Current Build Phase: Planning
Intro:
So I've been in the hobby for going on 2 years now and by far my favorite part is the corals. Being in college has put my in a tight spot while trying to enjoy this hobby. I currently have a 29g display with a 20g sump setup at my house which my father looks after. He also has a 29g display with a 20g sump so we can each have our own fish and corals. The problem with this is my tank is starting to get crowded. The rock space in a 29g is not that much and I have to take in consideration that the corals are going to grow and fill in the gaps. So to counter this real-estate problem I've decided to build a frag tank in my dorm. I've spent the last 2 weeks planning the build and I'll spend another more or two continuing the planning stage. A lot has to be thought about before doing this build. I'm going to be making a list of everything needed and a check list of things I need to confirm before any buying is done. With that said I'll stop rambling and get into things.
Check List (what's needed before hand):
☑ Figure out how much water I can have in my dorm room.
[] How is maintenance going to be done over winter break which is a little over a month. This is a problem I'm trying to figure out because the college normally doesn't allow people to visit the campus during the break unless you're living on campus for the break. Because of this I might be looking into winter classes so i'll be allowed to stay on campus throughout the winter break. I'll have to keep doing research on this and meeting with people that can give me more information.
The Build Design & Whats Needed:
The Tank & Stand:
So the tank was my first real problem I ran into. Having a small budget forced me to look into other options besides a $300 frag tank. For the tank I decided to purchase a 40g breeder and then take it apart. I'm then going to be taking it to a glass shop where they will cut the glass down to the size I want. I aiming for a 36" Wide x 18" Deep x 9" High this will give me about 8 inches from the frag wrack to the top of the tank. The overflow box position is still in the works as I'm debating to either have it in the back center of the tank or on the right corner of the tank. The decision to put it in the right corner is because the sump design I'm looking at is only 15x15 inches. This means the return will have to be close to the overflow. I've come up with an idea that allows me to house the ATO and other equipment all inside the stand so everything is hidden. This design also allows the high flow in the right side of the tank while keeping lower flow towards the left side so I can have a wide variety of corals(I don't want to be limited).
Here is kind of the rough idea of the tank and stand idea. The stand is 36"x36"x18". I've also put a photo of what it would be like to look down at the 2x4s being used to hold everything up.
The Sump:
This is the next thing on the to do list. updates soon to come
So far this is where I'm at in the build and so a lot will be added over the next few weeks. I've also been working on my own frag wrack design which will be used in this build. I know the "mock ups" arnt 3D but I'm terrible using 3D programs so using photoshop is so much easier for me
all feedback is welcome
Intro:
So I've been in the hobby for going on 2 years now and by far my favorite part is the corals. Being in college has put my in a tight spot while trying to enjoy this hobby. I currently have a 29g display with a 20g sump setup at my house which my father looks after. He also has a 29g display with a 20g sump so we can each have our own fish and corals. The problem with this is my tank is starting to get crowded. The rock space in a 29g is not that much and I have to take in consideration that the corals are going to grow and fill in the gaps. So to counter this real-estate problem I've decided to build a frag tank in my dorm. I've spent the last 2 weeks planning the build and I'll spend another more or two continuing the planning stage. A lot has to be thought about before doing this build. I'm going to be making a list of everything needed and a check list of things I need to confirm before any buying is done. With that said I'll stop rambling and get into things.
Check List (what's needed before hand):
☑ Figure out how much water I can have in my dorm room.
- Found out I can have a 30g tank and my sump does not count. Also the school has zero regulations on the amount a water a student can have in his or her room
☑ What is my total budget.
- I'm aiming for around $500-600... yeah I know its a bit low budget
[] How is maintenance going to be done over winter break which is a little over a month. This is a problem I'm trying to figure out because the college normally doesn't allow people to visit the campus during the break unless you're living on campus for the break. Because of this I might be looking into winter classes so i'll be allowed to stay on campus throughout the winter break. I'll have to keep doing research on this and meeting with people that can give me more information.
The Build Design & Whats Needed:
The Tank & Stand:
So the tank was my first real problem I ran into. Having a small budget forced me to look into other options besides a $300 frag tank. For the tank I decided to purchase a 40g breeder and then take it apart. I'm then going to be taking it to a glass shop where they will cut the glass down to the size I want. I aiming for a 36" Wide x 18" Deep x 9" High this will give me about 8 inches from the frag wrack to the top of the tank. The overflow box position is still in the works as I'm debating to either have it in the back center of the tank or on the right corner of the tank. The decision to put it in the right corner is because the sump design I'm looking at is only 15x15 inches. This means the return will have to be close to the overflow. I've come up with an idea that allows me to house the ATO and other equipment all inside the stand so everything is hidden. This design also allows the high flow in the right side of the tank while keeping lower flow towards the left side so I can have a wide variety of corals(I don't want to be limited).
Here is kind of the rough idea of the tank and stand idea. The stand is 36"x36"x18". I've also put a photo of what it would be like to look down at the 2x4s being used to hold everything up.
The Sump:
This is the next thing on the to do list. updates soon to come
So far this is where I'm at in the build and so a lot will be added over the next few weeks. I've also been working on my own frag wrack design which will be used in this build. I know the "mock ups" arnt 3D but I'm terrible using 3D programs so using photoshop is so much easier for me
all feedback is welcome
