DIY Drop off in Fluval evo 13.5

FreshlyGettinSalty

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 14, 2025
Messages
27
Reaction score
29
Location
Maryland , Usa
What state or country do you live in
Maryland
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Been wanting an eshoppes Mariana but couldn’t swallow spending 250+ on a tank that wasn’t even 10 gallons so of course i made my own drop off for a fraction of the price and more water volume. Unfortunately I sacrificed the professional clean looking part of things because it pretty bad with silicone but once sand corals and rock go in it’ll barely be noticeable leak test in a few days fingers crossed 🤞🏾
20260625_142228_FC3C07C9-4395-4236-97FB-9DD0F98DBDD7.png
 
Nice job on the drop off shelf!
 
20260625_181406_70BF5AB9-2C4D-4BBA-B254-9BE3293FA2B2.png

If my silicone seals hold this void will stay completely water less and I will paint the exterior glass black so the void isn’t visible but I may just use vinyl or something I can remove from time to time to make sure there is no leaks
 
Been wanting an eshoppes Mariana but couldn’t swallow spending 250+ on a tank that wasn’t even 10 gallons so of course i made my own drop off for a fraction of the price and more water volume.

How did installing a drop off add more water volume?
 
Been wanting an eshoppes Mariana but couldn’t swallow spending 250+ on a tank that wasn’t even 10 gallons so of course i made my own drop off for a fraction of the price and more water volume.

How did installing a drop off add more water volume?
I was comparing it to the 7 gallon volume of the eshoppes Mariana , adding the drop off to the evo has lost me some volume from the original 13.5 gallons but without doing the math I think I’m still over 10 gallons
 
20260625_202506_EF5A886F-EFB6-4EBC-BF85-CD45F18D08B1.png


20260625_202506_F2014707-BC65-4909-AF38-24D850BA3C98.png


20260625_202506_B744D134-EFE4-4459-B72A-3F12AB0D81F5.png

Got the scape done , tried to make like a reef crest but not go overboard with rock or too minimalist the upper shelf has a lot of caves and the lower portion is just a pretty big overhang with an island . Thinking I’ll make this tank sps dominant and focus on some of the easier sps to get my feet wet in that world lol . still waiting on silicone to cure before water testing !
 
20261021_133851_035FDA31-D056-400F-BA11-33B2851684F6.png


20261021_133851_10B2F005-BB69-4A9B-B709-BE49FC1C51EB.png

Updated photos of the drop off Evo , added a lot more zoas , few mushrooms, blastos, another candy cane , and I’m keeping a frogspawn in here that wasn’t happy in my 60 breeder
 
20261021_133851_035FDA31-D056-400F-BA11-33B2851684F6.png


20261021_133851_10B2F005-BB69-4A9B-B709-BE49FC1C51EB.png

Updated photos of the drop off Evo , added a lot more zoas , few mushrooms, blastos, another candy cane , and I’m keeping a frogspawn in here that wasn’t happy in my 60 breeder
Your corals are all looking great! Thanks for sharing
 

WHAT’S USUALLY THE FIRST CLUE THAT SOMETHING IS OFF IN YOUR REEF?

  • A fish’s behavior or appetite changes

    Votes: 11 15.5%
  • A coral looks different or stops opening normally

    Votes: 44 62.0%
  • Water clarity or surface appearance changes

    Votes: 10 14.1%
  • Equipment sounds or flow seem different

    Votes: 7 9.9%
  • A test result catches my attention

    Votes: 14 19.7%
  • Algae or other growth starts changing

    Votes: 14 19.7%
  • I usually notice when the problem is already obvious

    Votes: 3 4.2%
  • It depends on what’s going on

    Votes: 13 18.3%
  • Other (Post in the comments)

    Votes: 1 1.4%
Back
Top
Home
Post thread…
Market
What's new