Bar Room Entertainment

400BA

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Hello everyone,

Starting off a new build. I'm very excited and am still in the "planning" and "ordering" phases, but thought I'd let you all know what is planned so far and hopefully get feedback on some of the steps along the way. Here are a few particulars:

Tank and sump
- 6' W x 5' D x 2' H Planet Aquariums Tank with steel stand - will be placed on the basement level of our home in a bar room.
- 6' W x 2' D x 2' H MRC sump fitted with a fleece roller, in-sump UV, Bubble King skimmer and refugium - will be located in storage room behind back wall of tank (soon to be called the "fish room" when The Management gets used to the idea.
- Base will be wrapped with woodworking matching the bar (white oak)
- Top will be wrapped similar to the base but will have a frame of 8020 extrusions ("Adult erector set")

Tank Monitoring/Control
- Neptune Apex
- Trident
- DOS or Versa (still deciding)
- Red dragon pump for skimmer and either red dragon or Vectra for return

Lights
- Currently want to use Radion G5s, but if timing is right might also consider Neptune Sky??
- Not sure how many yet. Might need to talk with Ecotech and LFS to determine layout.

Flow
- 4 Vortech P60 placed on back wall of tank (returns at opposite end hidden by tank top)

Miscellaneous
- Sand bottom
- Real Reef rock
- Mixed reef tank. I haven't kept corals before so I will start slowly with only the hardiest of corals and a good cleanup crew of fish and inverts.

I've ordered the tank and sump so far and have begun purchasing some of the necessary supporting items (extension cords, heaters, water storage tanks, etc.). This will move slowly as I wait for the tank and sump to arrive and gather other items, then explode at a fevered pace as I work like an idiot to get it all done!

If you all are interested I am happy to share graphics of the stand and top wrappings as well as photos of the room and tank placement.

Looking forward to talking with you all along the way,

Mike
 

Smarkow

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Sounds like a good plan. Re dosing pumps, I’m a huge neptune fan but I think the DOS is incredibly loud. Have not used the versa yet but it almost can’t be worse. If it is all away in a fish room you may not care.
 

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The dimensions of your tank are pretty unique and will make your lighting decisions VERY interesting. Five feet deep really opens things up. Take a look at the ATI Stratons. There is a very good review thread on them here:

I could see two rows of these hanging over your tank

Here is a picture of three hanging over a 59" tank.

51580.jpg
 
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The dimensions of your tank are pretty unique and will make your lighting decisions VERY interesting. Five feet deep really opens things up. Take a look at the ATI Stratons. There is a very good review thread on them here:

I could see two rows of these hanging over your tank

Here is a picture of three hanging over a 59" tank.

51580.jpg
Hello ScottB, thank you for the suggestion. I'll take a look at them!
 
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Sounds like a good plan. Re dosing pumps, I’m a huge neptune fan but I think the DOS is incredibly loud. Have not used the versa yet but it almost can’t be worse. If it is all away in a fish room you may not care.
Gotcha. I like the look of the Versa better but that really shouldn’t be the deciding factor. I DO like their support reputation (at least that is what I hear around here in the Washington DC area.
 
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Here is a Sketchup export of what I'm thinking about for the tank base and top. Because the tank is in the bar room of our home, I'm making "skins" that will mount to the metal stand via magnets to match the bar. The door to the right of the tank goes back into the storage area that will become the new fish room and house the sump, RODI, water storage, etc.

The white "top" is marble that will match the bar back. I'll attach some pictures of the bar so you can get an idea of how the tank base will look.

3355 V Ln Bar Room - 6x5 - 5-7-21.jpg
 
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Here is a poor quality picture of the bar. You can see that the bar itself is made of white oak and is slightly "distressed." The base and canopy of the tank will be the same. Also note the countertops of the bar back; that is what will "cap" the base of the tank.

On the base of the bar you can see fluted pilasters and frame/panel between the pilasters. I'll make the base of the tank in the very same way as these with one exception: I intend to raise the base of the tank four inches off of the floor while still having the pilasters go all the way to the floor. Hope that makes sense.

I'll try to find better pics of the bar so you can more clearly see the construction.

IMG_2625.JPG
 
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Here is another angle of the base construction. I still have plenty of white oak left over to wrap the base and canopy of the new tank.

The tank will be placed directly behind the photographer in these pics.

IMG_2622.JPG
 
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I'm getting ready to commit to a lighting plan, so I have a couple of questions for those of you that have been through this before. First, I want the tank to be able to house as wide a variety of animals as possible. Fish, inverts, softies, LPS, SPS, and so forth.

I've read through many of the lighting threads here on R2R, but if you will indulge me with your current thinking I would greatly appreciate it:

Q1- If YOU we setting this tank up what would your recommendation be for lighting? (the tank is 6'W x 5'D x 2'H)

We spoke with Ecotech (my original choice for lighting) and they recommended going with 12 XR15 G5 pros. Thats a lot of light, but my LFS is also thinking about bolstering that with some T5s.

Q2 - for those of you who have made the switch to fully-LED, do you miss anything from your T5s?

I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos on lighting as well and am specifically interested in what Ryan from BRS has done with his 360.

Q3 - What are your thoughts on HIS solution for his tank?

Thanks for reading through and I look forward to the discussion.

Mike
 
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The real work now begins!

I cleaned out part of the storage area behind the location for the fish tank. These were taken after I threw out a TON of crap that I hadn't seen in years (doesn't that feel GOOD???). The area left of the pipes, will be broken down to house the sump and electronics while the area to the right of the pumps will be broken down and house the water tanks.
 

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I spent some time beginning to lay out the aquascape. This structure (or some evolution of this) will be in the front of the tank. This structure is about 4 feet wide, 2 feet deep and 15 inches tall. I was shooting for something with a lot of swim-throughs and multiple levels for various types of corals.

There will also be multiple islands in the tank to showcase certain types of corals in "garden-like" settings.
 

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Also received a shipment of extension cord that I'll use to "pretty up" some of the wiring that is visible on the electronics boards.
 

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Oberst Hajj

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This sounds like it is going to be a nice build! I was going to build my stand with some fluted columns as well, but the wife decided that she wanted something simpler. Since I told her that she could decorate the new sitting room if she let me build a big tank in it, she got what she wanted when it came to that stand. lol

Do you plan on splicing all the different power cords for your equipment to use the cord you already picked up?
 
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This sounds like it is going to be a nice build! I was going to build my stand with some fluted columns as well, but the wife decided that she wanted something simpler. Since I told her that she could decorate the new sitting room if she let me build a big tank in it, she got what she wanted when it came to that stand. lol

Do you plan on splicing all the different power cords for your equipment to use the cord you already picked up?
I won't splice them, I'll just make short extension cords for items that allow it (Some won't allow an extension cord). I'll figure something else out for the units that won't allow an extension cord.

What did your wife select for your stand? Any pics?
 

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Gotcha on the cords.

You can see the finished stand in my build thread here. I still have to build the canopy, but I've got to workout how I'm going to build it first. I want all three sides to open up for access to the tank, but I also want the whole thing to tilt open towards the back to expose the whole top of the tank. You can see how I built the stand earlier in my build thread.
 
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Gotcha on the cords.

You can see the finished stand in my build thread here. I still have to build the canopy, but I've got to workout how I'm going to build it first. I want all three sides to open up for access to the tank, but I also want the whole thing to tilt open towards the back to expose the whole top of the tank. You can see how I built the stand earlier in my build thread.
Excellent. Thank you!
 
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Gotcha on the cords.

You can see the finished stand in my build thread here. I still have to build the canopy, but I've got to workout how I'm going to build it first. I want all three sides to open up for access to the tank, but I also want the whole thing to tilt open towards the back to expose the whole top of the tank. You can see how I built the stand earlier in my build thread.
Nice looking stand! I'm using 80/20 extruded aluminum to build the canopy. We'll I'd like to motorize it to allow for the easiest access for maintenance.

Love with Weim! I've got two Vizslas that "help" with everything I work on.
 

Oberst Hajj

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Vizslas are sweet dogs as well!

The frame for my canopy will be made from 2x2 wood and skinned in 1/2" Baltic Birch like the stand. 80/20 would be nice to cut down on the weight... I might have to think about that!

I just added a full tank shot to my thread along with some scape detail shots.
 

Mastering the art of locking and unlocking water pathways: What type of valves do you have on your aquarium plumbing?

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