Getting wet after a few years

[tekjunkie28]

I've been out of the game for awhile and I plan on getting back in pretty soon. Before I do I need to make some decisions on tank size and location. I moved into our house 2 years ago and never even set a tank up out of the 3 I had before the move. I also have another addition to the family with a 2 year old... whose absolutely WILD. Right now there is a garage full of tanks and some left over equipment that I plan on using for these builds. So for now the questions...

I cant decide on which tank to put where. I'm planning on the 75 gallon down stairs and a 40B or smaller upstairs. I have almost all the equipment left over with enough to get the 75 salty and running. If I get it running its going in the man cave in the basement which during the winter can get to 60 degrees when no one is down there. I plan to fix some of that issue before winter sets in but I may or may not have the tank running by then. I'm concerned about heating that much water with a sump in the winter to 78-80 degrees. I would need like 2 300 watt heaters at least right?

My RO/DI hasnt been used at all in 3 years. I plan on replacing the sediment carbon and DI resin. Should I replace the RO membrane as well? How should I go about cleaning it and do i need to?

How high does the stand need to be to fit a protein skimmer in it? (i dont have a protein skimmer yet, Im not going to get that until I absolutely need it)

What about an overflow? I used to have a lifereef and it was decent but should I get something with moreflow and sleeker look? I thought about the aftermarket beananimal style but if all i need is a lifereef then I'll get that,

I still have the 6 tube T5HO aquaticlife light fixture. Is parts still available for that? How does it rank compared to a ATI or other T5? Worth it to keep it?

I am going to build the stand myself. How would I water proof the stand? How thick does the top need to be to support the tank? I'm thinking just go 3/4, why not?

 

[tekjunkie28]

Also is a 30 gallon big enough?? The stand I plan on building is big enough a 40 but just shy of a 40B size to fit under it. I can go bigger and I may but I already got a 30 on hand.

 

[GimpyFin]

If you are using a hang on overflow box, the Eshopps ones are fairly nice and work well. They also have some new Eclipse low profile ones that look cool, but you need to drill your tank for those.

For stand height, I'd try to give yourself a minimum of 24" clearance underneath, a little more would be even better for maintenance, etc. Protein skimmers especially, can be fairly tall.

As for the stand, you can either stain or paint it, depending on what look you are going for. It doesn't have to be anything special. (I just used a rustoleum indoor/outdoor latex paint and primer.) 3/4 ply is fine for the top, although you don't usually need it. It can just sit on the top rim of the stand as long as it's flat/even. If you are looking for a template, there's a good one on this forum, just search for rocketengineer.

 

[tekjunkie28]

Yes, thats the stand design im going with. Right now I'm just doing the stand. Ill hang the doors and panels at a later time. I thought about the Eshopps? How much flow do i need? Is there still a 'rule of thumb' of 3-5x turnover? Is there a issue with doing more?

 

[GimpyFin]

If you go with an Eshopps box, I would probably do the PF-800 (Maybe even the smaller PF-300) for a 75g tank. 3-5x tank volume is prefect for turnover rate. You can do more, but it's not necessary, and can introduce more noise from the extra flow.

With the hang-on overflow boxes, you also don't really want to buy an oversized one. You can run into issues with air bubbles accumulating at the top of the u-tube(s) if the flow isn't high enough for the size of overflow box, possibly leading to loss of siphon.

I had an unused Eshopps overflow I used on a small tank (It came with a sump I previously bought.) The overflow box was really bigger than I needed and my return pump wasn't strong enough to keep air bubbles from slowly accumulating in the tube. Since I didn't want to buy a bigger pump, I had to buy a smaller diameter u-tube and the problem went away.

 

[tekjunkie28]

ok perfect. Years ago when I first set up the tank I debated Eshopps but ultimately went with lifereef but this time eshopps is safe enough.

What about the RODI? its been sitting in the garage for 3 years and I plan on replacing everything but the RO membrane. I just want to make sure its okay and not contaminated.

 

[GimpyFin]

Do you have a TDS meter on your RO/DI unit? I'd try and get one if you don't. Run some water through the unit and if the TDS meter reads 0 on the output water, you should be fine.

 

[tekjunkie28]

yea somewhere. How about that light? Still relevant?

 

[GimpyFin]

I can't vouch for the light as I'm not familiar with it.

 

[madweazl]

A 30g sump is a pretty good match on a 75g. Provides enough space for adequately sized equipment. I used a eShopps PF-300 on my last 50g and it worked well. Current flow rate on my 75g is probably very similar but I drilled the tank (it is super easy) this time.

If the T5 fixture still works, there is no reason not to use it.

 

[tekjunkie28]

How bad is that and how would i fis this if need be? Thats a regular 75b gallon deep blue with rim

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[cougareyes]

The room where my 90g is gets to 60 in winter and I use 2x200w. I had it open top last winter, will get the glass tops for this winter and will probably save on my electric bill. I have leds but would switch back to t5s except don't want to spend the money, so I think your lights are fine. I have a eshopps rs-100 sump under my 90 which is the same footprint as the 75, I have a 5 gallon top off reservoir and there is barely room left to work under there. That sump only has about 18g total water volume, depending on what you are going do with the sump, most people build theirs way too big.

 

[madweazl]

How bad is that and how would i fis this if need be? Thats a regular 75b gallon deep blue with rim

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People use them like that frequently but it is a crap shoot. How much risk are you willing to assume all the while your critters lives are at stake?

 

[GimpyFin]

How bad is that and how would i fis this if need be? Thats a regular 75b gallon deep blue with rim

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If it were me, I wouldn't use it with a chip like that. The glass should really be replaced and tank resealed to fix it. Otherwise, you won't really have peace of mind as it could be a time bomb. I had a small 20g with a very tiny chip by one of the corners and ended up causing the back pane to split all the way up after about a year. Luckily, it was just a 20g QT and happened while I was home.

 

[tekjunkie28]

Yea I already priced a new piece of glass. So with these rimmed aquariums how do I get the rim off?

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[GimpyFin]

Yea I already priced a new piece of glass. So with these rimmed aquariums how do I get the rim off?

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A thin blade like a utility knife around the edge underneath would work and then try and pull up on the rim to get it to come loose. You might damage the rim piece in the process, so it might be worthwhile to see if you can get a replacement to have on hand.

 

[tekjunkie28]

So I contacted deep blue and they said they make tanks with a glass thickness between 6mm and 8mm thick. Well I can't get glass that size. I can only get 1/4 which is smaller then what I measure or 3/8 which is larger. I measure 5/16 thickness. Am I missing something?

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