Ready made tanks

[Firestarz]

Hey guys! .. i m sure some of u might hav heard of my plans of setting up a marine tank ..

I hav to admit that i hav been very undecided n jumped from one idea to another.. n now i m backed to my original idea agin.

But for my original idea .. i actually wanted to custom make a tank .. but first i m thinking of checking out the prices n quality of ready made tanks as i m currently on a budget n would not b able to spent much.

I really dun know where i can find good n affordable tanks for marine setup n would like the help of bros n sis in this.

WOuld very much appriaciate the help from u guys. in advance!

[wil_lee76]

mmmm......bro, how much are you willing to set aside for these project?

[Firestarz]

Hmm ... at present i hav a 2ft T-5 Ho set alrdy ..

Preparing to set aside $500 for the tank with cabinate n sump although i hope it would amount to much lesser. (i was qouted $600 for a custom made 2ft cube 10mm glass tank with cabinate n 6mm thick glass sump)

For the skimmer i hav marco skimmers in mind. I most probably wouldnt use a chiller but would use a fan instead .. as no natural sunlightbis directed at it, i dun think it would b too hot .. plus i m thinking of using a DIY chiller comprising of a thick styrofoam box where i pump water from my sump in. The box would hav 4 to 6 ice packs placed standing straight up. I would monitor the temperature of teh teank as i very the number of ice packs n would use approipriate number of ice packs depending on whether it will b raining or not, n whethre it is nite or day.

I noe this is not encouraged by many reefers but as the tank would b in my living room, my parents does not allow me to use a chiller as they hav personally experiance how hot the chiller can cause the room to b n would not want such a thing to happen.

Advise pls. Thanks!

[Qxnviolet]

Erm, im running a CL450 and the heat is really not that bad as some people make it out to be, as long as its not inside an enclosed room with no ventilation, you'll hardly notice the heat unless you are standing right beside the chiller. And short of feeling the chiller outlet, the heat is very bearable. You are going to use a T5 and the chiller wont even be running that often if you get one. Ice packs in a styrofoam box with water running just doesnt sound safe to me. MAybe im being paranoid...

[wil_lee76]

i do agree on these. If you place ur tank in your living room with a "DIY chiller", will that even upset ur parents with all the funny boxes? My advise, focus on setting up your tank meanwhile, as bro here mentioned, running dual T5 will not caused much heat to your tank, maybe u can incoporate fans instead of "DIY chiller"

As for the tank setup, meanwhile...what i can advise u...

(1) GET a second hand - ard $350 (dun underestimate 2nd hand tank)

(2) Save up first, don't rush.....

(3) Get a tankmaker which fits ur budget.

hope these helps!

[Firestarz]

Hmm .. actually i presently hav a 2ft bow front tank .. it is only made of 5mm thick glass .. so i was actually thinking of doing rockscaping only in the center n not letting any touch the tank walls, any comments?

[Copperband]

It is possible.... But u need to check first.. is your tank glass normal glass or tempered glass.... if normal glass 5 mm is too thin,.... but if tempered glass it is just nice.... OK.. Just make sure you scape your LR beautifully and carefully..... beautifully is for the benefit of your eyes... carefully is for the benefit of your tank safety.... so it wont have a rockslide and break your glass...

[Firestarz]

Hmm .. i not sure .. someone gave me the tank for free ..

But since the tank is 1.5ft high, i hope i can find some suitable 1 piece rock so i dun hav to do stacking thus removing the possiblity of a rock slide ..

Eh .. i dun intend to hav a sump .. so thinking of using some hang on skimmer .. any reccommandations out there?

[chercm]

i dun think there is a one piece of rock solution .

for hang on skimmer , maybe u can try to get a second hand prizm deluxe.

[Firestarz]

Hmm .. by red sea ? .. Yea .. looking for something like that ..

[wil_lee76]

Personally, having a 5mm thickness tank for marine is quite unsafe. You must understand that with salt water (which weights heavier than normal water) and Live rocks , the weight can be tremendous. Don't risk it! I started off with 6mm normal tank , BUT i take a huge risk and lots of precaution while setting up. I cannot stand the stress and pressure everytime, i went for work. So opt for a new setup instead.

if you really wanna go for these...u must think about ur skimmer which is hang on, ur lightings which sits on the tank and your various pumps....will that make you think thrice having a 5mm tank for marine?

My recommendation: If budget constraints, you can opt for a customised new tank without a sump and cabinent. Estimated cost about $300 (for a 3 footer, ask qoute before) Run it with cannister first.U may ask the tank maker to install overflow sys and block the holes for the time begin and in case next time when u wanna upgrade , u can easily unblock the hole and install with pipings and sump.

In these way, u save $$ and of coz & of coz u will feel safer!

Reef on and hope these helps!

Hope these helps..

[Firestarz]

Yea .. thats the thing .. thats y i m thinking of checking if there's any ready made solutions ..

But if i m sticking to this tank, the lights sitting on top would not b too much of a problem .. as my lights r those DIY ones n doesnt come with those legs which i feel exerts alot of presseur onto the two sides of the tank .. for mine i juz place the whole thing flat .. so less pressure .. the tank does come with bracings at the side .. so i hope it wouldn't b too much of a problem. As for the skimmer, i will most likely b making a DIY stand for it to rest on so that the pressure would not b resting onto the tank glass.

alot for the great help .. of course i wouldnt want to see a swimming pool in my living room when i come home one day ..

Yea .. so for now if i cant find any suitable ready made tanks, i would juz hav to make do with this solution.

[wil_lee76]

Yea .. thats the thing .. thats y i m thinking of checking if there's any ready made solutions ..

But if i m sticking to this tank, the lights sitting on top would not b too much of a problem .. as my lights r those DIY ones n doesnt come with those legs which i feel exerts alot of presseur onto the two sides of the tank .. for mine i juz place the whole thing flat .. so less pressure .. the tank does come with bracings at the side .. so i hope it wouldn't b too much of a problem. As for the skimmer, i will most likely b making a DIY stand for it to rest on so that the pressure would not b resting onto the tank glass.

alot for the great help .. of course i wouldnt want to see a swimming pool in my living room when i come home one day ..

Yea .. so for now if i cant find any suitable ready made tanks, i would juz hav to make do with this solution.

great that u understand. But u can check ard with the sponsor here to customised a TANK only for the time begin. For a 2 footer should not be that expensive since ur budget is $500. Still got few hundred for your to stokc up ur tank! Don't rush and if really u wanna go ahead, do so..but just rem the stress and pressure factors...

reef on and cheers.

[Firestarz]

Actually i need a stand as well .. so if i go along with my present i dea i would b getting those wooden stands from furniture shops ..

YEa .. i would b considering really hard thru this weeek. Yea ..

Hmm .. i think i will juz go ahead with this 2 ft idea .. let this b my first tank n when i get enough knowledge n most probable after i finish schooling, i will upgrade to b bigger n better tank .. so at present i will juz b very careful with wad i do in teh tank. Yea .. thanks alot .. been of great help! Yay! .. i will finally start up my tank after nearly 3 months of researching n consideration .. i must say i hav learnt so many things from u ppl out there! THANKS!

[Firestarz]

Eh .. i need one last help from u ppl, Is there anywhere in singapore where i can find the red sea prizm skimmers? .. Thinking of getting one asap .. but no one is selling second hand, so thinking of getting a first hand.

[chercm]

u can get from Aqua marin at Jalan Kayu from 12 noon to 12 midnight

it is a great shop

u can call them at 64842006 before going down .

John is good at his advices

[Qxnviolet]

Erm, AM has some nice LRs the last time i visited, CF too. I dun think there'll be any problem for you to find just a single piece that suits your tank. AM and Petmart carries the redsea skimmer.... It'll costs around 200 or 300+ for a new 1 i think.

[Firestarz]

Yea .. Thanks.. will head down this weekend n check it out .. at the time being anyone can give a comment on red sea prizm skimmer? .. i checked with reborn n he told me to choose red sea as its known to hav less complaints compared to aqua-c n its cheaper n looks nicer ..

I think i saw some maring epoxy .. r they usedfor gluing rocks together to prevent them from falling .. ?

[Qxnviolet]

Epoxy can be used to join 2 Lrs together(small pieces), for securing SPS and some other corals to your LRs too. Just got 1 tube today, hope it works...

[Firestarz]

Yea .. do give a review on it. Thanks!