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New guy in Provo

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jdodds View Drop Down
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Joined: December 20 2015
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    Posted: December 24 2015 at 6:38pm
Hey everyone, I'm Joel. I recently decided to get into this stuff. Glad to know there's a local forum for this kind of thing. I'm probably gonna need some of your help in the coming months. A while back, I decided to pick up a 36 gallon bowfront on an impulse buy. Things went fairly well for a while. I set it up for brackish water with a Fluval 406 for filtration. 

Not too long after it was up and running, I picked up a "freshwater" moray eel (Gymnothroax tile). About a week later, he decided to start eating all the fish in the tank instead of the things I was feeding him. Some days he'd take the food I gave him. Other days, I'd find that I owned one less fish than I did while I was either asleep or away. 

Recently, I had regret not just doing saltwater from the beginning and converted it to a FOWLR tank. This was how it was looking about a week ago.


 After seeing how much of a pain it is to keep something small like this stable with limited equipment, I decided that the 20 amp circuit labeled "fish tank" and the RO tubing running from there to the laundry room was a perfect excuse to move to something a bit bigger with much more thought into doing things the right way, and making it look nice. 

Today, I finally decided to go pick this 125 gallon tank up from Petsmart. I plan to build a better stand and canopy for it once I can come up with some dimensions and a layout for the plumbing. 


Not a bad location for a tank, right? Repainting that area may be happening soon as well. This house had some pretty weird colors when we moved in.


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Marcoss View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Marcoss Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 24 2015 at 6:41pm
Awesome. Welcome! I'm in American Fork if I can ever help.
RedSea Max S400 - 90G Rimless Frag Tanks x2 - 185 Lookdown Bin
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Reefer4Ever Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 24 2015 at 6:54pm
Welcome to the madness. Looking forward to watching the 125 build come together.
90 gal reef w/refugium
24 gal softie tank
11 gal nano anemone tank
5 gal fresh water
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jdodds View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jdodds Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 24 2015 at 8:11pm
Thanks. I think I'm gonna drill both sides for 1.5" bulkhead fittings, and whatever size I'm gonna end up needing for the returns. One of the things I wanna do is keep it a little closer to the wall. I think plumbing it from both sides could do well for the flow, while keeping a low profile off the wall. I plan on building up the stand and canopy as one unit, and adding some extra length on each side to cover up the plumbing. 
I'm mostly just having some trouble coming up with what size I need with the internal overflow boxes and the details on the return pump. Mostly looking for advice on bulkhead size, placement, suggestions on pump flow rate, and any other tips on keeping things efficient and looking clean. 
When I get into things like this, I'm the type that focuses on all the little details. I've got a fairly long background in automotive repair, fabrication, and general customization. I'd like to apply those principles to this wherever possible. Here's an example of my work. Car was completely gutted, and all work (paint, powder coat, wiring, engine build, fabrication, tuning) was done by myself in my garage for a friend. The things I have planned for this tank should be of similar craftsmanship.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote AcroNem Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 24 2015 at 8:30pm
Welcome! I'm in orem give me a call if you ever need anything. Love what you did with the car I'll have to have you help me re do mine! Looking forward to seeing more of your build.
150G mixed reef, growing coral farm.
Thirteenth year keeping reefs, always here to talk fish.
801-850-7577.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Chevmaro Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 24 2015 at 9:24pm
Welcome, Thumbs Up

You don't need to drill that tank.  If you want to run what you have it would be fine.  I would get a couple power heads, HOB filter and upgrade the light.  That would be enough to get started.  Later you can add a reactor, HOB skimmer and use the small cabinet space for ATO.

If you do want to drill, I use the overflow kits from glass holes.  They are expensive but always work well in the tanks I have done.  

http://glass-holes.com/1500-gph-Overflow-Box-Complete-Kit-gh1500kit.htm

http://glass-holes.com/3-4-Inch-Loc-Line-Return-Kit-ghReturn75.htm

Good luck with the build, let us know if you have questions.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jdodds Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 24 2015 at 11:03pm
Everything is going to be taken care of before I put water in it. I really don't wanna have to get back in there and add more equipment later. If I do, I'll plan ahead and leave room and ways to connect all of it though. Been setting up for home automation lately as well, so I'd like to make sure lights and sensors are compatible with my system before I spend any money on them. 

I'm perfectly fine with drilling the tank. Not a huge fan of stuff hanging off the top of it. I wanna keep a low profile with all of that and am prepared to go to whatever lengths necessary. For reference, I plumbed my RO unit up to my bedroom yesterday to make the frequent water changes on my small tank a bit easier. Its lighting and temp have been tied to my smart home crap for a few weeks now as well, even though its just a temporary tank that will be moved once this one is done. I hate leaving things unfinished or looking like they were just thrown together. 
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Mark Peterson View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mark Peterson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 25 2015 at 5:19pm


Originally posted by jdodds jdodds wrote:

When I get into things like this, I'm the type that focuses on all the little details. 
If that is true then you need to go look at the information in the link below in my signature line. This hobby is not about the equipment, it's about the biology. Even though the Refugium on my 75 gal was the first in Utah, in recent years, I've shown people how to put together beautiful tanks that are sumpless. For one example, see the pic below.

Aloha,
Mark  Hug

P.S. It's just my opinion, but that tank will look dumb with bulkheads sticking out the sides.





Edited by Mark Peterson - December 25 2015 at 5:20pm
Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks:
www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244
Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member
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Mark Peterson View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mark Peterson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 26 2015 at 9:08am
Noticed what looks like a Molly in your first tank. Thumbs Up

BTW, 36 gals is not considered small. It's also technically a reef aquarium because it has coral and anemones. Even small tanks of 20 gals or less can be set up to be very stable. I can see, from the pic, several things that could be done to that tank to make it much more stable and easy to care for.
Funny thing is, it won't require going "to whatever lengths necessary"... my suggestions would be quite simple and easy. Just ask.
We are here to help.

Aloha,
Mark  Hug


Edited by Mark Peterson - December 26 2015 at 9:27am
Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks:
www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244
Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member
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jdodds View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jdodds Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 27 2015 at 2:38pm
Originally posted by Mark Peterson Mark Peterson wrote:


P.S. It's just my opinion, but that tank will look dumb with bulkheads sticking out the sides.


I'd planned on covering it with the stand/canopy. I'll look into the sumpless thing though. 
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jdodds View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jdodds Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 27 2015 at 2:41pm
Originally posted by Mark Peterson Mark Peterson wrote:

Noticed what looks like a Molly in your first tank. Thumbs Up


The molly was actually supposed to be food for my eel at one point. I think it's decided that they aren't too tasty after eating the other four that were put in with it. I think it may have gotten pregnant right before the males were eaten. It's been fattening up a little bit since then. 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ReeferWife4Ever Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 30 2015 at 8:07am
Hi there, welcome! :) I like the location you chose along that long wall. I think your tank will look lovely once you get it up and running. Being detail oriented is a great thing when it comes to keeping a saltwater tank, in my opinion. There are many factors that go into keeping a system steady once it's up and going and the more details you fixate on,the better it is. I think that's what my husband and I enjoy so much about our reef tank: the continuous challenge and satisfaction of keeping the system going and growing our corals out etc. (My husband is a detail freak too...Shhhh don't tell him I said that lol) Really looking forward to seeing your tank come together!
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