JOINING THE BIG BOYS, The start of my 180g display 350g total vol.

[enemec1]

well I have been planing to get a larger tank after only 10 months of my 75 gallon being set up, This hobby is worse than alchol or drugs!
So I have decided to do a in wall set up in our dinning room adjasent from the 75g, not to the wifes apporval but my one and a half year old sons got my back on this dission. since around november I have been working on getting a tank from a LFS the were breaking down a tank for a customer and he was going to sell it to me for only $250. Needles to say that it was too good to be true they gave me the run around for 2 months Bull S__t, during that time I started purchesing items for this new tank I was going to get. Now that I have to buy new, this is where my wife is not happy. Going from 250. to 750. big step when she is a stay at home mom.
I would like to say thank you to all who have helped me get to this point and to all that will continue helping me in this quest for a bigger and better tank. Although no tank will ever be BIG enough in our minds. ( thats what she said).
Thanks, Eric

[enemec1]

punch list of what I have and want
180g AGA RR
100g rubbermaid sump
70g rubber maid fuge with DSB and shelf for doing frags
dart pump as return
snapper pump on a CL
these pumps because of there low wattage use
CL 125 supper skimmer I will upgrade later
2 175w MH and 1 250w MH, spaced as 175-250-175
4 75w actinic blue VHO lights powered by a ice cap 430
this is the jist of the main items for a reef tank, I do dose regularly so I am not into getting a calcium reactor or other stuff. Any sugestion are welcome

[enemec1]

I have the sumps, dart, lights,and CLSS 125, I need a CL pump, tank. I need sugestions on a heater set up I have been looking at a pro heat set up but not sure of the accuracy of them

[enemec1]

the tank will be built into the wall to the left of the closit door between the desk. The door will be moved downfurther to fit the tank
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2140.JPG
the door will be located where the little blue box is in the wall.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2139.JPG

[enemec1]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2143.JPG
I had a little help with this wall
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2147.JPG
this is what my fish room will look like behind the tank not as large as I would like but it will work, my son does work fast WOW!

[enemec1]

tomarrow night I will have my stand in place and I will post some pics. I am about to order the tank and is there any better way to have the holes for the CL drilled. I am looking for location options on the back glass maby around 5 holes 3 return and 2 feeding the tank split into 2

[drummereef]

Can't wait!

[enemec1]

can anyone give me advice on hole location for the closed loop set up?

[vegaskid11]

I will be plumbing down the backside of my tank for a closed loop. I like to have as few holes as possible in my tanks. I prefer to have my CL inputs located low as they suck in detritus and other matter and then blow it into my corals or out the overflow. I would set the intake 3 or so inches above your sandbed. I have seen alot of tanks drilled on the bottom for CL intake to.

[enemec1]

I was thinking of 3 one inch intaks and 2 one inch supplies split into two so there will be 4 total return nozzels. all drilled around 6 inches above the bottom

[enemec1]

anyone

[enemec1]

here are some photos of my stand. As you can see I have a double 2x6 with a 3/4 inch pice of plywood glued between to avoid having a rear center brace.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2152.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2153.JPG
Here is the location that the tank will sit. Like I said I will have some room behind the tank for my equipment. I now just have to configure a way to fit the sump and fuge under and behind.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2154.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2155.JPG

[enemec1]

well i went the the Hidden Reef Today and purchased my tank I decided to go with a 210 gallon AGA in stead of a 180. they will be drilling 5 one inch holes across the back just below the half way point.

[UnderwaterExotic]

i hope you are tall cause i am 6'3" and could reach the bottom of mine. I had 2 of them and sold them to go with 180's. Pain in the arse!!!

[enemec1]

Thats ok I'll buy my son some scuba gear if I need to get to the deep parts of the tank

[enemec1]

would any one guid me in a direction, should I use 2 160w 72" VHO or use 4 75w 24" VHO lamps?

[steve the plumb]

My friend had mh with vho I liked the look but mh gives off a lot of heat.I am looking into t 5 bulb setup from aquatronics.My other friend has 4 bulbs on his 125 its nice but needs a little more light.I don't know if you want to go with t'5 but many people have had good results using t'5 bulbs.You need more of them but they are not that expensive.

[UnderwaterExotic]

I meant couldnt reach the bottom! LOL

[enemec1]

well I got the phone call today and it was that my tank was ready to pick up from the Hidden Reef.

[enemec1]

here are some pics of the stand area waiting for the tank.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2163.JPG

now the tank in place :)
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2168.JPG
It looks soo much biger than the 75g.
the back side where the CL holes are drilled.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2170.JPG
and, the 100 gallon rubbermaid stock tank sump under the stand.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2171.JPG

all comments and sugestions welcome.
Thanks for looking, Eric

[drummereef]

Looks awesome! Thanks for the update! :)

[BigReef]

Looks sweet!
Are the 5 one inch holes for your returns or a closed loop? If their for returns, your going to have a problem when your pump shuts off. If their for a closed loop, I would have made a couple of them much larger for the intakes.

[enemec1]

they are for the closed loop, I am using 2 possibly 3 of them for the return

[enemec1]

What is the best way to start to transfer the 75g contents over to the 210g.
Do I get the new system up and running and just take some of the rock from the 75g. let that run and than acclamate the fish to the new tank. Just trying to get a head start on my plans.

[enemec1]

I have a question about the tank sitting on the stand. The front right corner does not sit flush with the plywood top, it is all level but there must be a bow in the plywood. I can just barley fit a wood shim between the tank and the top of the stand, so should I put what I can under it or just leave it alone? I will post a pic soon.

[enemec1]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2173.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2174.JPG

[anjhof]

I recently went from a 75 to a 210 as well. I built my stand and used probably 30 shims. Probably not ideal, but it is still holding strong. I would say that if you can easily add it in there, along with a couple others, go ahead. As long as you are not making it less level.
As for transferring from the 75 to the new tank, I used 90% new water and all the rock I had in the 75, plus some newer rock that I had been curing for 2 months. I also used 90% new sand. My tank went through a short algae bloom - about 3 days where parts of the sand was lightly covered in brown diatoms. I didn't lose any fish or corals.
Let me know if you have any other questions. I just went through this at the end of December.

[enemec1]

anjhof, I was going to get live rock from others breaking down to add to the 210 while the 75 was still running and than trans fer some of the rock from the 75 run them for a few days and test water. did you cycle at all? Did you acclamate the fish to the new tank?

[anjhof]

It took almost a week to fill up the tank with new RO water. During that time, I added salt every day and kept track so that I could keep the salinity near 1.025 the whole time. Of course, I was just taking cups full of salt and throwing them in the tank, while I had all my pumps running to mix it up. Once it was nearly full, I added the sand. That caused the tank to get cloudy for nearly another week. While the sand was settling, I started moving my rock into the tank. The plus side, was that I was able to get the tank ready more quickly. The down side was that I had a difficult time seeing where I was putting the rock.
In hindsight, I would probably add all the rock at one time while the water was clear.
I would say the water was in the tank for almost two weeks from first day of filling the tank to adding the first fish.
I kept the salinity and temperature of the new tank the same as the old 75. I netted my fish from the 75, put them in a bucket (one at a time) and moved them into the new tank. Basically zero acclimation. I moved a powder blue tang, purple tang, flame angel, damsel, 2 clowns, and a goby. I also moved all my corals at the same time as the fish. I know a lot of people on here are ultra careful with acclimating their fish and corals, but I have had zero deaths in over 3 years with minimal acclimation. I think people over complicate things sometimes. I attribute much of my success to my very light bio-load for a 210. I only have 7 fish, and none of them are over 4-5 inches.
I would run out and buy a step ladder. My tank is on a 36" high stand and I am 6'2" and I use it every day. I can see why people get tired of dealing such a tall tank.
Good luck. Let me know if you have any more questions.
-Jeff

[am3gross]

as for the the problem with the bowing i would go out and get some of the pink foam insulation and put it under the entire tank. if it is still not level then put the shims under the foam insulation..just a thought!

[enemec1]

I sanded down some of the high spots on the plywood so all the corners are resting on the top of the stand. There are some spots along the front and back edge that have a small amount of space that only a pice of paper folded in half can fit in. I filled the tank with tap water to see if there would be any problems with leveling. So far so good.

[nrehman]

3/4 inch foam insulation does not compress much and buffers out the uneven spots on the top of the tank. There should be several threads on this.

Water: You can making more water now. Had the same issue so look at:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1037686

[enemec1]

new pics!
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2179.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2178.JPG
:rollface: :mixed: :)

[enemec1]

Well I just put some fresh water in the tank to do a test run. I have only found 1 leak at the fiting that threads into the bulk head for the CL. thank god it is a small leak so I can finish the test run with fresh water.
After filling my only concern is that should I have used a center support on the back of the stand, or will the double 2x6 with a 3/4" plywood be strong enough?
Any thoughts on this I will post a pic tonight but on page one you can see what I am talking about.

[enemec1]

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2235.JPG
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2234.JPG
Will this hold?

[anjhof]

Opinion here - It would make me nervous. I don't like not having a 2x4 or 2x6 or 4x4 under where the tank sits.

[enemec1]

what if I double up a 2x4 directly underneith the 2x6. I would than have a double header.
Opinions?

[enemec1]

OR, do a secon header from front to back in the middel to support the other header. kinda in the shape of a cross. Have the post on either side of the sump, using 2x4s for this also.

[fefo23]

Very nice set up you have i will try the same next year, more pic

[enemec1]

This is how I re-reinforced my stand so I can sleep better at night.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/107617mini-100_2236.JPG

[hulley]

enemec1, looking good!! feels great to put together a big tank eh?

[enemec1]

It is a great feeling for me but the Wife on the other hand is ready to kill me.
Quick update, I filled the tank with salt water to just above my CL bulkheads an I am going to let it sit over night to make sure there are no leaks on those. I will post some pics of this and also the lighting set up I have finished.