I recently purchased a 480g tank and it is currently at the acrylic shop getting polished and the seams reinforced. This is going to take 6 weeks so I have time to collect my thoughts (and yours!) and not rush this tank. There is a pic of the tank being moved on a previous thread in the marketplace. Dimensions are 8ft x 2ft x 4ft (yes, 4 ft tall). The tank will be positioned against the wall and the right, left, and center sides will all be visible. The space is tight so any plumbing needs to run through the inside of the tank.
The inhabitants are upgrading from my 175g tank and consist of many types of plecos, roseline barbs, rainbowfish, geos, musk turtles, cory cats, bgks, clown loaches, and some other oddballs that I'm probably forgetting.
The purpose of this thread is to get ideas to address the following areas:
*Filtration/plumbing and overflow placement
*Custom background and additional decor
*Stand build
Feel free to ask any q's that might aid the process
Let's start: FILTRATION/PLUMBING
My ideal filtration setup for this tank is: 100g sump w/ dart pump, 2 fx-5's, 40w uv sterilizer
It is a blank canvas inside the tank with no overflow. The tank has 7 bulkhead holes on the bottom panel and no overflow; 3 are 1/2" and the other 4 are 3/4". They are drilled in the middle of tank and I hate that location. If I utilize the bulkheads, I will need to redirect them with 90 elbows and run them up the rear wall. I would also redrill them to accommodate 1" bulkheads for the fx-5s
My questions: Does that filtration seem appropriate for this size tank? (this is the largest tank I've ever owned)
Should I get an overflow built in while at the acrylic shop?
if so, where is the best placement? (I'm thinking that a 2" or 2.5" Overflow will do the job)
These questions lead to the next topic: CUSTOM BACKGROUND/ DECOR
I have been looking at the backgrounds they sell online and they are okay. I don't like the seams created by using all the prefab panels since this is such a large tank. Plus it makes sense to customize it due to my possible plumbing situation which needs to be hidden.
I want to do a low profile background with some overhangs (perches for plecos), a couple of caves, plants, and integrating a couple of air stones with the fx-5 inlets and outlets. There will also be a couple of showstopper driftwood pieces
Will/could plecos destroy the foam background?
Should I go with someone like designs by nature for a background or do it myself?
Would it be better to scrap building an acrylic overflow and just use a standpipe which would be integrated into/hidden by the background?
STAND:
I checked into getting a steel stand made and it would cost as much as the tank! So it looks like i am going with wood. Anyone have any bulletproof plans/ideas? 2x4s, 2x6s, or 4x4s? I will put 1" plywood on top and will create matching skins to line up with my 375g tank.
LET THE THREAD BEGIN....LET'S GET MONSTER
The inhabitants are upgrading from my 175g tank and consist of many types of plecos, roseline barbs, rainbowfish, geos, musk turtles, cory cats, bgks, clown loaches, and some other oddballs that I'm probably forgetting.
The purpose of this thread is to get ideas to address the following areas:
*Filtration/plumbing and overflow placement
*Custom background and additional decor
*Stand build
Feel free to ask any q's that might aid the process
Let's start: FILTRATION/PLUMBING
My ideal filtration setup for this tank is: 100g sump w/ dart pump, 2 fx-5's, 40w uv sterilizer
It is a blank canvas inside the tank with no overflow. The tank has 7 bulkhead holes on the bottom panel and no overflow; 3 are 1/2" and the other 4 are 3/4". They are drilled in the middle of tank and I hate that location. If I utilize the bulkheads, I will need to redirect them with 90 elbows and run them up the rear wall. I would also redrill them to accommodate 1" bulkheads for the fx-5s
My questions: Does that filtration seem appropriate for this size tank? (this is the largest tank I've ever owned)
Should I get an overflow built in while at the acrylic shop?
if so, where is the best placement? (I'm thinking that a 2" or 2.5" Overflow will do the job)
These questions lead to the next topic: CUSTOM BACKGROUND/ DECOR
I have been looking at the backgrounds they sell online and they are okay. I don't like the seams created by using all the prefab panels since this is such a large tank. Plus it makes sense to customize it due to my possible plumbing situation which needs to be hidden.
I want to do a low profile background with some overhangs (perches for plecos), a couple of caves, plants, and integrating a couple of air stones with the fx-5 inlets and outlets. There will also be a couple of showstopper driftwood pieces
Will/could plecos destroy the foam background?
Should I go with someone like designs by nature for a background or do it myself?
Would it be better to scrap building an acrylic overflow and just use a standpipe which would be integrated into/hidden by the background?
STAND:
I checked into getting a steel stand made and it would cost as much as the tank! So it looks like i am going with wood. Anyone have any bulletproof plans/ideas? 2x4s, 2x6s, or 4x4s? I will put 1" plywood on top and will create matching skins to line up with my 375g tank.
LET THE THREAD BEGIN....LET'S GET MONSTER
