Parrtheds 25 Gallon Rimless Build!

[parrthed]

After taking a few months off from the hobby and liquidating my solana I have decided to do another rimless build

I have seen all of these Mr Aqua tanks on here and figured id give one a try.

Tank is going to be a Zoo/ LPS tank with maybe some montis and birdsnests.

Equipment list is as follows:

Tank: Mr Aqua rimless 25 gallon standard glass
Stand: Birkeland Nightstand from IKEA (saw this in Obaptista's thread)
Light : AI SOL Nano w/controller
Sump: Eshopps RS-75
Skimmer: Bubble Magus NAC 3.5 Cone
Heater: 150w Eheim Jager
Controller: Apex Lite (waiting on UPS)
Overflow: Glass Holes Nano Con Dientes
ATO: Tunze Osmolator (waiting on UPS)
Return Pump: Mag 3
Substrate: Tropic Eden reef flakes
Rock: 35 pounds dry Pukani

Here is a few pics :

I am planning on drilling the tank tomorrow or friday and painting the back black. Should have it all plumbed up this weekend

I will keep this updated as I continue progress!!

 

[SnowboardKid26]

Nice start. I'm currently building the same system with many of the same parts. Ill tag along and watch your progress.

 

[ange062]

Looks like a solid start!

 

[neuro]

awesome start. way cool. that stand is a cool idea. i wonder if it needs to be braced

 

[parrthed]

Thanks everyone,

The stand is super sturdy, the top is a solid piece with a couple braces under it ( I was suprised how beefy it was). Although I am going to put a 1x6 up the back in the center for good measure to keep it from possibly shifting left or right. So far I am very pleased with it. The top is so level that the tank formed a vaccum and I had to slide it off to remove it.
There are a couple other threads of people using some IKEA furniture for some nano tanks. Really sleek idea. Im glad I went with it.

The tank has a panel that is about 1/16th shorter than the others, I guess I will make this the back. I am currently leak testing it until this afteroon, then the drilling begins

Originally I wanted to paint the background white or some very light sky blue but eventually decided on classic black to hide the overflow and return.

I am going to be hard plumbing it all the way with a couple tees and valves off the return line to add a couple reactors later for GFO and maybe bio pellets.

Hopefully I can have water in this tank by Saturday

 

[neuro]

awesome, i'm going to steal your tank/stand/sump setup! muahhahaahahaha

 

[jhawkor]

Looks great. Where can you purchase Mr Aqua tanks?

 

[TimothyJ]

Looks great. Where can you purchase Mr Aqua tanks?

MarineDepot.com (they are a sponsor as well)

 

[E.intheC]

Looking great. I'll have to check out Ikea for the stand as well.
How do you like the sump so far?

 

[parrthed]

Thanks, Finally got it all setup. The stand is super sturdy. I actually trust it more than my old solana stand.

My apex will be here Tuesday along with my wireless adapter

The sump is great, The inlet is in the corner to maximize space, really has alot of room in it. My MAG 3 barely fit in the return section.

I have aquascaped it and am going to throw some rubble from the LFS in the sump to get her going.

Also need a skimmer stand to raise the NAC 3.5 up a bit. Its really noisy in too deep of water. Ill order it this week.

Here is an updated picture:

 

[Boboli]

So clean & nice rock work!

 

[secrest]

Looking really nice.

 

[Lpabsolute]

Hey, Just started setting up a 27g cube and we have the same light. Our tanks are pretty similar. Looks good so far. How are you liking the light? The thunderstorm mode really sold me on the light at my LFS.

 

[dtt]

Looking swell, look forward to the finished product, tagging along

 

[parrthed]

Worked on installing the Apex today. I realied I may have humidity problems in the stand so I took the opprotunity to intall a Eco fan in the stand to pull out the humid air.

I used some shelving board to make a panel to mount the Apex modules onn as well as the fan.

Next I wanted my Apex display visible and easy to reach. I drilled the column behind te tank and ran the wires to the floor.

Moved the tank back into position.

 

[parrthed]

Did some aquascaping today and opened it up a bit. Also picked up a pair of Bangaii cardinals (have some ratty dorsals though) and some crabs and snails.

Tomorrow I am heading up to Indy to snag a few frags at the swap and picking up my ATO stuff from Premium.

Here are some updated pics as well as a pic of my old 93 cube, the daddy of the current 25 cube

 

[ange062]

LOL, when I first glanced at your 93 I thought it was the 25 and saw a couple big tangs and thought you were out of your mind!!

Tank is coming along really well!

 

[wlyon]

Love the black long nose!

 

[fishnub]

I have the same skimmer and love it, its pulling some nasty stuff out.

 

[parrthed]

Thanks for the comments everyone.

I installed the ATO today via my Apex. Easy as 1..2..3..

I used two floats one primary and one backup, both are set to the "open" off position for safety.

I also installed a Tuze 6015 until I decide between a 6055 and a MP10

Some othe stuff I picked up were a Vertex probe holder, Vertex grounding probe and some mag-clips to glue my float switches to.

I snagged some nice corals at the swap today as well.