BestMomEver
2500 Club Member
I bought the Tunze 9001 skimmer for my Biocube 32. It fits snugly into chamber 2. You might look at that one as a possible.
A 25 Gallon reward for success
- Thread starter JBKReef
- Start date
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OP
OP
Thanks for asking! Things are on hold until we finish up the stand. That being said the newly acquired father in law has an amazing wood shop in his basement and we are about a weekend away from wrapping it up.
I did not have shop in high school and growing up my fathers hobbies were more towards landscaping and travel than any kind of trade that could be handed down. So this is my first real crack at a wood project, thankfully the engineer/father in law was guiding me the whole way. Here are some photos of the process so far. Excuse my completely lack of knowledge for what we're building.
Here is a quick look at about half the shop. The Table saw, work bench, planer, and various other tools.
The stand once it is finished will be roughly 26x24x30 (lxwxh) giving us about a 2 inch ledge all around the tank. It's going to be made out of red cedar (the shop smelled like the inside of a humidor all weekend) and will be stained upon completion. I'm debating about also using a couple coats of of poly. The father in law (here to fore mentioned as FIL) wanted to make the project his own a bit and overrode my design i found on reef central for a basic pine stand skilled with nicer plywood and insisted on making a piece of furniture. With the tank only being 25 gallons I kind of let him run with it.
Here are some progress shots of what we were working on this weekend. We did what are in the biz called through tenon and mortise joints. It was a lot of fun and really made the project a challenge. I can confirm there are not many things out there that made you feel more manly than wood shavings in your hair.
Bonus shot of the shop dog. (And the FIL)
Last edited:
OP
OP
Ask and you shall receive. After another partial weekend in the wood shop we made great progress. The stand is nearly finished. The structure is all put together all that is missing is the tabletop which will be made from 2x8's biscuted together and a stain. This bad boy will end up being about 29 inches wide and 26 inches deep. I'm going to have anywhere from a 3-4 inch ledge around the tank which I guess will be helpful when doing maintenance. Not exactly the design I had pictured in the beginning but it came out so much better. Its my first project for anything major DIY and I could not be happier with the progress. Based on conversations with the FIL we will finish up the stand over the next weekend we both have free Sept 14/15th. Until this I'm just going to keep patient, ensure the rocks in the brute are still curing well and prepare for the tank to get wet. Really exciting times are on the horizon!
OP
OP
Spoke to the FIL and it looks like he finished the top of the stand and staining it without me. Should be able to get the tank salty next week! Very excited right now.
OP
OP
With the stand design switching from having a door to an open front I'm wanting to upgrade my ATO container from a simple 5 gallon bucket to something that will not look terrible to the eye.
Anyone have an opinion on how this could function as a simple, sleek top off container?
https://www.amazon.com/mDesign-Stor...36849972&sr=8-49-spons&keywords=mDesign&psc=1
Its clear, BPA free food safe plastic.
Anyone have an opinion on how this could function as a simple, sleek top off container?
https://www.amazon.com/mDesign-Stor...36849972&sr=8-49-spons&keywords=mDesign&psc=1
Its clear, BPA free food safe plastic.
What is the largest FISH TANK you can fit?
The good things about using a fish tank...
Inexpensive
Nice looking
Glass top cover
Easy to clean
Reef safe
Come in different sizes and shapes
I've got a 10 gallon tank as an ATO and a 20 gallon high tank as a saltwater holding tank.
The good things about using a fish tank...
Inexpensive
Nice looking
Glass top cover
Easy to clean
Reef safe
Come in different sizes and shapes
I've got a 10 gallon tank as an ATO and a 20 gallon high tank as a saltwater holding tank.
OP
OP
You really read my mind, my wife and I picked up two 10 gallon tanks for TTM but never got it off the ground, sticking with Copper Power and I think one of the the spare 10 gallon tanks will fit under here.
OP
OP
Alright, we're in position. Stand has been delivered and while its exactly as a I planned, I might have gone a bit overboard on the size required. This is by far without a doubt going to hold up these 25 gallons.
OP
OP
10 gallon slides in nicely
OP
OP
Alright so as of 9/17... we're wet!
So for a "25 gallon tank" after sand and rock I got about 18 gallons of water. Man this is going to make water changes so easy.
After about 12 hours we were still very cloudy, I woke up the next morning to crystal clear water, howver I'll say this Fiji pink sand is very fine. I've been playing around with the scape and anytime I move a rock we're getting a dust cloud. I'm hoping once everything settles in the particles will get washed out via my socks/floss.
Here are some shots of the scape I've settled on for now. A front, side, and top down view. We have some swim throughs, valleys, and varying height. I formed a bit of a lagoon for the tank to also have areas of high and low flow with the gyre. Again this is just a fist swing at scape, once I really get to know flow and how things progress I'll decide if I want to switch it up some more. I wanted to make this happen without any mortar and so far they're all steady without needing any adhesive.
I have some marinepure gems (the 90 gram gems, not the spheres or cubes) on order that I will put into the second chamber in a InTank fuge basket behind an InTank media basket in the first chamber. On the opposite side I'm going to have an InTank floss holder and then nothing else in the first or second chambers at this time. I'm leaving the second chamber open on one side to allow for expanding into either a skimmer or reactor. I'll see how much filtration is really needed once I get the chemipure blue in and have all my marinepure cooked. Any suggestions on alternative uses for the second chamber?
I ended up going with two 75Watt neotherms instead of one larger heater. This allowed me to keep a lower water level in the rear chamber, not relying one on heating element, and utilized both plugs on my inkbird temp controller. For now I'm letting the Neotherms use their internal thermostats to regulate temp and only having the inkbird as a backup incase one fails in the on position.
The Tunze 3155 has been super simple to set up and use. I will say I was surprised how large the form factor is for the sensors and to get them to fit how I wanted within the center chamber I had to detach the float valve and use the included second set of magnets. This allows for additional room for error with water changes, as well as moving the scape around in the tank without setting off the alarm. I will say comparing the Tunze 3155 to the Neptune ATK the Tunze motor is significantly louder. Outside of that the Tunze is winning in form factor, performance, ease of use, and setup time. Longevity will be the key to winning outright though.
I'm going to be dosing some BioSpira once my marine pure arrives and then the cycle begins. I have some Dr Tims ammonia so we should be up and running in no time. I'm hoping the time it was curing in the brute with some leftover biospira from my QT tank, and occasional drops of ammonia will make this a super quick cycle. Only time will tell!
Happy reefing everyone!
So for a "25 gallon tank" after sand and rock I got about 18 gallons of water. Man this is going to make water changes so easy.
After about 12 hours we were still very cloudy, I woke up the next morning to crystal clear water, howver I'll say this Fiji pink sand is very fine. I've been playing around with the scape and anytime I move a rock we're getting a dust cloud. I'm hoping once everything settles in the particles will get washed out via my socks/floss.
Here are some shots of the scape I've settled on for now. A front, side, and top down view. We have some swim throughs, valleys, and varying height. I formed a bit of a lagoon for the tank to also have areas of high and low flow with the gyre. Again this is just a fist swing at scape, once I really get to know flow and how things progress I'll decide if I want to switch it up some more. I wanted to make this happen without any mortar and so far they're all steady without needing any adhesive.
I have some marinepure gems (the 90 gram gems, not the spheres or cubes) on order that I will put into the second chamber in a InTank fuge basket behind an InTank media basket in the first chamber. On the opposite side I'm going to have an InTank floss holder and then nothing else in the first or second chambers at this time. I'm leaving the second chamber open on one side to allow for expanding into either a skimmer or reactor. I'll see how much filtration is really needed once I get the chemipure blue in and have all my marinepure cooked. Any suggestions on alternative uses for the second chamber?
I ended up going with two 75Watt neotherms instead of one larger heater. This allowed me to keep a lower water level in the rear chamber, not relying one on heating element, and utilized both plugs on my inkbird temp controller. For now I'm letting the Neotherms use their internal thermostats to regulate temp and only having the inkbird as a backup incase one fails in the on position.
The Tunze 3155 has been super simple to set up and use. I will say I was surprised how large the form factor is for the sensors and to get them to fit how I wanted within the center chamber I had to detach the float valve and use the included second set of magnets. This allows for additional room for error with water changes, as well as moving the scape around in the tank without setting off the alarm. I will say comparing the Tunze 3155 to the Neptune ATK the Tunze motor is significantly louder. Outside of that the Tunze is winning in form factor, performance, ease of use, and setup time. Longevity will be the key to winning outright though.
I'm going to be dosing some BioSpira once my marine pure arrives and then the cycle begins. I have some Dr Tims ammonia so we should be up and running in no time. I'm hoping the time it was curing in the brute with some leftover biospira from my QT tank, and occasional drops of ammonia will make this a super quick cycle. Only time will tell!
Happy reefing everyone!
vetteguy53081
Well known Member and monster tank lover
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Ask and you shall receive. After another partial weekend in the wood shop we made great progress. The stand is nearly finished. The structure is all put together all that is missing is the tabletop which will be made from 2x8's biscuted together and a stain. This bad boy will end up being about 29 inches wide and 26 inches deep. I'm going to have anywhere from a 3-4 inch ledge around the tank which I guess will be helpful when doing maintenance. Not exactly the design I had pictured in the beginning but it came out so much better. Its my first project for anything major DIY and I could not be happier with the progress. Based on conversations with the FIL we will finish up the stand over the next weekend we both have free Sept 14/15th. Until this I'm just going to keep patient, ensure the rocks in the brute are still curing well and prepare for the tank to get wet. Really exciting times are on the horizon!
is this stand going to be able to hold the tank up?? LOL _ This is solid construction at its best!!! Great work !
vetteguy53081
Well known Member and monster tank lover
Partner Member 2024
Excellence Award
Reef Tank 365
RGB
Article Contributor
Tampa Bay Reef Keepers
West Palm Beach Reefer
Hospitality Award
Ocala Reef Club Member
305 Reef Club
Wisco Reefers
Midwest Reefer
Fish Medic
MAC of SW Florida
Rock Pool Reef Keepers
R2R Secret Santa 2023
My Tank Thread
My Aquarium Showcase
Always nice to see a work in progress !!
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