fdcityronco

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Hey guys! I was pretty stoked to get this build up and running. My name is Rick and have been in the hobby for approx 5 years. This will be the second tank I’ve built from scratch and I’m sure will have it’s own set of challenges. Below is the equipment I purchased for this build.

Glass:
Custom star fire glass 3/4” with bottom euro bracing.

Controller:
Neptune Apex
(1) Energy bar 832
(2) FMM Modules
Neptune Leak Detection
Neptune Flow Meter
ATO w/ Solenoid

Testing/Dosing:
(2) Neptune DOS
Hanna Checkers

Return:
Abyzz a400 pump
Neptune Control Module Connection

Skimmer:
Reef Octopus 220s

UV:
Pentair 50watt HO

Sump/Overflow:
Synergy 60
Synergy Ghost Overflow 20”

RODI:
(1) 6 Stage RO w/booster pump (Mixing Station)
(1) 6 Stage RO w/booster pump (ATO)

Mixing Station:
Neptune Return Pump
(2) 90gal Vertical Holding Tanks

How it started:

So I was discussing with my wife at dinner approx 5 years ago that I wanted to build a reef aquarium between our columns within the front entry of our home. As supportive as she is, she said cool draw me a picture. So, using my finger and lack of technological skills on my iPhone I drew her a picture. Haha.
2A55524C-A836-46B4-B3FF-8366D7FDD326.jpeg

That image turned into a month long build and resulted in…
E6807C2F-7FFF-48B6-80E1-81D084A9D189.jpeg

I must say I was impressed by my great drawing skills and how that drawing turned into a reality…sort of. After that tank was close to the 1 year mark we decided to sell out home and move closer in town. We purchased a temporary home and wanted to find land to build our forever home. It took approx 3 years and finally found land in order to build our new forever home. My wife made me promise to incorporate a new reef tank into the build. The new plans allows me to incorporate a tank between our living room and office. In addition, it allowed for a small area to be dedicated to a maintenance room. The blue rectangle is the actual tank.
C5A5EB1D-E096-4294-9BDD-3EE3659F06B0.jpeg

The build is 95% complete at this point but I will try to post in stages based on the time line. I’m a general contractor by trade and just didn’t have the time to build the house and tank as well as post at the same time. There were a few goals I wanted to accomplish with this build. 1. To make sure it was a sustainable build for as long as feasible since we plan to stay at this house for a very long time. 2. Reduce water change labor and increase overall maintenance ease. 3. Build it so that it looks like it should be part of the space.
Due to the space needed for maintenance, I needed to build the water change station within the garage. Since I was building new construction this allowed me to incorporate the plumbing lines and electrical needed within the walls and through the attic space. The hidden plumbing helped with aesthetics and weren’t visible once the drywall was installed.
20AD0FF1-C2E0-4A8F-A13F-4A7636D8F0A1.jpeg

To the right of the steps is where the water mixing station will be installed. During the permitting process I wanted to get as much of the preliminary items out of the way as possible so that I wouldn’t lose progress once it was time to start the actually tank build. The two main items I wanted to start were figuring the tank dimensions and building the actually tank stand. I decided to build a 36.5x66.5x24 glass tank using 3/4” star fire glass. Due to the space and the fact that I wanted it to seem as if it were always there, I wanted to hide as much of the mechanics as possible. That said, I decided to go with a Synergy ghost overflow system. This would allow for a low profile return and limit the space needed for the overflow to allow for items such as power heads and return lines. Once the glass was ordered it was time to weld and build the tanks frame.
Frame:
The frame had a few items that had to be addressed. 1. Build it with the obvious strength needed to support the load but leave 2 sides unobstructed for access. 2. I knew I was going to weld the frame out of Steel. So, it had to be powder coated to reduce corrosion. I’m addition, knowing my wall finish was going to be Shiplap, I needed a way to nail the shiplap to the steel frame.
236EBFA2-C0DA-447D-9992-3BF9E2B03351.jpeg

3223E599-B976-49BF-833B-D8214B60B1E4.jpeg

The frame was then designed, measured and cut. After it was all ready for construction I welded the frame together and took it to a local powder coating contractor and had it powder coated white. I used wood framing and sheathing to create the deck for the glass to eventually rest on. Here is a sneak peak once it was assembled and installed in its final location within the home.

55B03F6C-3C8C-4F14-9265-A4912D5E0196.jpeg

E09B84CC-49DB-4D57-A168-21B9B098EF81.jpeg

Once the frame was installed in place I was able to get additional measurements. Originally I wanted to enclose the top of the tank but have sides that would lift out of the way for maintenance. However, after welding the frames together it ended up being to many moving parts so I decided to forgo that idea. Here is the stand after further progress with the house had been completed and the shiplap was started.
8604FF5D-10F8-4FF9-8C78-4F5750901F63.jpeg

9115AE6E-69F7-4C29-86F4-D58B8C12ECA3.jpeg

15AEF4BA-C17F-4442-84AA-88F3DADDB4D6.jpeg

Once the house was enclosed, HVAC on and the majority of the construction dust was gone I was able to start the tank build. Here are a few images of the build process.
F5DA4372-2C5D-4728-8FB4-2536298B2CE5.jpeg

C0C95743-8572-4B08-9EC8-640C92A75C20.jpeg

49C7272D-5C59-4202-8494-2F7F29348DB5.jpeg

B6C4B311-B64B-46EB-9C84-CB4075A37367.jpeg

086E9CBC-A875-4C44-9F8B-BD2FEB7A5660.jpeg


Next up…the sump. 87AB0885-357F-48DF-89AA-F4E8DC8FF675.jpeg
 

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JumboShrimp

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Very nice! :)

FYI, when it comes to your mixing station, 70-gallon “Horizontal leg” tanks can fit under work benches; might be cool in your garage.
 
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fdcityronco

fdcityronco

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The water station is already completed and I’ll post pictures soon. The horizontal tanks would have been a great idea but unfortunately limited on space due to utter items along that wall. Thx for the suggestion!
 

Daniel@R2R

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Hey guys! I was pretty stoked to get this build up and running. My name is Rick and have been in the hobby for approx 5 years. This will be the second tank I’ve built from scratch and I’m sure will have it’s own set of challenges. Below is the equipment I purchased for this build.

Glass:
Custom star fire glass 3/4” with bottom euro bracing.

Controller:
Neptune Apex
(1) Energy bar 832
(2) FMM Modules
Neptune Leak Detection
Neptune Flow Meter
ATO w/ Solenoid

Testing/Dosing:
(2) Neptune DOS
Hanna Checkers

Return:
Abyzz a400 pump
Neptune Control Module Connection

Skimmer:
Reef Octopus 220s

UV:
Pentair 50watt HO

Sump/Overflow:
Synergy 60
Synergy Ghost Overflow 20”

RODI:
(1) 6 Stage RO w/booster pump (Mixing Station)
(1) 6 Stage RO w/booster pump (ATO)

Mixing Station:
Neptune Return Pump
(2) 90gal Vertical Holding Tanks

How it started:

So I was discussing with my wife at dinner approx 5 years ago that I wanted to build a reef aquarium between our columns within the front entry of our home. As supportive as she is, she said cool draw me a picture. So, using my finger and lack of technological skills on my iPhone I drew her a picture. Haha.
2A55524C-A836-46B4-B3FF-8366D7FDD326.jpeg

That image turned into a month long build and resulted in…
E6807C2F-7FFF-48B6-80E1-81D084A9D189.jpeg

I must say I was impressed by my great drawing skills and how that drawing turned into a reality…sort of. After that tank was close to the 1 year mark we decided to sell out home and move closer in town. We purchased a temporary home and wanted to find land to build our forever home. It took approx 3 years and finally found land in order to build our new forever home. My wife made me promise to incorporate a new reef tank into the build. The new plans allows me to incorporate a tank between our living room and office. In addition, it allowed for a small area to be dedicated to a maintenance room. The blue rectangle is the actual tank.
C5A5EB1D-E096-4294-9BDD-3EE3659F06B0.jpeg

The build is 95% complete at this point but I will try to post in stages based on the time line. I’m a general contractor by trade and just didn’t have the time to build the house and tank as well as post at the same time. There were a few goals I wanted to accomplish with this build. 1. To make sure it was a sustainable build for as long as feasible since we plan to stay at this house for a very long time. 2. Reduce water change labor and increase overall maintenance ease. 3. Build it so that it looks like it should be part of the space.
Due to the space needed for maintenance, I needed to build the water change station within the garage. Since I was building new construction this allowed me to incorporate the plumbing lines and electrical needed within the walls and through the attic space. The hidden plumbing helped with aesthetics and weren’t visible once the drywall was installed.
20AD0FF1-C2E0-4A8F-A13F-4A7636D8F0A1.jpeg

To the right of the steps is where the water mixing station will be installed. During the permitting process I wanted to get as much of the preliminary items out of the way as possible so that I wouldn’t lose progress once it was time to start the actually tank build. The two main items I wanted to start were figuring the tank dimensions and building the actually tank stand. I decided to build a 36.5x66.5x24 glass tank using 3/4” star fire glass. Due to the space and the fact that I wanted it to seem as if it were always there, I wanted to hide as much of the mechanics as possible. That said, I decided to go with a Synergy ghost overflow system. This would allow for a low profile return and limit the space needed for the overflow to allow for items such as power heads and return lines. Once the glass was ordered it was time to weld and build the tanks frame.
Frame:
The frame had a few items that had to be addressed. 1. Build it with the obvious strength needed to support the load but leave 2 sides unobstructed for access. 2. I knew I was going to weld the frame out of Steel. So, it had to be powder coated to reduce corrosion. I’m addition, knowing my wall finish was going to be Shiplap, I needed a way to nail the shiplap to the steel frame.
236EBFA2-C0DA-447D-9992-3BF9E2B03351.jpeg

3223E599-B976-49BF-833B-D8214B60B1E4.jpeg

The frame was then designed, measured and cut. After it was all ready for construction I welded the frame together and took it to a local powder coating contractor and had it powder coated white. I used wood framing and sheathing to create the deck for the glass to eventually rest on. Here is a sneak peak once it was assembled and installed in its final location within the home.

55B03F6C-3C8C-4F14-9265-A4912D5E0196.jpeg

E09B84CC-49DB-4D57-A168-21B9B098EF81.jpeg

Once the frame was installed in place I was able to get additional measurements. Originally I wanted to enclose the top of the tank but have sides that would lift out of the way for maintenance. However, after welding the frames together it ended up being to many moving parts so I decided to forgo that idea. Here is the stand after further progress with the house had been completed and the shiplap was started.
8604FF5D-10F8-4FF9-8C78-4F5750901F63.jpeg

9115AE6E-69F7-4C29-86F4-D58B8C12ECA3.jpeg

15AEF4BA-C17F-4442-84AA-88F3DADDB4D6.jpeg

Once the house was enclosed, HVAC on and the majority of the construction dust was gone I was able to start the tank build. Here are a few images of the build process. 87AB0885-357F-48DF-89AA-F4E8DC8FF675.jpeg
Awesome!
 
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fdcityronco

fdcityronco

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The Sump: I decided to go with the Synergy 60 sump in grey and orange colors. I figured ultimately it would match all the Neptune’s gear and plumbing. The sump arrived on a large crate and although I had the measurements, you don’t realize how big it actually is until it’s in person.
F852DF7A-A409-4A69-B14C-584720BD88C6.jpeg

15DFA6CB-C18C-4333-B836-0D6F7B53AB60.jpeg

16ED3682-574E-4D91-9F81-42CC0F113F79.jpeg

Luckily after placing the sump under the tank, it seemed as if there was plenty of room for plumbing and accessories.
 
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fdcityronco

fdcityronco

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Mixing Station:

Due to this being a new home there was obviously multiple phases of construction. The down side to this was I couldn’t sit and focus solely on the tank. I had to make progress when the construction timing allowed and was impeded by other parts of the build. A lot was happening along the interior and since the glass/silicone needed time to cure I decided to move to the exterior and start the mixing station. I purchased 2 aluminum stands to hold the vertical 90gal tanks I purchased. The additional items were a 6 stage RODI w/ booster pump, Neptune return pump for mixing and water change transfers via the preplumbed 3/4” line as well as a few CPEX valves. Side note: The stainless tub to the right was my wife’s request and is a dog washing station which doubles perfect for cleaning and washing filter socks etc…win.
6CACCA5B-F999-4215-9905-B542D12044B9.jpeg

81E92626-6975-40CC-A411-8413F8952CE0.jpeg

6830490F-1827-47BB-8A44-4FDFD2096695.jpeg
 
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fdcityronco

fdcityronco

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So, back inside the house. I needed to start working on the mounting system for the lights. I decided to use (3) Ai Hydra 64. Based on a few recommendations and articles I read it seemed like 16-18” was the optimum mounting height for the best spread. I wanted to mount the lights flush with the ceiling so I decided to build a canopy out of wood which would allow for the lights to be mounted flush and painted for aesthetics. The biggest issue was that only gave me approx 14” of clearance for access to the top of the tank. After a little thought, I decided to purchase an automated TV mount. The mount was designed to be installed inside of a cabinet at, say the end of a bed. So, I figured I could mount it upside down to the ceiling given a stated within the weight capacity of the unit. This would allow for me to press a button and raise the canopy approx 14” additional inches if needed.
3651A9AA-5136-471F-92A8-EAE25A6C7AFF.jpeg

D18AD6E6-E855-4648-86D1-63A11469B298.jpeg

E8711E48-27B7-41B7-9D61-2B8729762900.jpeg

 

Aquatic acrobat in your aquarium: Have you ever kept an eel?

  • I currently keep an eel in my tank.

    Votes: 29 14.6%
  • I have kept an eel in my tank in the past.

    Votes: 33 16.6%
  • I have not kept an eel in my tank, but I hope to in the future.

    Votes: 36 18.1%
  • I have no plans to keep an eel.

    Votes: 98 49.2%
  • Other.

    Votes: 3 1.5%
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