My first reef tank

[dannyny]

hey guys. wanted to share my tank build with you all and wanted feed back as i go along. all of you have been very helpful so far and wanted to say thanks to everyone that has helped me along the way and there are a lot of you guys...

purchased the tank on 3/31/2012
setup tank on 5/13/2012

Tank: 50 Gallon rimless made by Glasscages
Stand: Made by INNEED
Sump: Made by Custom King
Heater: ViaAqua titanium
Skimmer: SWC 120 Cone
Return Pump: DeepBlue Triton 4
Power heads: 2 x Hydor Koralia 425GPH
Reactor: BRS Dual GFO/Carbon

 

[dannyny]

pics of what i have done so far.

 

[rbtwo4]

word of advice bro that clamp u have see if u can just have the light hang from something. i had a clamp on mine and it started getting rusty after a month. i dont think u want rust falling from that into tank i dont know if its harmful but i got it out of there. dont want to take that chance. nice build

 

[dannyny]

word of advice bro that clamp u have see if u can just have the light hang from something. i had a clamp on mine and it started getting rusty after a month. i dont think u want rust falling from that into tank i dont know if its harmful but i got it out of there. dont want to take that chance. nice build

thank you. i will try to remove that piece if i can tonight if not i'll buy a different fixture if i can find one.

 

[rbtwo4]

or u can just buy one of those hooks and screw it into the wood and let it hang from there

 

[dannyny]

or u can just buy one of those hooks and screw it into the wood and let it hang from there

i have the hook screws in the cabinet which i will hang the light from but it is close to the sump itself...

 

[dannyny]

any help suggestions would be great... am i missing anything or does anything nees to be rearranged?

 

[greengny]

Looking good. That 90 elbow at the end of your dorso may be too low in your overflow. If the water drains faster than it is returned, the water will "splash/fall" over your overflow casuing a splashing racket. You may need to move the 90 elbow up a bit, closer to the top of the overflow, so that the water doesnt have to fall too much to reach the drain. G/L John

 

[dannyny]

Looking good. That 90 elbow at the end of your dorso may be too low in your overflow. If the water drains faster than it is returned, the water will "splash/fall" over your overflow casuing a splashing racket. You may need to move the 90 elbow up a bit, closer to the top of the overflow, so that the water doesnt have to fall too much to reach the drain. G/L John

the straight pipe is already cemented into the bulkhead i don thtink i can adjust the height of the elbow anymore. maybe i can semi-close the drain ball valve to catch up to the return output?

 

[dannyny]

I re did my rock work a little bit cause a few people mentioned it was too "tight" maybe I will have a better flow this way? No sure on aquascaping...

 

[jcdeng]

can you get a top shot of the tank and rock work?

 

[dannyny]

can you get a top shot of the tank and rock work?

i will try to get one tonight. water was a little cloudy to take pics.

 

[jcdeng]

just trying to see if water can flow from behind the rock wall

 

[dannyny]

Please see attached artwork.

Please note objects in the image are not drawn to scale.

 

[jcdeng]

looks ok if you are only keeping small fishes.

 

[dannyny]

looks ok if you are only keeping small fishes.

planning to keep 2 clowns and a cardinal

 

[dannyny]

Pics of top of tank.

 

[savage]

Looking good man!

 

[stooops718]

IMO you have too much rock, but that's just my preference. I like a minimalist look. You could try making two separate structures, one bigger than the other.
Check this article on aquascaping

 

[dannyny]

Looking good man!

thank you!