New SPS Tank for JBNY

JBNY · Jan 9, 2026

This tank build will go over the 4th tank setup I have had over the years. Before start here are the last 3 setups I've had. Hopefully the 4th will be just as nice

2019

2010

2005

So this thread will document my new tank build. I kept meaning to start this thread but time got away from me, so for a while there will be some catching up to real time. On the surface I am just replacing an existing tank with a new one, same size, should be easy, not much to do, right? Read on my friends.

So long story short. Right before COVID my tank started leaking from the bottom of the front left seam. After the initial panic, and speaking to one of my reef buddies, I was put a bar clamp on it and that solved the leaking part.

(A leak on the tank, worst fears come true!)

(clamp on tank, leak stopped!)

For those of you nervous about putting a clamp across your tank, never fear, although it sounds scary, it's actually pretty easy to do and it worked remarkably well, issue temporarily solved. But of course the tank has to be replaced, and then COVID happened, and we were in lock down, so there was little I could do at the time. And then in the midst of everything I had a ton of personal life changes that just sort of happened at the same time, and suddenly my tank didn't warrant the same priority that it had in the past. So I have the leak taken care of... and now I will take care of everything else.

And then of course I had started having some coral problems, then a mini tank crash but in my mind I was planning on replacing the tank anyway, and I'm in the midst of COVID, so what did it matter and I just sort of let the tank fall into a bit of chaos, but fish were all fine and I just sort of let it go to fish only with some coral

(coral losses during lockdown)

Then life got real busy for a while and we did some whole house renovations that would have been really problematic (construction, sanding, dust everywhere) if I had the tank to worry about, and before I knew it another year went by. But eventually I needed to get a new tank.

(poor kitty just wants me to get a new tank already)

After a few failed attempts to design a new tank, I started working with Joe over at Glass Cages who was great and he really helped me understand what I wanted to do, and what I could do when designing a tank. I can't recommend him and and this company enough they were all awesome to work with.

The new tank will be the same dimensions as my old tank, 72x36x24, 270 gallons. One overflow in the back right corner. 3x 1.5" bulkheads for two drains and one return. This tank will be rimless as well. Joe assured me it would be safe to do a rimless with this size...so let do it! Tank ordered, I'll get my tank in 2-3 months. Let's work on getting everything prepared for a new tank!

JBNY · Jan 9, 2026

So now I've got to drain and get the old tank out of my house. No worries I've got a few months so I can take my time. But of course things can't be that easy. No sooner said then I get another leak on the tank. This one in the middle front of the tank at the bottom. OK, I put a bar clamp on the other side and accelerate my plan to break down the tank.

(Another leak, that's ok, I'll just put another clamp on the tank. why not!)

(Clamps on, two this time just in case)

Still the middle of winter here in New York so I leave the clamps on the tank for a month to get me to mid march where the temperatures are warm enough and there is no threat of snow. Time to get final bits of coral and fish out of the tank. First I want to take out the rock, I have had this rock (old marco dry rock) for close to 13 years, I decided I am going to get rid of it and start new, rock gone. Then I remove the last of the coral which is a huge hammer coral and trade it over to the LFS for credit.

(last corals are huge hammer coral, I think I had over 120 heads!)

(removed most of the rock and coral, just few fish left to go)

Now for the fish, my good friend Joe comes over and picks up all the fish.

(nice when the local aquarium comes to pick up your fish!)

Next up, draining the tank!

Mellotang · Jan 9, 2026

He’s alive!!!!

Hit me up if you need any help Joe!!

Glad to see you’re still around

JBNY · Jan 9, 2026

Mellotang said:
He’s alive!!!!

Hit me up if you need any help Joe!!

Glad to see you’re still around

I'm here! I just had to take a break for a bit, back in force now.

Good to hear from you, I will definitely be in touch, We haven't seen each other in a long time!

-Joe

Thales · Jan 9, 2026

JBNY · Jan 9, 2026

Now I need to drain the tank. but before I do, that I notice that where it is leaking in the front that the silicon looks to have a little path going through it to the bottom of the tank. Yep, I see a little worm in there and he seems to have eaten his way through the silicon seam and popped out the other side and that is where my leak is coming from, great. Here is video of the worm!

JBNY · Jan 9, 2026

Time to break down this tank. I have had this sand in the tank for close to 18 years, I'm not keeping it. At this point just I want a fresh start and want to completely reset this tank and start over, because why not. I decide to keep about 40-50 gallons of old tank water running in the downstairs sump.

So I shut off the return valve to the tank upstairs and divert the water to just be a closed loop in the sump. Next step drain the tank, the pump I used pulled out all the water in about 15 minutes! Then I had to remove the sand. That took a long time, I had to scoop it out, and using a putty knife ended up being the easiest way to get it out and into a buckets to carry out of the house.

(pumping out the tank with a utility pump my dad uses to pump out his pool)

(getting as much water I can with the pump so I don't have to remove as much manually)

(Water out! Now the fun of removing the sand bed)

(hours of fun spent here. Good times.)

(finally all done. no more sand, I think it took about 3 hours total)

Tank drained. Now I need to get the tank out of my house.

JBNY · Jan 9, 2026

20 years ago when I removed my old 180, I just asked a few friends and we carried the tank and stand out. Now me and my friends are all 20 years older, and this tank is much bigger and heavier and I am a little worried about getting it out of the house. So I decide to hire someone to remove the tank. After looking at lots of options I call "College Hunks Hauling Junk" the moving company, they advertise they will move anything. So I ask them if they can remove a large fish tank from my house, yep they tell me, no problem. A flat fee of only $200 because it is not too much big. Ok sounds great, they can be over in an hour. Well even better. So they show up and the guy is like, wow that is bigger and heaver than we though, maybe not.

But after a little thinking he feels he can cut the silicone and pull it out in pieces. Won't be $200 cause it will take a while but only a couple of hours at whatever their labor rate is (not much). So they start pulling it apart, I don't have to do anything but watch.

(front panel came off surprisingly easy)

(two panels off, no going back now!)

(back panel proved the difficult part, those overflows really made it tough to open the silicon up)

(eventually they were able to muscle that back off.)

(then finally the bottom. This took the longest is was stuck to the stand top, and took real effort to get it off)

(all done! They even cleaned everything up before they left)

Getting the back panel and the bottom out was the hardest part, but just under 3 hours later it is out! Total $525 I was very happy. Getting the big tank out of my house was one of my biggest worries. Now that it was done I was off!

JBNY · Jan 9, 2026

Thales said:
JOE!

I’m back!

bradreef · Jan 9, 2026

This is a flashback. Many jbny threads 20 years ago on RC. I think a tank of the month back then as well. Good luck with the new build.

JBNY · Jan 10, 2026

Time to start cleaning up and prepping for the new tank!

First was to remove all the old plumbing and and gear that I had under the tank. This tank sits on a stand that I made 18 years ago. I made the stand with drawers instead of doors, the drawers are pretty large using Blum rails, they can hold around 75 pounds of wights and are full extension. I think I have about 16" of open space behind the drawers, so all the gear for the tank (lights and wavemakers etc) fit with room to spare. The stand is still in pretty much perfect condition and I still like the way it looks so I will be just cleaning it out and updating things that have been there for over 15 years.

(other than being a rats nest of wires, everything held up pretty good for the years of use)

( almost everything is coming out)

(everything out and cleaned up)

I also decided I would finally change out the Metal Halide I had been using and move to LED. MH is great but it uses so much electricity and the lamps were getting harder to find and more expensive every year. I had always used Neptune Apex for my controller and wanted to try something new, so after many, many discussions I settled on using Hydros this time. Also wanted to replumb the tank using hard PVC rather than the flex I put in 18 years ago. Plex was nice but every 5 years or so it would leak at the bulkhead and had to be fixed. I always felt it was from the flex pipe moving slightly that over time it would loosen at the bulkhead. So hard PVC this time. With that all planned I gutted the existing space beneath the stand and in the fish room right below the tank. Oh one thing that was a pleasant surprise, those super expensive GF True union ball valves I bought like 20 years ago, opened and closed as if I put them in yesterday. I remember a long time ago when breaking down my old 180 gallon tank the ball valve I bought from Home Depot at the time were almost impossible to fully close after only 2-3 years. So I was so happy when I had to turn the valve off on the return and the ball valve turned with complete ease.

(total worth the extra money for these valves)

JBNY · Jan 10, 2026

Also did some updating to the fish room, the equipment room in the basement underneath the main tank. I put everything initially in 2008 and and had updated a few things but with a running system never really touched most of it. So with the tank gone I was able to change things out and update things that I felt needed to be changed. For the most part I was very happy with almost everything that I did back then so the overall design didn't change much. But a few things needed to be changed out.

I didn't like how the lines came into the top sump, I had the flex pipe and the run was almost straight down with because it was flex. I always felt the water came in too hard into he sump, too many bubble, to much force. So with taking out the flex pipe and hard plumbing it, I would add some 90d bends to slow the flow as it enters the sump.

(wanted to redo all this plumbing with hard PVC)

Next I had this frag tank that never really worked out. I ended up fragging out of the main tank more and more as time went on and the frag tank got less and less use, so I am pilling this tank. Also although the fish room is pretty big, I have almost no counter space to do things. I always end up doing work on the 18"x12" section above my main pump that is the only real counter space I have. So am just going to pull the sump drop the height of the platform to be better suited to using it as counter space.

(frag tank that the design never really worked for me)

(removed that and will fix this area to make it a work space)

Also pulling the ARID reactor, worked great in the beginning but as time when on I continually had issues with getting the cheato to grow. Eventually I just left it plumbed in but didn't use it for actively growing for years. So that is coming out too.

JBNY · Jan 10, 2026

Finally the tank came in. No issues with delivery at all. Dropped the tank in my garage without any issues. Looks awesome. and for some reason it looks much bigger than my old tank. I know it is the exact same dimensions but the combination of the rimless sides and only having one overflow seems to make it look bigger than the old one. Glass is thicker too, this is a 3/4" glass, the only one was 1/2". Now I have to work on getting it upstairs and on the stand.

(new tank looks great! Beer can bottom left for scale)

(3/4 glass low iron glass, back is black vinyl)

(one over internal flow on the right side, just want I wanted)

(the overflow is wrapped in an removalable acrylic sheet with the overflow teeth notched in. I love it!)

JBNY · Jan 10, 2026

But before I move the tank I still have some prep work to do. First I wanted to update the ventilation in the Fish Room. I wanted to have both better and proper ventilation. In the past I had put a small fan, sort of like a bathroom fan, In one corner of the room and was able to exhaust it outside. The fan wasn't very strong and overtime it just stopped working and I didn't replace it so it just sort of rusted out.

(old fan to be removed)

So I decided that I was going to remove that fan and put in a proper fan. So I got a Fantech FG 6 inch fan and I had a section of the front of the Fish room that I had added this open window that I could see into the room without having to look around the corner with the door open. I thought it was a good idea at the time, but over time never really felt it was needed. So what I decided to do was take that 12x12 opening and put a HVAC merv filter in it and use that in combination with the Fantac fan to pull air, fresh air, into the fish room and exit it out.

(looking into the fish room through the view window)

(from the inside)

(where the fan pulls from)

So with the new fan hooked in I got a controller hooked into my home automation and set it up and it worked flawlessly. the fan is variable speed fan, I can change it from 20% to a 100%. 100% it's both loud and moves a ton of air, so if I ever need to vent it quickly I can do it but I use it right now at about 30% for just low volume air exchange.

(new fan installed)

(Shelly controller I used, can be accesses vie my home automation)

(HVAC grill installed)

(what it looks like from inside)

Here is what I ended up with Ventilation: 4" duct from room to 6" pipe connected to Fantech FG Series Round Inline Exhaust Fan, 6" Duct, EC Motor. Fantech exhausts to outside via 6" ductwork. Controlled via Home Assistant using Shelly 0–10V Dimmer PM Gen3 (AC-powered version). The fan is powered via standard 120V AC, and receives a control voltage from the Shelly. Fan always on at 30%, unless more ventilation needed.

Really happy with this, it both removed humidity and smells with ease and doesn't bring dust or pollen in to the room.

JBNY · Jan 10, 2026

Next I needed to refinish the oak top that the tanks sat on. When I first made it it came out great but I accidentally ruined it when I put the tank onto the stand. I had put blue tape around it to protect the finish but it actually ended up pulling off the finish when I removed the tape, so I had to spot fix it way way then and it came out OK.

Now when removing the old we tank scratched the hell out of the the existing top getting the tank bottom off. I needed to refinish it.

So I moved it down into the garage, sanded it down and used the exact same method for staining it and finishing it as I did 18 years ago when it was first set up. Thankfully in my original build thread from back then I wrote down and posted exactly the combination of stains, fillers, sanding grits, and how I did to finish. So I just followed exactly what I did last time and it came out pretty good.

(sanding down the stand top)

I also need to expand the hole for the overflow box a bit for the tank.

(overflow hole expanded for the tank)

All that done, Brought the top back up onto the stands and I leveled the top.

When I had first plumbed this tank ages ago I had opened a fairly large section of the floor and I cut it out to fit a 4 by 10 HVAC register so when I removed the tank I could just put a HVAC register in the floor and it wouldn't look like there was a hole there you would never notice.

(cut a big hole that was 4x10)

(now the hole just loks like a air return)

But putting in that large of a hole down to the basement also opened up the floor in the living room to getting drafts and letting cold air and warm air out during the weather during the seasons. It's not something I thought about when I first set it up but over time I ended up having issues with cold air getting in through that hole.
Now that the plumbing was out of that space, I decided I would get in there and use some insulation to seal and insulate it better so no air would get into the room.

(taped and sealed the access for the plumbing through the floor)

Next I did some roughing in for the tank plumbing, befiore the tank was on the stand.

JBNY · Jan 10, 2026

OK, let's get the tank on the stand.

So the same issue as before, all my friends are now 18 years older than we were when the last tank went in. Back then I had 6 people help with the move, it was tough but really no problem. 3/4" glass make the tank significantly heavier, so I decided to hire someone to do it for me. I've been friends with Joe Caparatta over at Unique Corals for years, I've gotten a ton of gear from him and he still has a place out here in New York called Manhattan Aquariums, so I had Joe's crew come in and do the move for me.

No easy task for them, I live in a town house so they have to move the tank out of the garage, around the side of the building, and come in from the back, up a deck and into the living room.

(getting the tank off the street around the side of the building)

(bringing it up the back)

(now got to get it up the stairs and on the deck then in the house)

(finally they drop it on the stand, yes!)

(mission accomplished!!)

(nice!)

They did a great job, with the glass being 3/4" it was a lot heavier than the old tank. but they took it slow and got the tank on the stand without any issues.

JBNY · Jan 11, 2026

So next step is to start redoing the plumbing. I first sketched everything and purchased all the plumbing that I thought I would need. I decided to use red pipe for the drains coming out of the tank and blue pipe for the return going up to the tank. For the return I would use a minimal amounts of bends, 90 degrees only when needed, long bends on the returns when possible. So with everything ordered and received I decided to get to work.

Pretty straight forward for the plumbing. In the fish room I would still be using the Abyzz A200 for the return. I ran a 1.5" line up stairs. I used the existing flex pipe here just to get it through the ceiling with no hard bends. Both areas where the flex is connected to the hard plumbing are locked down with pipe clamps so there could be no movement. So no worries about anything coming lose over time.

(this part I already had in place from the last time. Line pulls from the sump to the Abyzz and up it goes)

(I added a 1" port that I put a plug in, in case I need it for something in the future.)

(clamped to the ceiling before it hits the flex pipe then up to the stand upstairs)

Happy with that, I plumbed up the drains. While doing the hard plumbing I realized why people use flex pipe in the first place, it is much easier and much more forgiving to use than hard pipe. I made with at least one mistake that I had to completely cut out the piping, for even though I dry fitted everything it was still off by just a little bit and I had to redo it. Second time was the charm though, and it came out exactly how I wanted it to be.

(getting the orientation of the pipes before I commit to anything)

(looking good, but taking so long to work it all out)

(all done!)

(same thing, figuring out the pipe layout before I commit)

(working out the last parts)

Then I tested the line with the water I had been keeping in the sump since the tank tear down. Just had it run though the pipes do make sure there were no leaks. Success!

(how I connected the lines to test one pipe at a time for leaks)

(final test to make sure it all works as planned)

OK plumbing is done.

JBNY · Jan 12, 2026

I am running about 40 gallons on a closed loop until I am ready to fill the tank. I just have the return line going into the overflow box and then it drains from there. It will give me some assurance the plumbing is working fine and also help keep the water circulated.

Here is how it is set up.

(temporary closed loop till the tank is ready to be filled)

In the meantime my lights finally come in. Going to be using 3 ATI Straton Pro Gen2 153 LED fixtures. These should give great coverage. Have family visiting , so I only have time to briefly hook one up to see how they function but looks to have great coverage.

(one Straton Pro G2 on to see the coverage on the 36" wide tank)

JBNY · Jan 12, 2026

After getting the lights I ordered some hardware to mount them. The hanging kits that come with the Stratons aren't really what I am looking for. I used to have a Giesemann Spectra Pendant over the tank for years and liked the look of that so I wanted to try and re-create that look to some extent. So I bought some 80/20 hardware and did it on my own. The lights were pretty easy to mount onto the bar I bought. It all hangs from two point same as the old fixture. This one is about 5 pounds lighter than what I used to have mounted, so the two cables should be just fine. Pretty happy with how it came out.