600gal (96x48x30)

[melev]

Wow, now this is a project to follow.

Where are the overflows going on this tank? Due to the nature of this tank, I almost hope they are two columns in the center of the tank, basically breaking it up in thirds. You'll want the surface skimmed and a 96" x 48" area is massive. My tank is 72" long and two do the job well, but you've added two more feet and 18" more width.

I don't believe you've got the lighting covered yet. I do like your interspersed VHOs running between the MH, something no-one ever does it seems. I hope it looks good. Usually the reason they are parallel with the tank is so you look <i>through</i> the band of blue and I have a feeling you'll see some difference since you'd be looking at the blue from the end, so to speak.

I also believe you are going to need 8 MH bulbs, not four. Each bulb covers two square feet of area. My tank is 30" tall, and 250w has worked out well for me. I was going to suggest not to go so tall only because it really is tough to reach stuff easily, but you've placed your order and stated that you love tall tanks.

 

[asnatlas]

Where are the overflows going on this tank? Due to the nature of this tank, I almost hope they are two columns in the center of the tank, basically breaking it up in thirds. You'll want the surface skimmed and a 96" x 48" area is massive. My tank is 72" long and two do the job well, but you've added two more feet and 18" more width.

The overflow is only going to be 16" wide, centered in the tank. On both sides of the overflow there will be two "boxes" that will house the 6 Tunze's, it's kinda hard to explain without pics, but I should have pics soon...

Shawn

 

[asnatlas]

I don't believe you've got the lighting covered yet. I do like your interspersed VHOs running between the MH, something no-one ever does it seems. I hope it looks good. Usually the reason they are parallel with the tank is so you look <i>through</i> the band of blue and I have a feeling you'll see some difference since you'd be looking at the blue from the end, so to speak.

I am going to go with T5's instead of VHO's... After thinking about it some more, I think I will have them parallel to the 8' length... I am going to start with four actinic T5s and see how that looks, if I need more then it should be easy to add them as needed... With the closing of your statement listed above I will keep that in mind and I may have T5's running parallel and perpendicular (front to back between the MH's)...

Shawn

 

[asnatlas]

I also believe you are going to need 8 MH bulbs, not four. Each bulb covers two square feet of area. My tank is 30" tall, and 250w has worked out well for me. I was going to suggest not to go so tall only because it really is tough to reach stuff easily, but you've placed your order and stated that you love tall tanks.

I am looking at running the MH with Lumenarc III reflectors that can get 3'x3' coverage easy; I am told that if I run 400w higher off the tank then I should be able to get good coverage from front to back... I don't plan on having anything really close to the sides of the tank so if the light starts to drop off a little then it should be ok... As for the 30" height it's a little to late as the tank should be done with in the nest week or two... At first I only wanted like 26" height but since I broke the 24" barrier I had to step up from the 1/2" to 3/4" glass so I decided to go with 30" because once the tank is setup, I am hoping that I will not need to go swimming to reach anything...

Shawn

 

[tomasz]

Shawn did you find out how Will is doing your tank (silicone to the top or sides of the bottom pane). Good luck. I'm doing the same think as you but 96*42*30T with external overflow.

 

[asnatlas]

After getting home today, I got to looking around on the net and doing some figuring and I am thinking about going with a T5 only setup... After seeing iwan's tank it's truely an inspiration... And talking with other people how its best to have the multi bulbs (10k, 20k blah blah blah) to get all of the different spectrums, for growth and color... Also thinking back on alot of the tanks overseas that have only T5's (and they have been doing it for years)... I am tossing around the idea of using 16x 54w (48") powered by IceCap ballasts... If I run the T5's on the IC's then I would be getting close to 80w per bulb putting me about 1280w total... Also if I did all T5's I would use the follow bulbs...

6000K Sun
11000K Aquablue Special
Actinic/Blue Plus
Pure Actinic 03

Thinking about it in my head (from everything I have read) this seems like the best way to go for a few reason...

1) T5's last longer then MH's...
2) T5's run cooler (don't have to worry about heat issues from the MH's)
3) I can mix and match the bulbs easier for the entire tank, rather then having a 10k here and a 20k there...
4) T5's are cheaper to replace...
5) T5's have a smaller foot print...

The only thing I would be missing really would be the shimmering effect I would get from the MH's (which I love) but when I look at both setups it just seems like the T5's have more pros...

Any input from anyone ??

Shawn

 

[asnatlas]

Link...

Link...

Here is a link to the thread I posted in the Lighting, Filtration & Other Equipment Forum

Shawn

 

[Lordhelmet]

your reasons for getting T-5's are the same as my reasons for getting them. i do not regret it in the least. i did not need a chiller this summer and wont need to replace my bulbs for another 12-16 months.

 

[Travis]

Alright, just caught up on your thread. First of all, that is hilarious that this project started out with a 48x48x24 in mind and is now finalized with a 96x48x30.:lol:

Don't kid yourself into thinking you will be able to get this thing set up in two weeks, even with using your vacation time. I took 2 weeks off for my tank thinking the same thing, and it ended up not being finished for a few months. And that was working on the tank and tank room every spare minute I had. You may be able to do it in 2 weeks. I guess I spent most of my time on all the crazy plumbing.:lol:

I see you are thinking T-5's now and I think that would be a great choice for what you are planning to keep. I've seen pictures of same very nice large tanks running on T-5's only. And most of them were all sps. But if you go with MH's, you are going way overkill with 400's. I would do 3 x 250w 14k's in LA3's. That will be more than enough, even for the clams on sand. Now that I've been running 250's on my 30" tall tank for a couple months, I now realize how much heat and electricity was being wasted to the 400 watters.

 

[Travis]

I knew I would forget some things, and probably still am.:lol:

I think you are going to be wanting to look at a larger overflow area. 20" is not going to be long enough to skim a nice thin area off the top of the water in that size of a tank. You also have to take into consideration that your overflow is external so with 20" long that is all you are getting for linear overflow area. Most overflows are in the tank so you will also get another 10-15" just from the sides. I also think that 2 ovefows staggered across the back will work a lot more effeciently than a single overflow in the middle.

 

[asnatlas]

Alright, just caught up on your thread. First of all, that is hilarious that this project started out with a 48x48x24 in mind and is now finalized with a 96x48x30.:lol:

Yea, I went and got a used 220gal that is still in my garage... About 2 days after picking that up I started to look into getting a custom one built... Was looking at a 48x48x24, then well, ended up going with a 96x48x30 LOL, I would have went bigger but that was the largest I could fit into the basement

Shawn

 

[asnatlas]

Don't kid yourself into thinking you will be able to get this thing set up in two weeks, even with using your vacation time. I took 2 weeks off for my tank thinking the same thing, and it ended up not being finished for a few months. And that was working on the tank and tank room every spare minute I had. You may be able to do it in 2 weeks. I guess I spent most of my time on all the crazy plumbing.:lol:

Well the tank is not due for another few wks and I am going to get started on some more things this Sunday... Going to try to get as much done as I can before I get the tank, and then one I get the tank I am hoping to have the baserock and water in it with in the first wk... I will be taking a total of 8 days off from work but not all at one time, but very close to each other... I think I should be able to have water and the baserock in the tank with in the first week as I am not trying to plumb Nigra Falls

Shawn

 

[asnatlas]

I see you are thinking T-5's now and I think that would be a great choice for what you are planning to keep. I've seen pictures of same very nice large tanks running on T-5's only. And most of them were all sps. But if you go with MH's, you are going way overkill with 400's. I would do 3 x 250w 14k's in LA3's. That will be more than enough, even for the clams on sand. Now that I've been running 250's on my 30" tall tank for a couple months, I now realize how much heat and electricity was being wasted to the 400 watters.

I am still debating on my lighting; everything else on the tank was really easy The lighting is the main thing that I have changed my mind on so much and just can't make a decision...

If I do go with MH's I will have to think about the 3x or maybe even 4x 250w...

What are your thoughts for clams on the sand under T5's ??

Shawn

 

[asnatlas]

I knew I would forget some things, and probably still am.:lol:

I think you are going to be wanting to look at a larger overflow area. 20" is not going to be long enough to skim a nice thin area off the top of the water in that size of a tank. You also have to take into consideration that your overflow is external so with 20" long that is all you are getting for linear overflow area. Most overflows are in the tank so you will also get another 10-15" just from the sides. I also think that 2 ovefows staggered across the back will work a lot more effeciently than a single overflow in the middle.

It's a little late on the overflow as the glass has already been cut and the tank should be coming together any day now A local club member (mantis) has a 400gal with the overflow on the side and his is only about 16" side and I didn't see any problems with his setup, nor did he state anything negative about it... I am hoping this was not a bad choice

My overflow was going to be external at first but since I wanted to hide the Tunze's I moved the overflow internal so that everything was more a less one piece centered on the back...

Shawn

 

[asnatlas]

your reasons for getting T-5's are the same as my reasons for getting them. i do not regret it in the least. i did not need a chiller this summer and wont need to replace my bulbs for another 12-16 months.

Lordhelmet, could you tell me more about your T5 setup please...

Shawn

 

[Travis]

What are your thoughts for clams on the sand under T5's ??

I've never used T-5's but I've seen lots of pics of large tanks lit by T-5's only. Many of these tanks had nice healthy looking sps and clams right down on the bottom. I really hope Sanjay tests some T-5's sometime so we can see how they compare in intensity to MH's.

Your overflow will be fine. It is just more beneficial to go with more linear length so your are skimming a thinner layer off of the surface, which makes skimming organics more efficient.

 

[asnatlas]

UPDATE :

UPDATE :

Well, after alot of reading and posting and more reading... I am going to go with 4x 250w 14k Hamilton's on IceCap ballasts... I already have the L3 reflectors and just ordered the bulbs and ballests from Premium Aquatics... Here in about a wk or so I am going to order the IceCap - 48" Retrofit: 4-54W T5 from ReefGeek.com for Actinic/Blue Plus supplement for a dusk/dawn effect...

I have been working on the stand over the past few days and I think it's complete... Dang thing weights a ton... Hope it can hold almost 3 tons

I also have on hand 7 buckets of IO (160gal) salt... It was kind of funny when I went to pick them up, The girl asked me if I had a few tanks or something and I told her that I did, but this was for a new 600gal I was putting together... I wish I would have been able to take a pic of her face

I am going to try to get started on the light rack within the next wk...

I am looking into getting some webhosting setup and as soon as that is done I will start posting pics... That is all I can think of for right now, as soon as I have more updates I will be back

Shawn

 

[Travis]

That is a good choice on the lighting. I would have done the same, with maybe only 3 MH's.

Now that this thing is really starting to move along we expect pictures SOON.

What materials did you use for the stand?

What are your plans for the light rack? Will it be movable with a rail or pulley system?

What do you plan on using for a skimmer? I don't think that has been brought up yet.

Is this tank going to have a sandbed?

Not sure what your plans for rock are but I found a great way to save by making PVC rock racks that look so much like live rock that you literally can't tell the difference. I went and saw a home 1700 gallon reef a couple weeks ago and the guy was using these. Do a search through the 1700 gallon tank thread in this forum for the pics I took and a description by the owner if you are interested. With these, you could easily cut your total weight of Live rock in half, and double the amount of swimming room your fish have within the rocks. Another cool idea is the new reef ceramics. Not sure if you've heard about them yet. I've seen pics of them in a few people's tanks and they look amazing. Just figured I would throw a couple ideas out there for ya.

 

[NexDog]

Travis, I'd be interested in seeing those PVC racks as I'm going to be making some up next week....

 

[Lordhelmet]

My set up is nothing special compared to yours, but while researching what lighting I was going to go with, T-5 or MH. i decided on going with T-5 for there heat and the power issue. I really didn't want to put in a chiler and this summer as long as i had a fan pointing over the tank the heat was never an issue. And from all that i have read and seen you can keep anything under T-5's
As for my set up it is a 4 54 watter. blue+, 65k, 65k, blue+. im poor so i haven't put in a 10k bulb in to whiten it up. Tthat will happen in the next few weeks and i'm hoping to get additional growth from my corals.
I currently have about 10 SPS frags, some for 8-9 months and have seen amazing growth on them. I recently got a staghorn frag that was placed on the bottom of a 180 that was under 400w MH that was mostly brown with a little purple, and since putting it in my tank fairly high up it has really gotten some color to it. One thing i have notice is that certain corals such as mushrooms really dont like T-5's. They shrivled up quite nicly until i put them in the shade. after that they were just fine.
If you have any detailed questions the grimm Reefer seems to know alot about t-5's and i'm sure he would be more then happy to help you out.
BTW love the size to your tank. that is the perfect size tank IMO.


Chris.