3 tank,2600 gal. system room build

searey

New member
Hello everyone. I just joined this site, been in the hobby 25 yrs ( I am 57 yrs young) and have 60 freshwater tanks in a fishroom in my basement, currently breeding angelfish and cichlids. My wife is breeding livebearers... platties, swords, mollies and cherry barbs. I have recently started up saltwater tanks again, so far mostly fish only... eels, triggers and such. We started a 75 gal. reef tank but it is waiting the liverock shipment from Tampa Bay Saltwater. Well, we have recently begun remodeling on a room upstairs for the new tanks we are setting up. Right now the plan is 3 tanks size 120 x 34 x 36 glass. thinking of external weir overflow on the 34 inch side so tanks are viewable on 3 sides. drains are going to adjacent room isolated from the house.
 
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this is the rough layout 3 tanks end aganist the wall.
 
Awesome, I bet its definitely easier to get things rolling when the wife doesnt just approve, but is onboard.
 
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took a long time to find a electriction to tackle this. we are replacing all breakers with afci and outlets with cfci.
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i cannot figure out how to put a floor drain in and this room adjoins 2 other rooms. marine spar urathane on floor and somet
hing on walls ?
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maybe an epoxy for the floors and 1 ft up the walls, i wondering if you should do concrete board on the floor and then put something over that, but if you do the plumbing right there shouldnt be any water on the floor anyway.You could do a drain between each tank and connect it to your sewage pipe if its in the basement or even to a sump pump in the basement and then outside
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14804714#post14804714 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mustang51js
... but if you do the plumbing right there shouldnt be any water on the floor anyway.

:lol: That's a riot.

First I would remove the current wood flooring entirely. Then get in a plumbing engineer to discuss drains. It may be that it can be done fairly easily from a central point to an outside wall.

Once that is dealt with, I would add 2 x material between the joists to bridge them. This will increase the rigidty and strength of the foor. I would also fully insulate since the floor is open anyway.

Then several choices but getting some professional design help would probably pay off.

I would consider the following:

1. sheathing with marine grade plywood, plus up the wall 6", and using a commercial grade 3 or 4 part coating system from tennet.

2. sheathing with cement board, plus up the wall 6", and installing tile.

3. sheathing with marine grade plywood, plus up the wall 6", and installing linoleum or vinyl.

Also, using an isolation membrane, especially with tile or linoleum would be a big help. This is a flexible sheet product that has rubbery side and a woven material side. It is used to isolate the movement (shrinkage, expansion, and earthquake) of wood substrates from tile.
 
thanks for the reply. this room is open to 2 other rooms. even with a drain water will go to other rooms. house walls are granite rock,so no going there. will think about piping to basement drain but cannot go straight down. 2x joist bracing sounds good as that was what was there before making every joist a beam by gluing plywood and second joist. steel i beams joists are not going anywhare. basement is heated not sure if insulation is needed. was thinking of bilge paint on walls. more pics comming.
 
Insulation is not just for temperature control. Sound countrol is important as well. Marine bilge paint works very well (I have it in my tank room) but only comes in a couple of colors and is typically VERY high in VOC. Using it in a room that is open to others could be a disaster. You need serious ventillation to use it without getting stoned.

That's why I recommended Tennet. They have commercial coatings used for warehouses, airplane hangers, etc. and many are very low to ZERO VOC. They are a bit difficult to apply, but this might be a good way to go.

Wrapping vinyl up the walls like you see in commercial bathrooms would be a very effctive water barrier, and you coul dget creative with room transitions like troughs with grating etc. So many ways to look at things and that's why I suggested a plumbing engineeer.
 
was thinking of external wier type overflow on back side-34'' wide. so here is pic of testing a 26'' wide overflow with 3000 and 3700 gph flow . water depth at 3700 is 3/4 inch of water going over overflow.
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are these tanks too close togeather? will this overflow idea work with 3 pipe bean anamial type drains 1-1/2 holes?
 
i
ill check on that covering might be fun getting stoned though.
trough at room deviders is a great idea.
 
My Lord...another reef-keeping nutcase. :lol: :thumbsup:

Oh yeah honey, we just need to pop a few holes in the granite wall, no big deal. Maybe tear out the floor...
 
why thank you, anything over the top is my style. i have already spilled 10000 gal on this floor so it has sentimental value. sanding and marine spar urathane should seal it.
 
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