950 gallon system build

[Curt2199]

I have a 240g currently that I'll be selling in a couple months and moving livestock and equipment to my new system. I purchased a 675g-700g acrylic tank this past weekend. The seller said it was a 715G but online volume calctulators have put it around 675 using interior dimensions so it's around that area somewhere. I've made up a quick drawing of the layout of the tank and my goals are to get input on the best way to set my system up utilizing the equipment that I already have and adding to it. This tank appears to have been setup for a closed loop previously and I'm not sure whether to continue that or block off the bottom bulkheads and drill new rear returns. The tank will be sitting behind our basement bar with about 1.5-2 feet of the depth of the tank behind the wall with the "fish room" behind the tank. I plan to make this tank FOWLR with the exception of anemones and possibly some large soft corals. I have gigantea, haddoni, and ritteri anemones that I'd like to move into this tank. I plan to use a spare 160g 7ft x 1.5ft x 2ft glass tank that I have for the sump for this system. I also need to figure out the return flow capacity for this tank as the single 2" drain would only flow around 2300gph I believe. I'm assuming I'd need to drill another 2" (if using the barracuda) and then I'm not sure the 12x12 overflow could keep up without sounding like niagra falls. lol

The other part of this build involves a 105g acrylic cube that will be on the main floor of the house around a distance of 15 horizontal feet and 8-10 vertical feet from the sump of the large tank. I'd like to make this my reef tank and for ease of maintenance and stability had considered branching this off of my 675g tank so it shared the same water volume. The main concerns with this are having to invest a lot more to control the nutrient levels and the possibility of the extensive drain line from the top floor tank getting a blockage causing a flood on the main floor. I can make this system entirely separate if there are more advantages to that.

Here's the equipment I already have that I'd like to repurpose for this build.

Pumps:
Reeflo Barracuda Gold 4500gph
Panworld 200ps
Panworld 50pxx

Circulation Pumps:
Jebao WP25 (probably go to the 105g)
Jebao WP60 x 2 with dual controller (possibly pick up 2 more to have 4 in the 675g)

Skimmer:
ASM G4+ with Sedra 9000 (Works great but will be undersized for new system - Anyone run multiple skimmers? Could I pick up a G5 and run both?)
SCA-302 (for the 105g)

Heaters:
2 x 250w eheim, various others. (considering a 1.5kw inline titanium heater. I plan to run the tanks at 76)

 

[ace_92101]

It's a good looking tank. It does have an interesting overflow box.

 

[Reefsi]

I seen the overflow and thought the same thing. Has to be tough to clean the backside of it.

 

[Curt2199]

Yeah I plan to stack rock to cover the back wall and wrap around the overflow with some ledges coming away from it.

 

[Curt2199]

I also considered moving the overflow back and center or to a corner and drilling a new drain. Seems like it may be more work than it's worth though.

 

[anbosu]

Personally I'd remove the overflow box and add an external overflow if you have the space.

 

[SPotter]

+1 on going with an external overflow.

 

[Curt2199]

Any recommendations on the overflow box? I'm not a big fan of externals due to the sound and siphoning problems.

 

[sfsuphysics]

Well my first thought would be to chop it out and move it. However if you're going to have this as a single pane in wall, which it sounds like from your post, then leaving the overflow could be possible but do some rockwork in front of it, and you could make a faux cave/hiding area back there. Definitely would cut some rock flat though and simply build up along it though, at least on what will be viewable from the bar area, I wouldn't care so much about seeing it from the fishroom area.

A couple things that shoot out at me though, 1 hole in that overflow? You'll probably want more if anything for safety in case the one pipe gets clogged.

Also those openings seem very small, will you have issues doing what you want inside it? 38" tall isn't exactly reach your arms to the bottom height. Plus when the tank is up and running and you want to siphon detritus out could be problematic.

 

[muttley000]

Awesome size, tagging along.

 

[rpjaws74]

sounds like a good one!!