Pre-drilled tank question

[ecooper]

Hi, all. Trying to decide between a non or pre-drilled tank but have a question. If I go with the predrilled tank with the holes in the bottom, what happens if I need to do some sort of maintenance on the sump/refugium system or decide I don't like the sump? How do you keep the tank from completely emptying if I decide to disconnect the sump/refugium? I'm sure there's a way, right?

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by ecooper http:///t/397011/pre-drilled-tank-question#post_3537577
Hi, all. Trying to decide between a non or pre-drilled tank but have a question. If I go with the predrilled tank with the holes in the bottom, what happens if I need to do some sort of maintenance on the sump/refugium system or decide I don't like the sump? How do you keep the tank from completely emptying if I decide to disconnect the sump/refugium? I'm sure there's a way, right?

Hi,

I'm not a sump expert....but I think I can answer this one.

The tank will only drain to the point where it would when the pumps are turned off or there is a power failure, without a return pump on, the water level won't rise....then drain the hoses or PVC pipe, and work on the sump....if you decide to no longer have the sump, put a cap on the overflow tubes, so no water seeps into it anymore. As with all thing plastic, coralline will cover it and render it invisible to the eye, so no reason to remove it if it's up and running...otherwise you can cut down the drain pipe to about 1 or two inches and seal them with a cap....sand would cover it over and it would never be seen.

 

[silverado61]

Just chiming in here but if it's drilled on the bottom, to plug it, wouldn't the tank have to be drained first?

 

[2quills]

There shouldn't be any need to drain the tank. You can either cap the stand pipes inside of the overflows or plug the bulk heads with a $.50 pvc plug from the hardware store.
If you're getting into saltwater it's worth the extra $ for a pre drilled tank. Odds are you will want to try out a sump some day, IMO.

 

[ecooper]

Ok, thank you. I still don't quite understand, because with vents at the bottom, top and midlevel, it just seems like water would just continue to flow into the holes and out the tank. There's obviously something I don't understand about these in-tank sections. But, obviously smarter people than I have them figured out. Hey, give me a break, my PhD is in psychology so all I can do is tell you how these tanks make me feel...

Anyway, I'm finally decided on this list:

125g predrilled (unless I can get a good deal on the 150g predrilled)
oak stand and canopy
Eshopps R-300 Refugium/Sump

I'll put my Coralife Aqualight Pro and Fluval FX5 on it from the existing tank. I need to see if my HOB skimmer will hang on the Refugium. If not, I'll need to get another skimmer.

Just some other thoughts, I'm going with a much more shallow sandbed this time (not will to do BB) and only a little bit of sand in my refugium - it will mostly be rock and algae and some clean up crew.

I've really enjoyed reading everything here! I'll post pics of my current tank and then a blog of my new build! Thanks, all!

 

[2quills]

If you install bulkheads that are either threaded or slip fit on the bottom its simple to plug or cap them at the bottom. You can leave the stand pipes in. Water won't drain from the tank as long as its not entering the tops of the stand pipes.