100 Gallon Rimless Build. It's WET!!

[medi]

Well I have finally made the plunge back into a large tank. Due to location I was restricted to a 36" wide tank so I couldn't go too big, but I think this will be a nice size and easily maintained.

On to the tank. I ordered a Glasscages rimless 36x37x18 tank that comes out to be just over 100 gallons. I will be taking this tank to Shane over at Fishy Business to have him drill 5 holes, 3 overflows and 2 returns,. Just in case ya'll haven't seen them he makes a very nice looking low profile overflow that takes up very little room. As of now I am planning on using a Mag 1200 for my return with the new Vortech EcoSmart MP40w for additional flow. As for the lighting I will be using my current lighting setup which is a Coralife aqualight pro 250W MH with 2x65W PC actinics. I plan to change this in the future, but I think it will be adequate for now until I can get the funds to upgrade. I still haven't made up my mind on the skimmer, but am thinking about the new SWC Xtreme 200 cone skimmer that is being released in May. I plan on making this SPS dominant with some LPS and zoas.

Now on to the stand. I had some free time last night so I was able to build the basic 2x4 frame that I will be using. Still needs quite a bit of work, but you should get the idea. My plan is to build a complete one piece skin that is fully removable in order to facilitate maintenance.

I have the basic plans of what I want in mind, but as I want to make sure I do this right the first time I am always open to suggestions or critizisms so please feel free to chime in.

Now on to a few pics.

[Jarob]

Awesome tank dimensions!!!! cant wait to see it!

[neogenix]

Looking forward to seeing how it goes ! :)

[medi]

I am almost finished with the base stand, put the first coat of primer on last night, and mdavis735 helped me build a removable outer skin to cover the base stand with. It still needs lots of putty, sanding, and maybe some moulding, but you can at least get the idea. Also, I ordered the upgraded drivers for my MP20 this afternoon so I may have one heck of a wave in my solana until I can get this tank up and running. Finally, my tank shipped from glasscages yesterday and is supposed to arrive on Tuesday.

[BIGBIRD123]

did you ship to your house or do you have to go and meet them to get it?

[medi]

I actually combined this with another tank being shipped to the austin area so I was able to have it shipped close to my house for dirt cheap

[BIGBIRD123]

How did the quality look? Glasscages is notorious for a crappy job of caulking...just curious.

[medi]

I don't know yet. The tank is supposed to arrive on Tuesday. I will be sure and post pictures and if there is any problem with the tank on here. I have the same concerns as I have heard of a few complaints about the caulk job, but I thought I would try it out and see what happens.

[BIGBIRD123]

I really hope they were in a good mood when the did yours. I know someone that got one and it looked like they smeared the edge caulking on with their finger...:(

[medi]

That's horrible...Did they do anything to remedy the situation? I know if mine turns out that way I will be making some phone calls.

[medi]

I picked up the tank from Bastrop this past Thursday. I am actually very happy with the way it turned out. I have to clean up the silicone, but I was kind of expecting that from glasscages. They also finally got a glass polisher so the top is a nice, smooth, beveled edge. Also, when I was down there I picked up a couple of plastic 25 gallon drums to use for my water station. Stephen aka hydro innovations hooked me up with an awesome deal.

Friday I started the day with a drive down to Kingfish. They gave me a hand with drilling the overflows and returns on the back glass. Turned out rather nicely if I do say so myself. The overflow box is rated at 1500 gph and has dual 1.5" outputs. I ordered it from glass-holes.com. They have a great looking product for a good price, just in case anyone is thinking about drilling their tank. I also picked up a 1" SCWD and a reeflo snapper pump to use for my return. I know this is probably way to much flow, but I figure i'll dial it down with a valve on the output and also it will be plumbed with 3/4" line so the back pressure should signicantly cut down the flow. I have to give props to Kingfish for all the help they have given me with this project. Without their help I'm not sure where this would be.

Finally I moved the tank to the base stand in my kitchen, wife's not happy about the current location, but I can't move it to the spot until I am ready to fully set it up. I also did a little more work on the stand's skin. Still needs alot of work, but it is coming along. Let me know what you think.

[BIGBIRD123]

How much silicone cleaning did you have to clean up? ...it looks really good...can't wait to see it up and running...

[medi]

Well they didn't trim the silicone off the bottom so every seam on the bottom had about 2 inches of silicone that had extruded after clamping. It was easy enough to get a razor and cut it off. Other than that there is just a few spots where they got silicone on the glass and a few areas that they got a a little careless while applying the silicone to the seams. Although I am not happy about having to do extra work to get a brand new tank up and running there is no way I could have found a better price and it should fairly easily all clean up.

[BIGBIRD123]

glad you're happy with it...looking forward to seeing it up and running. Please understand, I was not trying to interrogate you about the tank, just weighing all options for my coming upgrade

[medi]

I didn't take it that way at all. I understand the best way to learn is from experience so ask away.

[hobogato]

yep, that is pretty much what everyone says about their tanks. i guess i just got lucky when i got the 240 from them, they must have been a little more careful when they put it together. great price is hard to pass up :)

looking forward to seeing its progression


Well they didn't trim the silicone off the bottom so every seam on the bottom had about 2 inches of silicone that had extruded after clamping. It was easy enough to get a razor and cut it off. Other than that there is just a few spots where they got silicone on the glass and a few areas that they got a a little careless while applying the silicone to the seams. Although I am not happy about having to do extra work to get a brand new tank up and running there is no way I could have found a better price and it should fairly easily all clean up.

[aquasport24]

I like it alot. What kind of lighting do you plan to get?

[medi]

I like it alot. What kind of lighting do you plan to get?
For right now I plan on using my current setup which is a Coralife Aqualight Pro 1x250 MH and 2x65 PC actinics. I think this will work until I can afford the upgrade. In the future I am thinking about a 400W luminarc mini with two actinic T5s all nestled into a custom wood pendant.

[medi]

I just ordered my skimmer for this setup. I chose the SWC XTREME Cone Mini S. I think it's a little big for this setup, but I plan on having a pretty heavy stock so I think it will be worth it.

On a side note I'm not sure why they call this thing mini. It's huge!! 10.5 x 10.5 x 25

[BIGBIRD123]

For right now I plan on using my current setup which is a Coralife Aqualight Pro 1x250 MH and 2x65 PC actinics. I think this will work until I can afford the upgrade. In the future I am thinking about a 400W luminarc mini with two actinic T5s all nestled into a custom wood pendant.

You should come by next time you are in SA and check out my 36" tank with dual 250w w/Lumenbrite reflectors with the 4- T5s actinics (420nm/460nm). I used to have just one but had too many shadows...now all the corals are happy.

[medi]

You should come by next time you are in SA and check out my 36" tank with dual 250w w/Lumenbrite reflectors with the 4- T5s actinics (420nm/460nm). I used to have just one but had too many shadows...now all the corals are happy.
I might just have to do that. After thinking about your suggestion i think I will go with two 250w MH. It would be nice to see your setup for some ideas.

[medi]

It has been a few days since any updates. I finally finished my plumbing and I am not certain I am going to keep the returns the way they are currently. I had to use flex tubing to connect the SCWD to the returns, but unfortunately it wasn't flexible enough to connect them without running a lot of extra tubing in circles just to make it work. I know I am losing quite a bit of flow, but I just wanted to get some water in it and leak test everything. I will probably figure something out before the final placement. Other than that I got my new skimmer, leak the tested the system, and I get to report there was no leaks to be found. http://www.austinreefclub.com/public/style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif Also, I picked up 115 lbs. of LR from Chad and Belinda and I ordered my sand last night. I chose the Tropic Eden aragasnow. Hopefully it will arrive within the next two weeks. I want to get this moved to it's final spot within the next few weeks.

[medi]

Today I pulled my SCWD apart and discovered that the carrier had somehow come out of the internal groove and had become twisted inside the housing. I pulled it apart and everything should be working better now, but unfortunately I drained all of the test water and so now I won't know until I fill it up for real. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I'd hate to have to order something else. I know my wife is getting annoyed by seeing UPS dropping stuff off nearly everyday. To add to her frustration UPS dropped 90 lbs. of Tropic Eden Aragasnow on my doorstep, but hey what's a marriage if the wife isn't a little mad from time to time. http://www.austinreefclub.com/public/style_emoticons/default/smile.gif

On a side note I decided to change the sump that I had already plumbed. http://www.austinreefclub.com/public/style_emoticons/default/mad.gif I did this because I want to have a fuge and also I want a larger sump for equipment and the ability to hold a little extra water. I chose the PM R36+. I ordered it through RCA, but I have been in direct contact with PM. The standard fuge comes with dual 1" bulkheads and dual 4" filter socks. Since I have significantly more flow through my tank I didn't think that setup would work for me. They are building my a setup with dual 1.5" bulkheads and dual 7" socks. Unfortunately, I am having to sacrifice a small amount of room in the fuge so that I can squeeze my skimmer in next to the socks, but I think the reward will be well worth it. All in all this setup is getting very close to being finished. Which I am very happy about because I am starting to get antsy.

[jesserettele]

tagging along, looking great!

[medi]

Today I moved the aquarium to its new location and re-hung my light over it. I also started the very slow process of filling the tank with water from my RO/DI. I have a 75 GPD unit so I imagine it will be full sometime tomorrow. Assuming there is no new leaks then I will mix in the salt and hopefully get the sand and LR in and start the aquascape this weekend. My MP40 ES driver is supposed to come in Friday morning so I will have new toy to play with when I get off work. I am excited to see what kind of flow this thing is capable of. The lights in the pics are just my actinics. I had already turned my one 250 watt MH off, but I am actually very surprised how well it lit the tank. I still plan on changing it down the road, but I think it will work well enough for now. The pic of the internal components of the sump are just to show the craftsmanship that PM puts into their refugiums. I am still very impressed with this thing.

[hobogato]

that is so clean and perfect looking, great job!

look forward to seeing what you fill it with...

[aquasport24]

Very clean, how come you chose eggcrate over starboard?

[medi]

The eggcrate is only there to protect the bottom of the tank from the LR. I put in my sand bed over the top of the eggcrate. Not really necessary, but I can't see it hurting either.

[medi]

The tank is up and running. I moved all of my livestock over and so far everything is doing great. I like my first attempt at aquascaping because it give me a lot of room on the sandbed and I think it looks pretty clean. Also, it is very open so the fish have plenty of places to swim and there is not many places for detritus to build up. On the other hand I can't decide if I like the large center mass in the aquarium. I still am toying with the idea of two rock peninsulas with a valley in between. I can't decide. Any opinions?

[MRSBIGBIRD123]

I think I would be happier with 2 areas and use dual 250w like Steve suggested. It seems to me the top of the center is getting blasted with light in the last picture and the sides get limited light. I was the one who suggested to Steve to add the second light...:)

[BIGBIRD123]

I think I would be happier with 2 areas and use dual 250w like Steve suggested. It seems to me the top of the center is getting blasted with light in the last picture and the sides get limited light. I was the one who suggested to Steve to add the second light...:)

...and she's not gonna let me forget it...I am very satisfied with the way the lights have worked and my corals love it...