120 gallon rimless with basement sump

[ReefingHavoc]

I've been planning this build for nearly a year and finally have house updates out of the way to start. Here's the plan:

120 gallon glass rimless (48x24x24) display
75 gallon(ish) acrylic basement sump -- to be built

Lighting:
48" Aquatic Life T5HO Hybrid
Ecotech Radion xr15

Skimmer:
Vertex Omega 180i

Return Pump:
Reeflo Swordtail 1750

Powerheads:
Dual Maxpect Gyre XF230

Overflow:
Synergy Reef Systems 16" Shadow

Controller:
Reef Angel Star

A couple of thoughts on my approach:

• Looking to run Triton to ease the number of water changes
• Will have 29 gallon quarantine
• Looking to build in redundancy to the system

Hoping to share with others my progress and elicit ideas from the community.

SketchUp file of fish room attached

• The blue block is my sink
• I'll have a 55 gallon drum for keeping salt water ready
• Still figuring out a top off container
• Stand will house quarantine below

The blue block is my sink

For now, I've started on the sump stand. Pretty standard design to hold a 48x18x20 acrylic tank that i'm building. I'll be picking up the cut sheets later this week. Debated on paint or sealer for the top of the stand but decided on using some leftover Waterlox, which should protect things nicely.


I'll continue to post as things progress

[neilp2006]

Good start- looking forward to how your fishroom ends up.

I chose to keep the water making equipment outside of the room, partially because I could use the slop sink for non-fish related basement stuff, but also because if I’d enclosed it all, I’d have blocked off the back half of my walkout basement and would have had to add egress points. Good compromise.

Take a look and feel free to help yourself to any ideas that take your fancy

https://www.*********.com/threads/ne...shroom.390436/


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[ReefingHavoc]

Originally Posted by neilp2006

Good start- looking forward to how your fishroom ends up.

I chose to keep the water making equipment outside of the room, partially because I could use the slop sink for non-fish related basement stuff, but also because if I’d enclosed it all, I’d have blocked off the back half of my walkout basement and would have had to add egress points. Good compromise.

Take a look and feel free to help yourself to any ideas that take your fancy

https://www.*********.com/threads/ne...shroom.390436/


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Nice thread. Looks like a much bigger space than I have to work with.

[ReefingHavoc]

Picked up the acrylic for the sump. Started prepping the edges for welding. Never built a tank out of acrylic, but learning a lot online

Before...



After...

[ReefingHavoc]

Sump walls welded



Dimensions- 48”x18”x20.5”

Welds not as clean as I’d like, but will do for a sump. Am considering some bracing on a bottom edge that has a fair number of bubbles.

What did I learn:
- route the edges! I should have taken the time to set up my router table to clean and square up edges. Instead, I hand scraped edges, which meant the edges weren’t as clean as I’d hoped
- use pin method. I saw online that the king of diy said you can use capillary for 1/2”. I found that the liquid didn’t get all the way across the joint at times so I had to apply solvent on the other side
- I will say that my last two joints were much better than the first few

Left to do:
- flush route any overlap
- add top bracing
- add baffles
- drill for external return pump
- flame polish edges

[ReefingHavoc]

Making progress

Drilling holes for drain lines into sump


Decided to route out removable plate for drain section of the sump so I can clean it


Cutting teeth for refugium overflow




Started welding in baffles

[ReefingHavoc]

My display tank on the main floor will be running parallel to the floor joists. Not ideal, but it’s the only direction I can run it. To compensate for the weight, I opened up the ceiling in the fish room below and will be reinforcing 2 of the beams to ensure no sagging over time.

In addition to sistering the joists, I’m going to add a support pole. This may be overkill, but cheap insurance.


Display tank build has started


Here’s what the final outcome will be

[ReefingHavoc]

Couple of updates


Frame completed and top painted



Stand skinned. One thing I’m doing is building recessed section on the side to house the Gyre controller and reef link if I decide to get one. Also added a small drawer to house food and towels




Got all the trim on and filling the brad nail holes in preparation for painting

[sergebmw2]

Awesome following along !!

Building my 120 stand and doing a sump in the basement as well. This way easy Maintenance and access to everything.

Love the stand so far !


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[ReefingHavoc]

Originally Posted by sergebmw2

Awesome following along !!

Building my 120 stand and doing a sump in the basement as well. This way easy Maintenance and access to everything.

Love the stand so far !


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Thanks. Having the stand built feels like a huge milestone. I'll start painting this week. Also, my new tank is scheduled for delivery later this week. I agree with the basement sump.

[ReefingHavoc]

Stand is primed and ready for paint



also...display tank arrived!



On its side and ready for drilling

[ReefingHavoc]

Holes drilled in floor for the 3 drain lines. Still have to drill for the return



Having never drilled holes in glass, this was the step I was the most nervous about. 2 for the overflow and 1 for the return. Took about 30 minutes per hole. Turned out to be fairly easy.

Template for the holes


Drilled a 1/4” hole in an old bucket to create an easy way to supply cool water to the hole saw

[ReefingHavoc]

Floor is reinforced. Sistered primary joist, added new blocks and floor jack post



Hoping to get the finished stand in place this weekend and put tank on it

[ReefingHavoc]

Tank and stand together!



Next step is to finish the drawer front, build shelf, and paint the back black. Couldn’t resist putting the overflow box and return bulkhead on to see what they look like

Right now it’s sitting on furniture movers until I get all the work done and plumbed

[ReefingHavoc]

Putting some final touches on the sump. Added a dosing line holder

[ReefingHavoc]

Made some good progress over the past few days. For painting the back of the display I decided to try something other than rustoleum, Krylon ColorMaxx. I’ve never painted an aquarium so I have nothing to compare to, but overall seems to work well.



For the stand I wanted to not only recess a space for equipment so you don’t see it, but have access to the inside of the stand for electrical wires. Added magnets to the cover for easy removal.



Also added the drawer front





For the sump I’m nearly done. After initially adding 1/8” baffles I realized that they were way too thin. I ended up getting 3/8” acrylic (1/4” probably would have been fine). I added braces around the top and decided to route out a lip for some lids to help with evaporation.



Black lid is to help keep light out of the skimmer chamber from the refugium light. Will need to cut a hole in the lid for the skimmer.

Bulkhead is in along with dosing and ATO line holder

[ReefingHavoc]

Started pricing out plumbing and things add up quickly. I love the look of BRS colored pipe and gray fittings but not the price. Anyone gone in a different direction?

[crawling junk]

Originally Posted by ReefingHavoc

Started pricing out plumbing and things add up quickly. I love the look of BRS colored pipe and gray fittings but not the price. Anyone gone in a different direction?

You can paint the schedule 40 fittings with krylon fusion spray paint. Also check out supplyhouse.com


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[ReefingHavoc]

Originally Posted by crawling junk

You can paint the schedule 40 fittings with krylon fusion spray paint. Also check out supplyhouse.com


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Thought about it and I’ve got a lot of pipe to run so I’ll bite the bullet and buy the blue to save time. Black Friday deals will at least help ease some of the cost

[ReefingHavoc]

For the build, finally decided on going with 80/20 for the light mount. It’s in black and if I planned correctly should look pretty good.

For the stand, I have been working on the shelf. There are two layers to it. The underside is painted and should be ready to install tomorrow. The top is made and I’ve started staining. I tested out General Finishes Antique Walnut Gel Stain on maple, but it was too light so I picked up some Java to darken up the color. Will take some time as I need to do multiple coats on each side and add the topcoat





Also got my QT take up and running. Cycled it with some rock from my current tank and MarinePure that was in a HOB filter.



Been busy ordering from BRS and taking advantage of Black Friday sales. I’ll post all the new goodies once they come in. Feels like early an Christmas!

[ReefingHavoc]

Big delivery today of new stuff for the build. I had originally intended to hook my existing Reef Angel controller but decided to upgrade to an Apex EL for more control. Picked up a flow monitoring kit for the return and leak detectors for the main display and sump.

For running GFO or carbon I picked up an Avast Spyglass reactor which will run off of a manifold. Also picked up a new ATO from Avast.

Since I’m going to need to make more water, I decided to get a booster pump. I’ve been running at around 50 psi and looking to increase efficiency.

Lots of plumbing parts that took hours to plan out. I’ve got 12 - 1 1/2” blue sch 40 pipes, 1 - 1” blue sch 40 pipe, and 1 - 2” blue sch 40 pipe.

One thing I still have on its way is Neptune ATO which I won on a Black Friday giveaway. I’m thinking that I’ll use that to automate the filling of my ATO container.



Still working on the stand shelf. Hoping to get it installed this weekend and start plumbing. Getting close to water!

[gatohoser]

I’m in a similar place right now and love watching you think through everything. Getting lots of good ideas from you. Thanks!


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[ReefingHavoc]

Finally got the sump in its final place and plumbed the line to the return pump. When I planned out the length of the stand I didn’t account for the size of the 2” ball valve so it is cutting it close to fitting the sump, return pump, and plumbing. Luckily, no issues.



I also started cutting pipe. I watched Bill Wann’s Macna presentation on plumbing where he discussed chamfering pipes. I set up a simple jig to add the chamfer on my router.





All I do is press the pipe into the corner and rotate. Simple, safe, and fast.

Here’s a link to the video if interested.
https://youtu.be/pNYaHGQoPVc

Tomorrow I start on the light rack for the T5 Hybrid and Radions

[FlatBrokeMedic]

Very cool, I really like diy heavy builds. I see you are from Ohio as well, your BG flag caught my attention

[ReefingHavoc]

Originally Posted by FlatBrokeMedic

Very cool, I really like diy heavy builds. I see you are from Ohio as well, your BG flag caught my attention

Thanks. I’m enjoying the process of the build a lot. Knowing the cost of materials in the industry has forced me to do a lot of planning to reduce waste.

If I could DIY everything I would, but there becomes a certain point where time and quality come in to play.

Go BG!