Mr. Brooks
MASVC Member
Hey guys!
So I've finally decided to start my build thread. The 225 has been in the works for well over a year now while the 180 is a recent addition to my plans. I've finally gotten to a point where I can start documenting the actual build. I've learned SO much from this web site and others such as wetwebmedia.com. My goal is to bring all that information together and make it easily accessable to everyone, including the new guys. I'm still learning and I hope to get all the input I can. I'll be posting my experience with the vendors I've worked with including links to each as well as the products I've used and try to give fair and unbiased reviews.
I'll start with my entry to the hobby, a little freshwater eclipse tank that I picked up in high school:
<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view¤t=Eclipsetank001.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/Eclipsetank001.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
Several years later, a friend of mine was downsizing from a 135 and I decided to take the plunge into saltwater. I don't have any pictures of what it looked like originally but it was in pretty bad shape. I sanded the stain off the stand and canopy and painted it black using a semi gloss oil paint. This project took WAY too long. I can say with confidence that wood working is not my forte. I also took off the blue paint on the back glass and replaced it with black. This took several tries before I got it right. I wasted a lot of paint before I could get it to stop wrinkling up on me. I originally set up the tank in what was going to be my office. I threw a bunch of difficult fish in way too fast and ended up killing all of them. My personality doesn't allow for failures so I went back to the drawing board, added a refugium and a used chiller (included in the chiller sale was a super cheap 55 gallon setup). I increased the flow going through the sump and changed my aquascape to allow for more flow behind the rocks. I also moved the tank to my reception. It would be a while before I could move into the executive office. Here's a shot of the 135 in its prime:
<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view¤t=Feb13053.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/Feb13053.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
I had decided that I'd never be interested in keeping corals. I thought that it'd be way too expensive and difficult to build and maintain a reef. Isn't it funny how things change?
Well I ran the 135 successfully for quite a while, which completely amazes me considering the junk skimmer I had and how overstocked the tank was. Eventually the whole thing came crashing down and I completely lost interest. The tank is still running and I have a couple fish that survived the second crash. A Mappa puffer, Passer Angel, Yellow Tang, and a large Maroon Clown.
My interest slowly came back and I decided to start a nano reef tank. I've had a lot of success with my nano. I think they're the perfect entry into this hobby. A lot can be said for nano tanks.
So with interest fully restored, I kept my eyes open on craigslist.com for a smoking deal. I came up on a 225g black back acrylic tank with a center overflow 72"x24"x30" tall. It came with a black MDF (particle board) stand and canopy.
<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view¤t=ebay0028.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/ebay0028.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
The whole set up had been bought brand new from Advanced Aqua Tanks and had never seen water. In hind site I wish I'd looked at the stand and canopy more closely before making my purchase. The fantastic deal I got on the tank was slightly negated by the poor quality of the stand and canopy. The MDF I could handle but the canopy is only 8" tall. Not optimal height for metal halides. The canopy is also not flip top. Try reaching your arm past an 8" tall canopy and into a 30" tall tank. There's also four small openings in the front of the stand that would make it difficult to get under and do any maintenance. Thankfully I thought this through before getting started.
I began my search for a stand and canopy builder armed with a photo of what I was looking for. I found this tank on another thread, it was built by a guy in Florida I believe. The wood on this stand and canopy is African Mahogany:
<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view¤t=IMG_3885.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/IMG_3885.jpg" border="0" alt="Stand & Canopy"></a>
I was directed to Jeff Cowel by five.five-six. We've been working on the plans for several weeks. It looks like he'll be getting started shortly. I'll be sure to post pictures as soon as I have something to show.
This new plan of action was going to leave me with an extra stand and canopy. I posted it for sale on recycler.com, craigslist and ebay with no luck. After about a month I decided to start looking for a cheap 180. The footprint is the same with both tanks 6'x2', my 225 is 6" taller. The 180 had to have a built in overflow. My old 135 that the 180 is going to replace has two CPR overflow boxes on it. Theses have worked for me for a very long time. They only lost their syphon once due to a clog, which for me was once too many. This was the real reason and justification for the 225 upgrade.
I was originally just going to go with a single reef tank in my office and sell the 135. This would leave an empty wall in reception that I'd have to fill with something. It also meant I'd have to get rid of most of my remaining fish which I've grown quite fond of. So as long as I could find a good deal on a 180 with a built in overflow, all I'd have to do is swap some of the rock, sand, lights and filtration from the 135 over to the 180. it would take up the same amount of room because I'd be able to but the 180 up against the wall. At this point I'd bought a ASM G4 Plus to eventually go on the 225 so my skimmer problem was solved and would be able to handle a fish only 180. I'd also decided that the G4 Plus was not going to be enough for what I wanted to do with the 225 so I already had plans for an upgrade anyway.
So now it came down to a question of whether or not I wanted to take on the daunting task of building and maintaining two large tanks. I took a look at what I don't enjoy about this hobby. Water changes and top off. I used to lug 5 gallon jugs of store bought saltwater all over town. I decided if I could make those two things easier than maintaining two large tanks would be a breeze.
I got started on planning a top off system and water change station in my warehouse. I researched RO/DI setups for a while and decided on the Spectrapure Maxcap. It was a little expensive but my research tells me it will be worth every penny. Pristine water quality is something we are all constantly striving for. Good water quality starts with good source RO/DI water. I really don't believe in cutting corners on something as basic as my RO/DI. I installed it next to the sink in the mens room. It was a relatively easy install. I had to place a couple seperate orders to get all the fittings I needed as well as the auto shut off valve. This valve shuts off the feed water as soon as it senses pressure backing up in the line. So when the float switch on your reservoir shuts off you don't waste any feed water. I'll put pictures of this up in another post but this is basically how it will be set up: Clean RO/DI water will travel up over the drop ceiling. T off to the saltwater mixing station and the QT. Then T off to reception, then continue over the ceiling to my office, go between the wall and pop out at the same height as the power outlets. This way I can cover the hole easily if I ever take everything down. This will then fill a 5 gallon reservoir that will be connected to a Tunze Osmolator top off device. I'll use the cheaper JBJ top off device on the 180 and the QT.
I bought a used 100 gallon storage tank that I need to clean and set up. I'm just waiting for some fittings from savko.com. I took advantage of Reeflo's 2007 Dart clearance sale and bought two of em. One will be on the 100 gallon saltwater mixing station and the other will go on the 180 to replace some Rio Hyper Flows (these are decent pumps but I've noticed they add a TON of heat to the tank). I could've used one of the Rio's on the mixing station but I wanted to be able to mix up a fresh batch of saltwater really quick. I also wanted to set it up in a way that would make water changes as easy as possible. So by turning two ball valves I'll be able to pump new saltwer via a hose to any of my three tanks. I didn't think the Rio would be strong enough for this. And at the deal Reeflo was offering it was a no brainer. I'll end up throttling back the pump to maintain flow during storage.
You may have noticed I mentioned a QT. I decided that a quaranteen tank was going to be an absolute necessity. If you remember I'd picked up a 55 gallon setup when I bought my chiller. I'd tried to sell it but had no luck and ended up storing it in my warehouse.
I set up the 55 gallon QT tank two weeks ago. It has cycled already using a filter bag of bio balls I'd kept in the 135's sump in case I ever wanted to seed another tank. It has a refugium, sump, UV sterilizer and a Coralife protien skimmer. It also has three VHO ballasts and some old bulbs. I'm hoping that these will be enough to quaranteen SPS corals when the time comes. I'll of course post pictures of this and many other goodies very shortly. For now I think I need to give my fingers a break. :rollface: More to come soon!
Chad
So I've finally decided to start my build thread. The 225 has been in the works for well over a year now while the 180 is a recent addition to my plans. I've finally gotten to a point where I can start documenting the actual build. I've learned SO much from this web site and others such as wetwebmedia.com. My goal is to bring all that information together and make it easily accessable to everyone, including the new guys. I'm still learning and I hope to get all the input I can. I'll be posting my experience with the vendors I've worked with including links to each as well as the products I've used and try to give fair and unbiased reviews.
I'll start with my entry to the hobby, a little freshwater eclipse tank that I picked up in high school:
<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view¤t=Eclipsetank001.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/Eclipsetank001.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
Several years later, a friend of mine was downsizing from a 135 and I decided to take the plunge into saltwater. I don't have any pictures of what it looked like originally but it was in pretty bad shape. I sanded the stain off the stand and canopy and painted it black using a semi gloss oil paint. This project took WAY too long. I can say with confidence that wood working is not my forte. I also took off the blue paint on the back glass and replaced it with black. This took several tries before I got it right. I wasted a lot of paint before I could get it to stop wrinkling up on me. I originally set up the tank in what was going to be my office. I threw a bunch of difficult fish in way too fast and ended up killing all of them. My personality doesn't allow for failures so I went back to the drawing board, added a refugium and a used chiller (included in the chiller sale was a super cheap 55 gallon setup). I increased the flow going through the sump and changed my aquascape to allow for more flow behind the rocks. I also moved the tank to my reception. It would be a while before I could move into the executive office. Here's a shot of the 135 in its prime:
<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view¤t=Feb13053.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/Feb13053.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
I had decided that I'd never be interested in keeping corals. I thought that it'd be way too expensive and difficult to build and maintain a reef. Isn't it funny how things change?
Well I ran the 135 successfully for quite a while, which completely amazes me considering the junk skimmer I had and how overstocked the tank was. Eventually the whole thing came crashing down and I completely lost interest. The tank is still running and I have a couple fish that survived the second crash. A Mappa puffer, Passer Angel, Yellow Tang, and a large Maroon Clown.
My interest slowly came back and I decided to start a nano reef tank. I've had a lot of success with my nano. I think they're the perfect entry into this hobby. A lot can be said for nano tanks.
So with interest fully restored, I kept my eyes open on craigslist.com for a smoking deal. I came up on a 225g black back acrylic tank with a center overflow 72"x24"x30" tall. It came with a black MDF (particle board) stand and canopy.
<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view¤t=ebay0028.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/ebay0028.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
The whole set up had been bought brand new from Advanced Aqua Tanks and had never seen water. In hind site I wish I'd looked at the stand and canopy more closely before making my purchase. The fantastic deal I got on the tank was slightly negated by the poor quality of the stand and canopy. The MDF I could handle but the canopy is only 8" tall. Not optimal height for metal halides. The canopy is also not flip top. Try reaching your arm past an 8" tall canopy and into a 30" tall tank. There's also four small openings in the front of the stand that would make it difficult to get under and do any maintenance. Thankfully I thought this through before getting started.
I began my search for a stand and canopy builder armed with a photo of what I was looking for. I found this tank on another thread, it was built by a guy in Florida I believe. The wood on this stand and canopy is African Mahogany:
<a href="http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/?action=view¤t=IMG_3885.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/thechad21_2006/IMG_3885.jpg" border="0" alt="Stand & Canopy"></a>
I was directed to Jeff Cowel by five.five-six. We've been working on the plans for several weeks. It looks like he'll be getting started shortly. I'll be sure to post pictures as soon as I have something to show.
This new plan of action was going to leave me with an extra stand and canopy. I posted it for sale on recycler.com, craigslist and ebay with no luck. After about a month I decided to start looking for a cheap 180. The footprint is the same with both tanks 6'x2', my 225 is 6" taller. The 180 had to have a built in overflow. My old 135 that the 180 is going to replace has two CPR overflow boxes on it. Theses have worked for me for a very long time. They only lost their syphon once due to a clog, which for me was once too many. This was the real reason and justification for the 225 upgrade.
I was originally just going to go with a single reef tank in my office and sell the 135. This would leave an empty wall in reception that I'd have to fill with something. It also meant I'd have to get rid of most of my remaining fish which I've grown quite fond of. So as long as I could find a good deal on a 180 with a built in overflow, all I'd have to do is swap some of the rock, sand, lights and filtration from the 135 over to the 180. it would take up the same amount of room because I'd be able to but the 180 up against the wall. At this point I'd bought a ASM G4 Plus to eventually go on the 225 so my skimmer problem was solved and would be able to handle a fish only 180. I'd also decided that the G4 Plus was not going to be enough for what I wanted to do with the 225 so I already had plans for an upgrade anyway.
So now it came down to a question of whether or not I wanted to take on the daunting task of building and maintaining two large tanks. I took a look at what I don't enjoy about this hobby. Water changes and top off. I used to lug 5 gallon jugs of store bought saltwater all over town. I decided if I could make those two things easier than maintaining two large tanks would be a breeze.
I got started on planning a top off system and water change station in my warehouse. I researched RO/DI setups for a while and decided on the Spectrapure Maxcap. It was a little expensive but my research tells me it will be worth every penny. Pristine water quality is something we are all constantly striving for. Good water quality starts with good source RO/DI water. I really don't believe in cutting corners on something as basic as my RO/DI. I installed it next to the sink in the mens room. It was a relatively easy install. I had to place a couple seperate orders to get all the fittings I needed as well as the auto shut off valve. This valve shuts off the feed water as soon as it senses pressure backing up in the line. So when the float switch on your reservoir shuts off you don't waste any feed water. I'll put pictures of this up in another post but this is basically how it will be set up: Clean RO/DI water will travel up over the drop ceiling. T off to the saltwater mixing station and the QT. Then T off to reception, then continue over the ceiling to my office, go between the wall and pop out at the same height as the power outlets. This way I can cover the hole easily if I ever take everything down. This will then fill a 5 gallon reservoir that will be connected to a Tunze Osmolator top off device. I'll use the cheaper JBJ top off device on the 180 and the QT.
I bought a used 100 gallon storage tank that I need to clean and set up. I'm just waiting for some fittings from savko.com. I took advantage of Reeflo's 2007 Dart clearance sale and bought two of em. One will be on the 100 gallon saltwater mixing station and the other will go on the 180 to replace some Rio Hyper Flows (these are decent pumps but I've noticed they add a TON of heat to the tank). I could've used one of the Rio's on the mixing station but I wanted to be able to mix up a fresh batch of saltwater really quick. I also wanted to set it up in a way that would make water changes as easy as possible. So by turning two ball valves I'll be able to pump new saltwer via a hose to any of my three tanks. I didn't think the Rio would be strong enough for this. And at the deal Reeflo was offering it was a no brainer. I'll end up throttling back the pump to maintain flow during storage.
You may have noticed I mentioned a QT. I decided that a quaranteen tank was going to be an absolute necessity. If you remember I'd picked up a 55 gallon setup when I bought my chiller. I'd tried to sell it but had no luck and ended up storing it in my warehouse.
I set up the 55 gallon QT tank two weeks ago. It has cycled already using a filter bag of bio balls I'd kept in the 135's sump in case I ever wanted to seed another tank. It has a refugium, sump, UV sterilizer and a Coralife protien skimmer. It also has three VHO ballasts and some old bulbs. I'm hoping that these will be enough to quaranteen SPS corals when the time comes. I'll of course post pictures of this and many other goodies very shortly. For now I think I need to give my fingers a break. :rollface: More to come soon!
Chad
Last edited:
