PacoPetty
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Feb 22, 2018
- Messages
- 732
- Reaction score
- 781
- What state or country do you live in
- Virginia
I purchased this 65 gallon tank about eight years ago and it came with a 27-year-old pair of clown fish and everything you see in the first picture. They lived about four more years and when they died, I broke the tank down and started refinishing the stand and resealing the tank. At that time I had no plans for what I was going to do with the tank. Fast forward four years and Fish Mama aka my wife wants a clown harem tank.
I cleaned the tank with white vinegar and citric acid and resealed it. I sanded and cleaned the stand and took it to the local cabinet shop for a professional paint job. Media blasted and painted the seahorse handles. I replaced all of the hinges on the doors and lid. Since it already had a recessed cut out for the fan on the lid I decided to go the same route for the two lights and cut the holes out and used a router to make ledges for the lights to sit on.
I’ve had around 100 pounds of live rock cycling in two big bins for over two months so it’s ready to go in the tank with 60 pounds of Carib Sea Aragalive Fiji Pink sand. I have also been cycling a bunch of rubble rock that I will put in the sump. I have been using my water change water from my other tanks to put in the bins that I am using to cycle the live rock. I also have 10 pounds of ceramic media that has been cycling in my other tanks and in the bins with the live rock for several months. We will be adding the sand, liverock, and water tomorrow.
The equipment is some that I have used in the past and found to be reliable yet affordable. The lights are the only thing I have not used before. They are Smat Farm 95 Watt programmable LED lights that have settings for sunrise, daylight, sunset, and moonlight. I am using a Hygger crossflow wavemaker, a Hygger DC return pump running to 3/4” Loc-Line with two Random Flow Generators, an Eshopps sump with an Ice Cap K1 200 Protein Skimmer. The exhaust fan is just a 4 inch fan that I bought on Amazon. I also mounted a 3 foot LED light over the sump because we all know it’s a pain in the butt working under there with no light. Everything is going to be run through a surge protected power strip mounted on the right side of the stand.
The first picture is of the tank as it sat in the original owner’s home right before I broke it down to buy it.
I cleaned the tank with white vinegar and citric acid and resealed it. I sanded and cleaned the stand and took it to the local cabinet shop for a professional paint job. Media blasted and painted the seahorse handles. I replaced all of the hinges on the doors and lid. Since it already had a recessed cut out for the fan on the lid I decided to go the same route for the two lights and cut the holes out and used a router to make ledges for the lights to sit on.
I’ve had around 100 pounds of live rock cycling in two big bins for over two months so it’s ready to go in the tank with 60 pounds of Carib Sea Aragalive Fiji Pink sand. I have also been cycling a bunch of rubble rock that I will put in the sump. I have been using my water change water from my other tanks to put in the bins that I am using to cycle the live rock. I also have 10 pounds of ceramic media that has been cycling in my other tanks and in the bins with the live rock for several months. We will be adding the sand, liverock, and water tomorrow.
The equipment is some that I have used in the past and found to be reliable yet affordable. The lights are the only thing I have not used before. They are Smat Farm 95 Watt programmable LED lights that have settings for sunrise, daylight, sunset, and moonlight. I am using a Hygger crossflow wavemaker, a Hygger DC return pump running to 3/4” Loc-Line with two Random Flow Generators, an Eshopps sump with an Ice Cap K1 200 Protein Skimmer. The exhaust fan is just a 4 inch fan that I bought on Amazon. I also mounted a 3 foot LED light over the sump because we all know it’s a pain in the butt working under there with no light. Everything is going to be run through a surge protected power strip mounted on the right side of the stand.
The first picture is of the tank as it sat in the original owner’s home right before I broke it down to buy it.
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