22 gallon Sumpless DREAM BUILD!

[Denisk]

Hey all!

It seems like anyone who has ever had some positive success in the hobby can never really leave the hobby for good. I haven’t had a true reef tank set up for about a year in a half to two years at this point. I’ve had beautiful Red Sea tanks, a 200 gallon planet aquarium that was designed for the original owner by mrsaltwatertank and have even had a 22 gallon with a sump in the past. Out of all the tanks I’ve owned some how I never was pleased with the turn out with the original 22 gallon. So here I am trying to do it again with a nano build and why not share the build with everyone!

The plan:
The 22 gallon was decided on bc I loved the dimensions and the rimless look. It’s a beautiful tank with dimensions that make you feel like it’s much larger than it really is. I decided to go sumpless since there was no room for a sump due to the stand decisions I had made. The rock will most likely come from kp aquatics and I have some dry rock as well once I figure out the desired aquascape. Filtration plan is going to be the rock and water changes. Im most likely going bare bottom and no skimmer. As I watch the tank, I will add a airstone skimmer if I feel like I need it. The reason I’m not starting with a skimmer is I have delt with dinos in the past and I feel like it’s so easy to strip your water of nutrients.

Current equipment:

Tank - Mr Aqua 22 gallon

Stand - custom built by myself

Lighting - 2 ecotech radion xr30w gen 4 pros (yes overkill but I love it)

Ato / surface skimmer - Xp aqua sumpless ato

Powerhead - ecotech MP10 (somewhere lost in the mail)

Controller - 2016 apex

 

[lapin]

Nice

 

[Denisk]

Nice

Thank you!

 

[Denisk]

The decision to do this build came back in October of 2020 and since then I had a few ups and downs. One being the tank and two being the stand. It took 3 tanks to be shipped from @Bulk Reef Supply to finally on the third attempt it wasn’t damaged and in perfect shape. As I originally was disappointed with the whole ordeal, I still feel important to let everyone know that they did come through to try to make things right and I’m glad that third tank came in great shape!

first tank

The stand was the second issue. I originally had a mid century console and really wanted something that would function as a aquarium stand but also aesthetically look good as well. But after taking the advice from good friends and sleeping on it, I decided to build a custom stand and I had a great idea in mind and honestly I’m 1000 times happier with the turn out!

original stand idea

 

[Denisk]

When I realized I was going to build a stand, I wanted something unique and something that no one really had and that’s where I found the perfect idea online. The only concern I had was everything going to fit in my car haha

December 17th 2020

Barely fit

Made a nice little arm rest for the time being haha

 

[MONTANTK]

What is going to be your source of filtration?

 

[Denisk]

What is going to be your source of filtration?

So that’s currently up in the air. On the 200 gallon I ran a large reef octopus skimmer, the Red Sea tanks I’ve always ran either a small bubble magus skimmer or taken it offline. So I think it’ll just be the live rock which I will most likely be getting some from kp aquatics. No skimmer and no sand bed but I will have weekly water changes in place.

 

[MONTANTK]

So that’s currently up in the air. On the 200 gallon I ran a large reef octopus skimmer, the Red Sea tanks I’ve always ran either a small bubble magus skimmer or taken it offline. So I think it’ll just be the live rock which I will most likely be getting some from kp aquatics. No skimmer and no sand bed but I will have weekly water changes in place.

This might be a good option! They come in a few different sizes too. Saw them for the first time today and thought it was a good idea

All-in-One Drop-In Kit for 20 Gallon Long Aquariums - 4th Gen - Fiji Cube

The Fiji Cube AIO Drop-In Kits simplify the process of building an all-in-one aquarium with a pre-built sump box that fits perfectly in the back of your aquarium and includes divided sections for your filtration, heating, and water circulation equipment. Fiji Cube designed this AIO box to...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[Bulk Reef Supply]

Thanks for giving us the opportunity to make it right. The stand is looking killer! We'll be following this build for sure

 

[Denisk]

This might be a good option! They come in a few different sizes too. Saw them for the first time today and thought it was a good idea

All-in-One Drop-In Kit for 20 Gallon Long Aquariums - 4th Gen - Fiji Cube

The Fiji Cube AIO Drop-In Kits simplify the process of building an all-in-one aquarium with a pre-built sump box that fits perfectly in the back of your aquarium and includes divided sections for your filtration, heating, and water circulation equipment. Fiji Cube designed this AIO box to...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

So I actually looked at that but I wanted to try not to take up the entire end of one tank hence why I didn’t go with an innovative marine tank. But that’s why I bought the black box xp surface skimmer/ato. Which is nice bc I can still throw carbon and a heater in there but have surface skimming and ato.

 

[Denisk]

Thanks for giving us the opportunity to make it right. The stand is looking killer! We'll be following this build for sure

You all did and I thank you for that! Thank you!!!

 

[Dank__Tanks]

you could always do a canister with glass lily pipes to keep that sleek look

 

[MaddyP]

Following!

 

[MONTANTK]

So I actually looked at that but I wanted to try not to take up the entire end of one tank hence why I didn’t go with an innovative marine tank. But that’s why I bought the black box xp surface skimmer/ato. Which is nice bc I can still throw carbon and a heater in there but have surface skimming and ato.

Ah I gotcha. Well I’m looking forward to following this build! This tank has been on my radar for years so I’m glad to finally see one running

 

[Dank__Tanks]

I recommend running a canister filter with glass lily pipes. This would keep that sleek look and add a decent amount of filtration and add water volume. I run the same thing on my nano reef. Well I did, I purchased the wrong size lily pipes and it restricted my flow but if I had purchased the correct size it would have been fine. I still want to re purchase the correct size pipes because I'm running the oem black plastic inlet/outlet and its not as sleek. You can even purchase the pipes with a surface skimmer. If you have an instagram account you can see the pipes in my earlier post of the tank when I was setting it up. @Dank__Tanks

 

[Denisk]

Ah I gotcha. Well I’m looking forward to following this build! This tank has been on my radar for years so I’m glad to finally see one running

Sounds awesome!!! Definitely excited to share the progress.

 

[Denisk]

Some progress shots of when I was building the stand the same day of when I bought the wood. It took about an hour to knock out the base. But a few days with all the filling, sanding and painting.

 

[Denisk]

Butcher block was purchased and cut to size at Home Depot and that’s when I realized I would use the extra piece as a floating shelf above the tank.

 

[Denisk]

Once the butcher block was unwrapped, it says within 48 hours you want to have it stained, polyurethaned, or applied with mineral oil. After prepping it with 220grit, I decided to go with a semi gloss water based polyurethane and did about 4 coats on all sides with sanding in between.

 

[Denisk]

The stand was finished on December 20th 2020