Setting up a frag tank. Have a few questions.

[kschweer]

Hey guys im in the planning stages of setting up a frag tank. I am picking up the tank saturday its 24"x24" and 12" tall. I am going to be building a stand which will be 25"x25". What would be the best sized tank for me to build a sump out of? I am also curious about what return pump i should use. i was planning on a mag 5 but am looking for suggestions. Also any input on weather to go with a fuge or not.

I am going to run a 120 watt LED pendant over the tank and possibly an mp10 for for flow. Im looking into a reef octopus skimmer. Any other suggestions or input would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

-Kevin

 

[melev]

What kinds of frags do you plan to keep? SPS?

A Mag 5 would be fine. If you have room for a 20 x 20 sump, go for it. Include a refugium. Put a few fish in your frag tank to help with algae control, and those fish will feed the corals with their waste.

Heaters, a controller, cooling fans - all things you might want to go with. It's like setting up a display tank. You'll probably put rock or shelving out of eggcrate to put the corals on, right?

 

[SAZAMA]

the size of the pump depends on the size of your overflow drain. a mag 5 will work, however you will need to adjust the output if you run a three quarters inch pipe. look up gph on standard pvc, and adjust accordingly depending the pipe size you choose. Now, for choice in sump and fuge, that is simply preference. I would base that off the equipment that has been purchased, and what you currently feel comfortable with. for my 24x24x12 I chose a 29g tall simply because it doubled my water volume, as well as giving me enough room to accomplish my skimmer section above a fuge. good luck! and remember that if it works for YOU then go with it. Cheers Tony

 

[kschweer]

thanks for the input guys i appreciate it. I will be doing both lps and sps most likely. Do you think that the 120w LED will be enough light? What kind of fish would you recomend for algae control? I plan on making some frag racks either with eggcrate or acrylic not too sure yet.

Once again thanks for the input any more is certainly appreciated.

Kevin

 

[kschweer]

Tank is here and stand is started

Hey guys I picked up my tank saturday and started building the stand today. Its pretty much done just need to seal it and close it up. Here are some pictures of the stand. let me know what you guys think. The tank is 30 gallons do you think the stand will be strong enough?

 

[melev]

Actually, I'm not in love with the stand due to how it was made. You've got 45s instead of butt-connections, which are much stronger. Did you glue it when screwing it together? Those look like the black drywall screws, rather than the stronger deck screws (designed for moisture and outdoor use) with better grip due to their wider threads.

At the very least, put some uprights between the bottom and top sections, securing them to the current upright studs. That way the downward pressure will be frame->stud->frame->flooring.

It's 30g, so it isn't a ton of weight, but you are looking at about 350 pounds with tank, water, sand & rock.

 

[Troylee]

Great observations Marc I couldn't agree more..

 

[kschweer]

The screws are tiger claws stainless deck screws. You're saying put the uprights where the legs are now just on the inside right? The tank will not have any sand or rock its going to be a frag tank the sand and rock will be in the fuge.

 

[Troylee]

Which means more water in the display and more weight.... I would have liked to see the top cap sit on top of the legs myself... The way it sits right now your putting all the weight on those screws for the uprights...

 

[kschweer]

thanks guys. i will be making some changes tomorrow.

 

[kschweer]

Im really glad i posted those pictures i would not have thought of the things you guys pointed out. I really appreciate the input. If I add the uprights like you guys said do you think it will be ok?

 

[Troylee]

Should be... If ya want to really strengthen it up put some plywood skin one the back and sides but
It's not necessary...

 

[kschweer]

i was planning on putting on a plywood skin. Is it nessacary to seal the wood with anything? If so what would be best?

 

[Troylee]

Yeah it would help seal it... I would use kilz myself but any paint is gonna help water based or oil based...

 

[melev]

Before you wrap it with a skin, can you take a few more pictures to share, just to doublecheck your work? Assuming you don't mind the input on our part, that is. Polyurethane or Kilz are both suitable for what you are doing.

 

[kschweer]

is this how you guys we saying to put in the uprights?

 

[ronnie]

I'd put the top part of the stand on TOP of the vertical 2x4's, and the bottom part of the stand on the BOTTOM of the vertical 2x4's.

Then use screws angled down to hold them together.

As you have it, all of the pressure is resting on screws. Wood is stronger than screws - so stack the wood up and join it with screws or screw strips.

 

[Nuocmam]

I'm glad you asked for input because I'm learning just by following along. Thanks guys.

 

[kschweer]

I'm glad I asked for the input too. Getting a lot of good advice. Thanks guys keep it coming

 

[melev]

Yes, the uprights should go in that position.