85g oceanic tank build

[gibs]

Hey guys I couldn't help myself I am loving my Nano tank but all of my research that I have done says I need a bigger tank for the fish I really want to keep!

This is a used tank that looks solid but needs a little bit of cleaning up. I really want to plan this out completely before adding a bunch of stuff so over the next few weeks I am asking you guys to help me with my parts list and livestock list (though I will be adding livestock slowly). So I am making a list of things I need and plans for what I want to put in it. I will add pics tomorrow when I pick it up and more info on the lighting it already has.

Hardware:

This tank already has a overflow built into it and drilled with a 25g sump and light for it. I want this sump to be a refugium with some LR and macroalgae to help control nitrates and extra filtration. A list of things I need below.

1. Pump maybe - numerous pumps? How big what brand is good? I have a apex controller so eheims I think I can control with it?

2. Protein skimmer - Again what is a good one how big should I get?

3. Calcium reactor? Kalwasser reactor? Do I need these what should I look for?

4 ATO? I believe this is just for evaporation? How big of a container do I need for a tank this size for top off?

5 What else am I not thinking of?

Livestock

I really want some dwarf lion fish and a golden dwarf moray eel. I am thinking 2 lionfish with the eel and one or 2 other brightly colored fish. (my kids really want some ocellaris. I am thinking something like the tomato ocellaris or the black ocellaris which are a little bit bigger would do okay). I want to stick with mainly some mushrooms and some leathers for corals and eventually a bubble tip anemone but that will be far down the road. So hear is the list.

1. Dwarf fuzzy lionfish

2. Dwarf zebra lionfish (not 100% on either of the lionfish yet but they will be around that size maybe a fu man chu?)

3. Golden dwarf moray eel.

4. Maybe some larger ocellaris? Open to suggestions

5. CUC? What works good with these predator fish?

6. Would love a big seastar or 2

7. Mushroom corals couple different colors/species suggestions?

8. Blue and red sponge (I know these are hard to get without being exposed to air but supposedly easy to take care of if shipped properly and I think they are beautiful)

9. Toadstool leather

10. Would like a big centerpiece coral any suggestions? Lots of color!

Any help guys would be appreciated Thanks in advance!

[bimmerzs]

Hi,

Can't wait for the build. Make sure the tank hasn't been exposed to copper previously.

Cheers,

[gibs]

Supposedly this tank had nothing but corals in it previously and no copper ever added. Anyway to actually test this though? Maybe when I fill it with tap water to double check leaks once I get it all hooked up I can let it run for a few days then test for copper?

[DerrickH]

Copper very unlikely. If any was in the tank, minimal amounts would be absorbed by the silicone. A good scrubbin with vinegar and all should be well. There are some chemicals out there that absorb copper though if it was to show up. Your on the right track though. Slow is good. Patience is the hardest thing to come by in this hobby....lol

[gibs]

Copper very unlikely. If any was in the tank, minimal amounts would be absorbed by the silicone. A good scrubbin with vinegar and all should be well. There are some chemicals out there that absorb copper though if it was to show up. Your on the right track though. Slow is good. Patience is the hardest thing to come by in this hobby....lol

Thanks Derrick and yeah I know patience is what is required but some times it is really hard LOL

[gibs]

Well here a few photos of my new tank for 400$ I dont think I did to bad.

Stand looks ok but its a little rough think before I put it together going to sand it and redo some hardware.

Tank has a bunch of calcification and detrius but everything I have heard is a little vinegar and elbow grease will clean this right up!

Overflow looks awful lol!

Hood. Lights don't work supposedly they did before but I think I am going to DIY LED kit anyways!

Sump!

[Mr Cob]

1. Pump maybe - numerous pumps? How big what brand is good? I have a apex controller so eheims I think I can control with it?

2. Protein skimmer - Again what is a good one how big should I get?

3. Calcium reactor? Kalwasser reactor? Do I need these what should I look for?

4 ATO? I believe this is just for evaporation? How big of a container do I need for a tank this size for top off?

5 What else am I not thinking of?

Congrats on the new tank, the build is honestly my favorite part of the hobby.

I'll try and answer some of your questions from my personal preferences. I like to keep things simple and minimal. There are many ways of setting up a reef and hopefully some others will chime in with other options for you. Up to you to decide what works best for you.

1. I too like Eheims and I think they work great as in sump return pumps. I know nothing about compatibility with an apex controller. I do prefer in sump return pumps though...just one less thing to worrry about in regards to floods and equipment breaking down. Only thing you need to do is to be sure to drill a few holes in your return nozzles so that when the elecricity shuts off or your return pump shuts off the reverse syphon does not drain your entire tank and flood your floor. The nozzle should be adjusted to properly catch air quick enough so that as the water is draining it stops with enough time to not overflow your sump. So your sump should be able to handle the difference in water volume from when the punmp is on to off. Hope that makes sense, it's super simple and I probably over complicated it.

2. If you plan to do a reef with SPS then I would suggest getting as big as you can that will fit in your sump and budget. I also like to run the skimmer in the first chamber of the sump before the refugium section. I personally do not like to run it after the refugium because I do not like to suck up the good stuff from the refugium that I want to send to the display, such as pods. I also like to run the skimmer in sump...again just another piece of equipment that I don't have to worry about failing and flooding the floor. Octopus skimmers are very efficient and affordable.

3. An 85g tank is not going to require a calcium reactor or kalk reactor for some time..perhaps never. I run an 85g as well, actually right now it's plumbed with a 220g and has been heavily stocked over the last year and I just barely needed to start keeping up with the calcium demands. Which I did by adding sea lab blocks. I would suggest not worrying about this until the time comes to make adjustments to keep up with calcium. I have found that regular water changes done weekly at 10-20% of your tank volume with a quality brand of salt will keep up with the element demands in your tank. If you need to purchase a reactor then get a general purpose media reactor for carbon or phosphates.

4. ATO. Yes, get one, it will remove one daily chore and help keep your specific gravity stable. As water evaporates the fresh leaves the tank but the salt remains so you need to top off with fresh water. An auto top-off will replace water as it evaporates. Get the largest container you can utilize, the larger the container you get just means less more time between refilling it. I suggest using RO/DI. Manyt have been successful with tap or HEB type water but an 85g will most likely only require about 5gallons a week of top off which can easily be met by your LFS. You could also invest in a RO/DI unit.

5. Do you have powerheads for flow in the tank? Some Koralia Evos would get you going...later you can invest in a wavemaker if that's your thing. I like vortechs but I hate the noise from them. Still use them though because I like my wave and the controls. I like to rely on powerheads for flow in the display and run slow water movement through the sump to prevent too much splashing and to give the water more time to filter. This means using an under-rated return pump or splitting the return line up into dual return or even quad which is what I have on my 85g.

Hope this helps some... I look forward to watching your build.

[Mr Cob]

one more note... one thing to consider if all of your equipment goes in the sump (wet) is all of that is additional heat added to the tank. It works for me though because I use vortechs for powerheads (their motor is external and not in the tank) and I also run a fan over my sump that kicks on when the lights come on.

[gibs]

Really appreciate the support and comments Mr Cob! One question my "sump" that came with this tank is basically just a another 25g tank. You talked about running the skimmer in the first chamber? Are you talking about maybe putting a divider in the sump? Maybe I should be looking at picking up a different sump?

Thanks again for all the advice!

[Mr Cob]

No problem, glad to help. I've been having a little more time lately since we are selling off the business.

A typical sump will have 3 chambers. Intake...where I like to run the skimmer, refugium and then return where the return pump goes and the last chamber is always the chamber that has evaporation.

You could get some glass cut and sylicone them into the 25g tank. Last section should have a bubble trap....this just makes the water travel longer to pop all of the bubbles so they aren't sent to your display. Google sump designs and you will see what I mean.

[gibs]

No problem, glad to help. I've been having a little more time lately since we are selling off the business.

A typical sump will have 3 chambers. Intake...where I like to run the skimmer, refugium and then return where the return pump goes and the last chamber is always the chamber that has evaporation.

You could get some glass cut and sylicone them into the 25g tank. Last section should have a bubble trap....this just makes the water travel longer to pop all of the bubbles so they aren't sent to your display. Google sump designs and you will see what I mean.

Thanks Cob this is the kind of stuff I am looking for

[gibs]

Ok guys been a busy week but I got the tank stand finished

When I tried to sand it and restain I learned a important lesson lol. The staining that made me want to refinish it absorbed deep into the wood so when I tried to restain no stain would take on those stain areas. Sooooo.... since I was going with a really dark stain anyway to match the rest of my living room furniture I went ahead and painted it black with a rustoleum paint. Looks a little uneven but according to my dad who has been in the construction business his whole life he said that any oil base paint takes a couple of weeks to fully "cure", even though it is hard enough to sand and touch after 24 hours not to do any touch ups till after its cured as it will probably look a little splotchy until then.

Next 2 things to tackle is the existing t5's in the canopy look to be to far gone to try to fix so I am going to do a DIY led solution. And the existing sump is kind of small underneath the stand think I am going to build my own to take advantage of all the space I can.

Questions on LEDs anyone have a good source on how to determine the number of lights I need and what colors? I don't know if I need all the red, blues, greens, whites that are out there seems to be hundreds lol. The cost isn't that big of a deal but I want to get the best lighting I can but also not have to go back and take out a bunch of leds cause I got to many or try to add more cause I didn't have any say royal blue or reds. I understand fully the soldering and drivers and attaching them to a aluminum strip with a fan for heat disapation, as I have modded pc's for years with different leds and what have you.

Question on sumps, I have looked at several different designs and I am going to go with a internal pump and skimmer. Has anyone seen or tried to put these on a heavy duty counterbalancing shelf? I know I can get one that will support the weight and I can plumb the flexible hosing fine but not sure if there is anything I am not thinking about? just seems like such a decent idea but I can't find anyone even trying this? Anyway seems like a good idea to slide it out to get to pumps and skimmer for maintenance and such but maybe I am not thinking about something.

[gibs]

Well I have the stand finished mostly still have a few spots that need to be touched up but it's all on stuff that I can get to later, like the doors. Got the tank about 99% cleaned up mainly just need to find some place to take it and get a extra hand rinsing it all out really well and seeing what minor spots I have missed. Led parts are ordered for my DIY project and and going to pick up the acrylic for building my sump tomorrow. Hopefully I can get both projects done this week while I have some time off Ordering a octopus skimmer and ro/di system in the next few days and all I have left to figure out is what size pump I am going to use.

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/products/pumps-and-plumbing/powerheads-and-submersible-pumps/ehiem-aquarium-pumps/eheim-1250-universal-aquarium-pump-320gph.html

This is the pump I am currently looking at. At 320gph this is close to 4x my 85g tank and most recommendations I see is 3-5 times. Any thoughts? This isn't counting the sump which will hold about 19 gallons in operation and 29.5 gallons completely full.

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/75-gpd-ro-di-5-stage-standard-system.html

This is the RO/DI setup I am looking at.

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/products/protein-skimmers/reef-octopus-protein-skimmers/octopus-protein-skimmer/reef-octopus-4-pinwheel-in-sump-skimmer.html

And my skimmer

Any suggestions on upgrades or different systems or even better places to buy all of it are welcome. What about my bulkheads and plumbing? Is this something I should look at buying from BRS or can I just go pick up what I need from home depot? Everything I have seen so far looks no different that normal plumbing supplies.

[gibs]

Staring at my tank tonight to get it to magically finish itself with my grand esp skills. And I had a thought so I thought I would run it by you guys. I am going to have some extra acrylic from building my sump I am thinking of just cutting some pieces for the top and ditching the canopy. What do you guys think?

[Teresa]

What's your plan for mounting the lights if you ditch the canopy?

I think you did a nice job with the clean up btw - Stand, tank and canopy are looking very sharp!

[gibs]

What's your plan for mounting the lights if you ditch the canopy?

I think you did a nice job with the clean up btw - Stand, tank and canopy are looking very sharp!

Thanks! Its been a little bit more of a challenge than I thought but I think its coming along nicely

Basically just fab up a pendant style arm that would either attach to the stand or hang from the ceiling. Doing my own DIY LEDs so I can go a couple of different directions with it.

[mFrame]

I would put screens rather than solid acrylic on the top, it allows oxygen exchange and heat to escape.

Great work all around!

[gibs]

I would put screens rather than solid acrylic on the top, it allows oxygen exchange and heat to escape.

Great work all around!

Thanks Mike! What kind of screens would I be looking at? A fish or 2 that I am looking at getting, have a tendency to jump which is why I want something. Maybe something for like a screen door? Would drilling a ton of 1/4" holes in the acrylic be enough? Just thinking out loud

[bige]

You can use the screen for windows. There are different sized holes and materials. It is next to the glass at lowes and home depot (at my location anyway).

[bige]

Also, I dont think that pump will be strong enough. I use a mag 7 on my 29g and it's not as strong as you think. There is a lot lost on that journey from the floor to the tank. I imagine you will need at least 700gph.

[mFrame]

Lowes, Home Depot, and Walmart all sell DIY screen kits. You buy the frame, screen, screen spline, and a spline tool. Cut the frame to the dimensions you want, lay the screen over it, apply the spline that holds the screen in the frame, then trim off the excess screen. Should take you 30mins or less. Walmart also has several different screen materials, I prefer the small black weave which allows light through but is small enough to keep fish in the tank. Make sure not to get solar screen material as its purpose is to block light.

[+KimP]

I just read up on your build thread. You did a fantastic job on the tank, stand, and canopy! The black looks really good. I just finished making a bunch of diy screens. It's really easy. I have a ton of supplies left over if you want any.

[gibs]

Thanks to all of you guys for the compliments and advice. @KimP I will look into it today but since you are in south austin I might save money by buying it closer than spending the gas I really appreciate the offer though!

Edited August 2, 2012 by gibs

[gibs]

Also, I dont think that pump will be strong enough. I use a mag 7 on my 29g and it's not as strong as you think. There is a lot lost on that journey from the floor to the tank. I imagine you will need at least 700gph.

Thanks bige I have been wondering if that was big enough but I definitely do not want to create flow with my return I just want to be able to turn the tank over 4 to 5 times a hour. I will be adding some vortech mp40's or something similar to create flow in the tank. Anyone else got a thought on this?

[gibs]

Well got my sump put together....anxiously waiting till tomorrow to water test it before I put the baffles in. First time I have worked with acrylic and really worried I got some bubbles in some of my seams...the first one has a lot of bubbles! Oh well I hope I didn't just waste a 140$ worth of acrylic lol.