DIY acrylic tank build

disaster999

New member
just want to start another build thread since im starting fresh. the tank started out as a frag tank before, but i recently tore it down, sold all the corals and moved back home to hong kong. I took my tank with me since the whole thing, top to bottom, was hand built by me.

fedex was really generous and decided to give my tank and sump a nice crack on the corners. it was fixable. i didnt mind the sump since i would be staring at it much, but the display tank is kind of an eyesore.

i had trouble finding a place to put the tank since everything at home was stained a dark brown color, and my stand is maple with walnut inlays. finally found a spot outside my parents room and start setting up my tank.

heres a picture of the tank and its final resting place
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right now, the tank is only running with tap water and a quiet one 3000 pump. according to my oven thermometer, my tank is staying at a constant 30C or 86F with nothing but the pump running. i gotta get a chiller
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also, i have condensation problem inside the cabinet. there isnt enough room for the moisture to escape, so i drilled 2 holes for 2 60mm computer tank to draw out the air.
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this build is going to be along one. I just started a new job and need to start saving up. im thinking before i start doing anything, i need a chiller to bring down my temps before i start adding rocks and sand. then im going to get a 4x24w T5HO light similar to this one and paint it black.
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for the skimmer i'll be using the tunze 9002, for mechanical filtration ill be using filter pads and add carbon. i cant wait till my next pay check so i could get this show on the road.
 
you must hold the record for the longest distance moving an aquarium!
is there any way you can get some fans circulating air in that corner of the room to see what happens to the temp?
just guessing.... but is it really humid there in HK?
 
haha, i believe so...not sure who is crazy enough to ship a tank back with them...at least mine is small..not some 200gal tank:D

having a fan in that area will not help since the temp during summer time is around 30C-37C and doesnt drop much at night. its pretty humid here also. around 80% average.

i knew a chiller is a must, just didnt know i need it that soon. dont even have lights heating the water up yet.

im thinkin a chiller around 1/20-1/15hp should do the job for my under 20gal total. havent really shopped around for one, and not really familar with them, anyone know if most chiller are heaters as well?
 
similar to a fridge, chillers are heaters in the sense that they remove heat from the water (or fridge) and transfer it to the room. Chillers will not heat aquarium water unless placed in an area where they might raise the ambient room temperature. I don't think that's what you want to hear :)
 
JMO

I had a chiller with a heater built into it. When the heater went bad it was unrepairable. You're better off having separate chiller and heater.
 
thanks for the advice gary, i actually found a chiller for my tank. its a hailea hc-100a 1/20hp chiller. most popular in hong kong. china made and every shop i go to sell the same brand chiller. ive also seen chinese people use the same brand chiller in their aquarium. 1 year warranty. around $200. gonna wait till my next pay check to get that.
HC-100A-1-B.jpg

http://www.hailea.com/e-hailea/product-1/HC-100A.htm

instead i got 30lb of sand, 15lb of rock and 570gal worth of salt today to start my cycle. also i bought and installed a pair of 60mm fan in the back pushing air inside the tank to help keep moisture level inside the cabinet down.

FTS
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sump and fan
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the salt i used. marinium reef salt, again recommended by LFS. they all use it and their tanks are thriving!
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heres more info on the salt
http://www.waterzoo.co.za/mariscience-marinium-reef-sea-salt-p-81.html
 
i got a light!!!!!!! all 100w of halogen power is my main light for my tank!
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haha..just kidding, its a mahjong light i used light up the tank more as i reposition the rocks
 
been around a month since my last big purchase...just got paid again so i finished up buying all the equipment for my setup

Hailea HC-100a Chiller
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Fishneedit look alike T5HO 4x24w light. Modded it so i can run off 2 power cords and timmer
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FTS
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Overall tank and equipment shot
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as you can see...my water was at 29.1C which is around 84.56F. thats without the light ,the sun was set and 2 fan blowing across the water in the sump. after less than 2 hours, the chiller brought the tank down to 26C, or 78F.

so far im really impressed with the chiller, at $167 its a whole lot cheaper than jbj or current usa. sure you might think...MADE IN USA YO...but hailea is the best chinese made chiller available and the local rave about this chiller. one complaint is that i wish it was a little bit quieter. it wasnt as quiet as what ive read about it.
 
167 bucks for the best?! wow waht a steal man wonder how much a decently made one is might be enough to coax me into getting one.. p.s. how was the olympics overthere? not sure if you went but just how was the overall atmosphere of the country? i was in italy when they won the world cup and everyone was nuts it was the greatest sports experience of my life and i don't even play soccer so i can immagine how that was...
 
best meaning best china brand skimmer. i have no experience with other skimmer other than this one and from initial review and from what i read, everyone gave a pretty good review of hailea brand chiller.

atmosphere is pretty good. hong kong had the Equestrian Venue and it was pretty successful. everyone was rooting for china to win. i guess us chinese isnt as crazy as the italians. we mostly watched it at home infront of the tv, but we do get excited or sad when china win/lose.

this is the first time olympic is broadcasted in HD so HD decoder machines were flying off the shelf. i was one of them that bought one. what a difference it made. everything is so clear
 
Glad to see the tank is back up and almost running. I wish I could send you frags man. The setup looks pretty damn good too. That light is a plus compared to the other. I liked the other but now that I own one I don't really care for it. I'm going to replace it with a t5 retro and just use the old one for a fuge. Keep the updates coming.
 
I think your record might be beaten. A once local reefer just moved to Oregon, and had two of his tanks (120 & 29) along with all livestock shipped to him.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13232862#post13232862 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by acdraindrps
I think your record might be beaten. A once local reefer just moved to Oregon, and had two of his tanks (120 & 29) along with all livestock shipped to him.

haha....oregon is only 2,579miles

hong kong is around 11,500 miles if you draw a straight line from rochester crossing the pacific ocean, 8500 miles by plane.:lol:
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13233298#post13233298 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nate82
ha nice wasn't it you that said all the livestock was dirtcheap there?

they ARE dirt cheap. 25 bucks for a huge head of frog spawn or hammer, sun coral is 20 bucks, clams are around the same and they are huge. duncans is no where NEAR 50 bucks a head! nor 100 a pop for some nice looking acans

the most expensive fish ive seen is under 50 and they are more than 6inch long.

another thing thats dirt cheap is starphire glass. under 300 for a FULL STARPHIRE tank, 1/2" thick rimless 4ft long, 2-3ft wide and 2ft tall. see if glasscage could beat that.

full starphire mini tanks, in the range of 2-10gals are under 20 bucks. rimless and bent corners. make that cadlight =P
 
hmm..havent update this thread in a while...

bought some frags off a local reefer, zoas, flowerpot coral, and mushroom

unopened zoa and flower pot coral
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opened zoa and flower pot coral
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FTS
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parents are saying how my tank is too plan and needs more stuff in it...which means im going to buy more corals and fish this weekend =) stay tune
 
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