Started My 75G Build.... Finally...

[Porpoise Hork]

So after running my 40g for nearly 2 years, I have run out of space and finally convinced my wife to let me upgrade. I wanted to go with a 120g but just couldn't get her approval for it so we settled on the 75g.

It took me some time to get all the hardware and some of what I have isn't the best but when you have a very tight budget and have an expensive hobby like ours, you make due with what you can and upgrade later.

I started with a used Marineland 75g tank that I picked up locally.

Step 1: drilling it.

I went with an EShopps Eclipse L overflow box and twin 3/4" returns. Drilled all 4 holes by hand, and let me tell you that it took a while.

The rest of the setup is as follows.

Custom made stand from local hobbyist.
Precision Marine R24 sump.
Reef Octopus eSsence S-130 skimmer. (picked it up 50% off at Reef Currents)
Jebao DCT-8000 return pump.
All plumbing is 1" Sch. 80 pipe and fittings.
A pair of Jebao PP-15 power heads.
2 - 3/4" loc-line with Y adapters, a pair of broad fan tips and a pair of VCA Random Flow generators.
50 lbs of reef-saver rock and 20-30 lbs. from my current tank once it's cycled.
40 lbs. crushed coral base with an additional 20 lbs. Carib Sea Fiji Pink live sand (all new)
Lighting (for now) a 44" Reefbar Pro "Blue Heavy" from 21ledusa.com and 12K "Reef light" LED bar.

I have been running a similar setup on my 40g and it's produced decent results. I do plan on upgrading to a pair of AI Hydra 26 HD's in the near future.

I just finished with gluing the plumbing and once I finish painting the back of the tank and get everything mounted back up I'll post the next set of pictures.

 

[hijinks7]

pro-tip for next time.. buy the 120 and tell her its a 75g and bet she won't measure. Nice start to the build!

 

[Porpoise Hork]

pro-tip for next time.. buy the 120 and tell her its a 75g and bet she won't measure. Nice start to the build!

lol thanks. I could have done that. What irks me is after I finally had everything together and ready to start we went to a LFS and she pointed out a 120g and said she really liked the size of that one. Really?!?! you like the 120g NOW?!?

ugh.. oh well. I did tell her the next one I want to go for is a 2-300g peninsula build when we look to move in a few years.

 

[Art2249]

pro-tip for next time.. buy the 120 and tell her its a 75g and bet she won't measure. Nice start to the build!

If your wife is like mine, pay as much as you can with cash so it's harder to keep up with.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Tank update #1.

Got the painting, and plumbing mostly completed. I had to remake the return lines from the second set of valves up due to a small leak at the last 90 elbow before they threaded into the bulkheads. I used a cheaply made threaded nipple that had a mold seam on it for this part. Apparently even my sanding it down wasn't enough and caused a slow drip. So I had to remake these sections. I originally had unions where the external valves are but I was not able to procure the same brand of unions and with removing them and having to extend the vertical pipe from the bulkhead made it too long and caused the pipe to intersect with the overflow box. So the next best option was to use ball valves to fill the gap but provide ample clearance for the overflow.

Ugh...


I still have more to go with setting up and mounting the power panel and cleaning up the pass-through holes, but I hope to be ready for another leak test in a few days when I get better valves since the ones I have are cheap knock-offs that I don't trust.

#reef2reef, #worldwidecorals, #mywwccontest

 

[Bayareareefer18]

Looking good. Just recently completed my first build with a 75. Also using the eclipse L

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Thanks. It's turning out fairly close to how I originally wanted, but have had to make adjustments on the fly. My biggest concern on my setup at this point is there being a leak on the barbed fittings on the pump outlet and inlet to the check valve. The fitting on the check valve side is slightly larger than the host and I really had to work to get it on there, but I don't know if it or the pump side will leak. I put a pair of zip ties on each side, but will have to see if that holds. The other options I can think of that would work is either stainless steel hose clamps or ratcheting plastic clamps. I just don't like the idea of having metal even stainless in a salt water environment long term due to corrosion.

 

[Bayareareefer18]

Thanks. It's turning out fairly close to how I originally wanted, but have had to make adjustments on the fly. My biggest concern on my setup at this point is there being a leak on the barbed fittings on the pump outlet and inlet to the check valve. The fitting on the check valve side is slightly larger than the host and I really had to work to get it on there, but I don't know if it or the pump side will leak. I put a pair of zip ties on each side, but will have to see if that holds. The other options I can think of that would work is either stainless steel hose clamps or ratcheting plastic clamps. I just don't like the idea of having metal even stainless in a salt water environment long term due to corrosion.

I used a short piece of vinyl on the outlet of my pump. I got the ratchet clamps from brs and got them nice and tight by pushing them together by hand then another click or 2 with channel locks

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Thanks! I'll have to take a look at these.

 

[Will Milberger]

Nice tank. You're about the same place as I am in the build. You also put the drill template under the lip and not at the top of the tank. I did the same thing and lost about an 1 1/2" of water at the top.
And Howdy!

 

[Porpoise Hork]

I didn't use the template that came with the kit. I drilled the holes freehand. My youngest was "helping" me and dropped the original internal box and it got cracked. Instead of gluing it I found a guy off Ebay who made a custom one of similar dimensions as the EShopps version, except it is deeper so I could use the original bulkheads. When I went to drill it I lined the external box up with the trim and drilled it, but since the internal box was custom made I was able to rise it up closer to the trim on the inside of the tank to drill the holes for the bulkheads. There is a small gap in between the top of the internal box and the trim, and when I did the first leak test the waterline came up to about 1/2 up the weir without the pump running. So the waterline should run about in the middle of the trim, just above where I have the fan tip positioned. I'll know for sure once I have the pipes all glued and leak tested. I was also planning on trying to dial the overflow in during this time so if I need to adjust the bulkhead tightness or anything to avoid spillage when it's in the house.

 

[Will Milberger]

I didn't use the template that came with the kit. I drilled the holes freehand. My youngest was "helping" me and dropped the original internal box and it got cracked. Instead of gluing it I found a guy off Ebay who made a custom one of similar dimensions as the EShopps version, except it is deeper so I could use the original bulkheads. When I went to drill it I lined the external box up with the trim and drilled it, but since the internal box was custom made I was able to rise it up closer to the trim on the inside of the tank to drill the holes for the bulkheads. There is a small gap in between the top of the internal box and the trim, and when I did the first leak test the waterline came up to about 1/2 up the weir without the pump running. So the waterline should run about in the middle of the trim, just above where I have the fan tip positioned. I'll know for sure once I have the pipes all glued and leak tested. I was also planning on trying to dial the overflow in during this time so if I need to adjust the bulkhead tightness or anything to avoid spillage when it's in the house.

Yep, yours is about an 1" to 1 1/4" higher than mine. I had one hole drilled before I saw it.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Yep, yours is about an 1" to 1 1/4" higher than mine. I had one hole drilled before I saw it.

I do know what you mean. I did the same thing on my first attempt with drilling a 75g. Got the overflow drilled using the template and made the same mistake. Sad thing was I even watched a few videos on setting up the template properly and still did that... ;Dead

Unfortunately when I was drilling the second hole for the return lines I messed up. There was maybe a .32 left to go and I pulled the bit out to clear it, and to see how much was left. I didn't start the drill up before seating it back on the glass. The hole saw dug in and torqued the glass panel putting a nice 2" crack in it... :mad: Tank ruined.

I was so mad at myself too. I cannot tell you how many times over the years I have drilled glass for various projects and never did that. But since I only paid $50 for the tank it wasn't all bad. I was able to find this tank the same day for $75 and it was in better shape than the first one so it worked out well in the end.

Hopefiully...

 

[Will Milberger]

Bummer. But, so far, so good! I'm going to keep watching for ideas for mine.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

If you're at the same point as me and haven't filled the tank yet, you can contact the guy who made the replacement internal weir box for me. His Ebay name is ModularMarine and here is the link to his store page. https://www.ebay.com/usr/modularmarine?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2754 The price was very reasonable at $38.00 for the custom made box. It only took him a few days to make and ship it to me. I also think he does better craftsmanship than EShopps as well. He puts a beveled edge on the inside of the weir slots to it will be much quieter than the EShopps. The dimensions for the box I had him make are 12" x 2.5" x 6". And it is just deep enough that the EShopps provided bulkheads just squeeze inside of it. You will need to remove the external box, place the new box where you want it and mark the holes to be drilled. You can use a regular bit equipped hole saw to do this. Just be sure to use a center punch or something to make a point for the center bit to bite into first. Two things to note here. If you do decide to do this, go slow with drilling the acrylic so you don't crack it, and you will have to destroy the original weir box to get the bulkheads out.

Hope this helps.

 

[Bayareareefer18]

I do know what you mean. I did the same thing on my first attempt with drilling a 75g. Got the overflow drilled using the template and made the same mistake. Sad thing was I even watched a few videos on setting up the template properly and still did that... ;Dead

Unfortunately when I was drilling the second hole for the return lines I messed up. There was maybe a .32 left to go and I pulled the bit out to clear it, and to see how much was left. I didn't start the drill up before seating it back on the glass. The hole saw dug in and torqued the glass panel putting a nice 2" crack in it... :mad: Tank ruined.

I was so mad at myself too. I cannot tell you how many times over the years I have drilled glass for various projects and never did that. But since I only paid $50 for the tank it wasn't all bad. I was able to find this tank the same day for $75 and it was in better shape than the first one so it worked out well in the end.

Hopefiully...

Man what a bummer. I found out the hard way my existing 75 had tempered panels so had to buy a new one as well. Think I picked up an aga 75 for like $170 on sale

 

[Will Milberger]

Already drilled. I think I'm going to find a 1 to 1-1/2" x 12" piece of plexiglass and put in front of the intake.

 

[Bayareareefer18]

Already drilled. I think I'm going to find a 1 to 1-1/2" x 12" piece of plexiglass and put in front of the intake.

Sorry got confused. Read that tank cracked post and didn't realize it was someone else. You can have a piece of black acrylic cut from somewhere like tap plastics for pretty cheap. Can still a couple holes and use some nylon screws and wing nuts that will fit through the teeth and make it adjustable.

Mine is about 1/4" low. Thought of doing the same for mine but currently just living with it

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Already drilled. I think I'm going to find a 1 to 1-1/2" x 12" piece of plexiglass and put in front of the intake.

I think you misunderstood how I did this.

The tank already being drilled actually helps you. If you have a custom weir box made it will not be drilled for the bulkheads. As such you can line it up to be flush with the top of the tank like how mine is so the weir slots are inline with the trim. Just be sure to measure the height from the underside of the trim to the bottom of the current weir box you have. The new weir box needs to be 2.5" deep so the bulkheads will fit in it.

To install it, remove the overflow box and weir and put the new un-drilled weir box on the inside of the tank. Once you have it where you want it height wise and centered in the tank etc, use a sharpie marker and mark the weir box through the already drilled holes from the back of the tank. This will be where you will drill the holes for your bulkheads. Now pull the weir box out and drill the holes for the bulkheads based on where you marked it. When you're done drilling the holes in the new weir you will have to break old weir to get the bulkheads out so you can insert them into the newly drilled one and mount it all back up. Now the boxes will be offset with the overflow box being below the waterline but this will raise the waterline in the tank much closer to the top where you want it. The very important thing to note is because the outerbox is now 1.5-1.75" below the tank waterline you will want to set your secondary and emergency overflow pipes a little lower in the outer box. This will ensure that in the event of a pump failure or issue with the primary gated drain water will flow into the the secondary and emergency drains sooner to keep the overflow box from....well overflowing.. heh..

I hope this clears up the confusion with how I did it on mine and how you can fix yours if you're wanting to get that waterline up. Shoot me a PM and I'll be happy to talk it over with you in better detail if needed.

 

[Will Milberger]

Yep. So have Modular Marine make me a taller one. They did the kit for my sump. I was just lamenting on spending the money on fish and corals, not a new weir.