xtrstangx's 120g BB thread

[xtrstangx]

My dad's paying for the fish room part of it. He doesn't like the current mess that is in the bathroom by the 40g. This means he gets to call the shots on what we use and he wants it to look really nice... hence why we are using cabinets and a countertop instead of a big 2x6 frame with plywood.

 

[xtrstangx]

Well shoot.

We've been putting down some floor leveling on the fish room's floor. Its quite a PITA.. we're doing it so that if anything leaks (the sink, the sump, the RO/DI) all the water drains into my dad's shop down the drain in the floor.. rather than into the rest of the finished basement.

I just got a call from the fish store. The tank isn't even made yet. They are going to do that this week/early next week.. After it is made, it will be 1-2 weeks for delivery (California to Kansas)

We got a 12' countertop for $48... A 12' countertop at Home Depot was $180 + shipping/freight. Our countertop had a 4" split in the corner. Fortunately, we only needed 10'4, so we saved a good deal of money.

If anyone is interested in my old tank, check the BST forum

My RK2 should be here this week. I am going to order all my plumbing (spaflex, bulkheads, DUBV) this week too so that once I get the tank, I can plumb it immediately.

 

[elephen]

It's sounds like the room is going to be really nice.

 

[xtrstangx]

Alright got some pics.. Ignore the mess

Heres the shot of the countertop. This is a good representation of the color, IMO. It has more blue in than you can see though..

Some of the good concrete floor leveler... you can see the 1/2" gap.. this will keep the water out of the fish room. Tonight we are going to put 1/4" in the fish room so there will only be a 1/4" difference between the rooms. Closest to the camera, you can see the bad DAP floor leveler. Apparantly you have to buy their expensive additives to mix with the concrete instead of water.

This corner is for the sump.. the RO/DI is being suspended currently so that we can paint..

Here is where the 2 32g buckets are going.

Its hard to get a good pic of it without getting a shot of the room in the basement or the work shop. Both are in a total mess...

 

[xtrstangx]

Words cannot explain how angry I am.

2 months ago I gave the plans to the tank manufacturer... she received my plans along with 40+ tanks for the LFS. It has taken her since LAST WEEK to actually look at my plans. She didn't know what an external overflow is.

OK, so I research for a hour or two and find pics for her. Send them to her, and nope, she won't do it.

So now they won't build my tank. They want me to do internal overflow or no tank at all.

And so now I have a HUGE delay in this project. I have 3 options:
a) Buy an AGA/Oceanic 120g RR.. my LFS will give me wholesale price on this because of the issue with the retarded tank builder
b) Buy an AGA 120g not RR... drill it myself and put my own external overflow on it.
c) Spend $1000-1200 for a custom made tank from a different manufacturer

 

[elephen]

I'd get the non-rr if your heart is really set on an external overflow. You could purchase the glass locally for not a whole lot, and the non-rr tanks are much cheaper then the rr tanks.

I like the idea of an external overflow built into the tank, free's up a lot more real estate that your normal internal overflow boxes would take up.

 

[elephen]

Oh yeah and for your bulkheads, I wouldn't get the cheap $2-4 ones, I'd get the hardcore schedule 80 (grey) ones that run $13-15 each. Trust me, I made that mistake, bought the cheap bulkheads and EVERY SINGLE one of them leaked. I tried vasoline, tried losening them, tightening them, everything. In all these years I have never seen such a thing! My next system will have the schd 80 bulkheads.

Let me know what you need and I'll see if my buddy can get it for you.

 

[xtrstangx]

Yep, I've already budgeted for the big ones.

I'm waiting for the price to come back from these other builders. One is $1200 and I think the other will probably be that high too, unfortunately. Plus I imagine shipping would be $100-200 for a big glass tank.

However, if I do go with a custom one, I will probably go with a 150g and get another 6" of depth. Not 100% sure yet, but thats what I am thinking.

 

[Cprowler]

As you know I just went with option (a) and I don't regret it, I didn't want to drill the tank and weaken it. When we buy a new house and I build my dream tank with fish room I will defiantly go with option (c).

 

[xtrstangx]

Cprowler.. I am thinking I'll just go with an Oceanic 120g. I don't want the dual overflow, too much space taken up.

What makes me so mad is the fact that it took them 2 months before they would tell me they won't build it. They wasted 2 months of my time... if I had known 2 months ago that putting 4 pieces of glass on the back of the tank was too much for them, I could've find another tank and had the entire thing running by now.

 

[Wiskey]

That's ruff man, I can't beleave the company didn't even look at it your plans until build time. I would (and after a bit of internal debate ,plan to myself) go with the standard AGA tank, I don't like the idea of external overflows because of all the notches you have to cut in the glass. I think that removes a lot of strength, especially since you are doing it right under the tank's centre brace.

HTH,
Whiskey

 

[Cprowler]

Yeah, I would be P.O.ed too. What kind of aquarium builder doesn't know what an external overflow is?

I don't think I'd want them making my tank anyway, too bad you had to wait 2 months to find this out.

 

[xtrstangx]

I don't think I'd want them making my tank anyway,

Thats what I said. I told them if they weren't going to make it, I'll buy one from All-glass or Oceanic.

So if I get a cheaper price from this other builder, I'll probably go with a 6" deeper 120g... thus making it a 150g.

Considering going up to a 180g if I get an Oceanic/All Glass. It would be $150 more for lights, $50 more for a bigger Seio, $50 for another ROI reflector, and another $50 for more Starboard. $300 more plus the cost of the tank... what to do.

 

[elephen]

You know what you want to do

Go bigger or go home... A good motto to live by - LOL!

I think you can find some good deals on all the extra equipment you'd need

 

[xtrstangx]

Doh, forgot about another $100 to upgrade the skimmer to something like a G4X.. mm choices choices. So $500 or so more? Thats quite a bit of money (for a high school student).

 

[Cprowler]

Don't forget the monthly electric bill, more salt for water changes, more live rock, more GAC/Phosban. More, more, more = $, $, $.

That's why I went with the 120, I figure it costs around $120 to $140 a month to run, maybe more.

 

[xtrstangx]

I have 250+ pounds of rock in the garage, so thats not a problem. I've been picking it up lately when its been cheap. Its all cooked so it will be ready to go. When I'm ready to aquascape, I'll cover the entire floor with thick painter's plastic and probably lay all the rock out.. I'll have 250+ pounds of rock to choose a perfect aquascape with :-D

Salt isn't a huge deal. Although my sump may be too small. Can someone with an AGA RR measure how tall the teeth are on the overflow box (or approximate by 1/4")

Edit- Forgot to add. My dad is the one who pays the electric bill, not me.

 

[Cprowler]

The teeth are 1/8" wide and 7/8" tall

 

[xtrstangx]

Hmmm, my sump would work then (thinking of when power goes out and backsiphon down to the bottom of the teeth)

 

[xtrstangx]

So I'm really thinking of doing a 180g. $500 is only 20% more of what I was going I am spending on the 120g... plus I can work a lot more now and I've gotten a considerable raise at work.

I'm thinking of getting a standard 180g and completely drilling it myself. I don't think I want to do 2 overlfows like a standard AGA..

Now to work the idea of 60g more on the parents...