So I've settled for a 240 gallon tank; for now...

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo

sunnysjourney

Aimara
MFK Member
Apr 20, 2014
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Hello all! :)
I recently (re) joined MFK (cause I couldn't remember my older username) and I was out of the hobby for the past 6 years, (link to my intro thread: http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...578237-Returning-user-after-a-six-year-break!)

As I mentioned there I want to get a much bigger tank than a 240, but I'm not sure about the amount of weight the floor can take at the place I'm thinking of putting it... So gotta do more research on that.

In the mean time I got myself a sweet deal for a nice 8' X 2' X 2' 240 setup. The tank, stand and the canopy for just 500 bucks! Figured I need a tank to grow out the fish I want to have :). I know, its more like thats what I tell myself haha (in reality, since I'm settled down now, I just need a tank. NOW! ). My previous 240 had an under gravel filter, which was fine for me at the time but now I want to do things better. So I got myself a sump with three sections to it. (It is meant for saltwater but Ill use it for fresh). The tank has a sweet overflow setup, too! Here are the photos:

The sump:
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The aquarium and the canopy (to the right):
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The stand, (there is some woodwork to be done here, saving it for the weekend):
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The tank's overflow setup, the center hole is just to get the return pipes:
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So I plan on having plants at the center section of the sump, Ill add two 350 gph bio wheels too. And about 6 inches of black sand in the tank and in the middle section of the sump. The overflows will be filled with sponges, bio wheels and live rock. And also more live rock one compartment of the sump (the place where the water from the main tank gets to the sump). For the pumps, I'm thinking about a turnover rate of 8 (for now). What do you guys think?

My bigger tank, if the floor permits (it will most likely) will be bigger than what I said before. It will be 10' X 4' X 30". So about 750 gallons.

So currently in the 240, I plan on having 3 black arowanas (6" each), a pair of leopoldi stingrays (male and female) of about 6" in diameter and three Armatus, about 4" long. What do you guys think? Suggestions, concerns and comments would be highly appreciated! :)

Thank you and I'm looking forward to all the comments! :D

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Nice tank... I like the stock list a lot but you have chosen some of the quickest growers out there so be prepared to upgrade. One thing though, 6 inches of sand is WAY to deep in my opinion you would be opening yourself up to a lot of anaerobic bacteria unless you are crazy diligent with vacuuming every inch. With my rays i keep it at like a half inch so there digging burrowing and blowing keeps it all nice and clean with minimal fuss. Good Luck and i can not wait to see it set up!
 
Thanks! And yeah, Ill probably have my 750 in 18 months at the most :) (if the floor can hold it, which I'm pretty sure it will)! One thing I forgot to mention is that I'm going to put some malaysian trumpet snails in there... To help in removing some of the detritus, thoughts?. And yeah I have a few blowers that I will place in dead zones to move the settled down detritus... I'm thinking about a water change every two weeks...? Too low?
 
the rays will love the snails as food...lol... its not the stuff that settles, when sand sits undisturbed it creates dead zones that pumps blowing over the top wouldn't help ... and the other thing is if you do 6 inches of sand you are seriously cutting down your tank volume as 25% of your 24 inch depth will be taken up by sand.
 
the rays will love the snails as food...lol... its not the stuff that settles, when sand sits undisturbed it creates dead zones that pumps blowing over the top wouldn't help ... and the other thing is if you do 6 inches of sand you are seriously cutting down your tank volume as 25% of your 24 inch depth will be taken up by sand.

I agree, but this is just a grow out tank... Ill (Okay I shouldn't jinx on it so soon) be getting my 750 in about 18 months at the latest :). After that I plan on converting this dude into a saltwater tank.
 
Would not recommend so much sand either... Ammonia bubbles can build up and you are wasting gallons of space that could be used for water. I don't see a reason to have such a thick layer of sand.
 
Okay guys, I have managed to setup the tank and added water to it! Here are the pictures before adding the water, the tank is a little murky right now so Ill upload more pictures tomorrow!

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I like having a center sand only area for my ray pups:

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