Craigslist 340 Gallon-Planted Tank with Basement Sump

[jandb]

Well, I've had tanks from 2 to 125 gallons since I've been 10 years old and have always wanted something over 300 gallons. I was also interested in doing something planted. I have always been a tankbuster guy but over the last couple years I've tried some low tech/low light planted setups and like the idea of having a school of 60 or so Rummynose tetras darting around. The cost always stopped me though. I checked Craigslist daily for a couple months and found a good deal on a 96"x30"x27" approximately 340 gallon acrylic tank about three months ago. I rented a uHaul and picked it up. I'm by no means an expert on plumbing, setup or carpentry and have never owned an acrylic tank before so I knew it was going to be a challenge, and it was! My wife agreed to the installation if I made it look like the wainscoting trim in the dining room and put the sump in the basement. I took a few pictures of each step and here they are. It was a long project but definitely worth it. I can't wait to keep making it better! The first picture is of me cleaning the tank with a mild vinager solution in my garage. It was a reef tank so there was quite of bit of "crust" to remove. The scratches and crazing was minimal and the tank was set up when I bought it so I was comfortable with it's integrity.

 

[Mike King]

can't wait to see it all done!!! awesome size tank

 

[jandb]

Here's the tank in the garage on the stand it came with. The stand was nice and well built but it was 36" deep for the 30" deep tank. The alcove the tank fits in is only 32" so I had to start over. This set me back over a week. I was able to sell the stand as the most sturdy workbench ever listed on Craigslist though!
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[JteSchertz]

Awesome tank....wish there was room in my budget to get something like that. Make sure and post pics of the progress and congrats!!

 

[C L O W N K N I F E]

Nice, can't wait to see the end result

 

[jandb]

Here's all the lumber I had to buy to build the new, rough stand and the shelf the sump will sit on in the basement. I planned on using a Mag 18 pump and didn't want to lose all the gph to headheight so I needed a very sturdy 72" tall shelf for the sump.

 

[jandb]

Thanks. If you look around long enough you can find some really good deals. My budget was very limited too. I had to drive about a hundred miles to pick it up but a uHaul trailer was pretty cheap.

 

[jandb]

Here's most of the fittings. They really added up. I wanted to run a Herbie setup but probably didn't do enough research before I started. The two overflows each have a 1" bulkhead with no room to drill another hole for the emergency drain. Several people mentioned I could put on an overflow on the back but I already had the tank in place and filled. I still may do the Herbie with the main drain in one overflow box and the emergency in the other. It seems pretty complicated with stale water in one box and tinking with the height of the drains though. You can hear the Dursos but they're not that loud. I used 1" schedule 40 for both drains and 3/4" schedule 40 for the returns. There are 4 mounted on the top of the tank. The only flex I used was after the check valves near the Mag 18. The clear check valves were by far the most expensive part. I plan on adding a backup pump but funds made me push that back. The 3/4" return lines are t'd right before the pump, then again above the tank as you'll see later. Danner recommends an 1 1/2" line so this should be the equivilent. I figure with 45*s and 90*s I have about 8-9" of head height. If anybody has any ideas for the Herbie setup I'm all ears!

 

[jandb]

This shows the limited room in the overflow box with the Durso in place. You can also see the 3/4" pvc that goes to each return. On the left of the picture you can see the extra partition in the box. There are wiers on the bottom of the left side that take in water from the bottom of the tank but it must flow above the partition as a failsafe. If that extra wall wasn't there I think I could have fit another 1" bulkhead for the Herbie.

 

[jandb]

This is the tank in place, in the dining room. I was just starting the plumbing.