Making my 150g dream tank a reality

[shyro77]

Can you run any HOBs with the background you have picked?

Do you worry about the intake for canisters being behind something so big, even with the drilled holes? Do you think you will need to do a little more minor cleaning of poop with that? Just curious after reading this whole thing..and congrats...Ive seen your posts and this seems to be something you really wanted to do so thats awesome

Just remember even if theres no background your intake is still just one small hole in one place, with a background you have a few holes (or as many as you want) to draw water to the back. Most of your water movement in the tank is going to come from your discharge, spraybar or what ever your using not your intake, so if you have a dead spot in the tank it would be there with or with out a background. The cool thing with a background is being able to control where the water is being sucked to the back and to do this all you need is fill your flow through holes with black filter pad (works as a prefilter also) the tighter you stuff it the less flow and vice versa so if you do have a area where you are getting debris settling just open up the closet flow through hole. The real trick to all of this is to just put a cheapo power head in the back just to keep anything from settling before its picked up from the intake also to get good water movement around your heater.

 

[xrayjeeper83]

didnt see it, but how much is that tank going to run you?(pm me if you want) That would be an awesome home for my Fahaka. Im just a few inch's shy but that makes a world of difference

 

[NightStorm]

Great build.

I look forward to seeing the finished product.

All the best.

 

[Natalie]

Thanks guys.

I've got a short update tonight. The driftwood came in-- these pieces are a lot bigger than I thought! Here are all three on the tank stand:

For reference, the highest point on the middle piece is 23". My tank's interior will also be 23" in height. I'll probably choose two of the three so that the tank doesn't look too crowded. But aquascaping is one of the most fun parts, so I'm excited!

No word yet on delivery date for the tank.

I'm trying to sell my brand new FX5 canister so I can get an Eheim instead. Nothing against Fluval... I just found out that it won't handle the low water level I'll initially have in the tank.

Sorry the update isn't more extensive. I'm in a bit of a holding pattern til the tank arrives. The background is arriving this coming Friday.

Here's an update pic of my Midas:

 

[JK47]

Oh yeah! That wood is awesome. I love aquascaping too IMO the piece in the middle of the other two is the nicest piece of wood. How low water level are you running? My 2 FX5's on my 300 are running the tank fine with exactly 8" lowered from the top. If its tenporary I say keep it. (I am an eheim lover though so I will be happy for you no matter what hehe)

 

[12 Volt Man]

very nice.

looking forward to seeing all this set up.

is the tank on order?

 

[xrayjeeper83]

I like the middle and left pieces

 

[Natalie]

Oh yeah! That wood is awesome. I love aquascaping too IMO the piece in the middle of the other two is the nicest piece of wood. How low water level are you running? My 2 FX5's on my 300 are running the tank fine with exactly 8" lowered from the top. If its tenporary I say keep it. (I am an eheim lover though so I will be happy for you no matter what hehe)

Thanks, I like the middle piece the best as well! I trimmed it down a little so it would stand up straight. It's got a nice trunk-like effect to it.

If I fill the tank half-full it will be 12" below the rim of the tank. (Fluval reps said not to do lower than 8" below the rim, because the automatic prime every 24 hours might stall.) I'm afraid if I make the tank any more than half full then it will look stupid, like I neglected the tank and the water level got down so low through months of evaporation. We've all seen those pictures on Craigslist, right?

very nice.

looking forward to seeing all this set up.

is the tank on order?

Yep! I placed the order 13 days ago. They said it would take 2-3 weeks to build, plus shipping time. I'm hoping to hear from them any day now!

I like the middle and left pieces

Thanks! I definitely like the middle piece. I'll have to get the background in first to see how much room I have to work with. The one on the left is definitely really unique and twisty.

 

[Cocobongo]

Looking great! Loved the Pangea rock background, and your inspiration photo...will definitely have an awesome finished set up...

 

[Natalie]

Looking great! Loved the Pangea rock background, and your inspiration photo...will definitely have an awesome finished set up...

Thank you! I hope to follow that inspiration photo as closely as I can. As time goes by, that might not work out, lol. I'm having fun in the meantime.

Okay guys, I sold my FX5 to a fellow MFKer tonight, and that money went towards a new Eheim 2260. I initially thought this filter wouldn't fit in my stand, but then I found the threads showing how you can turn the pump on its side and cut off several inches of height that way. So... Eheim 2260 it is! (P.S. That's the first time I've used that rocker gif, lol)

I love the fact that Eheims already have spraybar outlets. That's another plus over the FX5 because I would have had to DIY one. I'm horrible at all things DIY, especially when they deal with plumbing or electricity.
Another plus to the 2260 is the drain plug at the bottom. The FX5 had one of those too, and I think it's a fantastic feature. Not only can you drain the filter before dragging it out of the stand for maintenance, but you can do a quick back-wash to remove gunk without having to open up the filter. Awesome!

I might as well mention something about the fish, since he's the entire reason I'm building this monster tank. Mr. Midas is finally growing up! He's been doing the cichlid-shimmy all around his tank today. I think that's just a hint of what's to come.