Dogfish

Next issue... I did not think this one out to the end. So I need to fill my tank with salt water. At least 300 gallons for starters. I am cycling the rock now. I cant use the 2ea 100 gallon tubs I borrowed to mix and store the water because my rock is in them. How do I do this?  Besides buying a bunch of 55 gallon trash cans to mix and store it, are there other solutions? I was thinking of putting maybe 200 gallons of RO/DI water in the tank and then mixing the salt in the tank. Will I end up with a bunch of undissolved solids that are bad in the tank?  I could then add the rock work. Maybe baste the rock to keep it wet while the rest is being made. Then add the sand thru a piece of pvc pipe. Any flaws in my old used brain's logic?

58 minutes ago, BobcatReefer said:

If you need the bond to help hold/suspend that overhang, it needs to be superglue, not epoxy.  If the need is just to stabilize, epoxy will be fine.  As far as a glob vs hand spreading, a bit of both.  Squish up a bigger ball than you think is appropriate and put it where you think the contact point is, place the top rock on and then spread as desired.

Diggin' the scape v.2!

The rock ledge is fairly stable. The contact area between the 2 pieces is about 8 x 6. I need some piece of mind. The rock going to be cycled before going in the tank. Its big and heavy and I can only fit 1 piece at a time thru the top holes. So what would you recommend to use on wet rock?  How long to let it dry before adding water? Hours maybe?

Thanks in advance

I spent today drilling holes for the pvc supports connecting any unstable rock. That 1/2 inch drill didn't break my wrist this time. Most of those 30lb pieces are not going anywhere even when underwater. Got all the jigsaw pieces in the tubs. Will start soaking them tomorrow. I had one problem. The overhang supported by the pvc in the picture (white arrow) is not very secure after removing the support. With a piece of pvc between the rocks its still sketchy. I had to put another rock bridge on top of it (other white arrow)to be sure it wont fall. How good is that reef putty stuff? Will it cement both pieces together if i put a big glob between them or does it have to be spread by hand? I also moved the 2 pieces apart (pink arrow) and made a longer bridge between them.

25 minutes ago, BobcatReefer said:

Also, my suggestion on the scape would be to go higher on at least one of the front 2 islands, and/or add some bridges and overhangs.  

That's a great suggestion......... I re-worked the scape a bit. Added height to both front pieces. Too dark outside to really get the feel of it.

Rock:     I will build some stuff out of pvc to hold the rock off the bottom of the tank, and drill some holes for pvc pipe to hold pieces together. I will also hollow out the back and bottom of some  the rock to make it lighter. (my back is killing me, or I'm killing it). I want to make some straight holes thru some of the rock for looks.(tube worm like).

Tank:     With the help of a few buddies and a few breakfast taco's we got the thing in the wall. Hard to see the tank without something covering the back sides. That the wife's project. Will have to get the MP60's in place first so she knows where to cut the holes. I need to work on the trim border while the rock is soaking. I will make sure it covers the sand depth.  I never thought the green and brown sand was attractive against the glass. I plan on making it re-moveable for cleaning with a magnet.

I need some feedback ideas for rock work. I took it out of the barrels to pressure wash and decided to stack a few pieces up. Sort of how I want it to look. Here are 3 views.  The tall section is going near the back corner. 3 power heads will move water thru openings in the rock work. Any suggestions? 

Power washed some rock. Its cold outside when wet. Put 1 piece in a bucket of RODI water. Tested after 4 hours. No phosphate yet.  Anyone know who would stock Dr Tims or some other bacteria in S. Austin. Petco?  Since its live i'm sure a freeze in transit would not do it good.

Me too. This is killing me,  having to wait and wait and wait. Now the bloody rock has to cure. I will have the tank inside next year for sure. Got the heaters cranked out in the garage. The overflow box welded to the tank should be cured soon. Going to set up my QT tanks out in the garage. Once that rock is in I'm going to be more than ready to have something that moves in that tank. Might go out and pressure wash the rock even if it is freezing.

Drove down to the truck terminal and got my pallet of Marco Rock. Looks good. Large pieces about 16" to 18" long. Really no rubble but what came off while it was in transit. A bit heavier than Pukani but not by much. Tons of holes. Will be great for aquascaping.

I got a chance to meet Ty while picking up a tub to cure some rock. Nice set up he has. He has the SPS addiction syndrome "frag tank" . It does look great.

It keeps growing. With that overflow box it now seems large to me.

Its a bit out of my comfort zone. To quote a old friend "What Me Worry" Alfred E Neuman

Bottom is glued on. Yaaaaa. Now to get it flipped so I can glue the overflow box to the back.

7 minutes ago, Sascha D. said:

I'm currently using Blogger, but it's difficult to use and doesn't have a quality app. I didn't really think the name through and the corresponding domain name is taken. 

Blogger is a google thing and i don't think they really care. Good luck in your search. Any questions just ask.

8 minutes ago, Sascha D. said:

It's long past time to build a website and buy a domain. I know some beginner HTML and CSS, but I need to find some kind of software that will help out.

A coupla options. Maybe do a "Word Press" site. Kinda blogish. There are also a ton of web site templates out there that people have designed. All free and mod-able, if ya kinda know what you are doing. Search for ones that are "adaptive" or "responsive" . Ya want it to look good on pads, phones and computers, even if they are using a windoze browser.

Where can I find more info on the sponge packs? I have a few questions, like if they will all grow in low to no light, flow ect.... I'm not planning on lighting my sump. It will be full of dry rock where a normal fuge would go, no sand.  The skimmer will suck water out of the same chamber so should be plenty of food. That chamber is about 24x30. Not planning on using live rock, so at first the system will lack diversity. My old sump was full of sponges. I liked them a lot and purchased a few larger ones for my display.

Thanks in advance

That's a great tank. I like all the space between the rocks.

Looks great.

The bottom should take 4 days to glue. 1 day per side. Then I need to flip it and glue the top which I will use weld-on 4 and some pins. That will take 1 day once I get it set up. The hardest part will be finding enough neighbors to flip this puppy over without damage. Once the top is on I can attach the external overflow.  A week for all to cure to be safe. Im hoping to have the tank ready for water and in the house before New Years.

Update: Things are moving slow. Car jack and jack stands to get the correct angle to glue the back on. 4 sides ready to roll it over onto the bottom. Pretty heavy. The dog was exhausted after that. Got my first look at the front corner seam. No bubbles, I'm happy.

Your wood work is great.

1 hour ago, Sascha D. said:

Apparently I make bad decisions! 

Hahahaha Make bad decisions, not me.  Just really stupid ones like building my own tank. Love watching glue dry. I'll be old and gray before its done. Oh, I am old and gray. :)))

Wow Great stuff. How will i ever convince any live stock to move into my tank with all this fancy real estate out there.

Thanks, Very helpful was you.

1 hour ago, Sascha D. said:

I've kept Pearly and Tiger Jawfish. Both have the same requirements, but different personalities.

What is your avergage tank temp, 76 to 78  or 78 to 80?  I heard they like it a bit cooler.