My 280g Custom upgrade.....

[Mike S]

Glad to hear that you and your family made it down there ok. Are you planning on having a canopy and built-in bookshelves that would restrict access from the sides? After working with your old tank for a few weeks I couldn't imagine only having access from the front without having to do some swimming. Going with a little less depth would give you a little more wiggle room on the stand height in addition to being able to reach the back. Just a thought.

 

[SPotter]

Glad to hear that you and your family made it down there ok. Are you planning on having a canopy and built-in bookshelves that would restrict access from the sides? After working with your old tank for a few weeks I couldn't imagine only having access from the front without having to do some swimming. Going with a little less depth would give you a little more wiggle room on the stand height in addition to being able to reach the back. Just a thought.

Hey Mike, I'd like to keep the top open but that will depend on what lighting I go with. Im trying to avoid having book shelves on each side likes last tank this way if I end up with a canopy I can have doors on the sides as well. I definitely leaning towards the 24" height just to make it easier to work on and probably go with a 34" high steel stand. This will give me 2" to spare going thru the front door. I don't think my wife would be too happy if I started tearing out the brand new door to get her least favorite thing in the house.


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[Mike S]

Oh come on now I can remember someone nudging me towards tearing my door out. My wife has been very patient considering I'm still setting up the tank and haven't finished the home repairs from the move lol.

I'm looking forward to seeing which way you go. I'm sure it will be a great build.

 

[biecacka]

Good idea on an external skimmer. They are also less finicky about water level in sump. There are a lot of good skimmers to choose from and they seem to be getting shorter and wider which in your case is better!
Glad everyone made it safely

Corey

 

[milonedp]

I did a bean with an internal overflow I have to run the overflow box water level really high (practically tank level) otherwise the drop creates a lot of noise. I went way overboard on the pipes for the flow I wanted so I'm not really worried about running it so high. I think the key was making sure the overflow area is long enough and the teeth are large enough

 

[Adamc1303]

Hey Mike, I'd like to keep the top open but that will depend on what lighting I go with. Im trying to avoid having book shelves on each side likes last tank this way if I end up with a canopy I can have doors on the sides as well. I definitely leaning towards the 24" height just to make it easier to work on and probably go with a 34" high steel stand. This will give me 2" to spare going thru the front door. I don't think my wife would be too happy if I started tearing out the brand new door to get her least favorite thing in the house.


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Your building a brand new house. Just modify the plans to get a larger door! By the way my tank is 7 feet long and only 25" high. One thing I notice is that when the tank is longer you want flow across the entire tank. However power-heads that are strong enough to achieve that push so much water that they create sand storms. The tank is shallow and has like 7,500 gph coming out of an MP60 which has a wide flow patter. It's a solvable issue but it is a little annoying. You can always use Tunzes or Jebao's and point them a little up. I would go 26" or 27" two inches make a big difference

 

[Crazy_Beaver]

Good to hear everything went according to plan with the move Steve!Can wait to see the new system!

 

[SPotter]

We already asked the builder if we could go to a double entry door and that's not an option.

On a side note I may have found a tank on Craig's list. It's acrylic, made by MRC, 8'x3'x30" (450g), 6 yrs old but never seen water. The seller is asking $2200 for it and includes a stand. Only problem is its about 4 hrs away. Trying to decide what to do!!!


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[biecacka]

Steve how thick is the tank. The only reason I ask is because I looked into them and they quoted me 1/2 inch for rimless 48/48/24..... As best option

Corey

 

[SPotter]

Steve how thick is the tank. The only reason I ask is because I looked into them and they quoted me 1/2 inch for rimless 48/48/24..... As best option

Corey

Hey Corey....it's 3/4".


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[Floyd R Turbo]

Steve how thick is the tank. The only reason I ask is because I looked into them and they quoted me 1/2 inch for rimless 48/48/24..... As best option

Corey

:headwallblue: that can't be right, you would barely want to build one WITH a euro that thin walled

 

[theReefKing]

Any final decision on this baby Steve? Wife and I are back and forth on it waiting your decision.

You could always go buy it, and then if you decide you don't want it you know you have a buyer already lined up in me! Only disadvantage there is I will know how much you paid for it

 

[theReefKing]

No way. They wants plans, pictures, swatches, purpose, favorite baseball player only to tell me no after waiting 2-3 months of their decision.

Yup! HOA's in the South East are like angry Nuns in a Catholic boarding school. They won't let you do ANYTHING.

I had to sell my soul just to get a Direct TV dish put up.

 

[theReefKing]

You can still do a BeanAnimal with an in-tank overflow. I bet someone has done this before but I haven't seen it specifically. I'll get the wheels turning :dance:

Bud Interested to know more about this. I will be removing the drywall behind the tank so I will have that addiional space for plumming.

Steve, have you considered this? Once the tank is in place you wont see the opening and it will give you almost 5 inches behind the tank even with the tank up to the wall.

Bud, Steve said you are the man for plumming design, so I am stoked to get your input. Good to talk to you the other day.

 

[SPotter]

I decided to pass on the tank. The storage fees for the next 10 months would eat up the savings and then because my skimmer and pumps wouldn't be big enough for this tank I would have to spend more money to upgrade those items. As hard as it will be, I am going to try something different with this build and stick to my original idea which is to build a tank around the equipment I already have.

 

[Floyd R Turbo]

I'm sure he won't have trouble selling it.

 

[Crazy_Beaver]

We already asked the builder if we could go to a double entry door and that's not an option.

On a side note I may have found a tank on Craig's list. It's acrylic, made by MRC, 8'x3'x30" (450g), 6 yrs old but never seen water. The seller is asking $2200 for it and includes a stand. Only problem is its about 4 hrs away. Trying to decide what to do!!!


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Sweeeeeeeeeeeeet dimensions!:dance:

 

[milonedp]

As hard as it will be, I am going to try something different with this build and stick to my original idea which is to build a tank around the equipment I already have.

At times I wish I had done that last fall. Back in 2007 we moved so I upgraded everything on my 180 to be suitable for a 300 (knowing I'd have one more upgrade when we built a house). So then when we moved last fall I went bigger than the 300 so basically wasted an upgrade back in 2007.... Oops

 

[SPotter]

At times I wish I had done that last fall. Back in 2007 we moved so I upgraded everything on my 180 to be suitable for a 300 (knowing I'd have one more upgrade when we built a house). So then when we moved last fall I went bigger than the 300 so basically wasted an upgrade back in 2007.... Oops

I really spent a lot of money and ultimately lost a lot when I sold things off so I really need to stick to the plan this time.

 

[biecacka]

:headwallblue: that can't be right, you would barely want to build one WITH a euro that thin walled

Sorry that was for a glass tank....I was still scared so I passed but yes they told me they build tanks for a living and 1/2 inch was plenty and I shouldn't question them

Corey