150 gallon cube, over 400 gallons total volume with fishroom

olmsted66 · 04/27/2011, 08:36 AM

(pics will come soon, promise) Im relatively new to posting so ill give it a shot with my new build. Im currently moving into a new house with my girlfriend and since i dont have to rent anymore i thought id build my biggest system I've attempted. My new house has a 5'x10' room in the basement that i think the previous owners were using as a "gardening" room complete with high volume fans to move air outside (bonus for me). Im making that room into my fish filtration/wet lab room.

Before i forget i should probably list the equipment and tank and all that good stuff for you guys.

Tank: Marineland 150g cube, 36"x36"x27" (no center brace)
Skimmer: Euro Reef, dont remember the model # but it uses the sedra 5000 pump and is 8" in diameter.
Lighting: 2 fixtures, one with 2 250w hqi and 2 96w PCs, and the other fixture is running 4 T5s.
Powerheads: going with koralias probably the ones right before the magnum series. (haven't purchased them yet)
Return Pump: quite one 9000, 2320 gph if i remember that right.
R.O unit: found on ebay its a 6 stage 75gpd with booster pump and a DI chamber.

For the fish room:

sump: 150 gallon rubbermaid stock tank (came with the house, i was happy)
auto top off: 55 gallon poly tank, going to use float valves and pressure switches to make it virtually hands free.
Salt water storage: 55 gallon poly tank with a mag 12 stirring pump.

in the fish room theres also going to be an 8ft rack that houses my 30 gallon that i have drilled and set up to run 5, 5 gallon tanks off of it. (previous system) all 6 of those tanks are plumbed to run together and drain into a maine sump. They were designed so i could have little critters that couldnt go in my reef tank.
The quarantine tanks will be 2 10 gallon or possibly a 10 and a 20.

I have a 150w HPS light that i was thinking about using over a frag tank in there too.

The floor and two foundation walls will be painted in that garage floor epoxy stuff.

I have the rough stand built for the tank, im waiting on my finish carpenter buddy to come over and quote me on the finish work as well as installing a fold down bar along the edges of the tank. The tank will be located in my kitchen/dining area. All the plumbing will run through the floor into the basement and into my fish room.

olmsted66 · 04/27/2011, 08:49 AM

I just ordered my rock for the tank. I decided to go with Marco Rock this time. Ive purchased rocks from Tampa bay Saltwater and they were awesome, just came with two many problems (gorilla crabs mostly). I have about 50 lbs of some fiji rock from liveaquaria that im going to use as my seed stock.

Alright heres the order list:

75 lbs dry rock
160 lbs sand (course)
20 lbs of their flat cut pieces so i can make a realistic looking back wall
10 lbs of rubble rock (to fill in the spaces on the back wall)
e-marco 400 10 lb mortar bonding concrete type stuff for aquascaping

I also ordered 2 sheets of 3/8" thick pvc sheeting in 12"x24" so i can make some columns and bury the base under the sand.
(still need to order the rod)

Also put in an order for 2 boxes of IO reef crystal, should be about enough for 400 gallons, i have another 150 gallons worth of salt lying around too.

Im going to do some work on the house this afternoon so ill try to take some pics of the tank and the fish room.

Itll probably be a relatively slow build on a budget. Ill make sure to put a bunch of pics up to keep you guys tagging along on the build.

olmsted66 · 04/27/2011, 08:53 AM

Is putting a foam board under a tank necessary if the tank is nice and level? ive never done it before but ive never had a tank thatll be so heavy either. The top of the stand is a square of 1/2" plywood on a 2x4 frame.

d3hree · 04/27/2011, 10:56 AM

adding foam/poly board under the tank is to level out slight imperfections that would otherwise put undue stress on certain joints. It would depend on whether the tank has a floating base though.

olmsted66 · 04/27/2011, 01:02 PM

It does have a floating bottom, like a standard tank with the plastic trim around the top anf bottom.

olmsted66 · 04/27/2011, 01:06 PM

Forgot to mention in the tank description that it has two sides starfire panels. The overflow is also in the back corner. Thanks everyone for looking it should be a fun build.

redneckgearhead · 04/27/2011, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by olmsted66

It does have a floating bottom, like a standard tank with the plastic trim around the top anf bottom.

Then I do not see a reason to put foam under the tank. Contact the manufacture of the tank and ask them what they recommend.

olmsted66 · 04/27/2011, 05:00 PM

Ok thats a good idea, ill see what marineland has to say. Thanks for clearing up what the foam board is used for I was a little confused at first.

olmsted66 · 04/27/2011, 08:55 PM

The quite one pump came this afternoon, its pretty big it looks like itll move a bit of water. I got the pump off amazon it was about 10 dollars cheaper than everywhere else I checked. For only using 145 watts and putting out 2300gph, for 179 bux didnt think I could go wrong. Next step is to make the fishroom a bit bigger, install the sump, plumb the r.o unit and plumb the entire tank lol the list goes on.

Im having problems uploading pictures from my phone to the post, so im going to try to get them on my computer and upload them that way. Hopefully ill have them up here soon.

04/27/2011, 08:36 AM	#1
olmsted66 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southern Maine Posts: 33	150 gallon cube, over 400 gallons total volume with fishroom (pics will come soon, promise) Im relatively new to posting so ill give it a shot with my new build. Im currently moving into a new house with my girlfriend and since i dont have to rent anymore i thought id build my biggest system I've attempted. My new house has a 5'x10' room in the basement that i think the previous owners were using as a "gardening" room complete with high volume fans to move air outside (bonus for me). Im making that room into my fish filtration/wet lab room. Before i forget i should probably list the equipment and tank and all that good stuff for you guys. Tank: Marineland 150g cube, 36"x36"x27" (no center brace) Skimmer: Euro Reef, dont remember the model # but it uses the sedra 5000 pump and is 8" in diameter. Lighting: 2 fixtures, one with 2 250w hqi and 2 96w PCs, and the other fixture is running 4 T5s. Powerheads: going with koralias probably the ones right before the magnum series. (haven't purchased them yet) Return Pump: quite one 9000, 2320 gph if i remember that right. R.O unit: found on ebay its a 6 stage 75gpd with booster pump and a DI chamber. For the fish room: sump: 150 gallon rubbermaid stock tank (came with the house, i was happy) auto top off: 55 gallon poly tank, going to use float valves and pressure switches to make it virtually hands free. Salt water storage: 55 gallon poly tank with a mag 12 stirring pump. in the fish room theres also going to be an 8ft rack that houses my 30 gallon that i have drilled and set up to run 5, 5 gallon tanks off of it. (previous system) all 6 of those tanks are plumbed to run together and drain into a maine sump. They were designed so i could have little critters that couldnt go in my reef tank. The quarantine tanks will be 2 10 gallon or possibly a 10 and a 20. I have a 150w HPS light that i was thinking about using over a frag tank in there too. The floor and two foundation walls will be painted in that garage floor epoxy stuff. I have the rough stand built for the tank, im waiting on my finish carpenter buddy to come over and quote me on the finish work as well as installing a fold down bar along the edges of the tank. The tank will be located in my kitchen/dining area. All the plumbing will run through the floor into the basement and into my fish room.

04/27/2011, 08:49 AM	#2
olmsted66 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southern Maine Posts: 33	Just Ordered my rock I just ordered my rock for the tank. I decided to go with Marco Rock this time. Ive purchased rocks from Tampa bay Saltwater and they were awesome, just came with two many problems (gorilla crabs mostly). I have about 50 lbs of some fiji rock from liveaquaria that im going to use as my seed stock. Alright heres the order list: 75 lbs dry rock 160 lbs sand (course) 20 lbs of their flat cut pieces so i can make a realistic looking back wall 10 lbs of rubble rock (to fill in the spaces on the back wall) e-marco 400 10 lb mortar bonding concrete type stuff for aquascaping I also ordered 2 sheets of 3/8" thick pvc sheeting in 12"x24" so i can make some columns and bury the base under the sand. (still need to order the rod) Also put in an order for 2 boxes of IO reef crystal, should be about enough for 400 gallons, i have another 150 gallons worth of salt lying around too. Im going to do some work on the house this afternoon so ill try to take some pics of the tank and the fish room. Itll probably be a relatively slow build on a budget. Ill make sure to put a bunch of pics up to keep you guys tagging along on the build.

04/27/2011, 08:55 PM	#9
olmsted66 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southern Maine Posts: 33	ups came The quite one pump came this afternoon, its pretty big it looks like itll move a bit of water. I got the pump off amazon it was about 10 dollars cheaper than everywhere else I checked. For only using 145 watts and putting out 2300gph, for 179 bux didnt think I could go wrong. Next step is to make the fishroom a bit bigger, install the sump, plumb the r.o unit and plumb the entire tank lol the list goes on. Im having problems uploading pictures from my phone to the post, so im going to try to get them on my computer and upload them that way. Hopefully ill have them up here soon.

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04/27/2011, 08:53 AM	#3
olmsted66 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southern Maine Posts: 33	Is putting a foam board under a tank necessary if the tank is nice and level? ive never done it before but ive never had a tank thatll be so heavy either. The top of the stand is a square of 1/2" plywood on a 2x4 frame.

04/27/2011, 10:56 AM	#4
d3hree Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Lancashire, UK Posts: 773	adding foam/poly board under the tank is to level out slight imperfections that would otherwise put undue stress on certain joints. It would depend on whether the tank has a floating base though.

04/27/2011, 01:02 PM	#5
olmsted66 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southern Maine Posts: 33	It does have a floating bottom, like a standard tank with the plastic trim around the top anf bottom.

04/27/2011, 01:06 PM	#6
olmsted66 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southern Maine Posts: 33	Forgot to mention in the tank description that it has two sides starfire panels. The overflow is also in the back corner. Thanks everyone for looking it should be a fun build.

04/27/2011, 05:00 PM	#8
olmsted66 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southern Maine Posts: 33	Ok thats a good idea, ill see what marineland has to say. Thanks for clearing up what the foam board is used for I was a little confused at first.