Jah2707
Member
Little by little I have put together my tank. Added water a few nights ago. Lets start from the top to the bottom.
I have never liked open top tanks. I know the whole rimless look is the in thing but I hate the look of lights and cords and junk in or on the tank. So I built this canopy/ hood. It is quite simple. It sits on the top frame of the tank. It is 8 inches tall and has trim on top, bottom, and on the sides.
Of course I wanted to be able to top the front in order to add stuff and clean so I used two old door hinges and took 5 inches from the sides so I could reach the edges easier. This also hides my LED lights. It is a bit tight but I think it looks great.
Now on to the tank itself. It is a drilled 24x24x18 cube with center overflow. I love the look and the depth. The aquascaping was so much fun. I drilled 1/4 holes and then used 1/4 acrylic rods. Of course this was a bit tough. The holes and the rods didn't exactly fit. I went through 3 bits in order to drill 6 holes but I have a small arch and it is stable. I also have plenty of swimming room. There is only about 25 lbs of live rock but I am going to add another 10 lbs to the sump.
As far as the circulation - I am going to give a Jebao RW-4 wavemaker a try along with at least one other power head. Right now I have a Koralia nano and 2 in the tank.
I do still have an issue with the plumbing. In the garage it was dry but now in our house the return in dripping. I am doing to tackle that when I get home. 4th trip to Lowes for plumbing supplies... Yuck.
Now on to the stand. It was a boring oversized stand. The front door opening was 14 x 18. Way way to small to do anything with. So I added another door and opening on one side. The new door just looks like a panel but it has clips that will hold it in place. The sump is to big for the stand and will be a pain in the future but it holds a ton of water and should help avoid any flood.
So Lets see if I covered everything.
Lights = Chinese dual cord blue white adjustable. I think they will be enough to have sps up high and lps and softies in sand.
Tank - 24x24x18 close to 45 gallons
Return pump - mag 5 - need to replace prop and see if that helps with the start issue I am having.
skimmer - it is a Coralvue something... it has a RIO 2100. I played around with it and it was the only one out of 3 skimmers that fit into the first section.
Refugium - nice and big in the middle of the sump. I have a dc led ebay light over it.
Circulation - Jebao RW-4 and have lots of choices
Livestock ideas -
Clown pair - Dave has some awesome options - would be happy with one black and one orange but probably get something a bit more special.
YWG and pistal shrimp - I have had 3 pairs of these in the past and this is my favorite tank mates
Flame angel - ok never have I owned an angel before but these are so nice looking.
... - I am sure my wife will beg for something else-...
Coral -
I have always loved LPS - Frogspawn - duncan-torch-hammer-brain(open) then some random softies alone with the plates up high.
Maintenance -
4 gallon water change every sunday night. Working on an easy way to get this done. Going to probably use 5 gallon bucket with float valve and drain into sump... something like this
top off with Kalkwasser I have had some really nice tanks that did with with this in the past.
I am sure this is lots more I can go on and on about and I know most will get tired of my pictures but I think this is the easiest way to keep a journal. If you have any suggestions please please let me know. I might not do them but my life is quite hectic right now and I am trying to use this tank as a place of relaxation and enjoyment.
I have never liked open top tanks. I know the whole rimless look is the in thing but I hate the look of lights and cords and junk in or on the tank. So I built this canopy/ hood. It is quite simple. It sits on the top frame of the tank. It is 8 inches tall and has trim on top, bottom, and on the sides.
Of course I wanted to be able to top the front in order to add stuff and clean so I used two old door hinges and took 5 inches from the sides so I could reach the edges easier. This also hides my LED lights. It is a bit tight but I think it looks great.
Now on to the tank itself. It is a drilled 24x24x18 cube with center overflow. I love the look and the depth. The aquascaping was so much fun. I drilled 1/4 holes and then used 1/4 acrylic rods. Of course this was a bit tough. The holes and the rods didn't exactly fit. I went through 3 bits in order to drill 6 holes but I have a small arch and it is stable. I also have plenty of swimming room. There is only about 25 lbs of live rock but I am going to add another 10 lbs to the sump.
As far as the circulation - I am going to give a Jebao RW-4 wavemaker a try along with at least one other power head. Right now I have a Koralia nano and 2 in the tank.
Now on to the stand. It was a boring oversized stand. The front door opening was 14 x 18. Way way to small to do anything with. So I added another door and opening on one side. The new door just looks like a panel but it has clips that will hold it in place. The sump is to big for the stand and will be a pain in the future but it holds a ton of water and should help avoid any flood.
So Lets see if I covered everything.
Lights = Chinese dual cord blue white adjustable. I think they will be enough to have sps up high and lps and softies in sand.
Tank - 24x24x18 close to 45 gallons
Return pump - mag 5 - need to replace prop and see if that helps with the start issue I am having.
skimmer - it is a Coralvue something... it has a RIO 2100. I played around with it and it was the only one out of 3 skimmers that fit into the first section.
Refugium - nice and big in the middle of the sump. I have a dc led ebay light over it.
Circulation - Jebao RW-4 and have lots of choices
Livestock ideas -
Clown pair - Dave has some awesome options - would be happy with one black and one orange but probably get something a bit more special.
YWG and pistal shrimp - I have had 3 pairs of these in the past and this is my favorite tank mates
Flame angel - ok never have I owned an angel before but these are so nice looking.
... - I am sure my wife will beg for something else-...
Coral -
I have always loved LPS - Frogspawn - duncan-torch-hammer-brain(open) then some random softies alone with the plates up high.
Maintenance -
4 gallon water change every sunday night. Working on an easy way to get this done. Going to probably use 5 gallon bucket with float valve and drain into sump... something like this
top off with Kalkwasser I have had some really nice tanks that did with with this in the past.
I am sure this is lots more I can go on and on about and I know most will get tired of my pictures but I think this is the easiest way to keep a journal. If you have any suggestions please please let me know. I might not do them but my life is quite hectic right now and I am trying to use this tank as a place of relaxation and enjoyment.
Nice tank!
