My new tank & tank cave - 125g

[jpc763]

Long story short, I have been complaining for a little while after filling my 55g up. My wife got tired of hearing about it so eventually she cracked, just a little. That was all I needed to get started.

First thing was that I needed a new place. My current setup is a 55g that is upstairs in the main hallway/loft area. It is in the only place that does not get flooded with natural light (30+ windows i n the house). Problem is that this location shares a single 15amp circuit with the loft, upstairs guest BR and the kids "bonus room". Turn on a hair dryer and I loose power.

Option A - run more power up to the bonus room - $$$$$
Option B - put the tank in the basement - Actually wife's idea

Basic needs - Dedicated Power, Water Source, Drain Source

So once I figured out what I was going to do, it was time to start.

I picked this location for the future tank.

First thing I did was to frame it in and run 2 GFCI protected 15 amp circuits. There is a left side circuit and a lighting/right side circuit.

Next I needed to convert my rough-in to a water source which included getting under the sub-floor and running 20+ feet of copper.

Here is where it needed to go - Left of pipe A

Here is the drain that I tied into, under the subfloor.

Here is the result!

 

[jpc763]

Next step was to find a tank! I picked up Urville's 125g tank, sump, pumps, etc. off of this site. I drove up to Wyoming and with his help, got it all loaded and drove it back to Fort Collins.

He was GREAT to work with. Sorry he is out of hobby for now. Hopefully he will be back soon.

Anyway, this is what I picked up!

125g Reef Ready

75G Sump/Fuge - I removed all of the baffles so I had a place to store the 200# of LR!

You can see my new (brand spanking new) Vertex IN250 skimmer! Here she is out of the box with a 2L bottle for reference!

And now skimming!

 

[jpc763]

Well now that I had some equipment, I needed to clean it and build a stand! I used the design from this thread http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1169964 for the design.

This...

became this...

Pictures of it skinned, stained and varnished will be coming this weekend.

 

[whyamisofly]

Looking good John!

 

[miwoodar]

Nice start - can't wait to see updates!

 

[jpc763]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14278863#post14278863 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by miwoodar
Nice start - can't wait to see updates!

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14278777#post14278777 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by whyamisofly
Looking good John!

Thanks guys! My doors arrive today so I plan on staining and varnishing them this weekend. The tank is pretty much clean so I will then paint the back black and get it on the stand.

After being out of the water for a few hours and getting a FW bath and scrubbing, the LR had some die off. The ammonia spike is done and the Trites and Trates are at zero so that is good news.

I did go after a half dozen aiptasia on the LR with Joe's Juice but there are no more that I can see.

John

 

[spleify]

Gonna be a sweet setup!! Can wait to see it all come together.

Keep up the great work and keep us posted.

Spleify

 

[murfman]

Nice build. I did one like that two years ago and now just finished my 300.

Can I ask a question though? Why did you go with 15A GFCI instead of 20A?

 

[Off The Deep End]

Very nice build going on, keep up the good work John!

 

[jpc763]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14281567#post14281567 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by murfman
Nice build. I did one like that two years ago and now just finished my 300.

Can I ask a question though? Why did you go with 15A GFCI instead of 20A?

I talked to a couple of electrical guys and they said that two 15A dedicated circuits would be more than enough.

 

[jpc763]

Today I finished cleaning and painted the back of the tank.

I also got my doors yesterday and all of the hole were on the right side (I need 2 sets of left and 2 sets of right) so off to the Home Depot for a special drill bit to recut the holes. Not a huge deal since I need to put a plate that will go behind the doors so no light comes out.

So after finishing cutting the new holes, I stained them to match.

Here are some updated pics.

The stand with Oak skin.

And the backside of the doors being stained.

The tank in position with a newly painted black back.

The beginning of my canopy. Don't have the final design worked out in my head yet, but I know how to start.

This is my 44g Brute Saltwater Mix Can (on wheels)

And my RO/DI Water Can - A 32g roughneck

Another update tomorrow.

John

 

[spleify]

Lookin good John!!

Where did you get the 44G rubbermaid, and the wheel kit the wheels. I have the 32 gallon rubbermaids, can't find the bigger ones, and can't find anyone local that has the wheels. I have found them online, but was hoping for something local.

 

[jpc763]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14289039#post14289039 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by spleify
Lookin good John!!

Where did you get the 44G rubbermaid, and the wheel kit the wheels. I have the 32 gallon rubbermaids, can't find the bigger ones, and can't find anyone local that has the wheels. I have found them online, but was hoping for something local.

I got both the 44g and the Wheel kit at Home Depot here in Fort Collins. Their online shop says they carry them in all the stores.

J

 

[spleify]

It must just be the crappy one by me that doesn't cary them then.

Thanks and keep the updates coming, this baby is ganna be cool.

 

[szgppl]

looking good

 

[jpc763]

I have made a little progress since the weekend.

Here are some updated pics.

Tank on mostly finished stand

Doors open

Close up of the knobs

Next step is to finish the plumbing and begin filling the tank. I have already leak tested it and it is good to go!

John

 

[Clown-N-Around]

Very nice. I like the handles, nice touch

 

[beav5000]

its turning out nice!

 

[jpc763]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14319310#post14319310 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by beav5000
its turning out nice!

Right now it is holding AIR really nice! Some day I will actually fill it up!

J

 

[spleify]

Looks good.Nice work on the stand.

Did you get the bulk heads figured out?

How's the canopy coming?