Greg's 250 In Wall Build

[Wombat_101]

Hi All,
I am getting back into the hobby after a 5 year break. Finally settled in a house and I have ordered a custom 250 from C2C Aquariums 72Lx30Wx27H.

Currently the tank is being built and I expect delivery around the first week or 2 in April.

I have built a modified version of a RocketEngineer's stand thread and just about complete.

I do have some questions about larger tanks as I previously had a Oceanic 90 Gallon.

1. I am looking a 2 Reef Octopus HY-5000 as returns but every site I go on has a different head pressure rating. I will have about 5' of head pressure to deal with. Some sites are showing 657 GP/h and Reef Octopus shows about twice that at 1300 GP/H. Looking for real world experience.
Also looking to see any benefit with 2 pumps vs 1 larger return pump.

2. I have 2 skimmers I can use. I have a D.A.S EX-2 External that I got from a friend who is out of the hobby. I know they are no longer being made but its external. I also have a H&S Skimmer Type 150-F2001 in sumpwhich is rated to 220 gallons.

3. I currently have 2 tanks as sump options. My old 90 gallon RR Oceanic (which could become a frag/quarantine) or a 55 gallon undrilled tank. I eventually want a custom acrylic sump so will the 55g suffice for now?

Thanks for any input.
Greg

Some pics below.


Tank during construction

Stand build is almost complete

 

[jrod738776]

Your stand looks nice, simple, and open. Can you provide details on what you modded from rocket engineers template?

 

[Pife]

Your 2x4 uprights are not put in correctly using his guide. I would swith them around so that they are the same as his guide so that the front board and side board are supported by the same upright.

 

[Wombat_101]

Your stand looks nice, simple, and open. Can you provide details on what you modded from rocket engineers template?

I am building this in my basement so the wall between the finished and unfinished side had a 2x3 nailed to the cement floor. So I added another 2x3 next to it so I had a 2x6 flat structure. I then added a 2x4 on top that so I can attach the 2x4 legs.

Your 2x4 uprights are not put in correctly using his guide. I would swith them around so that they are the same as his guide so that the front board and side board are supported by the same upright.

Are you talking about the back uprights? As I explained above because I am tying the stand into an existing wall plate I needed to make modifications as you can see in the pic the height of the 2x4 (3.5 inches) was taller than the
2x3,2x4 combo (3 inches). Also because I put another 2x3 next to the existing plate it stuck out 2 more inches than a 2x4. So I needed to create a notch in the wood to join them together. This prevented the back uprights to be exactly as described in rocket engineers design.

I had a contractor friend look at it and he gave the thumbs up on the design.

Also if anyone has any answers to my questions in the first post as well it would be much appreciated as I am trying to order the rest of the equipment before the tank arrives in early April.

Thanks again

Greg