09.09.09. DIY Stands assembled and Tanks put into position for leveling.
09.12.09 Tap water added for leak testing.
09.13.09 Tanks drained after discovering PVC shelving had "settled" almost 1/4" overnight and Breeder Tank appeared to be leaning diagonally forward. Broke down entire setup.
09.14.09 Consulted with my dad who was a mechanical engineer about the stands. Opted to scrap the DIY stands and purchased Home Depot steel stands rated for 1,000 lbs per shelf. Re-assembled. Filled with tap water.
09.15.09 Leak test passed. Added hardware and began circulating the water. Discovered design flaw with the DIY Gravity Siphon. I thought a 3/4" tube would easily transfer 300 gph. It didn't. The Gravity Siphon wasn't working fast enough. Went to Home Depot and upgraded to 1" tubing. That did the trick. Added Salt to the system.
09.16.09 Added Live Sand to the Sump.
09.25.09 Added Live Rock to the Sump.
09.27.09 Discovered a leak in the overflow box where it connects to the flex tubing. Fixed it.
09.28.09 Discovered another leak in the overflow box where it connects to the flex tubing. Fixed it.
09.30.09 Discovered yet another leak in the overflow box where it connnects to the flex tubing. Added enough Silicon to reinforce the Hoover Dam.
10.05.09 Added 5 year old Amphiprion ocellaris to assist with cycling.
10.08.09 Discovered first Brown Diatom Algae growth. Also noticed dozens of Copepods and Amphipods throughout the entire system. They had to have started in the Sump and expanded through a 325 GPH pump and the 1" Gravity Siphon!