Yerboy's rimless SPS build

yerboy

yerboy

Active Member
Well i dont have the tank yet and i havent even moved into the house that will hold this tank or decided on what size tank im going to get but im bored so i decided to start my build thread for mainly advice on equipment, fish, beer and music so on and so forth.
I do have my choices down to 3 tank sizes
120 Gal. (Rimless)48 x 24 x 24 Tall
190 - 4 Wide (Rimless)48 x 36 x 24 Tall this is the most likely choice with 3 sided starfire
240 Square (Rimless)48 x 48 x 24 Tall
This is the wall where the tank will go.

and this is directly behind that wall and will be used as my sump/equipment room.

Most likely i will be using the ATI 48" 10x54W Powermodule fixture. This gives me a good option for bulb choices for the exact color i want.
Equipment i own now that will likely be used is a PM Kalkreactor, SWC Mini cone skimmer, 100 rubbermaid sump, and a reefkeeper 2.
Im thinking 2-4 vortec mp 40s. I really hate the idea of putting a pump on the starfire sides of the tank so i will just put them on the back facing forward.
I have a small calcium reactor setup but not sure if it will be large enough for this setup so im debatting a larger reactor or just going with 2 part.
I do plan on buying a doser when i start this build so that will be a decision i could make later into the build.
Im still debatting if i will go barebottom or sandbed. I have done both in the past with other tanks and barebottom was so much easier imo to maintain. Maybe i will epoxy a small ammount of sand to the bottom just for looks and can keep high flow on it without it moving.. not sure if anyone has tried that but advice would be helpfull.
here is my swc mini cone. in the process of curing/cycling some old LR thats been sitting dry for about a year. I spiked it with about 12oz of nog so its running harder then it should.



more to follow.
 
yerboy

yerboy

Active Member
i move in jan 29th. so hopefully the build will start soon after.
Im getting a new house atleast so im excited.
 
rlablan

rlablan

Active Member
Lovely house. Those floors are a great color.
That tank will look great there. I am following along for this one!
 
yerboy

yerboy

Active Member
Wife tells me today that she thinks something died in the basement. Was a pretty nasty odor down there. Luckily she didn't go into the garage where the skimmer is because its pretty rancid in there. Im pretty amazed at this skimmer it pulled out 48oz of nog in about 2 hours when i set it up and is now pulling out a thick coffee colored liquid that just plain stinks, like i said my whole garage smells of dead fish and my basement next to my garage has also started to stink.
$300 bucks for a cone skimmer that pulls this much gunk is
in my book.
 
9supratt4

9supratt4

Active Member
Sounds exciting!! But personally...I looked into the Starphire glass and for that size tank, you should save the money because there isn't much difference. They both look very similar on that glass thickness.
When you get into the much thicker glass, then that is where the difference comes in....just my opinion. I'd save the money and spend it on other things.
 
9supratt4

9supratt4

Active Member
Oh...and if you are going to be going dedicated SPS tank...you are going to need the side to side flow....just one current from back to front will not make your SPS happy. They really like alternating flow, which you can get with the MP40w's. I use 2 of them in my 180 and they are happy as can be!!
 
yerboy

yerboy

Active Member
the glass will be 3/4" at that thickness there isn't much difference?
I just hate the idea of putting powerheads on the side of the tank but if it becomes a must then its a must.
 
9supratt4

9supratt4

Active Member
Originally Posted by yerboy
http:///forum/post/3203166
the glass will be 3/4" at that thickness there isn't much difference?
I just hate the idea of putting powerheads on the side of the tank but if it becomes a must then its a must.
Yeah...my 180 is 3/4" glass...the LFS I bought it from had a 180 with the starphire glass and honestly....there was not a lot of difference...don't get me wrong...it was a bit clearer, but nothing where I said WOW.
I have a Vortech on each side....it doesn't look bad.
 
yerboy

yerboy

Active Member
Here is a side by side pic of normal glass and starfire glass. Both 3/4"

I think ill stick with the starfire at least on the front.
 
rlablan

rlablan

Active Member
I don't really see an advantage to doing the starfire on all sides. If it were my money, I would do starfire on front and regular on the sides. Since you're not using the tank as a wall divider or a peninsula style, I would not spend the extra money.
 
yerboy

yerboy

Active Member
Originally Posted by rlablan
http:///forum/post/3207016
I don't really see an advantage to doing the starfire on all sides. If it were my money, I would do starfire on front and regular on the sides. Since you're not using the tank as a wall divider or a peninsula style, I would not spend the extra money.
its going to stick out 36 to 48 inches from the wall " still up in the air on tank atm" so that will be a pretty big portion out in the open thats why im considering starfire on all sides. And the additional cost of adding starfire to the sides vs what the total setup is going to cost is only a very small % more.
 
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