360 gal display!! Stoked!

[Scythanith]

Hello all,

I am currently designing a 360 gal display tank for the new home my gf Wendy and I are building in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

First off, I am open to all opinions and critiques!

tank will me a mix of everything except softies. We love LPS and I know we will have plenty, but I also want to get into SPS in a bad way!

The systems will be a basement setup with a dedicated room. The house is being built to energy star specs and will have a high efficiency flow through style dehumidifier, central ac, and a carrier infinity furnace which runs it's motor to circ air/control humidity even when it's not heating or cooling.

The system will be a 72" x 48" x 24" 3/4" glass display tank with the front pane being starfire. It will have a ~150 gal sump (not designed yet) and a smaller ~56 gal (36" x 20" x 18") frag tank in line. main tank circulation will be achieved with a sequence pump (unsure of model) running through a OM 4 way back into the tank. In tank circ will also be provided with some type of tunze/vortech/koralia on an appropriate controller.

Heating will be a couple 300 watt titanium heaters, and I am unsure of cooling as of yet.

For lighting I am thinking 2 or 4 400 watt MH with T5HO supplementation for dawn/dusk OR all T5HO... unsure as of yet. The frag tank will be T5HO. Any opinions for MH ballasts? I am using IC 430's and 660's right now for my T5's and have no complaints.

For other equip I am thinking Deltec appropriately sized. I will use a skimmer (prob 2 pump), calcium reactor, and maybe a Kalkwasser stirrer. I have a tunze ATO already that I will move to this set up.

Water will be supplied by a 5 stage aqua safe RODI system. I will use 2 60 gal drums for FW storage and SW mixing.

Now I don't know about the controller.... a neptune system vs profilux? I am away from home a lot so I'd like something I can check up with online. Ill want to control lights (dawn dusk etc), temp (on and off heaters, coolers, lights), and reactors (pH monitors, etc.).

Well enough talk, Here is the pics I made up. Sketchup is great!

Also, anyone know of a reputable Canadian tank manufacturer?

Thanks!!!!







Scott

[EBOLII]

Just curious is this a purchased tank at ¾”? my 240g 72x24x31 and is ½” and weighs almost 500-550lbs
I can’t tell you what a ¾” tank will weigh but it will be massive

It will be a sweet tank when completed keep the pics flowing eh?

[Scythanith]

It hasn't been constructed yet. That's why I posted it up here, so i could get everyone's suggestions pre build. I am still debating closed loop as well, and i think it's winning the debate....

Pics will come soon as I have them. Here is a pic of the basement haahaa!!!



Here is my idea for the floor plan but the walls will be flush with the front of the tanks.



Cheers,

Scott

[Scythanith]

Well I emailed aquariumobsessed about the tank and I think I really like the sigolifi modular fixtures! Some T5HO and some HQI would look stellar!

Now I just get to hurry up and wait!

[Muligan]

you will be happy with their tanks I have one and they are awsome tank builders.
The only change I would make to your tank would be the height after you figure the water line for the overflow and the bottom pane of glass
you veiwing window will be on the smaller side.
so possibly reduce the width and add to the height.

[Scythanith]

Thanks for the suggestion! I have a couple questions though. Why would I need to reduce the width? I could just add 2 inches on to the height to offset the overflow level and still have the width and depth I'd like?

Also I'm pretty sure I am going to add a closed loop running off a OM 4 way and maybe a barracuda.

Also Muligan, how did they ship your tank to you?

Thanks for the ideas!

[Muligan]

I was only saying reduce the width to keep the same gallons but yeah for sure keep the width and add two inches to height.

I live in the same area as them so no shipping.

[edwinn]

that is a sweet project cant wait to see this done

[jnarowe]

with the space available, why not try a 72' x 72"? You would get a really nice depth to work with and it would appear more like a slice of ocean rather than a tank.

I sthe tank actually going to stick out into the viewing room like how it's drawn?

[Scythanith]

The biggest problem with a 72" x 72" for me is reaching the middle of the tank. I'm a small fat guy haahaa and I know I'd have a problem with that dimension. Do you think that it would make a world of difference?

Here are a couple new renderings, but I will make the back room larger and leave more space between the side wall and the tank so I can get up onto that side of the tank and do maintenance or place frags.





Thanks for posting jnarowe, I've followed your build for a while now! And to answer your question, no the tank will not extend out of the wall, plus it will have the larger area in the back room.

Im still waiting for my quote from AO, but they did email me back already and ask for some clarification on some aspects of the tank.

Hella excited!

[Scythanith]

Im just at a stand still, I don't know what to do with that damn teli-post. I want to bring the tanks further out but I just get closer to the post.....

Any suggestions? And no, I can't re engineer the joists, it's a spec home and they only let us get away with so many changes!

Cheers!

[jnarowe]

yeah, and it doesn't look like you can bump out that cement corner! That and the post would tick me off, but that's the way it goes on spec. houses. My neighbor had one built and he got away with a lot, but many of his changes had to be done post-construction. I would get an engineer to review it and deal with the post after construction. There has to be a way to eliminate it if needed. As your drawing stands, the pole will be right in the middle of the tank when viewed from the couch. Maybe swapping the snake tanks to where the reef display is might help.

I can tell you that my tank is 60" deep and it is really cool, but when I visited Steve Weast's tank, I saw what a mistake I made installing mine in the classic way. It would be much nicer (and is) to view through the "side". The view from inside the fishroom is a lot more "reef-like" than the view from the viewing room.

With 72 x 48 you will still have trouble reaching the center of the tank anyway. I place a plank on top of mine and crawl across when I do maintainance. It's not easy but it is fun, and I get a lot of laughs from my other reefer buddies. I just wear swimming trunks!

Even 60" x 72" with the viewing panel as the 60" side would give you a much more realsitic reef aquascaping. If I were to do it again, I definitely would do it that way.

What a fun project though! Have you considered mounting the FO tank right up against the reef tank so that they appear to be one system?

[EBOLII]

WOW what a great concept! that will be a great area indeed!

post many images as often as you can eh?

[skewch]

Very nice plans Scott! For a tank builder, check with Custom Aquariums in Edmonton (Aquarium Illusions). Colby can hook you up. Our new tank is massively overbuilt, but it's a beauty.

[Scythanith]

I figured the best thing to do with the teli-post was to just address it after they hand us over the keys, the basement will only be at the rough in stage so it won't require too much demolition. I have a new idea for the location of the main tank and it's falling somewhere along the lines of what jnarowe suggested, PLUS it allows for two viewable sides! It will take up more of the back room, but eh... that's what the basement is for! I'm seriously considering the 72x60x26 if I can configure it to work with two viewable sides. man I need a picture of you crawling on the top of your tank, that's priceless!!

I have been trying to configure it so that they are side by side but I'm running short on useable space! I'll get it figured out before too long!

Thanks for the nice coments ebolii! I am trying to figure out a seating plan and useable space that makes the tanks more front and center for viewing and just overall enjoying! Don't worry, I'm a pictures kinda guy. I'm sure I will max out the old photobucket account with this build. I may make a site to put my updates on after the tank is all up and running.

shewch, are CA and AI in the same building? I'd definitly save on shipping! And the less time in the box, the less the chance of it getting busted up. Colby has a couple of their tanks for his longer fish only tanks in which he means to put tangs in. I help Colby out every once and a while and man the shop. I may have even met you haahaa! Colby is as excited about my tank as I am!

Thanks once again for everyone's comments! I will draw up some new pics and post them for everyone to scrutinize!

Cheers

Scott

[jnarowe]

I would think twice about two viewable sides. IME, island tanks are cool especially if they are look-down installs, but two viewable sides, or even three, really detracts from the illusion of looking out into a reef. In Steve Weast's words, "Too much visual pollution". It all depends on your reef goals, but it seems to me that based on your interest in an in-wall install, you might be looking closely at reef realism.

What do you need the TV for anyway? You won't have any time to watch it!

[leoskee]

Originally posted by jnarowe


What do you need the TV for anyway? You won't have any time to watch it!

Thats funny as hell. I thought about that too when I started my basement inwall project. My TV is gathering dust because I am always working on the tank.

[jnarowe]

I put my tank right where I had planned for a couple years to install an HD LCD screen. I have enough TVs anyway...in fact, I spend enough time in the tank room, I have considered installing a small one in there so I can watch news and stocks.

[tgunn]

Are you planning on venting the fish room separately from the rest of the house?
If not you should really consider adding a Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV) to your HVAC system.

I live in Winnipeg (similar climate to Saskatoon); my house was built in 89 and is pretty well sealed. In the dead of winter the humidity from my 140g tank was enough to shoot the humidity in the house around 70%. The windows wept and I got mold growing on a closet wall.

With a high efficiency furnace and energy star house you are going to be keeping even MORE humidity trapped in the house. You'll be running your dehumidifier lots to keep up with the humidity.

With the HRV, my humidity runs 20-30% in the winter. Not a drop of condensation on the windows. PLUS the air quality in the house is SOOOOO much better; it's so nice and fresh with air constantly cycling in and out of the house.

With an unfinished basement, installation of the HRV would be a snap; boring some duct holes in the foundation, and running ducts, etc.

Just figured I'd share from my experiences. Looks like it'll be an awesome setup though!

[sullyfish]

I did not see a separate refugium on your equipment list, were you planning on having a refugium in your sump ? If it were me I would want a separate refugium of 100 gal or more. That way you could plumb a return to both reef and FO tanks.

I really like the setup and floor plan. Cant wait to see picks.

[EBOLII]

What does FO mean? I agree with tgunn this is the time to make those precautions before construction gets to far. This will help ith the cost

[jnarowe]

FO= Fish Only

[gruntface]

on your floor plan it has something labled bodie and sheila, what is that?

[bbrantley]

Originally posted by jnarowe
I would think twice about two viewable sides. IME, island tanks are cool especially if they are look-down installs, but two viewable sides, or even three, really detracts from the illusion of looking out into a reef. In Steve Weast's words, "Too much visual pollution". It all depends on your reef goals, but it seems to me that based on your interest in an in-wall install, you might be looking closely at reef realism.

What do you need the TV for anyway? You won't have any time to watch it!

Don't listen to Jonathan or Steve. Those guys are amateurs. Two sides viewable is the bomb.

Ben

[skewch]

I think HRV's are required by code now aren't they tgunn? I may be mistaken. We just moved into our new house in April, with an HRV, and yeah, it makes a HUGE difference.

Scott, I don't think they are in the same building, but they are the same guys. Shipping a 230g from Edmonton to our door was only around $200 (weight based I assume, this tank has 1/2" sides and a 3/4" bottom, so she's on the heavy side!). And yes, we have met, many times, LOL.

Susan & Rob