Toofrigginswt's Custom 125 Gallon Tank Build

[toofrigginswt]

There's about 60 lbs of marco dry rock in the tank right now. I'm seeding it with another 7-10 lbs or so of live rock.

 

[Pico1]

LOVE the scape! And fish look great- especially for a phone pic.

 

[robertloop]

A very good start. I love the build. I see that you're not doing a closed loop for circulation. What direction are you going for flow?

 

[toofrigginswt]

A very good start. I love the build. I see that you're not doing a closed loop for circulation. What direction are you going for flow?

I decided to go with two mp40 for my primary method of flow/circulation. I also have two mp10 that I'm not sure if I'll end up using for the back of the tank or not. I may end up using it when my sps grows out more and needs additional flow.

 

[robertloop]

Nice pumps. Way, way easier to manage than a closed loop and the additional plumbing involved.. BTW.. Did you see this months tank of the month? That guys just using BRS 3 part on BRS dosing pumps. Are you doing 3 part or CA reactor?

 

[toofrigginswt]

Nice pumps. Way, way easier to manage than a closed loop and the additional plumbing involved.. BTW.. Did you see this months tank of the month? That guys just using BRS 3 part on BRS dosing pumps. Are you doing 3 part or CA reactor?

Yep. I've read through his build thread as well. It's a beautiful tank. I'm actually going with the 3 part dosing route. Calcium, alk, and mag.

 

[toofrigginswt]

Just wanted to post an update of the tank.

I just received a custom acrylic ATO reservoir thanks to John from YR. The dimensions are 8x16x16. I'm going to make a red acrylic lid for it with two holes. One for the cord and one for the ato hose.

Also I now have all 10 bulbs in the fixture. 7 Blue+, 1 Coral+, and 2 Purple+. I'm going to swap out one of the Purple+ for a GE 6500k later on for better growth.

Here are a few shots of some of the fish I currently have:

 

[toofrigginswt]

Side shot of the Tank:

Left Island. I plan on wrapping this island with sps.

Right island.

Full tank shot. It sort of looks un-natural right now but I have this image in my head of how the corals will look once it grows in. Hopefully I can make this image into reality somehow.

 

[Dusty Dog]

Great looking tank......will be following along to see the coral fill in.

 

[HV1990]

what did you do to get the live rock flat? did you cut it at home or have a store do it?

 

[toofrigginswt]

Great looking tank......will be following along to see the coral fill in.

Thanks! Hopefully I don't disappoint.

what did you do to get the live rock flat? did you cut it at home or have a store do it?

I ordered these flat pieces from Marco Rocks. It's the Key Largo Prime Cuts. Prime cuts have flat surfaces. You can order it flat on one side or both sides.

 

[Alex Donaldson]

I like how simple it looks. Great for growing SPS.

 

[snaza]

Great setup

 

[adddo]

Wow tank looks too freaking sweet! Love tha aquascape and the clean look, will look great with corals on that rockwork.

 

[sahicharles]

Return Pump:

I initially was going to get the ATB Flowstar 1500 but after my research, I came to the conclusion that the Flowstar 1500 is the same exact pump as the Laguna Max Flo 1500... It's just rebranded with ATB's name. So I purchased a Laguna pump and purchased a custom stand for it. I haven't tested it yet but hopefully it works just as good. This saved me well over $100+.

Love the way how you did the plumbing and especially the lay out of the rock work, very nice aquascaping. I am currently setting up a new tank too and definitely learn a lot from your setup. Could you tell me where did you get the stand for the Laguna Max-Flow pump?

Charles

 

[toofrigginswt]

Hi Charles. Thanks for the compliment. We are all here to help and learn from each other.

The stand was purchased from a website called Socal Tropical Fish Outlet. Here is the link: click here. It was $19.99 plus shipping and it is a perfect fit! Its very easy to assemble.

If you're using flex hose then the barbed fitting that the pump comes with should be fine and you'll only need a hose clamp to plumb. If you are trying to hard plumb, you'll need to buy the Laguna Click Fitting, which can be found here.

In case you're curious, here's how I assembled the pump. Pump > click fit > thread/slip coupler > union. You can eliminate the coupler just by getting a threaded union. I already had a slip union handy so I decided to use what I had.

Hope this helps! Have you already purchased the pump?

 

[toofrigginswt]

Some more shots of the aquascape.

I love my Super Reef Octopus skimmer! It pulls out some pretty thick and nasty stuff.

 

[sahicharles]

Thank you so much for such a detail information, actually I got the ATB back in Oct. and if I had found this thread earlier, I would get the Laguna instead, but I am still going to get the max-flow for the backup. Have you thought about the external plumbing instead of internal? I am debating to put the pump internal or external of the sump.

 

[alnasser2001]

nice tank..but I winder of your stand design !....what is thickness?

 

[toofrigginswt]

Thank you so much for such a detail information, actually I got the ATB back in Oct. and if I had found this thread earlier, I would get the Laguna instead, but I am still going to get the max-flow for the backup. Have you thought about the external plumbing instead of internal? I am debating to put the pump internal or external of the sump.

I chose to do internal only because I feel that it's easier for me to maintain and clean. Knowing how clumsy I am, I'd probably snap something and cause a leak if the pump was external. I can't afford leaks because I have hardwood floors.

I know a lot of people prefer external because there's less heat transfer and they tend to be more quiet. However, the pumps that we have available to us on the market nowadays are all pretty quiet and efficient. That's why I chose internal and have been happy with the setup so far.

nice tank..but I winder of your stand design !....what is thickness?

The stand is 60"L x 24"W x 40"H. The steel is 1.5 sq inches thick and powder coated with a white finish.