150 Gallon Church build......Dream come true!

S

sean obergfell

New member
Hello All,
WOW! This is my first build thread.....My name is Sean Obergfell I am a Pastor of a new Church in Allegany NY I am also a Police Officer....and I really enjoy the whole saltwater world. Amazing world it is.
I do alot more reading and learning from all the knowledgeable folks on UPS, however here it goes.
I currently have a 70 corner about 5 years, which has been great fun. I am putting this 150 gallon in the church to really bless the kids of the congregation....they will love it!

Tank: 5x2x2 custom made by marineland ordered through ARC.
Overflow is a gl*******s box 1500GPH
Stand is custom made by Joe at Joeswoodworks.
Sump is 75 gallon
Skimmer is ASM G3
Lighting: luminbrights...2x250w and blue powerbrites. As of now i have a hamilton fixture that is temp.

I must tell you that aquascaping is BY FAR my favorite part of setting up a system. I love rock!

I have been buying and saving pieces for about 2 years......this has been a long time in the making.

Much of the rock is Tonga Branch and hand picked pieces of great shaped rock.

The process has begun...Tank is in, ro water is in, sand and rock are in......Let the cycle begin.

I'm sure the rock will be rearranged several times before it is to my liking.

I will send some pics.

Oh, I also have an identical 150 going in my house once the church one is up and running....but that is for another day!
 
IMG_0672.jpg
 
Well the rock work has already been rearranged for the above pic....i will have pic soon

I like the way it looks now. I took out some Tonga and added some really cool shaped rock.

I have a sea swirl and ato.

For the plumbing I used the Flex PVC and I love it....it was the first time i ever did plumbing.


This has been a long thought out process. Actually very consuming.....make a list, cross it out make another list, cross it out....think....think...think....

I have actually lost sleep on thinking about this set up.....I know, it aint right. I will be so relieved when this is up and full of fish. I must say i do love the planning and finding the right equip. Anyways....more to come in the days ahead.
 
Any tips on cycling? I have cured rock, 30 lbs of live sand and 80 dry.....water change from my current tank.

It has been 5 years since cycling a tank.....any new things out there?
 
Everything look's great.....My advice or they way that i have cycled was,Using the raw uncooked shrimp method. Put it in the tank with a fishing line so i dont loose it. and test my ammonia and nitrate once the ammonia goes up then comes back down to zero the tank is cycled. i have used this method since my first tank and never had a problem with it. And the bacteria will start it's cycle with the sand bed..IMHO...goodluck
 
Glad to see that your dream tank is becoming a reality! All of the planning/research will lead you to a very successful aquarium. Joe did a nice job on the stand and WOW that Tonga is amazing. Keep us updated! :)
 
Joe really did a great job at keeping me up to date. He sent pics every night of all the progress. I felt it was a very fair price for a custom set up.

If anyone is looking for a stand or canopy, talk with Joe. He will do the best he can on the price. I love it.
 
Here in Olean we are far out from any great LFS...we drive to Buffalo, Rochester for our needs......Drew has been a big help in this process. Thanks D....and of course all the calls to the gentlemen at ARC.....They have always been great to me. There have been several on here that I have popped a question to and received an experienced answer, So thank you.

I am looking forward to showing you the new rock work, should be up later today.

I might try the shrimp idea.
 
Nice woodwork. I'm diggin' it!

I've always wanted to put a tank at our church. We'll have to live vicariously through your congregation. :)
 
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