40 gallon Reef Journal

[jumpfreak26]

UPDATE 1/29/08
Good news. Actually great news. After looking at the 30 we currently have, there were some weird stains and water deposits in the silicone, some wasnt even there, idk how it didnt leak, but we decided not to take our chances so we decided to go with a 40 breeder! im pumped, this thing is huge compared to everything else, i love how deep it is too. got it pretty cheap too. Anyways, this is going to be a full out reef tank with a drilled overflow and refuge, and ill keep this fairly updated with a parts list and set up price.
So far,

$80-1X40 gallon breeder
free-1X10 gallon (for refuge)

Running total=$80

The pictures dont do it any justice at all. its 3 feet long, 20 inches deep, and 16 inches tall. saweet.

 

[jumpfreak26]

Update 2/10/08

Finally built the stand over the weekend. We used 3/4" plywood, its a pretty simple desgin, and if you are wanting to build one like this i can give you some diagrams or a SketchUp model. Its amazingly sturdy too. The stand is nearly finished, just need to finish it and put some doors on and were set.

Stand=Free (had the wood lying around) idk how much a sheet of plywood costs

 

[sweetpickles7]

Looking great. I love the dimensions on your tank, i wish i had something like that.

 

[jumpfreak26]

Thanx, im really happy with this tank, the depth is amazing!
quick questions-
substrate- im looking at Caribsea aragonite, does it matter how coarse the substrate is? how deep should i have it? also, would it be more beneficial in the long run to use all live rock instead of some base rock and some live rock?

 

[sweetpickles7]

Aragonite is what i use, as for the depth it really depends on what you like and what fish your going to get[ like if your going to get a goby or something like that ]. In the long run the base rock becomes live so i dont think that it would matter. I used all live rock though. I think your supposed to kept the depth at either .5 inches or 3-5 inches, not to sure on that on.

 

[jumpfreak26]

i have heard that too on depth. that you should only have about an inch or 4-5 inches

 

[SALTY WATERS]

For a deep sand bed you want at least 6"

 

[jumpfreak26]

Is there anything wrong with 4"? Whats the problems of not having 6"?

 

[Lorna]

you should either go with a shallow 1 inch or a deep 6 inches of substrate. I would suggest a fine grain sugar sand or caribsea aragonite reef sand is fine though. The reason for the two varied depths is that a shallow bed needs to be cleaned and turned over but isn't deep enough to become anaerobic. The deep sand bed will begin working converting excess to nitrogen gas. This is a good thing and needs to be deep enough to ensure this anaerobic area is not disturbed by snails and digging fish. Here is a good substrate site

DeepSandBeds

 

[Joe Fish]

4" to 6" is considered a DSB, but 6" would be best.

 

[Lorna]

as that article states, the finer the sand the less depth necessary to work as a dsb. The depth necessary will be determined by the coarseness of the substrate....4 inches of fine sugar sand.......6 inches of reefsand

 

[jumpfreak26]

ok thank you all, well probably go with a 6" medium coarse (.5-2mm) substrate. just ordered plumbing parts and return pump last night, wiating on offer for ro/di and acryliv for overflow and fuge.

 

[jumpfreak26]

Update 3/2/08

Just finished up all the plumbing today and finished up the sump last night. Everything is working great had one leak, cuz it wasnt glued. So i glued it. Now everything is fine and right now im doing a long leak test, letting it run for all day with the pump on. Finished up the overflow too, pretty good idea IMo lol, and working on a silencer, similar to this...R. Durso's 180g - Ken Stockman Standpipe.

Cost of plumbing-$30-$40
Mag Drive Return pump-$60
Running Total-$180

Well anyway, here is the pics from today. Just have to finish the stand and were ready to start! WOO!

Enjoy!
~jump

 

[Cichlid-Man]

Are those glass or acrylic baffles in the sump? Looks good can't wait to see it progress.

What are you going with in terms of equipment like skimmer and lights?

 

[jumpfreak26]

They are 1/8" acrylic, some of them are a little bendy so im going to put in supports in when we drain it to move it to its final position. im actually going to try and put together a list tonight of equipment. But we will be getting metal halides and a protein skimmer will be on the bottom of the list, but not off, maybe in a couple months.

 

[jumpfreak26]

So heres my list(which is welcome to suggestions, chnages or comments):

Lighting-MH fixture with PC or VHO. but what size lights? 1X150 or 2X150? I wold imagine 1X150 is about right.

Salt-recomendations?

Substrate/Live Rock-Caribsea Aragonite or OOLite/Live Rock...

Protein Skimmer-AquaC Remora HangOn

Powerheads-Koralia 3X#2's

i think that is about it. let me know if i have forgotten anything or if you have suggestions, thanx

 

[Lorna]

sounds good. Iuse Tropic Marin Pro salt mix but I know a lot of people use Reef Crystals and Instant Ocean. Just a matter of preference.

 

[jumpfreak26]

Yeah, i have heard some good things about Instant Ocean, but we will see. hopefully we get sand and some live rock this weekend

 

[sweetpickles7]

I use instant ocean and i can say that the stuff is great!

 

[jumpfreak26]

Ok thats good to know! Any input on the lighting setup?