Staaan's 46g - Piece of The Reef

Stan's 46g Piece Of The Reef


Tank - 46g Bowfront (36 x 15 x 20)
[Drilled with 1" Return & 1" Drain]


Stand - DIY Pine Radiata w/ Bow-front "drop-in"


Lighting - DIY LED fixture [36] - 3w LEDs
(18 Cre XR-E White & 18 Cree XR-E Blue, in progress)


Sump - AGA 29g Tall


Protein Skimmer ASM G-2


Return Pump - Eheim 1260


Circulation Pump - VorTech MP10


Reactor - Dual Chamber w/ Carbon & Biopellets (T'd off Main return)


Heater - Eheim Jager 250w




Progress Pics...

Here is the my DIY LED fixture so far, it is going to be a retro fit.








Tank shots..




And just incase anyone was wondering.. this REALLY IS FINAL!! haha

Following along, looks like a good build.

Thanks! :smile:

this tank build is taking to long......
Just kidding, can't wait to see these LED's
how much did the parts cost you for the led's

Well for the DIY Kit I got... it was supposed to be $368.

That included everything you really need to DIY, except the aluminum angle-line, and other various parts to either retro-fit it or hang it.

However... when I added to the cart on the site I bought it from..

It came out to be $268, $100 cheaper.

The company contacted me.. saying that I needed to add $100 to my order, otherwise they wouldn't ship it.

So I kind of had a back and forth thing with them, and they finally subsided for just a $60 increase, and they were giving me a free heatsink upgrade from a 18" x 8.5" to a 24" x 8.5"... and the guy threw in some LED Seal... which is some kind of spray-on electrical insulator.

So basically I lucked out.. and the total price was

$328

Which I don't think is bad at all for an LED fixture which is comparable to a 250w MH.

Plus I'll be saving a ton on electric... and won't have to worry about heat.

Nor will I be changing bulbs out anytime soon.

Ah... so excited.. this is my first "big" tank... can't wait to stock it up with nice coral & fishies!

what website can i find this diy led's

looking good stann.. post the website for leds. I'm thinking of doing the same for my 46 bow.

He got it from RapidLED.com.

Man this tank is so wack lol =D

Staaan said:

So basically I lucked out.. and the total price was

$328

Which I don't think is bad at all for an LED fixture which is comparable to a 250w MH.

Click to expand...

i thought 60x 3w leds = 250w halide????

btldreef said:

i thought 60x 3w leds = 250w halide????

Click to expand...

Not how it works. It depends on a lot of things mainly the lenses and how deep the tank is.

60x 3w LED's if it's a CREE (any series) I can tell you is probably more than a 250w halide lol.

it's coming along Stan...good luck

aznt1217 said:

He got it from RapidLED.com.

Man this tank is so wack lol =D

Click to expand...

Actually I didn't get it from RapidLED...


I got it from Reef LED Lights

Excellent customer support..

I highly recommend them.

They are slightly better priced than the others out there.. specifically when you do a kit. (When comparing to the competitors kits)


Anyway... the LEDs have been epoxyed down.

All that needs to be done is some soldering, drilling my project box from RadioShack which wil house my 3 Meanwell LED drivers.. and thats about it.

I will be picking up my reactor from Gotham Aquatics -

http://www.tbaquatics.com/shop/single-chamber-media-reactor-for-remphos-or-bac-309.html

Any one have any gripes with this reactor, or can recommend one that is better for the same $$?

MIKE NY said:

it's coming along Stan...good luck

Click to expand...

Thanks Mike!

aznt1217 said:

Not how it works. It depends on a lot of things mainly the lenses and how deep the tank is.

60x 3w LED's if it's a CREE (any series) I can tell you is probably more than a 250w halide lol.

Click to expand...

Btw.. Ted, do you have a PAR meter I can borrow?

LEDs will be soldered this weekend.. along with the stand being painted will be done this weekend.

And the tank cycling... of course!

Can't wait.... how can setting up a tank make some one so excited? haha

Looking good Stan. Reactor looks a lot like the BRS reactor which works well for me and is similarly priced. Are you planning on doing anything on the back of the tank? Looking forward to seeing how your lights turn out.

Thanks! Yeah that's what I figured Phil. Same stuff as the BRS one...more or less.

Going to contact Tito today. Just realized I don't have a heater sufficient enough for this tank too haha.

The heater from my 6g nanocube is the stealth pro a d I believe it's only 50 watts...

How big of a heater am I going to need for this tank?

It's a 46g with a 40g sump... So say roughly ~60g total volume maybe even less considering the rock and sand...


I know no heater is totally safe... But can anyone recommend one that I guess has a good track record?


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I use Eheim Jager Heaters and they're fine for me. Been a year now, but now, I have 2 of them on a controller in case they crap out. I use 2 x 150's cause 1 wasn't enough for my 57gallon.

But if you have a sump, a heater is a heater, don't need the stealth kind or anything like that. Just get a reputable one. I would shoot for a 250w or 300w if you're looking for one. I'm using 2 cause I had them already.

Making me think of Jagermeister lol.

Sounds good. Eheim is kinda like the BMW of aquarium goods right? Haha

I'll check it out.

However your 57g with sump has more water than my setup. Maybe 1 150w will be enough for me?


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Buy a Jager. If you do buy one get one that is like 200W.

Kk sounds good.

Btw did you get your TDS meter back?


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Can get 250w for $35... Good? Or is that too much wattage?


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