New tank build

[jgb23]

So I am starting to work on my new tank build. I decided to go with a 120. With that stated, can somebody help me on a couple of questions?

1. I estimate the stand will probably cost me 600-700 bucks. I am trying to make a piece of furniture that looks nice, not just a stand for utilitiy purposes. My dimensions are roughly 84" wide and 96" high and 36 inches deep. I realize that a standard tank is approximately 48 inches wide, but I wanted to have 18" of shelving on both sides. Essentially, the only view will be from the front. I am going with standard 2X4 for framing, 5/8 plywood for areas you dont see, fine oak plywood and boards for the areas you do see. I figure about 50 bucks for the 2X4s and 550-650 for the oak. Does this amount sound low or high?

2. What is a good estimate for a drilled 120 gallon tank? I am estimating 300-500.

3. On my stand, I am going to have 3 compartments. From left to right, the first compartment (approximately 18" long) will be were all of the electrical components (ballasts, tunze controllers, etc). The second compartment (about 48" long) will house my sump, pumps and protein skimmer. I am contemplating making this two tiered with the sump, protein skimmer and pumps on one level and a refugium and prop tank on the second level. Finally the 3rd compartment (about 18" long) will be for storing chemicals, etc.
What is a good size sump for a 120? I was thinking something like 50 gallons. Aside from a protein skimmer, is there any other filtration media/mechanism (calcium reactor, etc) I should think of adding? When it comes to skimmers, I have heard to budget for a good protien skimmer. How much should I budget when it comes to a good skimmer for a 120? I was thinking 300-400 here.

4. For the hood, I was thinking of going with 2 250W MH. I have mostly LPS, mushrooms, and zoos in my tank. I dont plan on keeping SPS in the short term, but maybe in the future. does this give me enough lighting for current and future coral expansion? I figure probably 500 bucks for lighting?

Is there anything else I should plan for? I have a lot of livestock from my current 75 gallon (about 100lbs of LR, corals, fish, etc) so I dont have to break the bank there.

any thoughts and suggestions are greatly appreciated.

[jgb23]

Any takers?

[woz9683]

1. Stand - That oak price seems a little high. If you're just talking about the plywood it's only $50-$60 per sheet (for 3/4"). I don't think you'll use more than 3 sheets. Now, if you're including all the trim to make it look nice that could easily add a couple hundred dollars to the cost of the stand.

2. Tank - You have to narrow it down if you want a realistic estimate. Acrylic or glass? If glass, do you want starphire glass? Do you want a standard 48" tank or some other size?

3. Stand Design / Sump - I like the sounds of it. The 18" compartments on either side, do you intend to carry them all the way up the sides of the tank and join them to the hood or are they going to stop at the tank's bottom. Because if you carry them up it could give you even more storage room or make a very nice set of bookshelves.

[woz9683]

Oops, wasn't quite done.

3, cont'd. I think that's a good size sump. My tank is a 4' long 125 and I put a 40G sump under it, and I like it so far. You might want to keep a media reactor handy in case you need to run carbon or phosban, but you might not need to run it all the time. In general, you definitely want to plan for some extra room. You could use a calc reactor too, or you could dose your tank.

4. Lighting - depends on the tank's depth more than anything. My tank is only 20" deep and 250s grow sps sitting on the bottom. But, if it's 24" or 30" deep you might want to consider 400s. (might, the 250s will definitely be okay for shrooms, LPS, etc.) If you diy everything you could probably do it for $500, but most pre-made fixtures will cost you more.

[jgb23]

Michael,

Thank you for the reply. I will reply to your four bullet points

1. The price for the wood was an estimate, this includes all of the hardware, finishing trim, etc. I know good wood can get pricey, so I went kind of high

2. On the tank, I was going to get a standard 120 drilled. I think the dimensions are 48.5L X24.25W X25.5 D

3. The 18" compartment on each side only applies to the tank stand. It will be on both sides. The left side will be all of the where all of the electrical components stay. It will have a plywood backing to separate it from the sump/filtration/pump area. The 3rd compartment will also be separated from the sump compartment by a plywood backing as well. However, I want to make the sump compartment totally accessable in case I need to take the sump out. I think I will use the the 3rd compartment for future expansion (media reactor, calc reactor, etc).
The sides of the stand (which will form the top of the canopy) will be open from the top of stand, to the top bottom of the canopy. This will allow me to have a shelving unit that is approximately 18WX32DX25T. As I write this, I think the shelving will be to deep, so a thought would be to make half of this depthness accessable from the front and the other from the side.

3. I am going to have the sump custom made to take advantage of the 38" of hieght under the tank. I would like to make this compartment two-teired with the bottom level for the sump, filtration and pumps and the second level for a fuge and prop tank. I havent worked out the dimensions for the sump, but I was thinking 28WX20HX20D. This will allow for plenty of space for pumps and such. The one thing I hate about my current tank stand is the fact that I have no space for anything other than my sump. By going out and up, I can get all of the space I need.
4. I dont mind DIY stuff, most of us reefers tangle with it once or twice :).