Slakker's Oceanic 58g

[Slakker]

I've waited to write this thread up here on RC until I had some time to really figure out where all of it was going. Now I think I've got a pretty good idea, so it's time for the build thread we all know and love!

Believe it or not, it all started like this:

Gee, it sure seems familiar...my last build thread (the 12g nano) started much the same way, a tank that came to me cheap and needed some cleanup. However, in this one it turned out that the 40br shown had some cracks in it. So I went out in search of another tank.

So I set to work on building the stand...unfortunately the circular saw we used doesn't make the squarest cut, nor does the table saw. Come to think of it, we just don't have any good tools for furniture building...but, the stand is solid and square.

 

[phenom5]

Can't wait to see it up & running.

Did you decide on what you're going to do as far as live rock goes?

And what are the dimensions of the 58? I'm looking to upgrade myself. (shh...don't tell the wife )

 

[Slakker]

So I started gathering up supplies. Picked up an AquaC EV-150 from a local reefer for the unbeatable price of $0. Yep. Free skimmer, and a quality one at that? Awesome.

So I painted up the frame for the stand, cleaned out the 20H that I was going to use for the sump, and filled the tank from the garden hose to test for leaks.

And mocked up the plumbing and got that tested as well.

And sump building:

 

[ReefEnabler]

awesome setup man... and congrats on the free skimmer!!! thats a pretty nice skimmer for your system.


where will this tank be set up finally?

your stand looks plenty strong. quality tools are nice, but quality skills show through with any tools.

 

[Slakker]

I've been cleaning up on used items during this build, picked up an ATO off of another RC user, the JBJ unit. It keeps the water level pretty stable, but I'm not 100% confident in its ability to really regulate itself.

Moved the tank from my parent's house where I'd been building it to my apartment, where it will reside full time.

I also picked up a T5HO Retrofit Kit from Hellolights and installed it in the hood I built.

 

[ReefEnabler]

lol you answered my question already without even trying.

I like the bare look. are you planning on skinning the sump out or leaving it open?

 

[Slakker]

In the midst of all of this craziness I added about 15lbs of Aragamax Oolitic sand that I had leftover from my 12g build, moved over a few small pieces of rock from the nano just to try to seed things and get it started. Meanwhile I was waiting for an LFS to get in an order of rock, but that didn't happen within the timeframe that I wanted to get things going, but did get another 30lbs of aragamax.

None of those pictures are interesting, so skip ahead a bit. The fuge is...sort of functional...hah.

I ordered 45 pounds of Fiji Select Premium rock, and 30 pounds of Lalo Select Premium rock. I took several pictures of each rock, but to spare you of those relatively uninteresting photos, jump ahead to where things stand right now, all of the rock has been rinsed and picked at, cleaned off some assorted dead stuff.

 

[ReefEnabler]

damn thats pretty sweet. I need to get some freakin sand into my tank already

but I keep being indesisive about what kind of base to put under the rocks...

 

[Slakker]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12744062#post12744062 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RyanBrucks
I like the bare look. are you planning on skinning the sump out or leaving it open?

Well, part of me wants to leave it open, but I picked up some 1/4" Luaun Mahogany plywood (yeah, the cheap stuff they used for the back panels of cabinets...lol) that I'm going to skin the stand with. I managed to find a piece with some nice grain, and it was only $10 for a 4x8 sheet, which might end up being enough to do the canopy too.

I think for the sanity of my roommate I'll have to close it in...the drain is going to make a bit of noise and with the tank being in the living room I don't think he'll be too excited about my drain splashing noises interfering with his home theatre system

 

[ReefEnabler]

haha good point.

btw, I posted updates in your liverock thread...

 

[Slakker]

For what it's worth, I just put the rocks straight onto the sand...no eggcrate, no pvc, no fancy little tricks...maybe I should look into it a bit more.

Edit: Yeah, saw that. Those are some really nice rocks, man...I think it's gonna look killer in your tank.

 

[ReefEnabler]

well for your aquascape and tank setup I dont think its as crucial. Does not look too deep of a sandbed, and not too high of a rock stack.

I am wanting to do some very tall, thin pillars, sitting on a DSB. I also plan on some goby shrimp pairs. So this is basically a recipie for disaster without giving the rocks a solid base, or placing the rocks before the sandbed (which is a waste of rock IMO). I think I am just going to use sections of 2" pvc cut to the height of the sandbed. Random notches cut into one end would give the rock something to bit onto.

 

[Slakker]

Yeah, it's not a bad idea. Did I mention that this aquascape was not anywhere near a real aquascape? This is just what happened when I stacked the rocks in the tank after I cleaned them up

I've got no idea how I'm going to aquascape...it's been one of my weaknesses since I started the hobby...lol

 

[Slakker]

Everything looks great this morning. I'm about to head out to pick up a new ammonia test (mine is over a year old and the cap on one of the reagents was broken off...soo...probably not gonna work anymore.) and a few additional DIY things. First up is a new cap for my Durso so that I can try out a smaller air intake, I think mine is much too big (7/16" if i remember correctly).

I'm also contemplating changing my rigid PVC drain pipe to SpaFlex so that I can build a bubble trap out of some larger diameter PVC. Because the drain pipe now runs down so close to the stand's support, I actually had to carve out part of the sump's top brace to allow for the PVC to pass by, so it's difficult to add a filter sock or make adjustments to that pipe, so the SpaFlex would make that a lot more manageable. I'll also pick up materials for the bubble trap.

The EV-150 is running like an absolute champ, but it's a bit messy right now. When I got it the collection cup lid had been broken:

And so now the foam entering the cup just pretty much goes where it pleases, including every so often out the top of the lid through the air vents. I'm going to see if I can find some clear PVC or acrylic tubing that will fit that, and then replace it.


While I'm out, I'm also planning on picking up some acrylic and appropriate solvents and testing out the idea of making myself a sump.

 

[Slakker]

Well, I bought 3 feet of 1" Spa Flex to replace my rigid drain and so far I'm happy with the decision. It gurgled quite loudly for a while but I think it's starting to slime up and quiet down already. I also completed construction on my bubble trap (it looks pretty sweet...who knows how well it'll work though

I cut a hole big enough for the spa-flex in the top cap, four more air exit holes around that, and drilled an array of holes at the bottom of the pipe. I used 2" PVC for the whole thing...and let me tell you, you get some funny looks from cashiers when all you buy from a store is a short section of PVC and two end caps. :worried:

 

[Slakker]

As some of you reading this may know, Wisconsin, and much of the midwest, has been getting absolutely BLASTED with rain in the past weeks. Currently the river going through my home town is about ten FEET over its banks. The flood plane is six feet. I was out yesterday snapping some photos, and have picked out a few of the pictures that will demonstrate just how bad it is in some places without being familiar with the town at all. Also note that the water has gone up about 6" from when I took these shots yesterday.

 

[Mykel Obvious]

YIKES!!! Stay safe up there Tyler!!

Great looking setup BTW... tagging along to see where it goes

I've got an ugly wooden stand from my old 30 long that I may stick a 40 breeder or a 50 or 58 on and use the 30 for the sump after I get my 65 set up and running... this is NOT going to be a display tank... very ugly stand :lol: ... would be for frags or possibly FOWLR with non-reef safe fish and stuck in my computer room so folks won't see it

 

[Slakker]

Fortunately my parent's house is far enough away from the river that they're not seeing any water up there yet, but there are some reserved wetlands nearby that have a potential to get ridiculous...

Not to mention the fact that several of the dams upriver are under tremendous stress right now, and any of them could conceivably break and cause some serious trouble.

For now things are holding...though the river isn't expected to crest until Friday.

 

[Slakker]

Spent a few minutes shuffling rock around trying to come up with an aquascape that didn't make me want to cry. I like the cave, but the "reef wall" is not up to par yet. I may have to pick up some nylon or acrylic rods and start drilling holes to get things the way I want them on that side of the tank...

 

[GSMguy]

looks good