DIY tank building: what is the perfect design

[Daniel1979]

Hi Everybody,

I have the oppurtunity to build my own marine tank. I have always loved mariend but never been able toa fford them until now. I figure that by building the tank etc myself i will be able to save a heap of money as i have come across some 20mm thick shopfronts that are 10ft long by about 12ft high for absolutely nothing. I'm just wondering what would be considered the 'perfect' design? I want to keep things such as corals, anenomes, sea horses, clown fish, tangs etc. Can anyone assist? I'm after a tank size of between 6-8 ft long, 2-3ft high and 2-3ft deep. Also, what filtration methods would you suggest? I was hoping to keep the mechanicals in the tank to a minimum if possible so was thinking about using a pad heater and external canister or something similar.

Thanks for your help

Kind regards

Daniel

[K9Decoy]

Daniel, I feel badly that no one has replied to this thread, so I'll give my 2 cents. I think it's awesome you have access to such materials. I wish I did. Just consider this when deciding on a tank size:

1) How much space do I have in my house/apartment to put this thing, and how much is is going to weigh?
2) What kind of critters am I planning on keeping in this tank, and what special lighting/feeding requirements do they have?
3) What other costs am I going to run into when it comes to buying equipment for lighting, filtration, circulation, live rock, sand, livestock, chemicals, and other items I'll need to sustain this tank?
4) If I make a gargantuan tank, what happens if I want to move one day? How am I gonna transport this huge thing and all its accessories?

Just my opinion, dude. As far as shape...make it a rectangle, everybody else does!

[racerX]

heres what i did when i was trying to decide on what size to get.
I made charts of the different sizes offered, but in your case the different shapes and sizes you can make with the given materials.
include everything you would need on the down column and the different sized across the top. Figure out how many gallons it would be for each and then decide how much of each ingrediant i.e. sand, LR, filter, powerheads....etc. you would need for each design and then go to several different fish stores in you area and check prices. Some may have power heads at a better price and some may have sand or LR ( try to find cured) but write it down on a note pad. At this point is much easier to walk out without buying anything yet. get a price sheet formed and remember who had the better prices then take a night or two and sit at home and figure what each different tank would cost. For me the cost alone for a upstart 55gal was within a few dollars of what i could afford. and then i spent way more then that cause this is like crack and once you start your hooked. But if you do the chart thing then its all laid out in front of you in black and white.....or blue and white depending on you pen. it worked really good for me. hope this helps.

Shane

[Kurt]

For filtration I would build an internal overflow box in the center rear of your 8 foot long tank. Then maybe leaving 6 inches of Glass drill holes for 3 bulk head fittings on each end of the tank, where your return water will re-enter your tank. Then one large pump can be used for circulation.
Well I have not much experience on this but this is my thinking of design to start. Pretty much anything can be added later. Any comments on this.
Oh and a tank of this size will of course need a special supporting base. That is if it is not going on concrete or is running the ame length as your floor joists, you should need a base spanning from supporting wall to supporting wall. My 200 is currently only a 150 because I cannot fill it up all the way. One more inch of water causes my floor to sag 1/2 inch. Not an easy fix after the tank is full of coral and fish.

[plantman1028]

I never built my own tank, but the $$ youre going to put out for lighting such a huge deep tank, you might as well buy a nice acrylic with a guarantee.A big tank =big$$$.you would probably need about 400-500 pounds of LR.tons of cash.Wouldnt you want the piece of mind that IF something goes wrong with the tank(flood ,cracks ,leaks)it isnt your fault.Not trying to be rude but if you got the cash for the accessories,just buy a tank.it will save time and money in the long run.

[phergus_25]

i'm new to reef tanks and was amazed at the cost of lighting, i'm moving to a smaller tank for the reason of lighting, you need about 5 watts per gallon for most coral, and if you go for a 15,000 gallon tank then your lookin at about 75,000 watts, wich believe me the 100 watts i'm getting are costing em well over 50 dollars, so i mean you gatta think if you want coral then you might want to go smaller unless money isn't a prob.

-greg