# New tank!!!



## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

*"The Prom Queen" Tank*

Reserving a spot for the new tank....patience....you shall see it in time


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## Scotmando (Jul 10, 2011)

altcharacter said:


> Reserving a spot for the new tank....patience....you shall see it in time


what siiiize?


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

You shall get nothing out of me until it's in my house in one piece


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## explor3r (Mar 14, 2010)




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## carmenh (Dec 20, 2009)

I second that!



explor3r said:


>


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

You'll see it soon enough.


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## explor3r (Mar 14, 2010)

Is it a cube?


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Yes it's a homemade cube I put together out of old 8 tracks and a piece of glass that I found after all the windows were smashed from G20.


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## Scotmando (Jul 10, 2011)

What are 8 tracks? How 'old' is that?



altcharacter said:


> Yes it's a homemade cube I put together out of old 8 tracks and a piece of glass that I found after all the windows were smashed from G20.


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

The tank made it home in one piece and is now in the basement. Now I just have to go back and get the stand.

Pictures and more info to come.


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## 50seven (Feb 14, 2010)

Congrats Dave! I "bumped" into the seller of the tank (who shall remain nameless ) this morning; must say I'm glad to see it stay in the "family"  all the best with the new tank!

We expect you to have it all set up and cycling by the end of the day tomorrow, with lots of pics.

Why didn't you bring the stand home first?!?! It would have been more practical, eh? 

Sent from my HTC Magic using Tapatalk


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

tagging along


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## explor3r (Mar 14, 2010)

enough clues...we want to know


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## fesso clown (Nov 15, 2011)

Awesome Dave, If you are setting up and doing plumbing this week I would love to come over and lend a hand. Let me know, I have loads of free-time right now. 
Jeff


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

You make me laugh Kevin, and I can't believe that you didn't show up at the right time! That's alright Poor Flexin5 showed up at the right time for us, but the wrong time for him! 

So as a few of you know I did purchase Alex's (explor3r) tank and it now is sitting in my basement empty and sad for now. The tank fit beautifully in my pontiac vibe and we now know that it will fit atleast a 150g tank, as long as it's 60" long. Gotta love the pontiac vibe!

The move went very smooth up the stairs and out to the car and the move down into my basement was even easier (that's what happens when your stairs are 32" wide) 

Now I just have to go back in the next few days and pickup the stand but unfortunately I don't think this tank will get started for a bit since we're going to redo our basement and I want to do it right but I'll post as much as I can.

So far I plan to do a 40g refuge and a 30g sump in another room next to the tank with plans to put 2 phosban reactors, an ATO with a 20g reservoir, and a small 10g QT but we'll see how much room I actually have.

PIctures to come.

Again thanks to Alex and Flexin5 for getting this monster out of the basement and into my car.


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## Windowlicka (Mar 5, 2008)

Congrats! That's an awesome tank, and a great deal too - looking forward to following your progress.

Now that's over with, where are the pics?!? 

(PS: just say the word - I drive an SUV, and if the stand's STILL too big, I have a 5'x10' landscape trailer sat idle and bored in my garage right now - IF the Vibe shakes it's head in defiance at the stand, then drop me a line...)


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Thanks for the help guys. I'm gonna fit it in the vibe weather it likes it or not. Amazingly the vibe from front to back on the inside is 8 feet and height is 30". I've almost fit a couch in it just to see if it fit.


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Ok so here are the first pics. I've had to lean it on it's side for tonight since the bulkheads are on the bottom. Although this thing is built like a tank so i'm not worried about it.

The final resting place for it will be up against a wall towards the stairs. I've been given the go to be able to use the space under the stairs as a wet room for the sump/refuge and other things so all the plumbing will be in there. The room is 5'x7' so this should be perfect.

Thanks for looking guys!

















































The monkey had to get in the pic


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## Flexin5 (Nov 12, 2011)

I showed up just in time for the festivities at Alex's house lol very nice to meet you and your friend, and glad to lend a hand, good to see you got it out easily!

And Pontiac vibes were made for moving tanks hahaa


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Flexin5 said:


> I showed up just in time for the festivities at Alex's house lol very nice to meet you and your friend, and glad to lend a hand, good to see you got it out easily!
> 
> And Pontiac vibes were made for moving tanks hahaa


Thanks again for the help Flex!!! 
This should be an advertisement for Pontiac...if they were still around.
Although doesn't the tank look so small in the car?


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

So i'm just going thru things in my mind with the setup of this tank and as of now I have nothing except a tank. 

Here's a list of what I'll need:
40g for refuge
20-30g for sump
48" T5HOx4
50 lb LR
sand for refuge
sand/aragonite for DT

So the idea is to have the overflow go into the refuge, and then dump into the sump.

For the return I haven't decided between a mag 9.5 or a eheim 2262. Does anyone know which one is more quiet? Anyone have a 9.5 or 12 setup that I can peep at? 

Also if anyone has any of this stuff for a good price give me a shout! I can always trade stuff. Or...if you're interested i'm a certified chef and before I was a chef I did commercial tile and marble/granite. So I could always do your tile floor then cook you dinner in trade for a light


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## Shoryureppa (Jul 1, 2011)

Hey Dave sweet tank, glad you got it home in one piece! did you mean a 1262 eheim. I can tell you its quiet as hellas i have one but then again you know that 2 mp40's don't bother me so take it for what its worth


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

hahaha yeah, if 2 mp40's don't drive your girlfriend out of the house than you're good right!

Yeah sorry i meant a 1262. I've heard how the 1262 sounds but I'm looking for someone who might have a mag9.5 or 12 to see how it compares.


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

what are the dimensions of the tank?


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

60x18x221/2

I know it sounds crazy but I do love this tank, if I ever get another tank it's going to be the same height and length but I'd do 30 inches deep.
so my dream size would be 60x30x22 which would be around 165g or so


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## 50seven (Feb 14, 2010)

Tim said:


> what are the dimensions of the tank?


It's Alex's old tank- if you've ever been there you've seen it. Nice size.


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

22" tall so only a couple inches shorter than mine. I have been debating the depth of my next tank as I think I would prefer something a little less tall. Hate having to go up to my armpits in water to get at the bottom of the tank.



50seven said:


> It's Alex's old tank- if you've ever been there you've seen it. Nice size.


never been there but have seen the ad.


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

haha!!!! Now I have the prom queen in my basement!!!

Alex, where are the pics you took? Muy Flojo!


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## Flexin5 (Nov 12, 2011)

i told you bro, leave it in the car, and have the first ever pontiac with a reef tank in it! haha 

congrats on the tank, it's really nice tank.


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## explor3r (Mar 14, 2010)

altcharacter said:


> haha!!!! Now I have the prom queen in my basement!!!
> 
> Alex, where are the pics you took? Muy Flojo!


Ohhhh is my ex-tank Im so happy is in good hands...Dave all my pumps are 1262 if u never notice I have 4 of them..

Here is the pic hermano









Thanks to Flexin5 for taking the picture and helping bringing the tank up


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Awesome picture Alex, thanks for posting it. 

Yeah I know you were running a 1262 on this but I was just wondering which one was more quiet...the 1262 or the mag9.5

I have yet to find a person that has a mag though....so this might be telling me something.


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## explor3r (Mar 14, 2010)

altcharacter said:


> Awesome picture Alex, thanks for posting it.
> 
> Yeah I know you were running a 1262 on this but I was just wondering which one was more quiet...the 1262 or the mag9.5
> 
> I have yet to find a person that has a mag though....so this might be telling me something.


I have a mag7 we can test


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## sig (Dec 13, 2010)

Good start my friend, but where is the stand 

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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

The stand still needs to be picked up this week sometime. I also am going to run rigid line so I need to figure out how to get all the silicone off the bulkheads. Any ideas....besides a razor?


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## 50seven (Feb 14, 2010)

altcharacter said:


> The stand still needs to be picked up this week sometime. I also am going to run rigid line so I need to figure out how to get all the silicone off the bulkheads. Any ideas....besides a razor?


Scrape off the worst. I'll bring something on Sat. to soften up and clean the residue.


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## fesso clown (Nov 15, 2011)

explor3r said:


> Ohhhh is my ex-tank Im so happy is in good hands...Dave all my pumps are 1262 if u never notice I have 4 of them..
> 
> Here is the pic hermano
> 
> ...


Alex! Your Ad didn't say that you came with the tank.


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Ok so I went down to see Greg's tank and was inspired to get mine going. 
Went down to Alex's and picked up the tank and a few other things that will help me with this build. I can't thank Alex and Greg enough for the help that they've provided! 

Got the stand home and got it into the basement and decided that the tank had to get on tonight. I took off all the plumbing and figured I should change it anyways since it's going to be empty.

The tank made it onto the stand in one piece and now i'm happy with a beer in my hand 

This isn't the final place for it but more of a holding area for the tank. The tank is going to be against the wall....I think...but not to sure. I want to do a peninsula style with it but I'll have to check with the management of the house first.


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## carmenh (Dec 20, 2009)

Super exciting! I can't wait to see how this turns out!


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Ok, so I've been talking to the wife about how we're going to setup the tanks and where we're going to setup the tanks and this is the idea i've come up with.

Sorry about the shoddy picture but this is just a rough draft. I'll add in the plumbing later once I figure out what we're doing

My question is this:
It's going to be a 3 tank system. 100g DT, 32g sump, and a 40g refuge....does it really matter what order I put it in?

Here's a pic of what i'm taking about. And the sump is going to have 4 or 5 baffles I think....


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## sig (Dec 13, 2010)

altcharacter said:


> O
> My question is this:
> It's going to be a 3 tank system. 100g DT, 32g sump, and a 40g refuge....does it really matter what order I put it in?
> 
> Here's a pic of what i'm taking about. And the sump is going to have 4 or 5 baffles I think....


I do not think it is good idea to run drain line in the fuge full of sand

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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Yeah sorry Greg, I forgot to add in a baffle for the intake. I'll add that and then repost the picture.


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

altcharacter said:


> So the idea is to have the overflow go into the refuge, and then dump into the sump.


Then you will be sending your critters in the fuge that get out into your protein skimmer?

Most people run a T, split the water something like 75/25 sump/fuge and then have the fuge water go to the return pump section of the sump, avoiding the skimmer.

If critters aren't important, onwards!


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

The sump would be first after the main tank, then the sump would spill into the refuge. No critters would ever make it into the skimmer....I think.


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

If you want critters in the fuge, and it is fed by the sump only, how are they going to get food? When I started using a filter sock, I directly fed my fuge with a little fish food to keep critters alive.


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Why would you do that Tim? You're just adding more food into a system that already has enough.

I have a filter sock on mine and my critters are unreal in the refuge. I wouldn't even think about adding more food into the system. Most of the critters in the refuge are already eating what's around that the filter sock doesn't catch. Anything that the filter sock catches is fairly large compared to what the pods can eat.

In a sump/refuge setup where it's only one tank why do you think you put the skimmer first?


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

This is two tanks right? I have a drawing up on the plumbing here that is pretty much identical to other's set ups with separate fuge sump.

http://gtaaquaria.com/forum/showthread.php?t=34205&page=2

And yep I feed my fuge. It isn't like I am dumping tons of food in there lol. I feed it once or twice a week when I have the filter sock on, and only once a week when it is off.

There is a great article on running the fuges I will dig it up for you.



> In a sump/refuge setup where it's only one tank why do you think you put the skimmer first?


Water should still be split if you are looking for a fuge with lots of critters (not just pods but worms and stuff too). If it is just going into a chamber for some tumbling chaeto it doesn't really matter.

Check out new york steelo fuge here:





water comes into first stage,

1. some water is pumped into the skimmer, skimmed and then into fuge 
2. the rest of the raw water goes into fuge through a gap in the glass wall

then it all goes to the return section.

What others do is have their fuge at one end and skimmer at the other both fed by a T, then both dump into a middle chamber which has the return.


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Yeah I was talking to Jeff today about that and you got me thinking Tim. I might just split it but i'm not too sure yet. If I split it i'm more worried about lines getting clogged and what not. If the fuge doesn't get enough water then it'll become stagnant. I'll have to think about it.


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## J_T (Mar 25, 2011)

altcharacter said:


> Yeah I was talking to Jeff today about that and you got me thinking Tim. I might just split it but i'm not too sure yet. If I split it i'm more worried about lines getting clogged and what not. If the fuge doesn't get enough water then it'll become stagnant. I'll have to think about it.


Add a small power head. Nothing wrong with good flow within the fuge, just don't want the source water providing it! The source should be a small flow being added. But keeping the water moving will help keep the Cheato tumbling, assuming it is a true fuge, with cheato, some rubble, and no sand bed.


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

This is going to be a DSB with alot of different macro's. I might skip cheato on this build but we'll see as we go.


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## J_T (Mar 25, 2011)

Then it is more of a remote DSB, and not so much a fuge. And really, the slow through should be slower then if it was a refugium. Sand beds take longer contact time to be benificial. 

Posted with my Xperia, using Tapatalk 2


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Thanks JT...than that's what it'll be. A remote DSB with different macro's in it.
Would it still be beneficial to put cheato in the sump between the skimmer and the return pump?


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

Like you I was finding chaeto almost impossible to grow for some reason so I switched over to caulerpa and it grows like mad. I have fern, grape and razor all growing. The grape seems the most agressive grower. I have my stuff under 24 hr light now.


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

http://www.reef-eden.net/DSBs.htm

http://www.reef-eden.net/new_dsb.htm

here is the link I mentioned earlier

There is also an interesting thread somewhere by Anthony Calfo about a remote bucket DSB, I will look for the link later as I am on my way out.


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Actually it's the opposite now. I use to use a 6k CFL that was just in a socket and it wasn't growing well. I changed it out with 2 9w cfl's in a coralife mini lamp and the cheato is growing pretty fast now.


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

might try that some day soon. I had to dump out a lod because it melted, I only have a little left. I am using 6k CFL as you were.

Other priorities first since the caulerpa seems to be growing well.


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## 50seven (Feb 14, 2010)

Maybe copy my fuge/sump setup. If you don't remember, I'll draw it out for you tomorrow. 

I'm using the 6K CFL, I want to see your fuge light and maybe try it...

Sent from my HTC Magic using Tapatalk


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Kev, just bring your tank down with you tomorrow. It should fit in the A-team van right?


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## 50seven (Feb 14, 2010)

altcharacter said:


> Kev, just bring your tank down with you tomorrow. It should fit in the A-team van right?


What? Its got 110 gallons of salt water in it? 

Sent from my HTC Magic using Tapatalk


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Ok so I know this isn't really a "picture" update but it's still somewhat a update.
I met up with Phil this morning and I must admit he's a great guy and I had a good time talking to him. He also dropped off a MRC 1 Skimmer for the new tank! What a guy!

So all day I helped move a friend of mine into his new house and while moving stuff into his basement he asked me to look at something. To my amazement it looks like that someone had a sump setup in the basement and a DT in the living room upstairs. They left their RO/DI 4 stage and my friend gave it to me!!!! Woooohooo!!!!

Here is the exact model
http://www.coralreefsupply.com/index.php?aquarium=detail&detail=59


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## jmb (Mar 20, 2012)

Awesome find for spending a day helping your friend.

When do you expect picture updates?


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## disman_ca (Nov 12, 2011)

That's awesome.


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

A semi "on topic" post...

So I am now employed and will be working a salary position as a Sous Chef!!! 

Something I've always wanted and now that I have it, I'll be working a hell of alot of hourse for little money. Although this means I'll have money for the tank now!!!

On a side note I was trying to figure out the configuration for the powerheads. At first I was thinking with going with Koralia's since they're inexpensive and pretty bullet proof but talking to Chris he had mentioned MP40's. Now here's my question....should I get 2 MP40's or should I get a MP40 on one end and 2 MP10's on the other. I'm thinking of putting the MP40 on the overflow end and the MP10's on the other side and hooking up the wave controller to give it some interesting flow. 

Also thinking about lighting. I was either thinking of doing T5HOx4 and possibly putting some strip LED's to supplement but I don't want to do T5HOx6 since I don't think I have enough width (only 19"). And I would be going with 48" since the tank is 60. I like a little "dead space" at the ends of the tank where I can put lower light corals.


:cool


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## sig (Dec 13, 2010)

since you got a job, it is time to sell this tank and get bigger

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## TypeZERO (Jul 20, 2007)

With 3 power heads that would give you more flexability in controlling the flow. Plus if you place a powerhead on each side, you can run Eco smart mode on the mp's. But I think your finalize rock work will tell you if 2 or 3 power heads will be better.

Congratsssssss on da job!!


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## 50seven (Feb 14, 2010)

Congrats on the job, hope it all goes well. Less time to work on the tank, but no more worrying about the bills


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Hi guys! Been a bit since a new update but progression is going a bit slow since I can't really do anything until the basement is finished. But until then I'm adding up all the equipment to ensure i'm ready to go when I can.

So I just picked up a 80 gallon tank off craigslist for $10 and I was doing a few calculations to figure out if I want to actually make this my remote DSB. I was thinking of a 6" bed but when I did the calc it's giving me 250 pounds. I'm going to assume thats right but...dam....that seems like alot of sand. My intentions were to do a DSB and macro garden. I was also thinking of doing possibly 36" of the tank a DSB @ 6" and the other 12" make a compartment for rubble LR. This would mean it would only be 180 lb of sand, but then I'd put 30-40lb of LR....so does it matter?

Any ideas or comments?


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## teemee (Aug 29, 2009)

Hi Altcharacter!
Congrats on the new job!!! Send me a pm to tell me where 
Having had dsb on my last three tanks, I'm going to say that nutrient wise, I really don't think it makes that much of a difference, despite what all the experts say. In fact, I think its almost more of a hazard... Can I suggest you consider going the route of the thread you linked to on RC?
Mangroves are truly awesome for sucking up excess nitrogen. Levi has a small tank - I guess with a dsb, but no fish if I remember correctly, and no other macros as well as another small tank with just cheato. 
Keep in mind if you do want to go to the macro route that pretty much all of the caulerpas can go sexual and practically nuke your system overnight. 
250 lbs of reef-type sand would cost heaps. IMHO, unless you keep leopard wrasses or garden eels, I wouldn't bother. 
Can't wait to see what you do with your new tank!!!!



altcharacter said:


> Hi guys! Been a bit since a new update but progression is going a bit slow since I can't really do anything until the basement is finished. But until then I'm adding up all the equipment to ensure i'm ready to go when I can.
> 
> So I just picked up a 80 gallon tank off craigslist for $10 and I was doing a few calculations to figure out if I want to actually make this my remote DSB. I was thinking of a 6" bed but when I did the calc it's giving me 250 pounds. I'm going to assume thats right but...dam....that seems like alot of sand. My intentions were to do a DSB and macro garden. I was also thinking of doing possibly 36" of the tank a DSB @ 6" and the other 12" make a compartment for rubble LR. This would mean it would only be 180 lb of sand, but then I'd put 30-40lb of LR....so does it matter?
> 
> Any ideas or comments?


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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Thanks marg. I was going to do a DSB for a few reasons. Of course the ability to have a place where nutrients could be converted but also to house.....thats right!.....Mangroves! I was thinking of 6-8 to make a canopy and with the macro's I was going to go with something like the string of pearls I have. 

Yeah the cheato was going to go in somewhere I just haven't figured out where yet. I don't know if I'm still going to make a pocket for LR rubble and then possibly put cheato on top? Or throw it into the sump and have it tumble. I still have tons of time to do some reading and figure out what I want but little by little she's gonna get done.


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## sig (Dec 13, 2010)

altcharacter said:


> Thanks marg. I was going to do a DSB for a few reasons. Of course the ability to have a place where nutrients could be converted but also to house.....thats right!.....Mangroves! I was thinking of 6-8 to make a canopy and with the macro's I was going to go with something like the string of pearls I have.
> 
> Yeah the cheato was going to go in somewhere I just haven't figured out where yet. I don't know if I'm still going to make a pocket for LR rubble and then possibly put cheato on top? Or throw it into the sump and have it tumble. I still have tons of time to do some reading and figure out what I want but little by little she's gonna get done.


instead of putting money in all this useless gardening, taken valuable space from your basement., go and get really good skimmer.

and do not forget that additional volume of the water will increase humidly in the basement. Plan top spend 250+ on humidifier and additional hydro cost for running more equipment on separate refusium

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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

Ok, small update on what's going on.
I picked up my refuge today from a kind member.
Also picked up the lights from another kind member.
Going to order bulkheads possibly this week or next week

Also thinking of getting the system up and running before the basement is finished. 

Things I still need though:
skimmer
ATO (going to build myself again)
sump (30g or so)
powerheads 

Although the list is getting smaller it's tough to get stuff when your budget is $0

I'll keep you guys posted on the progression and hopefully it'll be ready by next years BBQ. Also to the people that have helped, thanks alot!!!


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

altcharacter said:


> Ok, small update on what's going on.
> I picked up my refuge today from a kind member.
> Also picked up the lights from another kind member.
> Going to order bulkheads possibly this week or next week
> ...


Do you need rock? I will be making my own "agrocrete" sometime next week and you are welcome to come play in the sandbox and make some rock for yourself 

I have the portland cement and water softner salt, getting the oyster shells sometime this weekend.

I am slowly getting stuff together for my next tank so thought it was time to perfect the rock and figuring out how to aquascape.


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## riggles17 (Jan 4, 2011)

Wait so you can use cement in a fish tank?


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## Tim (Dec 11, 2011)

riggles17 said:


> Wait so you can use cement in a fish tank?


yes but it has to be dried and then cured in water for a month or two until the ph is consistent. Mix the cement with oyster shell, and salt "chunks" and some use argonite sand as well.


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## J_T (Mar 25, 2011)

Some say that even still, the cement will leach out chems. I am not having any issues where I used the hydraulic cement in my tank. But I used a small amount,, in 200 gallons of water

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## altcharacter (Jan 10, 2011)

I won't be making any rock for this tank. Although I might be cementing a few pieces together to make larger rocks but I'm not even sure about that.

Oh...and I need substrate for the main tank but haven't decided on what yet.


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## fesso clown (Nov 15, 2011)

altcharacter said:


> I won't be making any rock for this tank. Although I might be cementing a few pieces together to make larger rocks but I'm not even sure about that.
> 
> Oh...and I need substrate for the main tank but haven't decided on what yet.


I have a bucket of hydrollic cement to cement rocks together you can have.

I really like the special grade substrate I got, doesn't blow around but still looks like sand. Highly recommend it.


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