New 180Gallon Room Divider Tank

[Charliebrown]

Greg,

I'm a fairly new to reef tanks. Had several 30 gallon freshwater tanks. My wife had a 30 gallon salt. Anyway, we're trying to finish up a two story addition to our house in Seattle, WA. I thought it might be cool to put in a large tank between our livingroom and diningroom viewable from three sides.

It would be a custom 72LX24WX24H acrylic tank, saltwater reef system, ETSS Evolution 750 Skimmer set in sump, Iwaki 40RLT Skimmer Pump, Sump and Refegum located just below tank(live sand, live rock, mangroves) AquaFX Dolphin RO three stage unit, three 250W metal halides, two moonlights, two 5ft 140W URI Super Actinic tubes, three temp regulated 4 inch fans to dissipate heat, Pacific Coast Imports 1/3HP Chiller, 200W & 250W Won Titanium Heaters, Wavemaster Pro Wavemaker by Red Sea.

I read your awesome article on sumps a couple of times. You mentioned that you have a "Room Divider" type tank of your own and have made some modifications to make up for the smaller overflow box. I was wondering if you would share what modifications you made to your system to reduce noise and deal with the "lack of linear overflow area."

A couple of other questions.
Is it possible to do a closed loop system with this type of tank?
Water Movement and pumps for the tank. I'm trying to avoid several large powerheads. They look intrusive and ugly, unless there hidden/blend into the overflow box. I realize that I'm going to have some but would like to minimize their visual impact. Any ideas, designs, pump/powerhead recommendations for this size tank, anything I'm missing???

I built my own stand 72"LX24"WX36"3/4"H.
Underneath usable storage area is 61"LX19"1/2WX301/2H
I'll hire out for the sump/skimmer tank and main tank fabrication/design. Any input on size of each would be appreciated. I can put the plumbing and electrical systems together myself. I knowledgeable in electricity, plumbing, and framing.

Lastly, REEF CENTRAL ROCKS.

[gregt]

I thought it might be cool to put in a large tank between our livingroom and diningroom viewable from three sides.
I think this is the only way to get full enjoyment out of a tank. You basically get twice as much viewing space (and enjoyment) out of the same amount of tank.

It would be a custom 72LX24WX24H acrylic tank, saltwater reef system, ETSS Evolution 750 Skimmer set in sump, Iwaki 40RLT Skimmer Pump, Sump and Refegum located just below tank(live sand, live rock, mangroves) AquaFX Dolphin RO three stage unit, three 250W metal halides, two moonlights, two 5ft 140W URI Super Actinic tubes, three temp regulated 4 inch fans to dissipate heat, Pacific Coast Imports 1/3HP Chiller, 200W & 250W Won Titanium Heaters, Wavemaster Pro Wavemaker by Red Sea.
Sounds nice.

I read your awesome article on sumps a couple of times. You mentioned that you have a "Room Divider" type tank of your own and have made some modifications to make up for the smaller overflow box. I was wondering if you would share what modifications you made to your system to reduce noise and deal with the "lack of linear overflow area."

Well, if you are going to have the tank built custom then you shouldn't have the problems that I face by not having a drilled tank. I'm currently setting up a new custom built tank and I had it built with a nice sized internal overflow and drilled bottom. This tank will also be a "penninsula" style tank. In my case, I put the end with the overflow into the wall so that the overflow is almost hidden from view completely.

http://saltyzoo.com/new/031219/GT031219_2043_07-512.jpg


A couple of other questions.
Is it possible to do a closed loop system with this type of tank?

Don't know why not.

Water Movement and pumps for the tank. I'm trying to avoid several large powerheads. They look intrusive and ugly, unless there hidden/blend into the overflow box. I realize that I'm going to have some but would like to minimize their visual impact. Any ideas, designs, pump/powerhead recommendations for this size tank, anything I'm missing???
External pumps work quite well for circulation. In my case I can hide most of my plumbing just out of view behind the wall. You could do something similar by paneling the portion of the tank that the overflow takes up. My return plumbing will be placed in the corners beside the overflow out of view.


I built my own stand 72"LX24"WX36"3/4"H.
Underneath usable storage area is 61"LX19"1/2WX301/2H
I'll hire out for the sump/skimmer tank and main tank fabrication/design. Any input on size of each would be appreciated.

Here's what I did:

Layout of room and tank
http://saltyzoo.com/new/idea3.png

Tank
http://saltyzoo.com/new/tank-diagram3.jpg

Sump
http://saltyzoo.com/new/sump-3.jpg

[Charliebrown]

Greg,

Thanks for your help to date.
You've got a great set up. Nice tank.
I'm doing some research on various components for the tank, plumbing etc. When I've got it together, I'll post again.

[gregt]

Glad to be able to help.