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Bear may be getting salty again

7K views 51 replies 5 participants last post by  bearwithfish 
#1 ·
so everything is in the planning stages at this time but it looks good to get back into salt in the next few months... i thought it would be a good idea to have a place to get out my thoughts and work out details...

gear i have right now

150W heater
2 - 2bulb T5 HO lights with 10k and true blue actinics in each
multiple pumps (may need others have not decided if i want low or high flow yet)

gear i am getting in the short term

40 breeder to convert into an AIO or a Biocube 29 (trade pending)
considering a HOT skimmer (i hesitate due to risk of leaking) may go with internal if i can find strong and small (must be AIO tank)
cover for the tank to accommodate the fact i have cats and a dog who love to try and go fishing when they can..

in time.......
1/2"-3/4" of live sand no more!!
40 ish pounds of dry rock and 10 ish of live (long cycle = more time to research potential stocking


once cycled ...

nice mix of snails
????? trying to stay away from crabs this time around but i really do like them so not completely off the list yet...
 
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#2 ·
ive thought about an AIO tank when setting up my newest one. a cool idea IMO would be to add a false wall to the 40 cutting the tank in half making your display 18'' x 18'' and viewing the tank from the side panal of glass. it would stick out 3 feet from a wall though but your sump section would be awesome AND allow room for a full on in tank skimmer.
ofcourse its just a thought, what this thread is for right?

and look into porcelain crabs.
 
#5 ·
really considering having it sit "normal" with the sectioned of portion a box on the right side picture it like a overflow box that goes from the mid point to the right of the tank and all the rest of the tank is available to play with...
 
#7 ·


this shows the top down of a 40 breeder. the red X for intank skimmer and the red arrows showing water flow back to tank. middle section could be refugium, and third return pump/heater(s) which both could possible be more narrow compared to the first section for skimmer, depending construction.

just another idea.
 
#9 ·
ok with your idea blended with min lets look at a few flaws and try to work them out shall we?

1st i want to move the skimmer "box" to the middle of the tank now for the skimmer i am looking at i need 8x10" box this would be the over flow into the chamber and the skimmer.. next up would be a narrower section from the box to the right 5" from front to back and ~10" from box to right side of tank. in this 5" area would be the heater, bubble trap and return pump(s)....

issue with both designs - skimmer would inhibit a cover
lights using legs would also inhibit cover use

potential solutions?
(yes this must be an AIO no sump options .... )
 
#11 ·
issue with both designs - skimmer would inhibit a cover
lights using legs would also inhibit cover use

potential solutions?
(yes this must be an AIO no sump options .... )

its going to require a canopy to keep the lights in because even the lights would prob. get in the way on an intank skimmer.

i also suggested my way because by the time to water got skimmed, went thru the fuge, then back to the tank there shouldnt be much of any microbubbles. im not fully sure though and a bubble trap may actually still be needed.
 
#12 ·
dont get me wrong i like your idea and i am trying to blend the two basic concepts into one that works for what i am looking for... as for the bubble trap i thought it was implied :) ... i would have one just for the fact it would help to keep track of the water level..

a canopy huh? hmmm i had not really given that much thought.. i would have to build in fans if i did one though as my lights dont have one built in.... i found a cool fan buld out of computer fans that costs like $4 so that should not be an issue...

the thoughts continue...

oh hey what about a backpack style skimmer but used in tank? it narrow enough to sit along the back and still be out of the way....
 
#13 ·
the computer fans would work, have them blow air in, not out to get the most out of their life. ive also used a table fan on tanks and found them more effective. if you see my build i just left the back side of my canopy open ( with plastic mesh ) for air flow. i dont have my actual lights in yet so im going to add a fan only if and when needed. ( the good thing is i have the option if needed to blow the fan over my lights/top surface of water, which is more effective or fan the sump surface of water, which is out of the way. )

the hang on skimmer but hung on to be in the tank, in one of those compartments would be cool. just read online reviews about these skimmers before purchase.

not saying you have to go with any of my ideas, just trying to get your head thinking. ;-)
 
#15 ·
I have been thinking about doing the same thing. A couple of months ago I bought a 40g breeder and started to build a stand that would hold a 20L for a sump. I finished building the stand and decided that I wanted to have more storage room in the stand than the sump was going to allow so I started to think about AIO.

I drew this a while ago, it's pretty similar to teh drawings already posted, but I figured I'd share. The compartment for the skimmer will be 8 x 5 inches, and the next two compartments will be 5 x6. Because each section is so small I plan on having the bubble trap baffles go under over under to make sure that the water flows through each section instead of just over the top. I like OF2F's rock/foam wall, so I worked that idea into my design as well.
 

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#16 ·
i really like that lay out as well.. nicely done!!.. only issues as stated above is i am attempting to remin all within the tank and nothing hangin off... also trying to accomodate this with a cover ..

so i have modified based on all of these issues... sketched it p on a note pad and think its fairly solid... here goes

have the over flow chamber house the skimmer pump and run that into the next "section" which will be the actual skimmer this will out flow into the same area as the skimmer and have a sponge on the outlet to reduce bubbles.. further right next to this out let a bubble trap and then flow into the heater/return pump chamber.....
i will use the legs for the lights but instead of a glass top i will use a plexi top with cut outs to accommodate the legs, skimmer top and wires etc.. this will also have a trap door cut into it for adding or removing things as well as feeding. this will eliminate the need to remove the cover or hinge it which would be a pain due to the lights etc.
this cover will have to have a few reinforcing strips to prevent bowing under the heat of the lights but i think if i use nylon screws to hold them in place on the rim this issue will be overcome... considering the size of the tank i think a skimmer like a coralife 65 would be ample (or perhaps the one from Odessa as i like their products.) this is of course if i cannot find (or make ) a pack pack style one that is configured the way i want it..
 
#17 ·
small change in plans i just got in touch with the guy and its going to be a 30 breeder .. a little shorter but i think better for what i am trying to accomplish :) negotiating the deal now and trying to get a few more things tossed in .. i am trading heavy but i want to get a good deal..
 
#18 ·
does any one have the inner dementions of a 30 breeder? i am considering the pieces to make my false wall and had a great idea but first i need to know the actual measurements..

OF - i may be going with the wall all the way across .. just need to see if the glass i have will fit correctly.. then the only issue is getting a few cuts or holes in it.. (free or cheep LOL)
 
#21 ·
UPDATE:

the tank is HEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

i am so excited... my lights fit i have a great pump (well a few of them really) but the main circulation pump is adjustable flow (not sure of brand) ....

looking at the plan and trying a few experimental options just to see (more details if they are successful)

even got the wife on board with trying an other salt tank.... hehhehhe its always the cute fish that pull it off...

next step build and work out details ... then water testing it all to be sure i have all the kinks worked out...

now that its real..i can turn my thoughts to all the fine details of set up and no i am not talking stock yet....
 
#22 ·
i lied i need your help LOL...

so the issues i want to address at this moment are the cover and the inner "sump" area

lets start with the cover... i will be running 2 light fixtures on this tank and i really really want to use the legs and not do a canopy... personal preference no other reason... but a cover is a must 1. dog hair, 2. cat hair, 3 CATS, 4 live stock jumping risk (no plan for stock yet but who knows) and 5 evaporation

now one thought i had was to use plexi... the issue is every time i have in the past it bows and under these lights it will fold up in a day.
solution 1 is to put strips of plexi across the tank and bolt them to the rim via nylon bolts - down side the actual cover piece will still bow
solution 2 - go with glass cover and put lights right on it - did this before and really did not like the look or the hassle of moving them off everytime i need to top off or feed etc..

i need ideas on how to over come this issue or on how to create (or buy) a cover that will not bow and will accommodate my legs for the lights.

moving on to the sump area - as noted above i wanted to segment only a part of the tank off and solve some of the issue with a skimmer etc.. but tonight i had an idea please tell me your thoughts.. (be honest but really dont be a punk i am here for help)
my thought was to take a 5 gallon bow from tank i have (acrylic) and mount it inside the 30 breeder on an open stand of some type (for water flow under it) and then drill inlets on one side of the 5 gal.. in side attach a acrylic box for the water to run into that will hold filter pad, chemipure or carbon and then out let on the bottom into the 5 gal... in here i can set up a small container to grow cheato and then the pump would be plumbed to 2-3 outlets to vary the direction of currents in the DT..

the 5 gal would be painted black (krylon fusion) and the in tank stand would be hidden or worked into the rocks i would have at least one small pump pointing towards this area to ensure water movement..


i would eventually have a HOT skimmer with a sponge on the output into the 5 gal....


sorry for the wall of text... please any ideas welcome....
 
#23 ·
is this a 40 breeder? if so i have a glass lid you can have, but it has like a 1'' - 2'' gap along the back for filters and so on.

i dont think i would use plexi unless you were using LEDs. even glass will need frequent cleaning of salt creep. building a canopy is not an option?

i like your thinking with the bucket. i saw a tank where someone used a rectangle trash can cut in half verticly then siliconed into their tank. your ideas are flowing nice and it wont be long before you make this one yours.
 
#25 ·
ok so 1st thing is thank you for the kind offer OF but as we talked about getting out to you would be a little hard...

However the wife and i came up with the solution to the cover issue!!!we are going to use the front and back glass form a few 10 gallons we have around .... the over will be in three pieces with the outer 2 silicone in place and the center loose to accommodate moving for feeding and maintenance.. because of this we are moving our inner tank works to the middle and man it looks good .. as the actual work begins i will of course take pix ...
 
#26 · (Edited)
so i want a little input here but first let me explain what i have read versus what i want to do.. and no i am not looking for a flame festival just a good conversation about the ideas i am about to put forth...

1st lets talk experience versus plan .. i used tap water in my last tank .. never again lesson learned it need to be RO
now last time i tried adding elements and really did not get all prepared for this along with trying to keep the tank bigger better wow .. yeah did not work out to well ..

so this will be a much simpler tank and i have been pouring over information here and a number of other places .. calling reefers i know and checking out what has worked and not worked and so far i see a trend that i must have missed the last time... KISS
Keep It Simple Stupid

with this in mind i now have a much stronger (i think) plan of action it goes against a lot of common thoughts but some of the longest lived tanks i have seen seem to stay true to this course of action... so let me put this forth

Tank: 30 breeder
Heater: 100W set to 74F
Lights: 2x s bulb T5 (10k and true blue in each)
flow: power heads (unknown brand but combined will move around 300-400 GPH), and either a HOB filter (wait for explanation) or a Canister filter with modifications to the media (again wait for it)
filtration: 25 pounds dry rock (will become live) and 5-10 pounds Live rock, ~20 pounds live sand and WEEKLY water changes...

now for the canister or HOB part.. these would run filter floss to trap waist in and the floss would be changed weekly with the water. as i am able to make my own pads this is about $15 every 2-3 months.. if its a canister i will also run carbon in one chamber and leave one open or put LR in there to grow out over time and clean it when i do the WC...

as i intend to use Reef crystals (the orange bag) or salt i will not need to add anything to the system as all nutrients will be replaced with water changes and running with out a skimmer will eliminate the removal of some of the elements..

a very simple tank with a weekly 15 -20 minutes of work involved and not a million dollars in gear and additives..

this plan was developed after many hours of research and all the tanks i reviewed seemed to be along these lines of ultra simple.. and many many of the more complicated tanks were failures... not saying they wont work but often they keep getting more laborious and complex...
 
#27 ·
following along with my last post i am curious about HOB size... i am thinking that this will primarily only filer off the top (i am making a skimmer box for the intake tube) so a smaller one would be ok to use... any thoughts on this? if in time i got a canister then it will do a bit more and have a space for carbon or chemipure (or some such product) but for now and the first few months (remember slooooooooww build) i think the smaller one should do the trick...
 
#28 ·
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