Nature Center Tank Build

[txstateunivreefer]

Ok so i have recieved approval to start the planning of a fish tank to go in the nature center down here. right now the idea is to attach a 45 gallon touch tank to the system, similar to a frag tank i suppose. I will need some guidance and i appreciate all the suggestions i can get. I am thinking a display tank in the realms of 100-200 gallons. lighting will be T-5 systems i dont know if i will use a fuge but i am thinking of using a Hiatt filtration system because of its power. the main display will hold red drum, speck trout, sheepshead, gaff top etc. (with the appropriate permits that is).

i will put an "economical" skimmer on im not sure what that will be just yet but i will see what develops. In the stand i am thinking of a lg sump that will spur off to the touch tank. under the touch tank is where the hiatt filter tubes will be.

If you see any problems with my schematic let me know. (sorry no sketch up its against corp. policy)

and yes everything will be upgraded with increase in tank size ie # of overflows etc.

we are planning on having some sort of hand sanitizing station so that cleaner hands are put into the tank.

as far as sand goes i got plenty of it on the beach i will clean it real well and plop it in there. crushed coral will be put on the bottom of the touch tank as a substrate. i think im gonna put LR rubble in the open space labeled TBD but im not sure if it is needed with the hiatt filter system.

also at my supervisors request she wanted it to where the touch tank could be seperated from the display and possibly taken into a classroom on the rare occasion that it was needed. hense the unions and ball valves in between the two. the touch tank is on the left and the display is on the right. let me know what yall think.
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w244/cr1161/untitled.jpg

[erikharrison]

I think the HIATT system is a wise choice here. Especially with all of the little hands :)

[txstateunivreefer]

that is what i was thinking a hiatt system can clean the chrome off a bumper. do you think that the plumbing etc is do able?

[erikharrison]

I think as far as the HIATT plumbing etc goes, Richard and bstreep would be the wisest in that department. I talked alot with them both when I was setting up my system.

[Bill S]

DUH! Why didn't I think of a Hiatt for this!

Make SURE you can easily backflush the filters. They need it at least once a month - maybe more in this setup. Either make them easy to remove or plumb in a backflush. We found the backflushing worked best when injected with a combination of water and pressurized air (compressor). Having the ability to feed fresh water and air into it backwards, with a BIG drain that can handle the volume might work.

[txstateunivreefer]

thats what i read off of about.com to make them flushable so i tossed in some extra ball valves and that extra outlet named flush. when you say compressed air would a venturi work what is the best means of injecting the compressed air

[txstateunivreefer]

thoughts on tank size?

[RayAllen]

Check this out

http://www.touchtanksforkids.org/techspecs/index.htm

[txstateunivreefer]

wow thats like what i do haha awesome website and resource thanks rayallen

[Jynxgirl]

I am just in awe that you get to do something fun like this. What do you do?

[erikharrison]

You should call B&B and ask Jeremy if he still has his. He took it down so maybe you could buy it.

[RayAllen]

When I was there on Saturday I think he had clams in it. Or maybe that was a diffrent tank in the same spot.

[txstateunivreefer]

I am a natural science educator i work for the lower colorado river authority. i work at a nature park that is basically on the beach down in matagorada texas we cater to school groups scouts and other groups and families that come down for education or recreational activities. some examples of these are beachcombing, seineing in the surf with kids, kayaking in the marsh, merit badge prgrms, if a teacher wants to get thier kids out of the classroom and wants a program we dont do YET we will make it happen we serve kids from all over the state. The nature park down here is one of many located along the colorado river. the flagship NP is Mckinney Roughs where i used to work and they boast a 1200gal freshwater system stocked with bass and sunfish.

The Matagorda Bay Nature Park opened a year ago this febuary and we are just about to start building our exhibit hall which will include a variety of exhibits of museum quality that will assist us as tools in educating the public about the importance of the marine habitat, our wetlands and try to cultivate "River Stewards" the park has a 60 slot RV/tent camping area next door which puts guests about 150 yds from the surf, and if you havent discovered matagorda yet you are missing out on the best kept secret on the texas coast.

thats what i do and where i work in a nutshell basically i am a teacher who gets to take kids on a field trip everyday and i dont have to deal with the disapline problems.


as for the tank i have chosen a 240 gallon 72x24x31

[txstateunivreefer]

does a HIATT system need a protien skimmer

[Bill S]

Wow. I did the math. $10K a year to keep one of these? OUCH!

[txstateunivreefer]

how did you come up with that #

[Bill S]

The website says that you need to get 109 sponsors to commit to $0.25 per day:

0.25 x 365 x 109 = $9,946.25

[Bill S]

A Hiatt probably doesn't need a skimmer.

[txstateunivreefer]

pfew i thought you meant that was how much this system would cost to run

[jl1199]

I got a 150 gallon that would work perfect for what you need!!!! LOL

[txstateunivreefer]

Ok so plans have changed. i talked to snake who developed the hiatt filter and for the system.
I decided to make the touch tank a stand alone system that will run on hiatt carbon tubes and a mechanical canister filter on somewhat of a closed loop. this will fufill the request of my supervisor, she wanted the touch tank to be mobile so we could wheel it into the classroom for a program.

the best news that i got was i called our accounting office to ask if i could purchase used goods or goods off of ebay craigslist maast marsh etc. they said yes so that means that i have the possiblillity of getting the items that i would need to make a large display at a lower cost. i reported this to my supervisor, instead of saying thats good she said build it bigger:shades:.

so now here is the plan the room is 31 ft across the tank and touch tank will be self standing displays in the middle of a room that can be walked around entirely without view obstruction. now the plan with the tank is to make it look like a section right out of the bay or gulf. we are going to stage it as it would look under a dock. because of this we will have 4 pylons, one running up each corner which will support the dock above the tank the stand will be adorned with oyster shells etc to make it fit in. the tank will have a width of 30 to match the touch tank width since they will be side by side in the middle of the room. i want it to be 30 in tall so that all of the fish have plenty of room to swim around. now where to put the overflows? my idea so far is to hide them behind the pylons which will have a quarter taken out of them so that they will go flush up against the tank. that way the tank can be viewed from all 4 sides. as far as stock goes it will be blue crabs for the clean up crew and the fish will rotate throughout the year and will be red fish, mullet, trout, sheepshead etc.

so first step is to try to find a tank. any tanks are game if they are big the dimensions are flex able but im looking to get something that will be 72"+ x ~30" x ~30" if you see something like these anywhere and we end up getting it i will give and ship you a frag pack from my personal tank. (glasscages doesnt count).

if there are any questions let me know.

[blueboy]

you could always go with center overflows. you could still hide them in the pylons, and it makes for nice swimming space for those big fish your putting in there.

[txstateunivreefer]

yup thats the back up plan but im willing to go either way.

[majesticreefs]

Chris,

This is Robert/Majesticreefs, I've spoke with your last week on your plan before I ask snake to give you a call. Based on what I read here, are you still plan to use the Hiatt system as a filtration? If you are I need to point out with the Hiatt system the water come out on top then drain out in the bottom, so there is no need for a overflow because overflow drains the water from the top.

[Richard]

Older post but if you are still in the process of setting this tank up let me know. I have some extra torpedo canisters that I can give you a good deal on. Both the small ones which hold around 10 lbs of carbon and I also have some big ones (around 4' tall) that can hold up to 55 lbs of carbon.