80 Gallon Shallow build

[Redbellyjx]

I am taking down and selling my 50 gallon rimless that is in our living room, replacing it with a smaller 18" cube, and also setting up a frag grow out tank in the basement.

So right now I have a 36x18" tank. "oh, a 2x4' wont be much bigger." Well, I was wrong.

First impressions: Sloppy silicone job, will need to go over it with a razor. Nice beveled edges. Seems like its built like a tank (no pun intended). The overflow is sort of intrusive on the eye. I wanted to buy a non-reef ready one, but its not available rimless. The overflow has an adjustable weir with set screws to adjust the water level in the tank, which is pretty nice.

Also, I started working on the stand. i ran out of pocket screws at 10:30 last night so production halted.

 

[Redbellyjx]

Equipment:

Controller: Apex (check)
Skimmer: Itech 100 (check) - may upgrade to Vertex Omega 120
Nurtient Export - Aquamax Zeoreactor (check)
Sump: Custom 26 x 15 x 15, 3 chamber (check)
Return Pump: Eheim 1060 (check)
Circulation: 2 x RW4 (have one, need second)
Lights: ATI power module 6x39 (Check)
Heaters: 2 x 200 watt Eheim (Need second)
Calcium/Alk: Kalk stirrer/ATO. Eventually Calc RX when demand steps up. (need)

 

[gavinsepanik]

Looks great., will be following along. How tall is the tank.

 

[Redbellyjx]

16" tall

 

[Redbellyjx]

I am using 1x6 for the legs, but I don't have a miter saw to make good cuts. i tried cross cutting a 6' long stick on my table saw with no luck. The legs were all crooked. Boo.

Some quick thinking and I made this jig below, and just used a rotary saw. I cut one end so it was square, turn the plank around, then cut it again, this time with a spacer, and now I have 2 nice square ends on both sides and I am able to cut the same length consistently:

An hour later, I am here:

tah-dah!

Since this is just a basement tank, I will not be painting, staining, or 'finishing' the stand with any fancy wood work. I siliconed the floor, and will seal the whole thing with poly tomorrow.

 

[CRAZYFIZH]

Following along getting reay to buy the same tank

 

[Cliving1]

I just bought that tank 2 months ago and it is fully cycled. The size dimensions are great! I love how shallow it is, no more wet armpit. Looking forward to seeing the rest of the build.

 

[Bent]

So jealous of these shallow tanks.

Nice!

 

[Redbellyjx]

Not much to update.... tank has been cycling for 2 months. with just powerheads and heaters. Last night I set up apex fusion, configured the apex, and then set up a wi-fi receiver. Maybe tonight I will actually plug everything into Apex and try clean up the wiring.

A few things that need fixing/attention:

-I am not too impressed with the 2 RWs; I am thinking of stepping up to a pair of MP40s.

-the water level is kind of high in the tank even with the weir all the way down. This poses 2 problems: i'm afraid of water splashing over the edge, and secondly A LOT of water drains into the sump when I shut the system down. Luckily the sump is big enough, but it is a little too close for comfort (maybe 1" spare). Need to figure out how to lower the water level in the display, or figure out how to prevent a lot of water from draining into the sump.