Well.... it's been a long time in planning and now I'm finally getting some headway with my other projects that lead up to this tank finally being setup!
We bought a new house in December and I have worked through almost all of the Honey Do's for the new place. The new setup will be in the basement and it was a bit of compromise for placement of everything but I think it all worked out! The tank will be a in-wall setup in the theater space (the major compromise). it was the only space I was able to fit it with the layout of the room. I'll have to get creative with blocking out the light when it comes to movie time I guess.... I've been collecting parts for it for the last 6 months and have nearly everything ready to go for it except the water change station I need to build but it wont be a show stopper at all.
The tank will be in my furnace room and I've seen a few build online and in person that have used their furnace rooms for the fish rooms. I have a plan to add a external venting fan I will put in this room along with a dehumidifier to hopefully keep things nice and dry in there. Debated on adding drywall and decided I will do the main wall between the fish tank and theater room for noise reduction with Roxul Safe and sound insulation and greenboard drywall. I have epoxy for the floor to keep it protected from the saltwater spills.
Equipment wise:
The tank: the new build will be a SC Aquariums 150g I bought from a member here. It's a dream tank I have had my eyes out for for a while and I love the dimensions (60x24x24) with 3 sided Starfire glass and black silicone.
The stand: I'm using the stand he built but took all of the skinning it had off of it for ease of access to all the compartments (a bit of a waste but I'll re-purpose most of the parts).
Lighting: I'm going back to the old school with MH and T5 for now! The basement is pretty cold year round (from the short time I have been in the house). During the winter the room was pretty cold and now with the summer here its still pretty cool. If I went with LED's I would have to add more power to heat the tank so I figured MH will be about even with everything said.....we will see how long I last, LOL... 3 250w MH with 4 T5's. I'm not entirely sure that is not overkill but if all else I'll take out one of the 250w MH and go from there. I'll add some leds for moon lights eventually too.
Return: Going to gamble on using a Jebao 12000 DC pump. I've read they are prone to failing but since I've already purchased it I'm going to stick with it for a while until I can get a Fluval Sea SP6.
Circulation: Using two Vortech MP-40's for now and will add 1 or two more if needed.
Skimmer: picked up a RO 300int with an upgraded DC pump....over kill for the 150g but with everything total I will have about 400 gallons (150 display, 130g sump, 40g frag, and 40g refugium) so it should be fine.
Filtration: I will be using a couple of PM Marine Reactors for Carbon and GFO when needed. I also have a UV filter that will be plumbed into this system and all of it will be run off it's own manifold/pump.
Supplements: I have a calcium reactor but need to pick up a CO2 tank for it. I've been debating if I want to use this or go with Dosing.... will decide once I get to that point. Have a Kalc reactor I'll use depending on need also.
Controls: I'll be using a Neptune Apex for this build with ATO setup. I'll have to sit down with this to learn it but I'm sure it will be simple enough. I have a IP camera I'll setup for the tank for remote viewing also.
I've purchased 150 pounds of Billy's Reef Rock and it looks really clean and has some great shapes. I'll be using some Jurassic glue and fiber rods to build my aquascape and using CaribSea Seaflor Special Grade Reef Sand which has been my favorite sand to use. I don't plan on using all of it for the display and will add some to the refugium and sump. My plans have been modified a bit from the beginning when I had planned to use a 100g Rubbermaid stock tank for a benthic refugium but decided it would be too much work. I'm excited and will post more progress pictures as I go!
Here's a crappy cell phone sneak peak at the build!
We bought a new house in December and I have worked through almost all of the Honey Do's for the new place. The new setup will be in the basement and it was a bit of compromise for placement of everything but I think it all worked out! The tank will be a in-wall setup in the theater space (the major compromise). it was the only space I was able to fit it with the layout of the room. I'll have to get creative with blocking out the light when it comes to movie time I guess.... I've been collecting parts for it for the last 6 months and have nearly everything ready to go for it except the water change station I need to build but it wont be a show stopper at all.
The tank will be in my furnace room and I've seen a few build online and in person that have used their furnace rooms for the fish rooms. I have a plan to add a external venting fan I will put in this room along with a dehumidifier to hopefully keep things nice and dry in there. Debated on adding drywall and decided I will do the main wall between the fish tank and theater room for noise reduction with Roxul Safe and sound insulation and greenboard drywall. I have epoxy for the floor to keep it protected from the saltwater spills.
Equipment wise:
The tank: the new build will be a SC Aquariums 150g I bought from a member here. It's a dream tank I have had my eyes out for for a while and I love the dimensions (60x24x24) with 3 sided Starfire glass and black silicone.
The stand: I'm using the stand he built but took all of the skinning it had off of it for ease of access to all the compartments (a bit of a waste but I'll re-purpose most of the parts).
Lighting: I'm going back to the old school with MH and T5 for now! The basement is pretty cold year round (from the short time I have been in the house). During the winter the room was pretty cold and now with the summer here its still pretty cool. If I went with LED's I would have to add more power to heat the tank so I figured MH will be about even with everything said.....we will see how long I last, LOL... 3 250w MH with 4 T5's. I'm not entirely sure that is not overkill but if all else I'll take out one of the 250w MH and go from there. I'll add some leds for moon lights eventually too.
Return: Going to gamble on using a Jebao 12000 DC pump. I've read they are prone to failing but since I've already purchased it I'm going to stick with it for a while until I can get a Fluval Sea SP6.
Circulation: Using two Vortech MP-40's for now and will add 1 or two more if needed.
Skimmer: picked up a RO 300int with an upgraded DC pump....over kill for the 150g but with everything total I will have about 400 gallons (150 display, 130g sump, 40g frag, and 40g refugium) so it should be fine.
Filtration: I will be using a couple of PM Marine Reactors for Carbon and GFO when needed. I also have a UV filter that will be plumbed into this system and all of it will be run off it's own manifold/pump.
Supplements: I have a calcium reactor but need to pick up a CO2 tank for it. I've been debating if I want to use this or go with Dosing.... will decide once I get to that point. Have a Kalc reactor I'll use depending on need also.
Controls: I'll be using a Neptune Apex for this build with ATO setup. I'll have to sit down with this to learn it but I'm sure it will be simple enough. I have a IP camera I'll setup for the tank for remote viewing also.
I've purchased 150 pounds of Billy's Reef Rock and it looks really clean and has some great shapes. I'll be using some Jurassic glue and fiber rods to build my aquascape and using CaribSea Seaflor Special Grade Reef Sand which has been my favorite sand to use. I don't plan on using all of it for the display and will add some to the refugium and sump. My plans have been modified a bit from the beginning when I had planned to use a 100g Rubbermaid stock tank for a benthic refugium but decided it would be too much work. I'm excited and will post more progress pictures as I go!
Here's a crappy cell phone sneak peak at the build!
