The Biggest Little 10 Gal Reef! DIY

[gregghia]

So got rid of all my excess equipment from the first 6 months of reefing, thanks Deltablack22. Down to my 75gal which is gorgeous right now. So haven't done anything new in awhile so about to start a project. I really like nano tanks but I dont like the box kits except for the Red Sea max which is too expensive. I am going to do my own. I am going to do a 10 gal reef with a 10 gal sump which should give me a water volume of about 15 gallons. I am going to use it more for just coral fragging and maybe to introduce new fish if I get anymore.
Along the way was going to take photos and account for every penny I spend to see just how much a nano really costs. I am going to do a full sump with plumbing and the works. The only thing I have right now is two 10gal tanks and alot of scrap stuff from the first few tanks I had but still going to add up the expenses.
Would really like help and ideas along the way with things like, pumps, sump ideas, etc. I am probably doing a basic closed loop but thought about having maybe a three tank system that cascades down or something different. All imput and suggestions would be great. Other than that just want to have fun with it all!
I know so much more now than i did 6 months ago from the help of everyone here! Look forward to more....
Here is a quick shot of my 75gal with some corals I bought from grumpygils, aka the Coral master!

 

[mach03infront]

nice tank

 

[brandan]

Sweet, I'm subscribed!!!

You should do some cheep-o DIY MH. . . Here's a link. It is almost to good to be true. . . But it works, and his tank is the proof! https://forums.saltwaterfish.com/t/265435/70w-metal-halide-for-under-90/20#post_2217780

 

[gregghia]

Great link thank you. I am not sure about lights yet but links like this will help me decide! Going to read.... I don't mind plumbing but electricity scares me!

Dont want to build something that is going to burn the house down!

 

[gregghia]

Day 1
Got two 10 gallon tanks from the pet store and took one to LFS, Aquatica in Raleigh NC. Guys here are great very helpful and know what they are doing. They drilled a 1.5" hole for a drain at the back of the tank. I wanted to do an overflow like a megaflow but it would just take up too much space and they could not drill the bottom glass. I also got an overflow box and some plumbing parts and bulkhead. I got a bulkhead that has the barb fitting on the back for a hose which I made a mistake as I want to hard plumb the whole thing. Just need to take it back and exchange it.
Tanks x 2 = $20
Prefilter Box = $20
Hole drilled in one tank = $10
Plumbing pieces for the drain = $3
Bulkhead = $5
Total so far = $58

 

[gregghia]

Went to Lowe's to get some plexi to work on the sump first. The plexi glass sheets are about $20 so I decided to dig through the trash where they cut the stuff for scraps. I got a bunch of pieces and asked the manager and he gave it all to me for $2, great deal.
Got home and the first thing I did was trim the corner of the overflow box where it meets the glass. The corner does not fit well due to the harden glue inside the aquarium. Just used the Dremel and a grinding wheel. Took 1 minute.
Next I cut a bunch of pieces of plexi glass with the the Dremel too. Its real easy. I just used the metal cutting wheel and it went throught the plexi. Takes a couple of passes but after its scored well the plexi snaps off. I just used a Sharpie to marks the lines to use as a guide. Would have like a router but the Dremel got it done.
Now I have a ton of pieces of plexi cut so I am going to decide how to do the sump. I am going to use plexi despite the glass tank. I did not want to incur the cost of glass baffles as I did on my last tank. I have siliconed plexi to glass in my last aquarium and it worked well although I know its not advisable.
Plexiglass = $2
Total so far = $60

 

[gregghia]

Today sucked as I was using my Dremel cutting more plexi I burned out the motor in the drill so she is dead. Went to Lowe's and got a new Dremel for $40. I am not going to include this in the total costs of course as its a replacement and I didn't need it for the project. I did pick up a tube of Aquarium silicon for the baffles in the sump.
I also changed out the bulkhead from the LFS so now I can hard plumb rather then using flex tune.
Silicon tube = $4
Total so far = $64

 

[gregghia]

So I put way too much thought into the sump and baffles yesterday so I decided to just keep it simple. I cut three baffles and just a going to do a tier effect which should give me good water movement.
The first baffle on the left has slots cut at the bottom so water can flow under. I was going to put filter media there as the water falls into that compartment to filter debris. Then it should move upward to roll over the second baffle into a small fuge. I was going to put some chaeto in the second compartment. I left about 4 inches on te last compartment for whatever return pump i decide to get. Most mag pumps should fit in that 4" space. But i haven't decided on the pump yet.
Any suggestions.... I really want a vlaue as I am trying to do this relatively inexpensive.

 

[gregghia]

I was thinking of making a stand in which people can see the DT and the sump. Thought it would be cool so people understand what is going on. After finishing the sump today I am not going to win any awards for best looking sump. Its about 95 degrees and the silicone was just a mess. I was thinking of maybe using electrical tape on the outside of the sump glass to cover up the baffle and glue. Might frame it to make it look better. Any ideas?????

 

[deltablack22]

Cool, I'm glad you ended up doing a diary here... It looks good so far. I wouldnt use electrical tape to cover the seams though. You should just trim the silicone with a razor blade and if you really wanted to cover it from the outside I would just tape it off and paint it black.

 

[triga22]

This looks great. im thinkin of a 10 gallon DIY.

 

[gregghia]

Alright I am about to work on the stand tomorrow. Looking for any and all suggestions on a cool stand, maybe something different from the norm. I am not real creative but can copy whatever I see.
Also wanted some suggestions on a pump and lighting.
I was thinking compact flour lighting as the corals I have seem to do better under CF. Any good cheap alternatives other than waiting for someone on SWF.com to sell something used.

 

[psusocr1]

as i noticed you mention something about making the stand so you cans ee the sump/ refugium etc.. here is what i did, everyone loved it, got many compliments when people came over to buy frags from me.. perfect viewing of my 55 gallong refugium.. i didnt choose to show my 45 gallon sump because it was full of equiptment

 

[gregghia]

psusocr1 thanks for the pics....
anyone else out there got good stand ideas?
I jut bought 4, 8' 2x2 fir strips I was going to use for a basic stand. Just going to make it open so that you can see the sump and I will make a basic canopy so no matter what light I go with it will be somewhat raised off the DT itself to avoid heat issues and allow me to stick my hand in the tank.
ANY STAND IDEAS?
2x2s = $8
TOTAL SO FAR = $72