weatherson:
If you can, I'd recommend (also) having the tank drilled and making it reef-ready. I prefer the simplicity of this design and the ease and piece of mind that comes with it. I guarantee your inhabitants wants will change over time and you will require more water movement for filtration needs.
- interesting. i havent given this much thought but I definitely see your point: doing it now will make it so much easier in the future if the need arises. in trying to keep my plan simple i may be overlooking opportunities for flexibility. here's what I have thought on this: the tank I'm buying from my LFS is a perfecto 220 gal (72x24x30) and costs $704.99. Amazing! I simply wanted a glass box to work with. Last time I was there I did see several reef ready tanks, that simply meant they were drilled with 4 holes in the bottom of the tank. also had options for overflow boxes to put in. the drilled tank runs $946.99. So I opted against that initially. however, b/c i havent purchased the tank (maybe this week) I'm still open to it. Essentially another $250 for future flexibility. Hmmm, will have to think about it now. (also, I havent heard anything bad about perfecto's per say. Any opinion?)
I'd also recommend going with an external pump for circulation. The advantages include less heat transfer as well as possibly more efficient power usage. This also provides the ability to move more water if desired.
- I would def be up for this. But I dont know much at all about them which makes them a bit intimidating. i know there are so many diff types and wouldnt even know where to start. if i had to take a shot, i'd say the iwaki's are one of the more popular? with the 2 tunze streams in the tank i'll have a good amount of flow, so i just need to get water from the sump back up to the tank. what kind of pump would you recommend here? also, again, it will provide me with more flexibility but defeats the idea of simplicity as I'll have to drill my sump to install it?
Not sure if it was explained in enough depth or not yet but the need to get fresh air (oxygen) into your tank room is very important.
- i can't beleive how little i've heard about this with all of the time and reading spent. this should maybe be a seperate thread sometime b/c it sounds like there's alot to learn here. with that said, i do have plans for some kind of exhaust system. i've seen many on here and am going to discuss the best approach with my contractor. i am so fortunate to have you all to help with this b/c this is something that would be much harder to do once the room is built out. right now, it seems very easy as my basement is a walkout and i'll probably have many options here. thank you!!
As to the flush front glass pane to wall interface, I wouldn't suggest using drywall mud to fill the gap. It will crack in time with natural movement of the home and as the tank settles. You may want to consider using some very exact measurements and trim out the inside area of the opening with some hardwood to give you a hard surface. Running the sheet-rock edge up to the tank is not a good idea in regards to strength as well as moisture penetration. With the wood surface next to the tank and with tight tolerances, a simple bead of silicone would fill the thin gap for a finished look. Personally, I like the picture frame look, though.
- great. this one's going in "The File". completely agree and will take that approach.
- weatherson, i really appreciate your input and time here. i'm honored, actually
~~~~~~~~~
jarhead:
Trust me, Weatherson knows what he's talking about! If you havent seen his tank thread, you should!
- I am proud to say that I have indeed read the thread. in fact, i spent a good deal of the past few weeks reading every single post of that monster. it was up to 115 pages when i started and was at 119 when i finished. i figured i couldnt ask for help unless i read his thread, i mean, book.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lon-
On trimming around the tank here are my plans.. since the drywall is 1/2" thicker than the wall and you cannot make that flush I will do something like Weatherson said. I will trim the tank out setting the trim on the drywall this will leave a 1/2" gab between the glass and the trim. in that gab I will cut a piece of 1/2 x 3/4 pine trim (They have this at Lowes and Home Depot) to slide in that gab. It will fit flush against the trim and the glass. This piece should not be noticeable at all.
- Hey Lon, thanks for the input. I'm a little confused, do you have any pics of what you did here? maybe its on your thread. i'll check. thanks.
- thanks to all for the input. like i said, i need to get the tank this week. am trying to meet with the contractor this week as well since he's starting one week from today.
- another topic came up in another thread that I was hoping to get some input on: I have about 100lbs of live rock in my temporary setup that i will be using in the new tank, in addition to some base rock I'm going to buy for added flitration. my question is around the current live rock and something called "cooking" that i've read. i have this rock but i dont think its "clean" for a new tank. first of all, i had some read algae outbreaks before I took down the previsou tank. this, i'm assuming, is still present in the LR. second, when i oringially started the last tank with this rock, i cured the rock right in the tank to start the cycle. one mistake i made back then was that i did a very, very poor job of scrubbing the rock when it arrived from the supplier. as a result, there was SO much dieoff in the tank that I have this feeling my LR is covered with way too much detritus. i want to remove this before adding to my new tank.
Any ideas on a plan to clean and transfer the rock to the new tank? What's this "cooking" idea?
Thanks!
Bryan
