Need Help Selecting a New Tank and Sump.

[sweatervest13]

Okay, a couple of months ago I bought a used 125g tank and stand off of CL. I had to sweet talk the wife into letting me do this but it was easy because I got a good deal. I then decided to take apart the stand and reinforce it a bit and skin it better ( I have a thread on this in the DIY section, just saying). Well the tank itself was in okay shape the silcone was peeling a little on the edges but I did see the tank full and it had no leaks, but I still had an uneasy feeling. Also, the tank was not drilled and for what I would have to spend to put overflows on it was close to what a new tank would cost. So I put it back up on CL and got the money back (almost all, I kept the stand and canister filter two submersible heaters and sold it for $75.00 less) and decided to buy a new drilled tank.
I have a few choices here on what tank to get. I want a 125g 72x18x22 drilled tank to fit my new stand. The first choice is a Perfecto dual corner overflow for $475 this has all plumbing included. Second is a Aqueon mega-overflow (center of the tank) also for $475 does not include plumbing. Both of these are standard tanks that I could pick up at the LFS (a few different ones have them for that price). The third option Spanko turned me on to, Great Lakes Aquariums can custom build one for me that had some add ons that I could choose base price is $464.00. The extras are Starphire glass front for like $171.00 (prob too much $$ to do), black silcone $25.00, upgraded overflows and return lines not sure the price. Plus shipping, but I don't need to pay because these guys are literally on my way home from work in the Metro Detroit area. Who knew?? Not me.
I am leaning towards the Great Lakes Aquarium one. The stock 125g that they have instock has a centered overflow, but I think I will do custom and add the black silcone. The reason I want the custome is because when I was upgrading my stand I put a 3/4 in sheet of blonde plywood on the top. I was thinking I was going to drill the other tank on the back glass and have the plumbing or overflow back a couple of inches to go down to the sump. Welllllll, on a reef ready tank the holes are of course on the bottom glass where I have a top. I do not mind drilling/cutting a small cut out in the top, but smack dab in the center of where the overflow holes is a 2x4 support. So I am going to ask if when they build the tank if they can off center the holes by a couple of inches. Does anyone think that it would be an issue to make a small cut out in the top to accomidate the plumbing???
Does anyone recommend the Perfecto or Aqueon??
For a sump I was orig thinking about a DIY out of a 55g which I still might do. The Great Lakes guy does have a package with a custom sump as well for just a bit more then it would cost for a DIY. But their sumps are weird and I dont know if it is bad weird or just different werid. By weird I mean that they dont use 3 baffels for a bubble trap they have just a glass seperator. They don't use filter socks, they use a media box that directs water into two different chambers. here is a pic.
The far left chamber is for a skimmer, the middle for a fuge, and the far right is for a return pump. IDK about is set up. What do you guys/gals think??
Sorry this thread is a bit of a novel but I want to do this right and I really love the input I have gotten here so far, you guys are the best. Here are some pics of the stand.
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This is the old tank that is now sold and the stand that I redid. Just cause I know everybody loves pics!!!!

 

[sweatervest13]

Great Lakes also had a 145g Show tank. Same footprint but a bit taller 72x18x26. This is for $120.00 more then the 125g. Would the extra 4" in height be a huge issue for lighting? What would the benefits of a taller tank besides more volume? I would like to go with MH or LED
ANY input on this would be helpful for me. I would like to get the ball rolling soon.

 

[sweatervest13]

Bump.... Anyone have any input on this???

 

[nikesb]

if its mh on good reflectors or good leds, then the 4" would be no issue really. at the bottom you should only see a differece of ~50 par. as for the dimensions, id prefer more shallow and deeper than taller and leaner.

 

[sweatervest13]

Quote:
Originally Posted by nikeSB http:///forum/thread/385633/need-help-selecting-a-new-tank-and-sump#post_3383136
if its mh on good reflectors or good leds, then the 4" would be no issue really. at the bottom you should only see a differece of ~50 par. as for the dimensions, id prefer more shallow and deeper than taller and leaner.
Thanks for the input nikeSB (professor). I have a cheapo MH T-5 combo unit that I plan on using until I get good LED's. I agree I like the look of a shallow tank. I will keep it a 125g. Have you ever seen a sump like the one I put a pic up for?? No fliter sock, and one baffle not three for a bubble trap is not the norm, but is it okay to use? Or should I invest in a DIY or buy a traditional sump?

 

[nikesb]

for your sump, i would either do diy or invest in someone making one for you. check out melevs sump designs and see what would suit you more and design according to that

 

[monsinour]

Good ole GLA. I found them on the internet way back when I was about to get an aquarium. I was looking at the 60G cube designs. I liked them enough to give them a call about shipping and whatnot. They said they would ship and that the shipping charges were more than the tank and stand combined. Needless to say, it turned out to be a non option for me. As far as had I lived closer, yes I would have bought from them if I could have picked it up. My research revealed that they make quality tanks.
My tank now is 24" tall and that is way too tall for me. My arm doesnt fit all the way to the bottom and with the tank on the stand, I have to use a step stool to get to the top. If I had to do it all over again, I would have focused on tanks no taller than 18" just so that I could reach almost all of the tank with my hands. My next tank will probably have to be custom made as I want a huge tank that is not tall at all. Then again, I gotta find a house to put this tank in.

 

[sweatervest13]

Quote:
Originally Posted by nikeSB http:///forum/thread/385633/need-help-selecting-a-new-tank-and-sump#post_3383148
for your sump, i would either do diy or invest in someone making one for you. check out melevs sump designs and see what would suit you more and design according to that
Cool thats what I thought about the sump. The guy there gave me a speal about how bubble traps don't really work anyways and yada, yada, yada about the sump. Plus for the price he was charging I could prob get one custom made. Thanks nike!!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Monsinour http:///forum/thread/385633/need-help-selecting-a-new-tank-and-sump#post_3383150
Good ole GLA. I found them on the internet way back when I was about to get an aquarium. I was looking at the 60G cube designs. I liked them enough to give them a call about shipping and whatnot. They said they would ship and that the shipping charges were more than the tank and stand combined. Needless to say, it turned out to be a non option for me. As far as had I lived closer, yes I would have bought from them if I could have picked it up. My research revealed that they make quality tanks.
My tank now is 24" tall and that is way too tall for me. My arm doesnt fit all the way to the bottom and with the tank on the stand, I have to use a step stool to get to the top. If I had to do it all over again, I would have focused on tanks no taller than 18" just so that I could reach almost all of the tank with my hands. My next tank will probably have to be custom made as I want a huge tank that is not tall at all. Then again, I gotta find a house to put this tank in.
Yes, their tanks look well built. I am super lucky that they are in my back yard. I was checking out Glass-cages website and was almost willing to drive out there to pick one up, but then came accross GLA and went in to their show room and talked with the guy for about an hour. Good guy, but IDK about his sumps. Thanks for the input Monsinour!!!

 

[sweatervest13]

Nike, I found Melevs site and it is pretty cool. I emailed him to get an idea of what a custom sump would cost. Thanks for the referral over to him. I would imagin that it is kind of costly so I might need to get my tools out and do a good ol DIY project. One question on that if anyone knows. Can you use a glass tank and acrylic baffles??? IDK about my skills with glass.
thanks.

 

[nikesb]

i wouldnt have melev make the sump, he's overpriced LOL. melev has become a brand name in this hobby.
if you can find someone close by, thatd be your best bet. do you have a local forum or MAS society close by?

 

[sweatervest13]

Quote:
Originally Posted by nikeSB http:///forum/thread/385633/need-help-selecting-a-new-tank-and-sump#post_3383357
i wouldnt have melev make the sump, he's overpriced LOL. melev has become a brand name in this hobby.
if you can find someone close by, thatd be your best bet. do you have a local forum or MAS society close by?
Ya, there is michiganreefers.com I will go check them out and see if there is anyone local. BTW in the future I will have lots of questions for you on LED lighting. It just seems the best way to go right now. I love the no bulb replacement on the LED's.

 

[nikesb]

sure no problem. spanko and 2quills are great people to ask to

 

[sweatervest13]

2quills has been a great help for me on my stand build so far. And Spanko was the one who turned me on to the manufacturer. So I completely agree. You guys are B.A!!!!

 

[2quills]

That Spanko is a baaad mammer jammer fo-sho.
The aqueon tanks seem pretty well built. I believe aqueon actually owns ALL GLASS now so that's basically what they are. The lfs down here sells them, they have thick glass and good silicone work. I do believe they make them with dual overflows...they're not in the corners but they are on the back near the corners. If you asked your lfs they could probably order one of those if you don't like the center overflow. I've been around the net a little bit and heard good things about the great lakes tanks also. Funny, I lived in the detroit metro area for 14 years and never heard of them untill I moved lol. I might try them just to support a local business. Heaven knows michigan business could use it.
DIY'ing your own sump is super easy. Here's a shot of a 55g that I innitially set up for my 120g tank. I ended up breaking it down though because I decided I wanted to try my hand at building a custom acrylic sump instead. But this was real easy to make and didn't cost that much since a friend had given me the 55g for free. You can get glass baffles cut and purchased from a local glass shop for about $40 or under. Just have to silicone them in. I had acrylic baffles in this one.

 

[sweatervest13]

Okay so I am pretty sure that I am going with Great Lakes for the tank and that I will try to DIY my sump. I went to a LFS yesterday and priced out some of the pre packaged sumps and IMO they are way overpriced. Why not try to make one and put the money I save into a good skimmer or other stuff for the tank.
2quills, I really like the way you put that sump together. I am not sure that I can fit a 55 under my stand so I want to mock somthing up and see what can be shoehorned in there. I hope you don't mind I am going to try to go off of your sump design from the pic you put up. Do you have a thread on building that?

 

[2quills]

Sumps are pretty pricey. But then again a quality acrylic isn't cheap either. I don't mind, I pretty much just made a modified version of one of Melev's designs anyway. If you're not able to fit a 55g under the stand then alot of guys usually end up using two smaller tanks as opposed to one large tank. If you don't mind drilling a couple of holes then you can use one for your skimmer and return and the other tank for a fuge.
https://forums.saltwaterfish.com/forum/thread/377774/55g-sump-build