Starting from scratch - my small budget fishroom/125g SA tank build.
- Thread starter mudbuttjones
- Start date
yep, I'm putting a 75 under it. because why not? and in the event I add more tanks, i can run 1 or 2 more off a sump this large.
some updates. progress is slowwww.
working in the welding booth tonight... I'm not much of a welder. it's ugly, but it'll hold.
pieces of 1/4" steel from pallet racking. sweet dumpster find from work.
I'll be fabricating 4 steel struts to place under the stand horizontally. each strut has 4x 7/8" holes drilled in it. in total there will be 16 screw feet.
i have 6' of grade 8 threaded rod to cut up into 7/8" screw feet. did I mention my basement floor was unlevel and uneven? this beats pouring 2 yards of concrete!
plus my basement is unfinished and floods a little bit once every spring. having the stand 2-4" off the ground will not be a bad thing at all.
pretty much done welding up the supports for the screw feet.
my overflows came in the mail. $60 for all 3 shipped to my door. not a bad price. i got them from a company called reefcreators. I'd recommend them.
each overflow is big enough for one bulkhead and is rated for 700gph. if i recall the dimensions are 3.5x3.5x5"
soon, i will begin the drilling! i am not looking forward to drilling 5 holes through 3/8" glass
Merry Christmas to me. I got two 660gph (55w) pumps off of amazon for $36 shipped. i will be putting these pumps in some of my older/smaller setups that i have running. this will free up my 950gph danner mag drive and my 793gph aqueon submersible pump for my 125g project.
I've got everything I need to start working on the holes and overflows. I'm hoping that despite the holidays, I'll make some good progress.
I've got everything I need to start working on the holes and overflows. I'm hoping that despite the holidays, I'll make some good progress.
drilling 3 of the 5 holes tonight. I hate drilling glass. normally I drudge around at a couple hundred rpms, nervously scoring the glass. well this stuff is ridiculously thick and I don't have all day. time to down some liquid courage and crank it up to the maximum 1650rpms. safety first.
3 successful holes. I used plumbers putty to make a dam. changed out the water 3 times per hole to make sure everything stayed cool. I didn't use a jig. just started at a 45° and then walked it in to cut the full circle.
prepped the glass with isopropyl alcohol and siliconed my overflows to the glass with momentive rtv103. good stuff.
lastly I slapped all 3 down, using an old piece of 1/2" pipe to space it consistently from the top trim. then I ran a bead around the outside of the overflow to the glass, just to prevent any leaks.
...and the worst of it i done. in have 2 more holes to cut near the bottom of the tank. then i start on the background and the plumbing.
3 successful holes. I used plumbers putty to make a dam. changed out the water 3 times per hole to make sure everything stayed cool. I didn't use a jig. just started at a 45° and then walked it in to cut the full circle.
prepped the glass with isopropyl alcohol and siliconed my overflows to the glass with momentive rtv103. good stuff.
lastly I slapped all 3 down, using an old piece of 1/2" pipe to space it consistently from the top trim. then I ran a bead around the outside of the overflow to the glass, just to prevent any leaks.
...and the worst of it i done. in have 2 more holes to cut near the bottom of the tank. then i start on the background and the plumbing.
it's pvc city over here. $120 at the local home improvement store. i am looking at 5x 1" drains converging to a single 3" manifold that runs to the sump.
I'm doing all fake plants in this setup. pretty much everything will be put into place permanently with silicone adhesive. large SA cichlids will make short work of any aquascape
my old man passed away 3 years ago. his old fishroom is still like walking into a local fish store in the early 90s. tons of new in box plastic plants
I'm doing all fake plants in this setup. pretty much everything will be put into place permanently with silicone adhesive. large SA cichlids will make short work of any aquascape
my old man passed away 3 years ago. his old fishroom is still like walking into a local fish store in the early 90s. tons of new in box plastic plants
i started the background with nylon mesh and light diffuser grid. this will work to reinforce it.
I marked the locations for all my fake plants and secured anchors to the grid that will stick up.
the background substrate is greatstuff pond and stone with play sand mixed in. according to the reef nerds on some of the other marine forums, this stuff is fish safe and lasts a very long time without being sealed with epoxy or whatever.
here's the semi finished product.
some guys put it directly to the glass. my theory is that the grid silicone to the glass will help reinforce the foam and keep it from floating away or breaking apart.
Looking good man, that's pretty creative.
thanks for the kind words! i have finished the background. finally!
the bottom substrate will be a tile bottom. big fish also poop big and I want this to be super simple to keep clean. you can see the first row of tile butted up against the background.
i wanted the decor to match the background. the pieces will be siliconed to the bottom pane of the tank so my big dumb Oscar cant push them all over the place.
what lays beneath this beautiful decor? pvc pipe, light grid, zip ties, and vinyl mesh. the pvc pipe is capped off and filled with sand to help negate some of the foam buoyancy and be more solid.
the bottom substrate will be a tile bottom. big fish also poop big and I want this to be super simple to keep clean. you can see the first row of tile butted up against the background.
i wanted the decor to match the background. the pieces will be siliconed to the bottom pane of the tank so my big dumb Oscar cant push them all over the place.
what lays beneath this beautiful decor? pvc pipe, light grid, zip ties, and vinyl mesh. the pvc pipe is capped off and filled with sand to help negate some of the foam buoyancy and be more solid.
