New 300 gallon In-Wall tank build

[edat]

I have the next few nights off so the plan is to finally get the tank out of the garage and down to the basement on the stand.
I ordered this to use on the return of the CL. 1.5" with 6 1"outlets. I will only use 4 for now but I will cap off the other two so that I can use them later if needed.

I also got the bulkheads painted

 

[edat]

Looking into what type of "grill cover" to use on the return bulkheads.
I like the look of the 2" snap in drain. It fits right into the bulkhead but I'm concerned about it restricting too much flow.
What do you guys think?
If it is restricting too much then I will go with the 3" like Acrylic51.....

 

[acrylic51]

Looks good.....Make sure you put valves on all the outlets on your manifold.....As far as the bulkheads I did try the 2", but I to worried about the restriction.....Meaning it's super easy to get a piece of seaweed or such to block it up possible and at least with the 3" you have nothing really restricting the "inside" of the diameter.....I look at the 2" as actually restricting the bulkhead.....Just my .02

 

[edat]

Quote:
Originally Posted by acrylic51 http:///t/394784/new-300-gallon-in-wall-tank-build/100#post_3520135
Looks good.....Make sure you put valves on all the outlets on your manifold.....As far as the bulkheads I did try the 2", but I to worried about the restriction.....Meaning it's super easy to get a piece of seaweed or such to block it up possible and at least with the 3" you have nothing really restricting the "inside" of the diameter.....I look at the 2" as actually restricting the bulkhead.....Just my .02
How did you cut yours?

 

[edat]

Got the manifold today. I really like the look/size of it. I think it's going to work out well.

 

[acrylic51]

I'm assuming your referring to the bulkhead covers....I didn't cut them. If you go where you bought those snap in covers you'll find the diameter of the outside of the bulkhead and I just used my bench grinder to frind off the lip so it would. Sit flush or flat on the face of the bulkhead. A couple dabs of PVC glue holds them in place.

 

[edat]

Quote:
Originally Posted by acrylic51 http:///t/394784/new-300-gallon-in-wall-tank-build/100#post_3520196
I'm assuming your referring to the bulkhead covers....I didn't cut them. If you go where you bought those snap in covers you'll find the diameter of the outside of the bulkhead and I just used my bench grinder to frind off the lip so it would. Sit flush or flat on the face of the bulkhead. A couple dabs of PVC glue holds them in place.
Thanks, I will pick up some today and give it a shot.

 

[edat]

Decided just to do a simple glass corner overflow for the frag tank.
Used some glass that I had laying around and a have a few sch 40 1" bulkheads so I'm going to use one of them also.
The returns will come up and over the other end of the frag tank using PVC and loc-line.
I'm becoming an old pro at this drilling thing

 

[edat]

Its been over two weeks since the frag tank was built so I figured I would leak test it and the overflow.... So far so good, I will leave it for a couple days just to make sure

 

[edat]

Got the strainers for the 2" return bulkheads done.

 

[acrylic51]

Looks good!!!!! Were the strainers painless as I said?

 

[edat]

Quote:
Originally Posted by acrylic51 http:///t/394784/new-300-gallon-in-wall-tank-build/100#post_3520402
Looks good!!!!! Were the strainers painless as I said?
Very simple.
I didn't have anything to grind it with so I just attached it to a scrap 3' piece of 2x4 and ran it through my table saw to cut the excess off the back.
My only issue now is that I think I bought the wrong 1" bulkheads. I got the slip X thread. The 1" to 3/4" reducers that has the threads inside that I purchased from Lowes to slip into the bulkheads seem to be to small. A 1" piece of PVC even wiggles around inside the bulkhead.... I would think that it should be a tight fit just like any other PVC fitting....
I ordered all of the 3/4" Loc-Line for the CL returns and the overflow returns from BRS yesterday.
.

 

[sparty059]

Following along! I plan to do this in my basement as well over the next few months. Still planning the layout and such. How do your tanks handle the climate change? I'm assuming summer you don't encounter any issues as the basement is fairly cool. What about winter? Your heater running practically 24/7? I'm in Michigan so the climate is similar.

 

[edat]

I had metal halides over the 125 so in the summer I had to run fans or shorten the lighting period to help keep the temperature stable. In the winter the heaters only came on for short periods of time during the day and longer at night.
That is the main reason I switched over to LED for the 300..... I could not imagine having 4 250 watt metal halides running for 10 hrs a day!!

 

[sparty059]

Totally agreed. Plus, after seeing LED's on my Coral tank I don't think I'll ever switch back to anything else. The difference of color and shimmer is beyond worth the price to me!

 

[acrylic51]

Are you talking about the fit of the PVC pipe inside the sched 80 bulkheads......I didn't notice any issue with the threads of the sched 80 bulkheads, but did notice or thought the slip was a little sloppy on the sched 80 bulkheads.....

 

[edat]

Quote:
Originally Posted by acrylic51 http:///t/394784/new-300-gallon-in-wall-tank-build/100#post_3520638
Are you talking about the fit of the PVC pipe inside the sched 80 bulkheads......I didn't notice any issue with the threads of the sched 80 bulkheads, but did notice or thought the slip was a little sloppy on the sched 80 bulkheads.....
Exactly... the slip is very loose. I think with a little extra PVC cement it will be fine.... I should have gotten threaded.

 

[acrylic51]

Yeah it was a bit sloppy IMHO, but I glued the PVC into the bulkhead and everything was fine....I have run my system and have had no issues with any leakage except for where I forgot to glue a joint or bad valve or cracked bulkhead (of my doing).

 

[edat]

Well the tank is in the house but not downstairs yet so I decided to hookup the lights and "play" with them a little....

 

[edat]

I took a couple weeks vacation to see my brother in Alabama and with work and the holiday I haven't had a lot of time to do anything with the tank.
Today I finally get the tank out of the sunroom and down to the basement and onto the stand.

That was a real PITA and I will probably not do it again.
Not only did I have to take out half a wall in the 1/2 bath, I also ended up taking out the toilet and sink as well as the basement door and handrail.... But it's all going to be worth it in the end.
The tank looked big on the floor in my garage but seeing it on the stand makes the 125 seem tiny.... I've got to work the next four nights then I'll start working on the plumbing.