NoValidTitle Posted September 6, 2007 Share Posted September 6, 2007 So I've joined NR because I was going to buy a NR tank and be happy with that but of course I can't be happy with a tiny tank. I decided why not DIY a tank? Everyone says it's easy and I'm pretty decent at building things. So I've spent the last few days measuring and planning and measuring again to design my tank in Sketchup. I build a model of my bedroom to help see how it will look in there. For this build I will be DIYing the Tank, stand/hood, and sump. Nothing is final as I just started planning this only a week ago. I think the only thing that is final is the outside tank dimensions of 36Lx32Wx18H which will yield about 90 gallons minus the glass thickness. I will be using a Bubble King Mini 160 skimmer, and a Profilux Plus II computer. That is all that I'm really set on thus far and I'm not totally set on the computer. I haven't made any decisions on lighting yet, it's a battle between a T5 system or a MH system, and if I go MH I need to find out what kind of wattage I'm going to need, the tank will be pretty shallow but I'm planning keeping primarily SPS after the tank is stable. I'm leaning towards MH because It's what I used to use but the T5 systems seem pretty attractive. I think 2 175w MHs with Lumenarc Minis would be sufficient but again, not sure. *update* I did decide on 2 175w MH's in Lumenarcs. Currently the overflow is planned to be coast to coast of the full 36" tank. That might change after Mattyice explained why he didn't do coast to coast... To leave room for, in my case, Tunze Streams on each side of the overflow. I would prefer the overflow/sump drain to be silent so I am thinking about using the gate valve standpipe method but I think that will be a pain to tweak because I plan on a |Fuge|Return|Skimmer| setup that will be split from the overflow to the Fuge and Skimmer sides. Having something like a 75%/25% balance using the submerged standpipe method could be quite tricky to setup. I could put individual bulkheads for each side, setup my desired fuge flow then tweak the skimmer side to balance the water in the overflow. Also I'm not sure how big I should make the bulkheads for either the drain or return, I'm thinking 2 1" bulkheads for the fuge and skimmer feeds and a 1.5" return. Calc reactor... I'd like to but haven't done ANY research yet. ATO if I can design one to fit under my stand. (I'm trying to maximize my sump size) The sump will also be DIY from glass. I'm going to build the sump first so I can take anything I learn and apply it to the display tank. The sump will be your basic |Fuge|Return|Skimmer| style with the 3 baffles from the skimmer section to the return. You can see all of that in the sketchup drafts below. I don't think I will be drilling any holes in the sump, I would prefer to have a submersed return pump but that isn't final yet. Well... more to come here are my Sketchup drafts. the top picture is new with my slimmer sump to allow for Calc and ATO to fit. Link to comment
eddie29 Posted September 6, 2007 Share Posted September 6, 2007 why do my sketch abilities leave so much to be desired....nice design Link to comment
DKreefkeepers Posted September 6, 2007 Share Posted September 6, 2007 Have you started saving for that bubble king yet? The 160 is over $800 Link to comment
NoValidTitle Posted September 6, 2007 Author Share Posted September 6, 2007 Have you started saving for that bubble king yet? The 160 is over $800 Yeah $849, shouldn't be a problem. My rent/bills are less than 1/4 of my monthly salary. So I tuck some away to save and the rest is free for spending (no g/f or wife at the moment hahaha) Link to comment
ChuckP Posted September 12, 2007 Share Posted September 12, 2007 Hey nice setup man, just got linked from the nano-paul thread. Do you have your whole house in Sketchup? For topoff I would use an air pump with a drip fitting, or if it is your house get someone to run a small pipe so you can topoff from your garage. For calcium reactor I would look at My Reef Creations, they have some nice stuff, not sure if you have enough room in the sump area for CO2 etc. For lighting I would go PC & MH. Use a bunch of acntics for the PC and a 14k for the MH. You will love the colors you see. Of course you could do the same with T5. Link to comment
NoValidTitle Posted September 13, 2007 Author Share Posted September 13, 2007 Hey nice setup man, just got linked from the nano-paul thread. Do you have your whole house in Sketchup? For topoff I would use an air pump with a drip fitting, or if it is your house get someone to run a small pipe so you can topoff from your garage. For calcium reactor I would look at My Reef Creations, they have some nice stuff, not sure if you have enough room in the sump area for CO2 etc. For lighting I would go PC & MH. Use a bunch of acntics for the PC and a 14k for the MH. You will love the colors you see. Of course you could do the same with T5. Nah I don't have my whole house done but I was seriously thinking about doing it. Yeah I plan on putting a freshwater jug under there with some sort of float or put it above the sump and gravity feed it. Unfortunately I don't have a garage and I rent the house I'm in so no crazy house mods. I down sized the sump a little I will edit my first post with the final cut list I sent to Nano-Paul. I will go look at the My Reef Creations stuff now. The only potential that was on my list to research so far was the Korallin 1502. That's on there because PA says it's there best selling unit but I still have to research it. I think my current plan for lighting is 2 12k Reeflux bulbs and I will see how I like it from there, maybe I will add a few PC's or T5's. I will be using the Lumenarc Minis which will leave room in the front and back of the tank. The display will be aprox 27" front to back (32" front to back with the overflow) and the Lumenarcs are 14.5" So I have room to work with. Thanks for the pointers, they are much appreciated! Link to comment
mattyice Posted September 25, 2007 Share Posted September 25, 2007 another possibility to look at is lighting the tank with T5's, i have the Aquatinics Constellation fixtures for my tank and i think that the light they throw out is incredible, it is actually killing off my mushrooms its so bright!! i do like MH but after seeing how my corals love T5HO i think that it is perfectly fine for my tank Link to comment
Withers Posted September 25, 2007 Share Posted September 25, 2007 another possibility to look at is lighting the tank with T5's, i have the Aquatinics Constellation fixtures for my tank and i think that the light they throw out is incredible, it is actually killing off my mushrooms its so bright!! i do like MH but after seeing how my corals love T5HO i think that it is perfectly fine for my tank Another convert! Our numbers are growing Link to comment
mattyice Posted September 25, 2007 Share Posted September 25, 2007 dude i absolutely love the fixture, plus i can change the color temp to be exactly what i want it to be Link to comment
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