So, by this stage, Id got the tank built, the brace bars in, plumbing done, basket strainers in. fake live rock in, and it was ready for a test. So, baring in mind, that I didn't want to contaminate the new rock with poor quality tap water, and based on the fact it would take approximately 6 weeks to cure it, RO was the order of the day, with a gradual fill done over several days. This actually turned out to be beneficial as it was easy to see any poor joints before they got under too much pressure from rapid filling. as it was, I only had 1 poor joint that needed attention. equally it gave me time to work on the weir comb assemblies and play with the closed loops whilst it was still filling.

Getting there: It might look odd at this stage with those nozzles sticking up out of the base like saw thumbs, but remember there is a bed of sand to go in yet, and allot of coralline growth to disguise them once the system is up and running. But as you can see, the intake baskets are well hidden by the rockwork, and the full length weir blends in to the back glass very well without looking intrusive, as conventional Weir boxes can do.

Playing with the pumps:  Obviously whilst still filling, the flow from the pump at relatively shallow depth was like a washing machine (actually quite good for curing the DIY live rock) but even when full in the final shot, the force from the bottom outlets was enough to really stir the surface into a boiling motion with a good amount of wave roll.

So, with the tank just about full, it was time to get that weir comb done once and for all.

I wanted a weir that would stop anything bigger than a dove snail getting sucked over the weir. so an all enclosed design was important to fit in with the angled weir plate that had already been installed. so I hit upon an idea to use the brace bar, and weir plate, as part of this enclosed box design, leaving me to just make a weir comb up that ran the full length of the tank and fastened securely to the brace bar whilst still being removable for servicing/cleaning.

so this is what I came up with.

Firstly I found some 10mm electrical tracking and removed the front cover from it (image 1) . Then made up the weir combs using blue acrylic and a chop saw to make 3mm cuts every 1" across the entire width (image 2). I actually made 2 combs so that one would fit on each side of the central brace bar with a permanent blanking plate underneath to fill the gap. This allowed me to remove 1 weir at a time for cleaning when needed. In the centre image you will notice a small cut out at the end. This was so that the comb would fit neatly under the side brace bars at either end of the tank. Finally, I bonded the tracking to the weir comb using the same glue used for pipe bonding. which works quite well on this softer type acrylic sheet. (image 3)

Fitting the comb couldn't be simpler. It simply involves slotting the tracking over the 10mm brace bars so it fits snugly against the weir plate forming a completely enclosed weir right across the back of the tank. In my case, I'm flowing approximately 7-8000 lph across this weir and its not even trying, so the capacity of flow with this method is only limited by the outlet pipe dimensions.

So with that all done, it was time to just sit back, keep changing the water as the artificial live rock cured releasing its salt and stabilised in relation to pH, and eagerly await the time that I could do a final refill, add the sand, and salt, and heat the system up. after this it was simply a case of turning on the return pump, and gradually let water feed to the tower sump and through the already seasoned DSB compartment, which would go some way towards  flooding the system with bacterial and larval life.