260 gallon (96x24x26) reef and fish room upgrade

winterpeg said:
What changed your mind about the fish room.. if you don't mind. Pm if needed

Thanks
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TheAquatect said:
Time for an update!

I had a few things going on that had me change my plans a bit which included giving up my current fish room and the plans to re-do it. The reason is really because of the renovation project I mentioned in my first post which involves redoing the downstairs master, and adding a closet (cause that was my fish room ;) ) for my mom, who is moving in with us. I am really glad I have the opportunity to have my mom here and have her spend time with us, especially the grand-kids. I grew up with my grandmother so its almost a requirement to me.
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Yep, giving up the room for family is worth it, but its definitely made it interesting. I did a significant amount of planning as you can tell and it all got wiped away so I feel a bit rushed to get a new design in place. I've gotten some good feedback in this thread, which has been very helpful. The equipment piling up all over the house also makes it feel a bit like a "reef christmas" :)

Progress has been made, I had a plan to get my 3 holding tanks plumbed and running by Saturday. It took me till Sunday and I only incurred 2 additional trips to the hardware store! lol

Keep in mind, as part of the set-up, I actually moved my DT sump to the holding tanks so they would cycle faster (or not at all, hopefully) so I could move the livestock within 2 weeks. My DT is currently running a 20g Brute sump.

Taking the sump offline from the DT


... And all plumbed up to the 3 tanks!


While that runs, I can focus on my stand and Water station a bit, so I picked up these "little" 90g storage tanks (22" diameter x 62" tall).


I'm going do a separate, more detailed post on the 80/20 stand but it looks like it won't be working out for me.
 
OK, well the tank is IN!!! And a big thanks to yet another LFS, Marine Warehouse Aquarium for hooking me up with a bad-a** tank! :)

Here are some pics, still in the crate.



I also managed to finish tearing down my 150. I did not realize how hard it was emotionally, to pull down a good running reef system. Now I am just hoping most everything survived the transition.


 
Can I ask why you chose a 26" height and not 30? I see you ordered a 30" height, but curious as to why you were looking at the 26 first (if not just from a maintenance perspective)
 
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wings516 said:
Can I ask why you chose a 26" height and not 30? I see you ordered a 30" height, but curious as to why you were looking at the 26 first (if not just from a maintenance perspective)
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I was strictly thinking of maintenance. My 150 is 30" tall and I have a really had time reaching the bottom, especially toward the back of the tank. Once i realized the error of my ways, I remembered how nice the height was! :)

Interestingly, there is very little difference cost-wise, though I think this point varies with each builder.
 
I agree with TheAquatect, I have a 72x24x30 and it really is a pain on upkeep to lighting. One of the reasons I went 96x36x24 was for reach but also to simplify lighting and spread. In my case cost was the same up till 30.
 
bigzman said:
I agree with TheAquatect, I have a 72x24x30 and it really is a pain on upkeep to lighting. One of the reasons I went 96x36x24 was for reach but also to simplify lighting and spread. In my case cost was the same up till 30.
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This is what I was anticipating. All my research has shown that the 24-30" range is prime-time grow range for mixed lighting options considered and there won't be anything that you can't grow.

Sure! You're maybe talking what... $13/g material/build cost to jump from 24 to 30 with those dimensions? If I wasn't 5' nothing and could reach down a 30 I would join you on this :lmao:
 
wings516 said:
If I wasn't 5' nothing and could reach down a 30 I would join you on this :lmao:
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I've gotten really good at working a set of grabbers. I have had to practically lay on top of the tank to reach certain spots. Most annoying aspect to me is securing corals to rock in lower portions of the aquarium. I learned early, to lower the water level when doing things like that to avoid getting wet to my shoulder! :)

The in-wall aspect of my tank really added complexity because anything I did, I had to do from the back of the aquarium and as corals grew out, it was almost impossible to reach stuff at the lower front without making frags.

But even after all that, I would really miss the tall 22+" rockwork and look of a wall of water with fish swimming by. Closest to a public aquarium I can afford to get to. :D
 
30" tall tanks provide moments of frustration, hours of enjoyment. I'll never go back to a shorter (less tall) tank.
 
If I could change one thing about my tank, it would be that I went 30" tall instead of 24". Everything else is perfect.
 
Work has begun!!

I was shocked to see its been almost 2 months since my last update. Progress has been slow in those last 2 months but I have all of my equipment and the contractor has finally started work on the remodel which includes removal of a bumped out section of wall where the tank will sit. We are also putting down new floors around the tank, so timing has been a big reason for pace of progress.

To catch everyone up, the tank came in! Its 300 gallons of pure awesome from Planet Aquariums!! Here is the obligatory shot with kids in it.


Also picked up my NYOS Quantum 220 skimmer and Precision Marine sump and ATO container. I am loving this sump, VERY well constructed.


Here is the wall with the bumpout being torn down. I started mocking up the stand and tank to figure out final placement of the outlet boxes, shelves, etc.. Art is courtesy of the wife, isn't she sweet? :)


Final layout.


Progress today but running wires is a pain with blocking in the walls. By the end of the weekend I should have the electrical and plumbing done for ATO and SW feed lines from the storage tanks and the dedicated drain line.


My break is over, back to work I go!! :lol:
 
Work has been progressing nicely and the wall is almost ready for the tank! I finished all the wiring for the wall. Along with running electric to the top for the lights, I also ran the kessil control cables in the wall so there will be no wires running down the wall or across from the 4 kessils. The rest of the wall has been re-framed and will be dry-walled on Monday.



I also did my wiring and tube runs to the garage. I opted to run 2 1/2" lines for a future chiller, 1 1/2" line for SW from the storage tank in the garage, 1 1/4" line for RO water and an extra 1/2" line for future use. I also ran 2 low-volt pairs of wires for future automation needs.
I cant think of anything else I should run but if you have an idea, please share, I have not closed up the wall yet so it'll be easier to run. I plan on having all these wires/tubes in a cable chase, so adding in the future wont be impossible.

 
Following, I settled for a 84"x24"x30" after my previous 24" tall tank got boring. It seems like everyone agrees the added height is worth it if you're willing to get your shoulders wet.

Looking foreword to see this build come together.
 
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