Coral Tank from Canada (1350gal Display Tank)

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nineball said:
First, any decision to go with the L shape is going to add challenges with respect to flow. Its a geometric shape that is somewhat unforgiving that is confounding even to the "experts". Having said that, if the 'L' shape is your preference, then the effort to overcome the challenges really pays off with.....as I call it........."Managed Chaos" for flow. In other words there is a level of flow performance you need to achieve to meet or exceed proper dynamics for the health of the coral/fish that brings you greater control over the environment in the end...........but it ain't cheap so be forewarned.

My decision to go with the 'L' shape at the outset was an aesthetic architectural design commitment that would work with the three story circular staircase and open central foyer. In other words I wanted to be able to see the tank from most vantage points on all three floors and I achieved that. I also wanted the tank to be viewable from all sides and I have that too. Finally I wanted to make the "fish Room" as accessible and integrated to the Display Tank experience as possible and I believe I achieved that as well. Finally the aesthetic appeal had to work with the floor space available and I believe I have achieved that as well, but you folks would be a better judge than I as I am too close to the project to be totally objective.

Finally I believe that the rectangle or cylinder would be a more economical result but your design criteria should be an overall priority before economics dictates any compromise.

Peter
Click to expand...

Peter I think you absolutely accomplished all the goals you set out to hit. It is a beautiful system.
 
With respect to L shaped tanks, the added cost of the stand, cabinetry, and the tank itself is a major consideration. It doesn't cost much more to get a rectangle that is as large as the outer L.

I do however enjoy odd shaped and curved tanks. I find that anything 8' or longer fits outside of peripheral vision so your eyes don't stop at the corners and it appears even larger. If you can go at least 3' wide you get a true fore, mid, and background, particularly if the tank is viewed from just one side. I find that a 3' depth makes a huge difference in presentation, especially once trim work robs you of a few inches out of the top and bottom viewing panel. However, you can only comfortably reach a 30" deep tank so you have to factor practicality in at some time (I can't believe I just said that?). Cost also goes up exponentially with a tank deeper/higher than 30" as the thickness of the material changes all around.

If you are considering a large tank, acrylic cylinders become comparatively cost effective. You can buy an 11' high x 6' wide cylinder tank with only 3/4" wall thickness, as cylinders don't bow. They aren't cheap, but that's a hell of a display for the money. Once you get north of 1,000 gallons the term budget often disappears from your vocabulary, so you end up building around the space available.
 
Speaking of cylinders, where would one buy a 6 foot diameter 24" high one?

I have looked online and not found anyone who states prices.

This would be a viable alternative to the 8'x4'x2' tank I was planning since we are now building a room designed around the tank, I could easily put it in the center of the room or out from a corner enough to walk around it.
 
canyousee said:
Do you all eat those dry ugly turkeys on your day a thanks like we do down here?
Click to expand...

Yes we do canyousee but in order to get it in the igloo we have to put it on a diet and excersize program for six months otherwise we`d have to ship them south to youse guys!!!!

Peter
 
dantimdad said:
Speaking of cylinders, where would one buy a 6 foot diameter 24" high one?

I have looked online and not found anyone who states prices.

This would be a viable alternative to the 8'x4'x2' tank I was planning since we are now building a room designed around the tank, I could easily put it in the center of the room or out from a corner enough to walk around it.
Click to expand...

There is a great cylinder build in Melbourne Australia you might want to look at. He is using geothermal but his supporting elements are quite unique and well thought out. He bought his second hand from the UK if my memory serves me correctly. The thread is in this large tank section if you want to search.

Personally I would ask ATM in Las Vegas for a quote. They have the engineering skills to work out the small details like stress calculations for thickness etc.

Peter
 
I am following his thread. That's a "bit" bigger than I want. :)

I will contact ATM and see. I have a feeling it's going to cost muliples of what the 8x4x2 would cost. So I may stick with a penninsula style.

Thanks!
 
dantimdad said:
Speaking of cylinders, where would one buy a 6 foot diameter 24" high one?

I have looked online and not found anyone who states prices.

This would be a viable alternative to the 8'x4'x2' tank I was planning since we are now building a room designed around the tank, I could easily put it in the center of the room or out from a corner enough to walk around it.
Click to expand...

The problem with cylinders is they are spun cast to whatever size the mould is. Reynolds polymer makes a 6' dia. 3/4" wall cylinder that is just over 11' high so the tank maker needs to make 5 that are 2' high or any combination there of. If you go 5' dia., there is a 6' high mould. A 2' high cylinder is a cutoff that doesn't come around very often. When you order a tank you always pay for the cutoffs and they always resell them to the next guy :)

A lot of US tank manufacturers are buying their cylinders from China now to save money and get the size they want. There are few aquarium supplies that I buy from China, but acrylic tanks are one of them. You shouldn't have a problem getting a price for a custom tank anywhere.

Now that's for a seamless tank. You can get a seamed tank made with two pieces which are basically invisible but the material thickness will be thicker.

An American made 8'x4'x2' will cost about the same as an American made 40 dia. x 43 high seamless cylinder to give you an idea.
 
Paranoid

Paranoid

I can`t seem to shake the feeling that I`m being watched!!!!!


0_0_ce730b79e88a4c8c8e7bb139fd55b0ad_1






0_0_229ce0c29ec199e39902d1620ef3125c_1






0_0_191fbbb98e65c01df9d099a21f2a98d0_1





AND this fish................


0_0_40884f64bd6073c6d8bf4712a362ee89_1





Keeps turning into this fish (focus is hard to keep because he keeps moving too fast!!!!




0_0_215e96082048b28680bc37b51f9b7311_1





Peter
 
If you don't mind me asking, are the Abyzz420 pumps pricey? I know the Red Dragons were expensive. Is the Abyzz a remarketing of the Red Dragons? and if so have the issues been resolved? I really, really like the controllability of these pumps, there very quite and efficient. I run the Tiger Shark for my system, it noisey and provides for a nice pension for my local electric company employees. Almost bought the Red Dragon but the issues scared me away. Feel free to PM me if you don't want to discuss price publically and where I can possibly get one sinve yours came from Europe.
 
Awesome photo of that flasher wrasse, despite the blur. Now I believe you :)

Peter kept insisting there were two fish in one of the Mars tanks... one that only he can see. Until now, I thought this was Peter's giant bunny rabbit :) That is one of the most extreme colour flashes I have seen.
 
huskerreef said:
If you don't mind me asking, are the Abyzz420 pumps pricey? I know the Red Dragons were expensive. Is the Abyzz a remarketing of the Red Dragons? and if so have the issues been resolved? I really, really like the controllability of these pumps, there very quite and efficient. I run the Tiger Shark for my system, it noisey and provides for a nice pension for my local electric company employees. Almost bought the Red Dragon but the issues scared me away. Feel free to PM me if you don't want to discuss price publically and where I can possibly get one sinve yours came from Europe.
Click to expand...

These pumps are from Venotec and were the blueprints for Royal Exclusives outsourced Red Devil pumps from China. The Red Devils were recalled due to problems with low grade Chinese titanium, apparently it has a lot of aluminum in it. The motors were good, but the moving parts were nowhere near what you see with the German made Abyzz.

The price is a hard pill to swallow at 1.500,00 Euro each (US$2,000.00). The controllers are 5.00,00 Euro or US$800.00. They have been running reliably for 5 or 6 years in Germany.
 
That's an amazing build as well - Instead of bringing in a tank, simply convert the walls of the home into a tank. At that scale - it really looks as if you're diving on a reef.

Any build that water tests by draining their pool, is worth seeing. I did however note, that build lacks many of Peter's intricacies, including the dinosaur rock formation. :)
 
CalmSeasQuest said:
That's an amazing build as well - Instead of bringing in a tank, simply convert the walls of the home into a tank. At that scale - it really looks as if you're diving on a reef.

Any build that water tests by draining their pool, is worth seeing. I did however note, that build lacks many of Peter's intricacies, including the dinosaur rock formation. :)
Click to expand...

I noticed that too, not a single dinosaur! You would think in South Africa they would have at least a lion skull :)

Anything bigger than Peter's tank gets into concrete and acrylic viewing panel territory. Concrete tanks have the luxury of interior mounted viewing panels so the water pushed the silicone seal against the tank like a gasket (compressive strength) rather than pulling on the seam (tensile strength).

Once you get that big, aquascaping is more cost effective and convenient with foam and concrete. Many public aquariums use fiberglass and epoxy resin reef formations but they are harder to keep nuisance algae in check. cement is about the same chemical composition as reef rock and about the same texture, and porosity.

These tanks are where thruster ring and prop pumps really come into play.
 
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