My HUGE 42 Gallon project...

T

teto_78

New member
So here goes nothing, I know what you think, a 42 gallon...? well to me it looks huge.... And I'm so anxious to get it started, but I want to do it right, so as much as it may hurt, I'm not cutting any corners, well not as many as usual atleast.

First off, here's my sketch...

scan.jpg


feel free to comment on it, photoshop it, anything to make my future fishies live a happier and more comfortable life...

Here what I have so far....

42 gallon 90cmX45cmX45cm

DSC_2476.jpg


Stand

DSC_2470.jpg


And here's what I have in the mail on its way to Okinawa

AquaC Urchin Pro w/Mag 3

ACUPB.jpg
 
This is going to be a fun project. I would recommend looking into T-5s for better light coverage vice the MH. You have a center brace to deal with on that tank and you will have a shadow if you run MH unless you run two bulbs. I have the same tank that will be used for a sump on my 75. I had it set up for a while witht he intention of making a SPS only tank until the 75 came into the picture. 4 t-5s really looked good on it and provided great and even light coverage. Also, the chiller should never be in the stand. 1st it needs to expel the hot air to work good and 2 if you have a leak, it's toast. I also saw that you have a note regarding crushed coral. I don't recommend it as you will end up with high nitrates and one huge algae problem because of it. Just keep your baffles empty. with the exception of the fuge. You can use some fine sand in it if you wish. Also, Post some demensions of your stand. It makes it easier for us to help you design your plumbing. Is is made from particle board? If so, I would recommend a fiberglass resin coat on the inside to keep it in good shape in case of leaks.
 
great post jeff, I agree. I would recommend drilling your tank. That is the one thing I didn't do to mine when I reset it, and I still regret not doing it. If you need help, I know jeff has done it before with some success, and I belive mike has also. I really streamlines a tank and gets rid of the PVC look! Overall great design, appears well thought out. How big of a sump are you going to be able to stash in that stand? That will be your only concern, well that and now creativly hiding the chiller. Great job, keep us posted!

Jason
 
I really wanted Metal halides, and if I do, I would get a two bulb system. I always hear people saying how they regret not going that way, and I don't wanna run into having problems with my corals in the future either. As far as the brace, do you mean the brace on the tank cover...? Because I wasn't even thinking of putting the cover on the tank in the first place, is that a bad idea...?

And for the overflow box vs. drilling..

I've been debating on having the Lagoon guy drill the tank since he will be doing my sump/refugium in the first place. But I haven't asked him yet so I'm not sure, one of my friend's has some spare clear tubing he used for his tank, in case I did go that route.

And the sump will be roughly 20 gallons.

oh yeah.. return pump inside or outside of the sump, what do you guys think...?
 
Lighting

Lighting

For lighting, would buying a pendant like the one in this LINK , be a good idea..? and then get a T-5 retrofit kit in there as well.
 
I like the pendant, and as for return pump, it really depends on the pump you buy, your space available and your plumbing plan. Think long and hard about the pump you want, and when you decide It's exactly what you need/want get the NEXT bigger one!! You can always throttle back the output if need be, and usually its only a matter of a couple dollars to go bigger.

Tell me about the clear tubing... what would you be using it for? I suggest hard plumbing everything in. If ANY light can get to the tubing eventually you will begin to grow algae, thus reducing flow adversely. Child proof everything, and always leave yourself a way out (true unions, ball valves, syphon breaks, etc.) I wasn't able to find the bulkheads I was looking for on this island, so keep that in mind. Mailorder will become your worst enemy!

Jason
 
I would go retrofit for the MH vice the pendant but that's just my opinion.. Then you hide all the lights inside of the hood and most of the wires as well. If you are interested in drilling the tank, I can do it for you. It will only cost you $8 for new bits since the ones I got are now toast after drilling the 75 and overflows. It will make plumbing much easier We can also build the inside overflow box. It's not hard to do and will create a cleaner look inside the tank. You are also not as restricted as far as the amount of water the overflow can handle. When I was talking about the center brace, I was referring to the black plastic rim on the top of the tank. That is what supports the walls from blowing out. Too much heat can cause issues with it but you will be fine with 2 MH as they won't be directly above that brace. You might consider going with a closed loop instead of a powerhead inside the tank. Stupid suction cups on the powerheads never work right and I have lost some nice coral as well as fish when the thing falls down. Are you having your sump custom made? If so out of what material? Glass or acrylic? Taking a 20gl glass tank and putting baffles in it might be a cheaper route.
 
How much is the lagoon guy charging you to do the sump?
tell ya what...We can build the sump at either my place or someone elses for the cost of materials and a good time. Jeff would probably also be very interested in doing it, and he has a little more free time on his hands, as it seems I never stop going somewhere/doing something. We just built a sump for a guy (who got banned from here) and its solid as a rock. We will be starting dastank (mike) his sump here within a few days. Getting materials...the acrylic is affordable but the glue is a tricky part, just gotta have someoen from the states send it to you. If you have $200usd -> convert it to yennies, to spend on acrylic, you can have a real nice sump.
I can cut it at the hobby shop on Kadena, no worries there.

As for lighting, it looks like you might live in town from those pics. 1. make sure your house can power the lights with everything else running, and 2. make sure you are aware of the electric bill thats about to be dropped on you. Ive been told of people who build tanks and get ready to fire them up and when they do, there A/C goes off, or lights flicker a little bit...something to think about.

Mike and Jeff both run t-5's over there tanks and they get GREAT growth from them, they are fairly cheap and cheap to run. Not to mention much cooler, so you could probably get away from yoru chiller needs as well. (thats alot of money savings there)

Keep us updated with your build. Check out dastanks build, his is comming together really really nice. Ohh yeah, one more thing, stay away from petbox and anything else (saltwater related) you might consider buying from there. a tank and carbon are about the only 2 saltwater related things I would purchase from the petbox.

-frank
 
hahaha. Hey mike your still signed in on my computer. OOps.

-I was like...wait a min, I know I posted in some other threads, and they arent showing that I did. And then I posted and was like...WHOA! mike posted at the same time....wait a min, my post isnt there...and then realized I was under mikes name.

ahh well! im logging you off my computer Mike. :lol:
 
Just got back from talking to the lagoon guy, and here goes nothing, I had talked to him before about my build and he said it would start at around 5,000 yen, meaning $50 USD. So today I go there with my sketches and measurements, 60cmLx35cmHx25cmW which translates into roughly 15 gallons, a couple baffles, the refugium area, and two more baffles on the way out, and he tells me it would be 7,000 yen total, ***? so I was a bit skeptical, until he proceeds to tell me it would be "so much" because he will have to re-inforce it, or brace it on the side so it doesn't bulge. this is about 1/3 of the price I was expecting to get quoted, and I've seen his work, which isn't bad at all, he's done everything in his shop himself. Oh yeah, he was trying to convince me into making it "the japanese way" which the water would flow from the bottom upward through the bed of coral and into the refugium area... what do you guys think about all this....?

BTW, he just got back from shopping for fish in Hong Kong, he's got some nice new fish and coral in there.
 
Frank

Frank

Frank, I really want to take you on that offer to do the drilling/overflow, can you tell me in more detail the exact things we will need...?
 
if he will do your sump for 7000y, thats building you a sump from scratch, I would jump all over that. As for drilling, pm Jeff. He has drilled glass a few times.
 
Drilling glass isn't hard if you have #1 time and #2 the right bits. Bits will cost you about $8 and a couple hours/beers. Your tank is kinda thin so we will go with a dremel. First thing we need to do is to discuss what your goal is as far as flow and max water capacity you need/ want. From there I will calculate the size overflow hole needed and the overflow box. We will need to order the glass for the overflow box and I can have that done in 1 day or less if needed. Basically, with a few hours of work we can have everything done.
 
Take a look at my 75 thread as well to see how I did my overflow. The way I drilled mine, I have no shadows due to an overflow box inside the tank. It's a simple design that will work well for any tank.
 
LOL!!!! I was reading through the threads tonight and all of a sudden "HEY, I DIDN'T WRITE THAT!" Good one Frank! At least you didn't get me banned!

MIKE
 
Fiberglass resin can be picked up at Makeman for about 1300 yen. Look for the stuff called polykyuto in the 1 liter can. Pick up extra hardener as well since the little bottle they give you isn't enough. The VHO set you were looking at is pretty good for the price. Personally VHO are a little too pink for my taste unless you suppliment them with either MH or T-5s. You will need to order the waterproof endcaps as well. One other thing to think about with the ARO retro kitis that the bulbs are wired in series meaning that if one bulb burns out, none of the lights will turn on. http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=PF5117 If you are set on VHO, this is what I recommend. It comes with the waterproof endcaps and end cap mounts and is cheaper than the ARO set if you figure in the price for the waterproof endcaps/mounts.
 
crap, i thought those WERE the T-5's, everybody seems to be recommending them vice the MH's, especially since I live offbase, so back to my search.
 
If you get bored, stop on by my place. I have VHO, T-5's and MH lighting sets I can show you so you can get an idea of what will work best in you tank with regards to coloration, size, wiring etc before you place your order.
 
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