180g tank build

[SaltSolutions1]

My boss wants me to help him setup a 180g tall reef tank for his bar at his condo. I could use all the help I can get here.

72L x 18W x 31H

I was thinking of getting the tank from glasscages.com

I need recommendations for live rock, sand, skimmer pumps plumbing ect.

Please help.

 

[savethereef]

It all depends. i would not advice on those dims for some reasons. 31h its really had to clean the bottom and with 18w not much room to aqua scape. plus with 30 inch tank you need stronger lights. maybe he can do a traditional 180g which is 72l x 24w x 24h or even maybe 27h to give it a taller look. Also Glasscages is not as good as they where in the past. look into other manufacturers. look around the threads here in the Large forum at the begging of them they will say where and who made the tanks.

If you have any other questions shoot away

 

[SaltSolutions1]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13612720#post13612720 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by savethereef
It all depends. i would not advice on those dims for some reasons. 31h its really had to clean the bottom and with 18w not much room to aqua scape. plus with 30 inch tank you need stronger lights. maybe he can do a traditional 180g which is 72l x 24w x 24h or even maybe 27h to give it a taller look. Also Glasscages is not as good as they where in the past. look into other manufacturers. look around the threads here in the Large forum at the begging of them they will say where and who made the tanks.

If you have any other questions shoot away

thanks for your comments. he is finding out this week if the HOA will even allow it. I will keep you posted.

 

[Capt56]

Savethereef is right, 31 is kind of high. Mine is 28 and it is a pain to clean out the bottom. Plus without intense lighting, it is hard to reach the bottom with a 31h.

Where does he want it? In wall? On a stand? It's too bad you are not in Long Beach, Ca. I could give you some good leads.

 

[PreacherMan607]

Can you do the typical 72" x 24w x 24w? And as far as some of the other things go (All are my humble opinion) Ocean Direct for the Sand...it's great!. As far as Pumps, Skimmer and Sump go there are allot of really good ones on the market. Some good skimmers are Deltec, MRC (My Reef Creations)...I believe these guys also make sumps as well. . And good pumps Mag, Iwaki. Hope this helps!

Be Blessed!

 

[Chihuahua6]

Your question is too broad. What exactly do you need help with? If it's everything, then you need to just read a ton and come up with some more specific questions.

 

[SaltSolutions1]

OK so we are still waiting on HOA approval.

Has a budget of unlimited but I told him for a system of 180g with at least a 65g sump he's looking at about $10,000.00

So, who wants to play "fantasy reef"?

If you had $10,000.00 to play with build your ideal 180g reef tank.

72 x 24 x 25

let me know.

 

[SaltSolutions1]

HOA approved......tank is going in.

Now what? hahaha

So, let's play "fantasy reef" If you have a budget of $10,000.00 what is the best tank, skimmer, lights, ect. for a standard 180g with a budget that large.

Let me know

 

[SaltSolutions1]

bump

 

[savethereef]

Wait a sec i have a question. what does the HOA have to do with a tank going in the house? The reason i ask is because i will be getting a house in the next 2 months and there is a HOA there. do i have to ask permission to keep a tank in my own house?

 

[savethereef]

also if your budget is 10k you can build an awesome tank.

1st need to decide on your dimensions for the tank.

2nd decide how you want to plumb it

3rd what kind of stand you want

4rd the equipment selection part can be done from online ex. marinedepot.com or other vendors.

 

[porthios]

do i have to ask permission to keep a tank in my own house?

i've never seen that but if the bored housewives that run your hoa are anything like those that run mine, you'd be surprised at the stuff they'll come up with.

 

[SaltSolutions1]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13635730#post13635730 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by savethereef
Wait a sec i have a question. what does the HOA have to do with a tank going in the house? The reason i ask is because i will be getting a house in the next 2 months and there is a HOA there. do i have to ask permission to keep a tank in my own house?

I don't think it is usual to ask or to make sure there isn't a clause in a HOA agreement.

The reason I had to double check is because the condo this is going in is on the ocean and the penthouse on the 15th floor.

I just thought I would ask before I put something in that could potentially flood 15 floors with 300 gallons of water.

But it is approved. I will start the project in the next couple months after I pay taxes.

In the meantime, I need to make a list of equipment and things I will need to purchase, from who, and pricing.

In the space that is available I can fit a 72 x 24 x 25 180g tank

 

[SaltSolutions1]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13635745#post13635745 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by savethereef
also if your budget is 10k you can build an awesome tank.

1st need to decide on your dimensions for the tank.

2nd decide how you want to plumb it

3rd what kind of stand you want

4rd the equipment selection part can be done from online ex. marinedepot.com or other vendors.

1st - dimmensions - 72 x 24 x 25

2nd - plumbing - I was thinking of maybe a 65g sump in the stand with dividers for a DSB and a fuge with chaeto and a fuge light, 3 heaters, a strong workhorse skimmer, killer pump.

main tank will be drilled in each corner. I was thinking maybe pvc to a bulkhead draining the tank into the sump on one side and the pump pumping water up the other side.
(could use some good ideas here)

3rd - stand will be a cabinet to match the cabinets in the bar area where this tank is going to go. I am hoping to have the guy building the cabinets build me the stand to match as well as the canopy.

4th - as far as equipment goes, I just wanted some feedback as to what the best equipment on the market is for this size tank. (lighting (want to be able to grow anything I want), best skimmer, best tank manufacturers, pumps, heaters, live rock, live sand, best chiller, leak detector, ph monitor, calcium reactor, and anything else you can think of to limit the amount maintenance needed)

This will be an elite setup with nothing but the best stuff.

So, this is obviously a decent brainstorming start, but a long way from getting started. It will be at least January 1st before I even start to buy anything. But plans are in place and need all the help I can get.

 

[Lowredranger]

This is what i have come up with as the best stuff for the 180 that i am building. I won't be able to afford it all at least not at once and i have never had a large tank but this is what i have learned from others.

Pump - Reeflo snapper or Dart depending on how much flow you want or if you are doing a closed loop you may want 2 pumps.

Skimmer - Reeflo Orca 200 - Orca 250 Pro the 200 should be sufficient for that size tank to start with.

I am going with a standard 75g tank for my sump with baffles and drilled for the snapper that i am using.

I currently have 3 vortech powerheads but i don't have anything set up yet so not sure if that is enough.

Lights that depends i would either go to reef specialty and look at 3 250w halides in lumenbright mini reflectors they have them as diy retro kits and add some T5's for supplements.

I think i am going to go with an all T5 setup from reefgeek 8x80w overdriven to 100w a piece in RG/Miro reflectors.

Either of the lighting setup i have been told are sufficient to keep anything in that tank it is just personal opinion.

I do not plan on running a chiller so no advice there.

I ordered some of the marco dry rock to get the aquascaping setup

I am not sure on the calcium reactor but i have heard good things about the Geo units.

I would get a controller if money is not an option i would go with the RKE hopefully i can upgrade to that at some point I only have the RK2 at the moment but there are other controllers out there.

You can always make the stand a little taller if you want the tank higher i am going to go between 36"-40" tall stand.

I have a glasscages tank but i bought it used i would go with someone else if ordering a new one.

I will probably go with either 3 x 150 or 3 x 200 watt heaters just so there are no failure problems either way and let the controller handle it.

Hopefully this helps i have been researching all of this the last couple months.

Jason

 

[SaltSolutions1]

thanks Jason

Looking forward to seeing more of your build. You should start a thread.

I will start one once I get going.

Let me know of any other discoveries or finds you come up with along the way.

 

[Lowredranger]

Will do, i guess i could start a thread but it seems like there are so many on hear i just read and comment on others and use the information they have been given instead of asking the same thing all over again. I just went and found some great looking build threads for the 180g and asked them for advice. The 180's seem to be the most popular starting point.

Mine will just be a little slower if i post a thread b/c i am buying like 1 piece of equipment a month so i can afford it. So i kinda figured i would just start posting when i started getting everything put together maybe for some aqua scaping and plumbing advice so it would look like i was making some progress.