120g FW Build, A big upgrade from my 10g!

[paulW]

Another option is to put the sump on the floor behind the tank stand (if you have room).
Stand blocks the front view of the sump. Sump is a HECK of a lot easier to work on.
I did this design, kind of by accident (sump would not fit under existing stand). And I love it.

If you have a sump you are going to have to periodically get a shop vac and vaccum up all the debris in the bottom.. Your bioballs will shed biological film. You will also have to clean your sponge/filter socks (whatever you use for mechanical filtration)..

 

[welsher7]

Option 2 should have some sort of mechanical filtration before the k1 media.

What is the purpose of the fuge, nutrient export or isolation/hospital tank?

 

[matseski]

Sorry, I omitted the filter sponge between baffles 1 and 2. It would be the same as in the first design.

It will primarily be an isolation tank. I am leaning towards a planted tank, so I dont think there will be much benefit to trying to grow plants in the refugium too. and I dont want algae spreading into other parts and clogging up the flow. But maybe it would be beneficial to get some darkened glass baffles to grow something and keep the photoperiod opposite of the main display to reduce nitrate buildup overnight.

 

[mudbuttjones]

Ive often considered doing an algae scrubber. If I have room under mine I may try it.

Ive seen pictures of them growing crazy amounts of algae. That could be cool to do opposite of your planted tank photoperiod.

Good thing you have 4 drains. Plant debris will clog the small opening of your gatevalve fast. Strainers are a must.

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[welsher7]

Since you are aiming for an isolation tank why not place fuge on the opposite side of the sump with the return pump compartment to the left of the isolation area. So the sump would be setup: drain lines/mechanical/bio/return pump/fuge. This way you can feed the isolation area with a T off the return line and ball valve and then you have the ability to completely separate that area from the rest of the sump. This would be helpful when quarantining new stock or medicating sick fish. This kind of setup is used in sw world to keep from having to setup an additional hospital tank.

 

[matseski]

So I built my stand today and it is rock stable, square, and level. The one thing I noticed was that I could see light underneath the black trim. The gap ranges from 2-6 sheets of paper and fluctuates as you move around the perimeter of the tank. There is no noticeable rock in the tank. I cannot think of anyway to realistically fix this besides taking the tank off, sanding the high points, put the tank back on and repeat many, many times. Is it alright as is, or do I need it to be flatter than that?

Not sure why the picture is sideways...no amount of rotation in Windows seems to fix it...sorry

 

[rotaryblake]

Yep, sanding down the high spots is a good idea. If you don't want to spend all that time sanding just throw a piece of heavy duty Styrofoam on top of the stand that is the same footprint as the tank, it should act as a sort of self-leveling support.

 

[matseski]

How close should I am to get it? I guess making all the corners contact will be the first priority, after that, do I stand to gain anything substantial?

 

[rotaryblake]

Yea, like you said get all four corners touching, after that if you only have a few pieces of paper for a gap, I wouldn't even worry about it, just find yourself some good Styrofoam.

 

[mudbuttjones]

I got desperate with my stand and resorted to some unconventional methods.

If you absolutely cannot get it as good as you'd like, add a sheet of plywood, dont screw it down. Just use wood glue. Add the tank and put 10 or 20 gallons in it. Gently slide some cedar shims between the plywood and your top section. (Do it on both sides if its an open top stand) wait for the glue to dry, remove the tank and counter sink some small wood screws around the perimeter.

I did this once on a stand that had a couple low spots that didn't Warrant sanding the top in its entirety. Not sure if this is sound advice. But I did it once, and I didn't turn my studio apartment to waterfront property if ya know what I mean. Good luck!

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