing work.

[aquavista99]

The stand and canopy is a custom order from John Thorman in Rhome, Texas. It is 100% solid oak. I had to assemble the stand and canopy in my basement otherwise it would not fit through my basement door. I also had to sand, stain and finish the stand and canopy myself. The stand is 38" tall by 3 feet wide and the canopy is 21" tall by 3 feet wide.

[aquavista99]

Very nice...as always!   

Thanks for the compliment, Nikki!  This project is far from finished but hopefully everything will come together within the next few weeks or so. I plan to spend a few days to a week just on the rock work layout.

[lazylivin]

Nice color choice on the stain. Looks like your not wasting anytime getting things setup. Did you spray paint or roll the background? Looks nice and smooth.

[aquavista99]

Nice color choice on the stain. Looks like your not wasting anytime getting things setup. Did you spray paint or roll the background? Looks nice and smooth.

I used paint rollers this time. I just finished my third coat last night. The stain is red mahogany by Minwax. I used Helmsman's spar urethane to finish the stand and canopy.

[bigfalcon36]

Very nice stand and canopy!  I see some framing in the background...do I smell a filteration room in the works?  Would be easy enough to do down there.

[Revaltion131]

I think you have too many Vortechs, you should send me one. 

Very nice, love the stand and canopy and can't wait to see this filled!

[hamiltro]

it looks great. cant wait to see it up and running

[aquavista99]

Very nice stand and canopy!  I see some framing in the background...do I smell a filteration room in the works?  Would be easy enough to do down there.

I wish I had approval to finish the basement. I have to wait a few more years according to the boss. The framing in the background is for the electrical system for the reef and refugium.

[aquavista99]

I think you have too many Vortechs, you should send me one. 

If you never ask, the answer is always no. But since you asked, the answer is still no but with a smile 

[JSLeedy]

If you never ask, the answer is always no. But since you asked, the answer is still no but with a smile 

Really?   I always heard it's better to ask forgiveness than permission.  See Revaltion131 you should have just gone and taken one.

[aquavista99]

it looks great. cant wait to see it up and running

Welcome to Ohio Reef, hamiltro!