Where to buy or order large tanks locally

[Specfishin]

I know there's a couple of places around but I would like anyone with experiences of buying a large (anything over 265g) tank or custom tank built to share their experiences about it. I know a few have extra lg tanks made for them and im getting ready to make something happen. I am a diy kind of guy so a complete package isnt necessary but for the right pricing im for it. Getting older nowadays. Thank you for any insight about this subject matter.

 

[snake1]

Talk to TED.C I believe he contated John at FAOIS and they ordered his custom tank. Or just call John or Jennifer at FAOIS I'm sure they can hook you up.

 

[Ted_C]

Yea - dont ask me Ask John @ FAOIS.

I actually invited John to my house and had him take a look at what I thought was a good place and he made some recommendations / took some mearsurements and such. I had a very specific plan on what I wanted when it came to overflows and sumps and such which I had planned and did build myself.

The tank is a Custom A.G.E tank (8' x 24" high and 32" wide) and steel stand from Texas. Its got a PVC bottom, low iron on three sides and a pre-painted black back. They also pre-drilled 6 1 1/2" holes through the back glass. It's got steel framing that's got a thick layer of rhinolining I think.

The stand came painted with the same rhinolining. It also came with the 3/4" plywood on both the top and in the sump area.

Delivery was a cinch. I paid the freight guy an extra 50 bucks to back up the truck in the driveway and drop the crate and stand right in front of my garage.

 

[Specfishin]

Thats very good info and I've seen some of your build before. I know it won't be inexpensive but hey, nothing in this hobby seems to be. Thank you. I totally didnt think about Faios. I know drysdale does builds from what ive gathered. Just getting info on where or whom I could look towards to and get sound advice and experiences. Awesome stuff Ted-C

 

[albano]

Just got a great tank from fishtanksdirect in Fla... Custom made acrylic 6'x5', ~500g...good people to deal with, great pricing!

 

[anbosu]

I went through Doug on mine and other than the delivery guy deciding rush hour wasn't going to be a problem on a Friday evening it went without a hitch. The more you have figured out ahead of time the better partner you can be for whoever you go through.

I would expect you'd have a good experience going through FAOIS or Creative as well, but I was very happy with Drysdale on mine.

 

[Specfishin]

Thank you Albano! If its reasonable enough I was really wanting a possible 10' long 24-30 wide and at least 2' tall. I can go 8' but if I'm going big I'm going the full monty.

 

[Specfishin]

I went through Doug on mine and other than the delivery guy deciding rush hour wasn't going to be a problem on a Friday evening it went without a hitch. The more you have figured out ahead of time the better partner you can be for whoever you go through.

I would expect you'd have a good experience going through FAOIS or Creative as well, but I was very happy with Drysdale on mine.

Well said and I highly believe planning is the major key which is why now i'm researching my tank options at this point and choosing the supplier. I know i will be making calls but knowing who has been stellar with the tank and etc... process , helps me eliminate grief down the road. Thank you for your input.

 

[anbosu]

Thank you Albano! If its reasonable enough I was really wanting a possible 10' long 24-30 wide and at least 2' tall. I can go 8' but if I'm going big I'm going the full monty.

I may have missed it - do you plan to go acrylic or glass?

 

[Specfishin]

I'm leaning towards acrylic. But not sure what some pros or cons may or not be. I know glass if its scratched its scratched. Acrylic seems easy to scratch but if ever drained could be polished out. Glass is heavy. Thats all i know. Lol

 

[anbosu]

I'm not sure how often you can find 10' acrylic sheets, which is why I was curious. I guess that would be a question for the LFS owners. The weight thing is huge - my tank is acrylic and 8x3x2 and 2 strong people can move it by themselves. But if you're not going to be moving any time soon that's not as big of a factor.

Slief on the large tank forum has really good instructions for repairing scratches while the tank is full if you do decide to go acrylic.

 

[albano]

I'm leaning towards acrylic. But not sure what some pros or cons may or not be. I know glass if its scratched its scratched. Acrylic seems easy to scratch but if ever drained could be polished out. Glass is heavy. Thats all i know. Lol

As stated, you don't have to drain it to remove scratches, and as for weight, my son in law and myself have moved the 500g tank a couple of times by ourselves.
I've owned multiple acrylic tanks since 1991, and besides a new 500g and new 5' 200g, I still have 3 tanks that are over 20 yrs old and still look great.
I know some people prefer glass, but seriously, I would not have accepted a 500g glass tank for free!

 

[rfalvey89]

Yea - dont ask me Ask John @ FAOIS.

I actually invited John to my house and had him take a look at what I thought was a good place and he made some recommendations / took some mearsurements and such. I had a very specific plan on what I wanted when it came to overflows and sumps and such which I had planned and did build myself.

The tank is a Custom A.G.E tank (8' x 24" high and 32" wide) and steel stand from Texas. Its got a PVC bottom, low iron on three sides and a pre-painted black back. They also pre-drilled 6 1 1/2" holes through the back glass. It's got steel framing that's got a thick layer of rhinolining I think.

The stand came painted with the same rhinolining. It also came with the 3/4" plywood on both the top and in the sump area.

Delivery was a cinch. I paid the freight guy an extra 50 bucks to back up the truck in the driveway and drop the crate and stand right in front of my garage.

I can attest to this. Ted has a great tank and it is -unreal/well built. FAOIS can and have pulled off some really good builds.:hammer:

John & Jennifer from FAOIS are working on a 150 for me right now. I Broke down my old tank when I sold the house. Now that we have moved, can't wait to get the new tank in. They work with every aspect of the build- start to finish.:thumbsup:

* Ted- my Display is your QT?LOL:beer: Thanks for the buckets!

 

[Specfishin]

All great information for me to help along with decision making. I appreciate the insights and experiences. I'm willing to hear anymore tips as well when dealing with large tank builds too.

 

[Ted_C]

I can attest to this. Ted has a great tank and it is -unreal/well built. FAOIS can and have pulled off some really good builds.

John & Jennifer from FAOIS are working on a 150 for me right now. I Broke down my old tank when I sold the house. Now that we have moved, can't wait to get the new tank in. They work with every aspect of the build- start to finish.

Not dissing FAOIS - they do have amazing builds - but the 300 is mostly all my doing (or my vision if you will). They did order the tank/stand and gave great advice along the way and fulfilled all my needs for materials and equipment.

I found I had (or wanted) to do most of the design / build myself. I had my own ideas and really only used FAOIS to bounce ideas off of and as a supplier.

I had to hire a team of guys to lift the tank onto the stand. Surprisingly hard to find a team that would do this.
I had to build my own overflow (this is mainly due to Synergy holding some type of patent on the low profile overflow design and manufactures wouldn't touch my plans). * Note that FAOIS did order all the materials cut to my specifications I needed to build out the internal overflow myself and did have someone build out the external acrylic box for me.
I designed my own sump. *Note Faois did have someone build to my specifications.
I hired a team to build the skin / canopy. I did my own design/ build of the aluminum frame for the canopy to hold the lights and the cabinet company skinned it for me.
Plumbing: did it all myself.

So just from this short incomplete list - Yes - I could have paid FAOIS to do all these things for me - but I saved a few bucks on an already over the top expensive build and got great satisfaction in doing it myself. It's also my vision exactly how I wanted the tank to look / feel / operate.

 

[JRR]

Have you ever entertained using a fiberglass tank with viewing panels? I'm building a new tank for my house and this is the way I'm going. Check it out! Look at this site and then look at the price list on top of the site and you can see there different sizes they offer. Price list is outdated but not to far off. Maybe something can work for you. You might even find you can afford a larger tank. Just remember the pricing doesn't include the viewing panels so you would need to get a quote. They are pretty cool as you can just put them on concrete blocks and then put a false front over the outside to hide the tank and the concrete blocks. http://www.aquaculturetanks.com/

If interested you will need to call or email them for pricing. I'm in no way connected to them at all.

 

[Specfishin]

Thank you Ted_C , this is the informatio. , "the beef" I was looking for. Describes some of the things running in my own mind. Basically need a tank supplier and damn good welder. I have a wood worker in mind already. Had a welder but he has went to puerto rico for work reasons.

 

[Specfishin]

Have you ever entertained using a fiberglass tank with viewing panels? I'm building a new tank for my house and this is the way I'm going. Check it out! Look at this site and then look at the price list on top of the site and you can see there different sizes they offer. Price list is outdated but not to far off. Maybe something can work for you. You might even find you can afford a larger tank. Just remember the pricing doesn't include the viewing panels so you would need to get a quote. They are pretty cool as you can just put them on concrete blocks and then put a false front over the outside to hide the tank and the concrete blocks. http://www.aquaculturetanks.com/

If interested you will need to call or email them for pricing. I'm in no way connected to them at all.

I have looked at these builds but am gonna go with a tank.

 

[reefrubble]

I bought Two Large tanks a 225 , and a 300 Gal . from John at fish and other ichthy stuff in Oldsmar . John is great to deal with .

 

[Specfishin]

I bought Two Large tanks a 225 , and a 300 Gal . from John at fish and other ichthy stuff in Oldsmar . John is great to deal with .

Thank you for the good info and insight on your experiences with Faios!