DIY rack system for 9 tanks. Will take a while

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Flash

Gambusia
MFK Member
Sep 28, 2008
675
1
18
Davie Fl
Hey guys. I want to do a rack system that holds 6 20 gallon long tanks and 4 29 gallon tanks. The 20 gallon tanks will be plumbed to one large sump, while the 29's will be on their own filtration systems. The tanks will be drilled by me (it will be my first time!)

It will be used for breeding plecos. I know the drawbacks, such as disease spread and such, but I feel with adaquate filtration, water changes, diet, and a UV sterylizer, everything should be ok.

The plecos that I hope to own would be L-134, L-204, L-46(doubt it, but it would be nice), L-201, L-10a, L-66, brittlenose, L-183, L-02, L-260, L-333, Hypan. sp. "Rio Xingu", 270, 273 and/or 239. I will narrow my list down, but those are some hopefuls.

My tank stand will be 113.5" long, 35" wide and 36" tall. This will fit my 6 20 longs(30"x12") side ways, and 3 29 gallon tanks, with 4" of space in left.

The 6 tank system sump will be a 30 gallon rubbermaid, about 20 gallons of bio media and an 1800 gph pump. I was going to go with the Mag Drive 18. I was going to use it as an EXTERNAL pump, not in my sump. But before everyone flips out about the small size, this is how I have it planned.

I plan on having the tanks drilled on the bottom left hand corner. I will use a durso stand pipe. I will have NO drip plate on my sump. With 6 drains from my tanks, I think there will be enough water flow through the sump to splash all over my bio media. For mechanical filtration, I was going to get 150 micron filter socks to go on the end of my durso stand pipe drain.

What do you guys think. I have a little bit of wood at my house now, so I've already started building a bit. I'll upload a supply list of mine in a minute.
 
For the construction of everything, this is my supply list:

Wood/tanks
17) 2x4's............................................. ...... 60
3) 4'x8' pieces of plywood..............................60
5) Black spray pain cans................................20
3) 29 gallon tanks (I already have one)............60
6) 20 long tanks..........................................120


PVC

6) T's............................................... ........6
2) 10' of 1"................................................ 4
2) Caps.............................................. .......2
7) Ball valves............................................ .40
1) 10' of 3/4" tubing....................................15
14) Male and Female bushing + Gaskets..........28

Misc.

1) 1800 gph external pump..........................120
1) 2'x4' of eggcrate....................................5
30) Packs of scrubbies................................35
1) 9 watt UV sterylizers..............................100
2) Diamond hole saws.................................22
 
Hmmmm.......
 
Looks like you have just about everything you need. Lets see some pics of how it is going. Or maybe even a quick draft of what you want it to look like.
 
I've finished the shell of the stand. I'll try and upload some pix in a bit. I have to get some plywood, get the tanks, and then work on the sump. That will be my next phase of the build.
 
Flash;2287135; said:
The plecos that I hope to own would be L-134, L-204, L-46(doubt it, but it would be nice), L-201, L-10a, L-66, brittlenose, L-183, L-02, L-260, L-333, Hypan. sp. "Rio Xingu", 270, 273 and/or 239. I will narrow my list down, but those are some hopefuls.
is that all?:ROFL: get into zebra plecos, have you seen the price of them?:screwy:
 
rocker85675;2334507; said:
is that all?:ROFL: get into zebra plecos, have you seen the price of them?:screwy:

Those are just some of the ones that I find interesting. I have narrowed my list down to what I think I will end up with.



But here is a new question.

I decided to drill the bottom of the tanks. I heard good things (quiet) about the Durso Stand Pipe. Should I use that? Or would I be better off with drilling the sides and having no pipes? If I should go with the DSP, what is a part list I'll need? Thanks.
 
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