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A New Reefing Chapter Begins

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by slovan, Dec 22, 2011.

  1. slovan

    slovan Experienced Reefkeeper

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    After being in the hobby for 8 years, this is the first time I have been tankless...what an odd feeling!  Yes, it is true.  I don't have a drop of saltwater in the house and it's driving me crazy!  As many of you know, JJ (double-j) got out of the hobby and sold everything back in November.  He gave me a deal I couldn't refuse on the 380 gallon so I ended up selling my existing tanks to get ready to set up his tank.  Come to find out, there was a crack in the seam of the tank that couldn't be repaired safely so I had to look at other alternatives for a tank.  The good thing is that I was able to buy everything else sans the tank for a good deal.  But I still have to buy a tank, build a stand, buy a skimmer and a few other miscellaneous items.
    So now a new reefing chapter begins by taping off the wall to see where my new tank will go. [​IMG]  When you go downstairs, you will be able to see the tank from anywhere so it will become a focal point of the basement.
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  2. Andy The Reef Guy

    Andy The Reef Guy Inactive User

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    Dude! What ru thinking about for dimensions? I'm building up to my next tank coming this fall, looking forward to all the new ideas coming along with this build! Welcome back some hahaha!
     
  3. iaJim

    iaJim Inactive User

    775
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    Is somebody babysitting your corals? I loved your previous tank; I hope it went to a good home.
     
  4. slovan

    slovan Experienced Reefkeeper

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    Jim,  the tank is in good hands.  My brother in-law bought the tank and corals so everything stayed intact.  The good thing is that he travels quite a bit for work and I am doing maintenance on the tank so I get to see it at least once a week.  Here's a link to a video I took a few weeks ago.  Tank
     
  5. iaJim

    iaJim Inactive User

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    So I suppose maintenance means fragging rights too? That's nice.
     
  6. Big D Well-Known ReefKeeper

    889
    Center Point
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    well bud i wish you the best on your build , ill i can tell you make sure u go led for lghting because that old meter for the ele. company i spun the dust off of it when them lights went on in that 538 gal . i had . i dont miss the electric bill at all. : )
     
  7. erayk1 Well-Known ReefKeeper Board of Directors Leadership Team GIRS Member

    981
    Coralville, IA
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    I enjoyed that video of your tank, especially all the chromis! (call me weird if you want..lol) Was that a coral beauty in there or another type of angel?
     
  8. Jamie

    Jamie Well-Known ReefKeeper Vendor

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    Going to be good! Tangers (Jamey) on here was selling his 200 DD it had the Starphire front and sides did you look at buying his? It also has a steel stand he was selling with it.
     
  9. iaJim

    iaJim Inactive User

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    Wasn't that tank bare bottom when you had it?
     
  10. slovan

    slovan Experienced Reefkeeper

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    Thanks Jamie!  I saw his tank for sale but I wanted to go with a bigger tank since I was prepared to do a build on a 380.  Downsizing to 300 gallons was bad enough. /DesktopModules/ActiveForums/themes/_default/emoticons/cry.gif
     
  11. slovan

    slovan Experienced Reefkeeper

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    Yes, the tank was bare bottom and I have been wanting to put sand back in it for the longest time so I suggested it to him when we set the tank up at his place.  My new tank will have sand in it as well.  I can't see myself going bare bottom again, it's just not for me.  Granted, it is easy to clean but I couldn't stand the look.
     
  12. snowman82

    snowman82 Experienced Reefkeeper

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    I was just pricing out those 300g too. I like the 36" depth on them. but i want it to stick out from the wall so i can utilize it more. but i also need a new house first /DesktopModules/ActiveForums/themes/_default//emoticons/smile.gif once we move to a house we know we can live in for a long time, oh ya a 300g will be getting done /DesktopModules/ActiveForums/themes/_default//emoticons/smile.gif might start piecing parts together now too haha, Good luck with your venture..
     
  13. AJ

    AJ Inactive User

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    It's going to be a big change going from the medium sized tanks that you just got rid of to such a monster sized tank. Is this your first really large tank or have you had a big tank in the past and down-sized? So it looks like you'll be putting the tank in the area between the stairs and your old fish room? Are you going to make it visible from both sides or make the back dark. IMO, it would be cool to make it see through and have the overflows and plumbing on the ends. To be able to have corals visible from both sides like that would be really cool.

    I find it interesting to hear that you're planning to go back to using MH vs. LEDs. The biggest complaint that I've heard from people about LEDs is that they don't like the more "constant" light effect that LEDs give off, and that they miss the shimmer of the MHs. That being said, I don't know any lights aside from LEDs that can make corals glow like they're radioactive like LEDs can. What are your reasons for going in this direction?

    JJ's tank was acrylic, right? It would seem that someone would be able to repair that by removing the old piece of acrylic and replacing it with a new one. You, being the experienced and smart guy that you are, have probably checked into the logistics on that and determined that was not a good option but it sure would seem possible.

    So you've gone from tank to tank over your many years in the hobby; what are the lessons that you'll be taking from your other tanks and changing when you put this new tank in place.

    This sounds like an awesome project and I look forward to closely tracking your progress on this! Have fun Sone!

    --AJ
     
  14. Jamie

    Jamie Well-Known ReefKeeper Vendor

    591
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    I can completly understand that.  The 350 I have dosn't look nearly as big once it's in the wall, and yours being only viewable from one side will make it seem even smaller.[​IMG]
     
  15. Jamie

    Jamie Well-Known ReefKeeper Vendor

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    Oh if your going to go with the MH, led t5 thing check out the light I have on mine, it's super clean looking with the lumenbright reflectors built right in one cord to the fixture from the ballast box which contains all the ballast.
     
  16. AJ

    AJ Inactive User

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    I'm not sure how that's possible.  ;-)
    --AJ
     
  17. slovan

    slovan Experienced Reefkeeper

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    Hey Chris, good to see you are getting back in with a nano.  I hope you find a house soon so you can set up a large tank!
     
  18. slovan

    slovan Experienced Reefkeeper

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    Hey Chris,  good to see you getting back in with a nano!  I hope you find a house soon so you can put a large tank together.
     
  19. jnjsad

    jnjsad Inactive User

    440
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    I have a smidgin of insite on the 300 deep dimensions tank in a wall. According to the Fish Shack in Manchester, Bob said Marineland informed him I was the first in Iowa to get one of these back in May of 2008. The tank, in all it's glory, is kick ***. I had Starphire glass in front and the 2 sides since mine went into the corner of a basement wall where the side and front pannel were viewable. The tank later cracked, not sure how or why but that resulted in me downsizing to a 24" depth. Reason being is that with the 300 DD, with the heigth and depth of the tank...being in wall with no front access - it made it incredibly difficult to get to things towards the front of the tank. Trying to catch fish was a challenge as well. (you can only stand on a step stool for so long trying to catch those buggards). That tank was freshwater for my frontosas. Just some insite to consider when placing a large, deep tank in your wall. It does look smashingly sweet when all said and done, and garnishes a lot of ooohs and aahhhhs. In the end, I just didn't want to constantly battle the heigth/depth in wall limitations I had. Made me not want to do maintenance. Not sure how far Manchester is from you, but when I worked with Bob at Fish Shack , I got one heck of a deal on that tank with starphire and black silicone...and he was superb in helping me with the exchange when I needed service from him.
     
  20. slovan

    slovan Experienced Reefkeeper

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    Hey AJ, I have had a 210 before so I know a little bit about taking on a bigger tank.  Although a 210 isn't quite a 300 but I also have more room for this tank.  Yes, this tank will be in my fish room so all the maintenance will be done back there.  The tank will only be visible from the front but I plan on making black panels that I can take off and on so I can see it from the backside for easy cleaning.




    I am still going to use LEDs but I am going to combine them with MH.  I've had corals that looked better under MH and did worse when I converted to LEDs.  I had some corals do better under LEDs than MH.  I figure if I combine the two, I should have the best of both worlds.  I am going to stagger them across the tank so it should look something like this.  LED|MH|LED|MH|LED




    JJ's tank was acrylic.  I thought it could be repaired safely but it couldn't.  I had Bud Carlson come over to look at it and then he posted the pictures on RC for feedback.  James from Envision Acylics said it wouldn't be salvageable so I left it at that.  Although I think it could still be repaired, I didn't want to take that chance since my basement is 95% finished.  If I get 400 gallons of water on the floor, my reefing days would be over.

    I think some of the lessons learned from previous tanks are to keep things simple.  I plan on adding a continuous water change system to my Litermeter.  With a tank this size, I want to make it easier on me so it isn't so much of a burden.  I will also be adding a feeder for dry food.  This will help me if I am gone for the weekend or a week.  Aside from that, I want to take more advantage of my Apex. /DesktopModules/ActiveForums/themes/_default/emoticons/smile.gif
     

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