SPS OBSESSED
This website has been created for me to express my love for keeping SPS (small polyped stony) corals and marine fish. I am currently in the process of setting up a 280 gallon reef tank which will be designed for keeping sps corals. The tank will also house several marine fish. In addition, a 40 gallon clam tank will be plumbed into the same system.
Corals (most recent update pics from 10-21-05 starting on page 8)
FULL TANK PICTURE TAKEN 12-10-04
5-1-05
7-28-05
10-21-05
Read Below To Follow The Detailed Setup Of My Dream Tank
4-8-04: The tank is being built by James at http://www.envisionacrylics.com. I chose James after extensively researching as many tank manufacturers as I could find. In the end I narrowed my choices down to a few manufacturers. I went with James because of his customer service, reliability, experience, and reputation.
The dimensions of the tank will be 72"L X 30"W X 30"H. I chose the 72" length because I don't have room for a longer tank. I settled with a depth of 30" as I wanted the tank to be as deep as possible. In the end I decided this would be the safest size to ensure it would fit through the doors of a house, which hadn't been picked out at the time. I originally planned on a height of 24" but after seeing a mature sps tank that had the same dimensions except with a height of 30" I knew I had to go with the 30" height. It will make it harder to access the bottom of the tank but will allow more room for vertically placing corals which helps create the natural reef wall look. Construction of the tank begins in mid-April and the tank will then stay at the site to further cure. It will be shipped in the beginning of June after I move into my new house. The tank will be euro-braced and will have a 1 1/4" thick front, 1" thick sides, 1" thick black back, and 1\2" black bottom.
This picture shows the 18" X 5" trapezoid overflow that will be placed in the back center. I chose a center trapezoid overflow because this tank will be viewed on 3 sides. Having the overflow in the center makes it easier to hide from view. The picture also shows the locations of the closed loop bulkheads. The large 3" bulkhead will be for the closed loop drain. The remaining 6 bulkheads are all 1 1/2" and will be the closed loop returns.
This picture shows the bulkhead placement within the overflow. There will be two 1 1/2" drains which should be capable of handling around 3000 GPH.
This picture shows the euro-bracing for the tank. It also shows the locations of the holes that will be drilled for the sump returns and 2 of the closed loop returns. The 2.25" holes will allow for 1 1/2" PVC pipe to fit through them. There will also be a cut-out in the back bracing for access to the overflow compartment.
Stand: After looking at the prices of stands both locally and on the internet I decided to go with a DIY stand to save money and have more stability. Since the tank will be in the viewing room I needed to construct a strong stand that would allow a lot of room inside for the equipment. I decided to go with a steel stand. I got help designing the stand from Zephrant on http://www.reefcentral.com. I went with 1" X 2" tubular steel for the stand. Since my dad is an auto body mechanic I had him do the welding for me. The first series of pictures were taken during the construction of the stand. Between me cutting and my dad welding it took about 8 hours to complete.
The next series of pictures shows the stand after construction was completed.
This last set of pictures shows the stand after it has been powder coated. I chose the powder coat finish for its durability and resistance to corrosion. I went with a high gloss black.
In the last picture you can see one of the holes that was drilled into the front of the stand. Holes were drilled on the front and sides to add an oak skirt to later on. The oak skirt will wrap around the front and sides of the stand. It will be attached by bolts through the pre-drilled holes in the stand. This will allow the steel stand to be concealed from view and the oak skirt will give it the appearance of a piece of furniture. Although the skirt will have large access doors, it can still be detached at any time to allow more room for accessing the inside of the stand.
4-11-04 Sump: When the decision came to purchase a new sump I had 5 requirements in mind. 1)The sump must fit under the stand and leave enough room to house all of the other equipment. 2)The sump must be large enough to hold all of the water that will drain from the tank when the return pump is off or the power goes out. 3)It must have a built-in chamber large enough to house my existing MR-2 skimmer. 4)It must have a built in refugium. 5)It must have baffles to combat the microbubbles produced by the drains and skimmer (I HATE microbubbles in my display tank). With those requirements in mind, I began searching for the best deal I could find. After many hours of searching I found the perfect sump with a great deal, FREE SHIPPING!!!!!!!!! The sump is from My Reef Creations. It is one of their standard size sumps. The dimensions of the sump are 36" X 18" X 18". The skimmer compartment is 15" X 18" X 18". The refugium is 21" X 9" X 18". I was lucky enough to catch them while they had a free shipping promotion going. Actually, the free shipping promotion had ended but Andy forgot to take it off their website so he let me have it anyways. Thanks Andy. I already knew MRC was a great company with amazing customer service because I had already purchased a MR-2 skimmer, WC-2 collection cup, and CR-6 calcium reactor from them in the past.
I had Andy install three 1 1/2" bulkheads. 2 for the return pumps and one for the external pump that will be driving the skimmer. I only plan on using 1 return pump but I figured 2 return bulkheads would allow a little flexibility for upgrades/changes in the future. I also had Andy install a 3-probe holder to house the temperature, ph, and orp probes that I will be using in conjunction with an Aquacontroller Pro.
A close-up of the baffles and 3-probe holder.
A close-up of the refugium.
A close-up of the skimmer compartment.
Finally, a shot of the sump next to a 5 gallon bucket for size comparison.
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