55gal. to 125gal. upgrade *updated pics on the last page*

cubnb79

cubnb79

Member
i just yesterday scored a 125. gal. tank and stand at a great price...i currently have a 55gal setup and has been up for about 7/8 months now...since then i've been on this forum and have learned tons and tons was about to start adding some coral until now with the up grade...now im back to square one in a sense...i know its going to take some time once i have the rest of the upgraded equipment to go along with the tank...i have a wet/dry sump now but want to get away from the nitrate bioball factory and do something diffrent as far as sump goes...i was kinda thinking doing canister filter b/c it seems easy and not much to maintain but also thinking maybe a 30 gal. sump with 3 chambers one for the skimmer, two for lr, and three for return...but not quite sure how to build or really how to go about it...i've looked around on here kinda got the idea but would like ideas for my specific situation...i plan on doing some reef with the current fish i do have which are...ocellaris clown, flame hawk, pearlscale butterfly, potters angle, and hippo tang (only about 1" big i got him with plans already to upgrade tanks, so i know the 55 is to small for him hints the new tank) here are few pics i got already starting the new build...
this is the tank i bought from the old owners house (freshwater)

i like black so here's the new paint job

and last pic of the night with some shiny door knobs

the 2x4 under the stand is for support for the floor of the stand that im also building for equipment since it didnt have a floor as you can see in picture #2...tank is empty just waiting for some time to get it clean clean...more pics to come as i know everyone loves pics....thanks for any advice
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Avoid a canister filter. They are more maintenance then you think. I'de go with a sump, 30g just like you said. Consider what lighting and protein skimmer you are thinking about adding to it. I'de also try to figure in an algae scrubber somewhere in the works. I'm looking forward to your build.
 
cubnb79

cubnb79

Member
lighting is up in the air guess i should of added that to the list too...im running 2 t5 bulbs now but i know that's not going to be enough for this tank but im taking one step at a time and filtration is my first goal then lighting then skimmer and whatever else i can add to help...im running corallife 65g skimmer now that works great after couple adjustments i know its not big enough for what im going to but im thinking (could be wrong) its better than nothing for right now anyways...as far as the 30g sump im assuming i'd just split the tank in equal parts and go from there???...ill have to look more into the scrubber i've seen them but to be honest havent really studied them
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
T5s are great for smaller tanks, but for larger tanks consider going with metal halides or even an led system if you are looking to get into corals. Look into ASM skimmers and octopus skimmers. Can't go wrong with those. Swf cone skimmers are also pretty dang good. If you go with a sump, a filter is just some filter floss placed between one of the baffles in your sump. Nothing fancy.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Algae scrubbers are pretty awesome. I enjoy them very much and they do more for nutrient removal than any protein skimmer I've ever had. It's worth looking into at least. I do have a couple of threads on algae scrubbers in my snakes methods thread. Check out another thread " progress shots of 110g show tank". You can do a search for it. The tank only uses a scrubber and it already has coralline algae exploding in it.
 
cubnb79

cubnb79

Member
ok cool yea i'd like to do led's but think the metal halides is going to be more cost effective for now i think....i check out you method threads later on today along with the 110g tank...i do have some coralline algae in my current tank which once i get enough argonite sand and the tank filled and cycled ill be seeding the tank with some my old sand/lr to hopefully jump start the tanks good stuff...im hoping to have this build completed within a couple months as far as up and running with fish etc. also be looking for fastest way to get tank cycled like with raw shrimp method...trying not to get in a hurry but cant wait for this tank to be up and going
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Yup, the raw shrimp method usually works the quickest, and safest route to go.
Any updates on your progress? Did you check out that thread?
 
cubnb79

cubnb79

Member
yea with the shrimp thing is what i've read for the most part on here...question is how many to use per gallon or does it really matter??? yup i just read the 110g thread really interested on the scrubber since i've always had small issue with nitrate but that could be b/c im using wet/dry with bio balls which im hoping to get away from with this new tank...i just i guess need directions on how to build one (scrubber) doesnt seem to difficult and looks like the pay off it well well worth the time...as far as updates the tank and stand are in place inside finally...cleaned the freshwater used tank couple times with water/white vineagar mix but cant get some residue off towards the top of the tank all the way around...its not bad but more annoying..any idea how to clean it up better w/o adding harmful chemicals??? ill take a picture of the location tomorrow and post...im hoping on getting 120lbs of argonite sand this weekend and 30g tank for sump...sump really isnt planned out on how to build yet i havent done enough research as im sure they're several diffrent ways but wanting to build the scrubber per instructions to find first...so other than that im thinking metal halides lighting but i havent started looking and not sure what output or bulbs im going to need...my brother is a electrician so maybe able to build that also well the housing anyways...i havent had much time here lately to read read and read...wish there was a published cheat sheet for these things...maybe someone should write one book with the most ideal ideas and well kinda a bible of what and how type of deal...even though i know every situation is not the same but would be easier than hours of searching...just my laziness since its ten till 1am and beers are starting to kick in lol...ok im done typing for this second so please feel free to seperate my rant and add answers lol...much thanks...
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
One small piece of shrimp is all that is needed. A very small piece... There should be enough dead stuff on the live rock to create enough of an ammonia spike to begin with.
YEah, check out my "Snake's Methods" thread and you will find some information on how to build and manage a scrubber. It's well worth the effort.
Three 250w 14k - 20k metal halides, either mogul base or HQI would be ideal for SPS and other really high lighting corals. Three 150w 10k-14k metal halides would be ideal for soft corals, LPS, and some SPS. Of course, halides have to be backed with a couple of supplemental actinics if you want the dawn/dusk effect. Retrofit kits are easy to set up, and are much cheaper than buying a fixture. I'm sure even you can figure out that a white wire goes to a white wire, black to black and green to green. :D
I am actually in the process of hammering out a book. I'm going to be a stay at home dad next year, and I need a project to work on to keep me busy, other than my daughter. So, I'll probably be finishing that up and getting ready for the editing process. I hope to find a couple of other experienced hobbyists to help contribute to the book as well.... Anyways, right now it's all up in the air.
 
cubnb79

cubnb79

Member
ok cool havent got to the methods thread yet...but i will i promise...lol yea im very experienced in the 12v area than 110v but common sense is common sense...i was actually thinking once all new sand is in i was going to take some of my current sand and place into tank and some of my un housed current rock to put in there and cycle the tank with a couple hob filters i got with this tank just to get things in motion...when you say small piece do you mean like a 1/4" chunk??? good deal on the book not sure how old your daughter is but congrats there also...
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Without bacteria from the live rock, your tank can't cycle. A diverse variety of bacteria and organisms dying and feeding on ammonia and nitrite is the way your tank cycles. Without them, your just letting a piece of shrimp decay in some saltwater. Lol. A 1/4" or less would be fine. (preferably less)
You can set the tank up and get everything going with dead sand and dead rock, but leave the shrimp out until you get a chunk of live rock. Then your tank can cycle.
 
cubnb79

cubnb79

Member
sounds like a plan...im assuming its not going to matter how much lr i put in there just to cycle the tank? i was just planning on putting maybe a 10lb rock in there....just to cycle
 
travelerjp98

travelerjp98

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by cubnb79 http:///t/389124/55gal-to-125gal-upgrade-and-questions#post_3437073
sounds like a plan...im assuming its not going to matter how much lr i put in there just to cycle the tank? i was just planning on putting maybe a 10lb rock in there....just to cycle
I would put more in at first. You could even mix some base rock and live rock so the nitrifying bacteria can populate the base rock, and you would also have live rock with the bacteria on it for cycling. Just IMO.
 
cubnb79

cubnb79

Member
yea i was thinking about doing that have to look at how much they are since my lfs sells lr for $3 per lbs. i have bigger rocks already for my foundation and i plan on getting flatter rocks to do some cliff/cave type of deal....might be adding water sometime early next week...
 
cubnb79

cubnb79

Member
its been few hours or so, be patient got a lot of stuff to pick up if im lucky ill have water in the tank today
 
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