Hello! New and need advice

atumhawk

atumhawk

New member
Hello! New to reefing and saw a tank for sale for 300 and negotiated it down to 150. Have to say it was mostly an impulse buy but I just liked the way it looked. But reading online after I got it home I'm a little worried I might have bought a dud. I asked the guy I bought it from if it was a custom made or if he knew the maker. He said he got it from his friend who was gonna throw it away and he was only selling it because he got a bigger tank. Can I fix it up? The scratches im not concerned about its the seams. The front panel is a smidge under 1" thick. The sides are 1" thick. The tank is 54"across the front. 32" on the sides and 10" on the back and 42" high. Also any tips on how I can plumb it. I cant reach the bottom outlet(the 4 going into the tank) shold I just seal it and hide it with rock? Also will be removing that bottom pvc in the middle of the tank.(unless its useful for something?) I have filled it to the top with water. Hasn't busted yet. Will let it sit for a few days. Unless im told there is repairs I should make right away.

Should I be worried? Should I weldon the seams somehow?

Thank you for reading!

Here are photos
Aquarium https://imgur.com/gallery/ts7aXzl
 
Why can't you reach the bottom outlet? Surely you can reach it from outside. Hose outlets require a bulkhead connector and by your pics it has those.
You Tube also has a number of videos on tank setup which might show you some things. Scratches will be less once there's water in it. In general, it should be a decent tank: it's an unusual wedge (most are bowfront) and it has fittings that should be useable. What you can't get your hand to the bottom of looks like a downflow box, which is a necessary thing. You'll connect hoses to the underside, one pumping in from a sump (which you need) and the other draining (by gravity) down to the sump, so that water circulates continually. A sump is a smaller, multichamber tank that holds your return pump, heater, skimmer and autotopoff. Your side joints are beveled, which with acrylic is not a bad thing on an angled join like that. I'd estimate that at about 30-40 gallons depending on my perception of scale. Can you confirm dimensions? That would give a clue to the size pump you need. A marine tank needs no filter: just rock and sand. And your sump and skimmer, a waste remover.
 
I have been reading and watching a lot of videos.
Front panel is 54"
rear panel is 10"
Side panels are 32"
the height is 42"
No clue on how many gallons that holds. Maybe 40 gallons?

https://imgur.com/gallery/nqvo4GS

The first picture is the bulkhead thing I cant unscrew because I cant reach it. I think I might have to go buy one of those extended reach grabbers. The rest I have since removed. The pipes going into the bulkheads were cut poorly when they removed the tank. I will be replacing all of them with new bulkheads.

From the sump pump up to the tank (to the 4 bulkheads into the display tank), the two pipes were 1/2". the overflow drain was 1".

I think I will get a threaded bulkhead and get something from homedepot to block the one in the middle of the display tank. I want to put sand down and I don't see anyway to keep it without it draining the whole tank if the power goes out. Also why I think I will cover the bottom 2 of the 4 bulkheads that go into the display tank.

I picked up used supreme mag 7 pump for 15 bucks and I got a rio 1400 for free. Both are in working order. Hope that'll be enough for the tank.

Also will be ordering Weldon #4 to see if it will fix some of the seam issues (if they are issues) I haven't found much information on it. Do you think if I make a brace out of wood for the top and bottom that would help?
 
Talk to plumbing supply at Lowes or Home Depot. There are speciality tools that might assist. Your biggest problem may be getting a proper bulkhead connector and its gasket. When you tighten those, your biggest threat is cracking by overtightening. Tighten only as much as a strong woman could do by hand. A tiny seepage at first is ordinary, and cures itself in a day or so as the gasket settles. Beware of any sand grains reaching the gasket: that is a guaranteed leak. When you are getting fittings remember that you can only use plastic/pvc/such-like in any position that may involve contact with the tank water or flow INTO the tank. Copper/brass is deadly when dissolved by saltwater.
 
Alright been working on my stand, sanded the acrylic to get out scratches. Tried to Weldon 4 the seams but the applicator was messed up so tried to kinda freehand it. Basically squirting it out of the bottle without the needle tip. Wasn't a great idea. Weldon heats up. so the spots I dripped or missed the edges are crazed like a mofo. So im gonna end up probably putting a 3 inch board around the edges, one to act as a frame and two to hide the bad crazing I caused. I got the bulkheads installed. Drilled out the two 1/2 inch holes in the overflow box to 1" with a wood door hole saw. Worked really well, just ran water on it like a glass cut and took it slow so the plastic didnt heat up.

Now I saw this RODI unit and picked it up for a decent price I think.
https://imgur.com/gallery/MLRg7hL

the TPS meters say

153ppm in 8ppm out

11ppm in 5ppm out (end of the line)

is 5ppm okay? or does the readings mean i'll have to change the media out of the tubes?
Also am I supposed to pressurize the water? assuming thats why the gauge is there.Or is that just for in case your water pressure is too high?
Thanks!
 
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