DIY ATO Reservoir

Mj_reef · 12/10/2017, 02:38 PM

So I'm thinking about building a a to reservoir. I have 2 old 10 gallon tanks that i was considering making it out of. Basicly it Will be sitting on the small side of the tank. Will i need to keep the bottom braces to reuse or will it be ok without bracing? Also whats the best silicone to use? Thanks

mcgyvr · 12/10/2017, 04:08 PM

So you are taking apart the tanks for the glass?
Why not just use the tank as is? Why do you need to do anything but put water and a pump into the 10g tank?

IF you are making something then what dimensions will your ATO be that will dictate if you need to brace it or not..

Momentive rtv103/108 is fine for silicone..

der_wille_zur_macht · 12/10/2017, 06:05 PM

The glass in a standard 10g is so thin and fragile, you'll have a hard time getting it apart and clean without breaking it. Also, it's very cheap glass - it would be a whole lot easier to just buy new glass.

...or use the tank(s) as-is per mcgyvr

rocsec1 · 12/10/2017, 07:11 PM

I use a ten gallon tank as my ato reservoir and it works really good for me. I wouldn’t messs around with something like that when the $1 gallon sales are available.

outy · 12/11/2017, 12:33 AM

I use a 10G garbage pale for my ATO. I made a 1/2" foam insulation board for a lid and it holds heat much better then any glass container. The top of my container is level with sump height so its easy for the aqualifter to gravity feed the sump through a kalk reactor

Mj_reef · 12/11/2017, 08:01 PM

The reason I'm considering takimg the 2 apart to make 1 is because they are old tanks (10-15 years at least). I dont trust the seals. Second is that I wont have room for the 10 gallon to sit normal along with my diy 29 gallon sump. Third reason is that when the 10 gallon is stood up on its end it fits nearly perfect between the braces giving me a good amount of ATO water in a much smaller space. Im open to other ideas but it needs to be taller rather than wider. I'm using one of the square 5 gallon jugs under my 28 gallon nano cube now and it only lasts a week and I figure it will be alot less with the 75 or possibly 90 gallon tank (I over built the stand just in case)

Arcar · 12/11/2017, 08:25 PM

I'm going to jump on this. My Eshopp has a auto top off float thats gravity fed. What can I use for a container to have this top off my tank? It looks like it used RO/DI plumbing. Do I get a jug and custom make a hole?

Any ideas to get my started would be great! Can you use gas cans?

mcgyvr · 12/12/2017, 06:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mj_reef

I'm using one of the square 5 gallon jugs under my 28 gallon nano cube now and it only lasts a week

Sounds perfect as is IMO..

But go for it... Good luck getting the glass apart without breaking it and you will need to eurobrace it or something for sure..

There are tons of plastic containers available in all shapes and sizes.. I'd just suggest finding on that fits vs going through all the hassle of deconstructing a thin 10g tank..

der_wille_zur_macht · 12/12/2017, 06:58 AM

I'd start from scratch with new glass. Besides the difficulty and breakage risk with old glass, the dimensions may not even work.

A typical glass tank has the bottom floating between the side panels. If you try to turn the tank on end and use what is currently the end as the bottom, with one of the current bottoms as the 4th wall, you won't get the pieces to all line up perfectly - the bottoms will be too short compared to the current long walls and the end (new bottom) will be too big to fit between the new walls.

mrsixstrings12 · 12/12/2017, 07:03 AM

Is recommend taking a trip to the hardware store and looking for a 5 gallon bucket, or similar, that would fit. Or even a 5 gallon or 1 gallon water jug.

DreadCapn · 12/12/2017, 09:21 AM

5 gallons seems like a lot of evaporation in a week for a 29g.

I second a white food grade 5g bucket. If you've got the space, you could even connect two of them stacked on top of each other with very minimal effort. KISS!

der_wille_zur_macht · 12/12/2017, 09:24 AM

I've got a 24g cube. It does 5g in a little less than a week. I keep two buckets of kalk ready at all times, and have the ATO running off one. Then when it's empty, I just swap buckets, and mix new kalk in the one I just took offline. This way, I always have one ready and I don't have to wait for the bucket to fill with RODI water or for the kalk to settle before the ATO is back online.

d0ughb0y · 12/12/2017, 09:32 AM

I suppose if your house humidity is quite low (with home heater on), then you can get more evaporation. my ato reservoir is 3 gallons and it lasts 7-8 days on a 45 gallon tank on room humidity between 50-60%.

12/10/2017, 02:38 PM	#1
Mj_reef Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: Tennessee Posts: 10	DIY ATO Reservoir So I'm thinking about building a a to reservoir. I have 2 old 10 gallon tanks that i was considering making it out of. Basicly it Will be sitting on the small side of the tank. Will i need to keep the bottom braces to reuse or will it be ok without bracing? Also whats the best silicone to use? Thanks

12/10/2017, 04:08 PM	#2
mcgyvr Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 20,050	So you are taking apart the tanks for the glass? Why not just use the tank as is? Why do you need to do anything but put water and a pump into the 10g tank? IF you are making something then what dimensions will your ATO be that will dictate if you need to brace it or not.. Momentive rtv103/108 is fine for silicone.. __________________ Who me?

12/10/2017, 06:05 PM	#3
der_wille_zur_macht Team RC Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: NY Posts: 17,749	The glass in a standard 10g is so thin and fragile, you'll have a hard time getting it apart and clean without breaking it. Also, it's very cheap glass - it would be a whole lot easier to just buy new glass. ...or use the tank(s) as-is per mcgyvr __________________ Inconveniencing marine life since 1992 "It is my personal belief that reef aquaria should be thriving communities of biodiversity, representative of their wild counterparts, and not merely collections of pretty specimens growing on tidy clean rock shelves covered in purple coralline algae." (Eric Borneman)

12/11/2017, 08:25 PM	#7
Arcar Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: East Michigan Posts: 122	I'm going to jump on this. My Eshopp has a auto top off float thats gravity fed. What can I use for a container to have this top off my tank? It looks like it used RO/DI plumbing. Do I get a jug and custom make a hole? Any ideas to get my started would be great! Can you use gas cans? __________________ Setting up a new 120 gallon tank Current Tank Info: New 120 Gallon

12/12/2017, 06:58 AM	#9
der_wille_zur_macht Team RC Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: NY Posts: 17,749	I'd start from scratch with new glass. Besides the difficulty and breakage risk with old glass, the dimensions may not even work. A typical glass tank has the bottom floating between the side panels. If you try to turn the tank on end and use what is currently the end as the bottom, with one of the current bottoms as the 4th wall, you won't get the pieces to all line up perfectly - the bottoms will be too short compared to the current long walls and the end (new bottom) will be too big to fit between the new walls. __________________ Inconveniencing marine life since 1992 "It is my personal belief that reef aquaria should be thriving communities of biodiversity, representative of their wild counterparts, and not merely collections of pretty specimens growing on tidy clean rock shelves covered in purple coralline algae." (Eric Borneman)

12/10/2017, 07:11 PM	#4
rocsec1 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Medina oh Posts: 1,782	I use a ten gallon tank as my ato reservoir and it works really good for me. I wouldn’t messs around with something like that when the $1 gallon sales are available.

12/11/2017, 12:33 AM	#5
outy Moved On Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: auburn CA Posts: 4,021	I use a 10G garbage pale for my ATO. I made a 1/2" foam insulation board for a lid and it holds heat much better then any glass container. The top of my container is level with sump height so its easy for the aqualifter to gravity feed the sump through a kalk reactor

12/11/2017, 08:01 PM	#6
Mj_reef Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: Tennessee Posts: 10	The reason I'm considering takimg the 2 apart to make 1 is because they are old tanks (10-15 years at least). I dont trust the seals. Second is that I wont have room for the 10 gallon to sit normal along with my diy 29 gallon sump. Third reason is that when the 10 gallon is stood up on its end it fits nearly perfect between the braces giving me a good amount of ATO water in a much smaller space. Im open to other ideas but it needs to be taller rather than wider. I'm using one of the square 5 gallon jugs under my 28 gallon nano cube now and it only lasts a week and I figure it will be alot less with the 75 or possibly 90 gallon tank (I over built the stand just in case)

12/12/2017, 07:03 AM	#10
mrsixstrings12 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 132	Is recommend taking a trip to the hardware store and looking for a 5 gallon bucket, or similar, that would fit. Or even a 5 gallon or 1 gallon water jug.

12/12/2017, 09:21 AM	#11
DreadCapn Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Tennessee Posts: 82	5 gallons seems like a lot of evaporation in a week for a 29g. I second a white food grade 5g bucket. If you've got the space, you could even connect two of them stacked on top of each other with very minimal effort. KISS! __________________ 92g corner, 40b sump, 40b refugium Avast Pegleg Skimmer

12/12/2017, 09:24 AM	#12
der_wille_zur_macht Team RC Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: NY Posts: 17,749	I've got a 24g cube. It does 5g in a little less than a week. I keep two buckets of kalk ready at all times, and have the ATO running off one. Then when it's empty, I just swap buckets, and mix new kalk in the one I just took offline. This way, I always have one ready and I don't have to wait for the bucket to fill with RODI water or for the kalk to settle before the ATO is back online. __________________ Inconveniencing marine life since 1992 "It is my personal belief that reef aquaria should be thriving communities of biodiversity, representative of their wild counterparts, and not merely collections of pretty specimens growing on tidy clean rock shelves covered in purple coralline algae." (Eric Borneman)

12/12/2017, 09:32 AM	#13
d0ughb0y Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: sf bay area Posts: 5,165	I suppose if your house humidity is quite low (with home heater on), then you can get more evaporation. my ato reservoir is 3 gallons and it lasts 7-8 days on a 45 gallon tank on room humidity between 50-60%.