Ashurbarnipal's 80 gallon

[Ashurbarnipal]

Ok, so I got this used on Craigslist for 50 bucks. It has no cracks and really no scratches. I've only had about 25 gallons in it so far, and I'm thinking I'll resilicone it as soon as I clean and remove the other divider and spare overflow boxes (took one of each out after taking pics)





It is pre drilled



It's kind of a mess right now, but I think I can remove the paint and dividers and clean it up into a pretty decent tank.

[Cliff]

Not a bad find for $50

It might be a good idea, since you have to remove those dividers, to replace the outer seal in that tank. That way you don't have to worry about a leaky tank

I did that with my 90 gallon that I bought used. I even re-sealed the overflow. I'm glad I did.

[Ashurbarnipal]

You mean the seal on the outside of the tank as well as inside the tank?

Hmm. I could do that. Would it be alright to replace the silicone and leave it outside under a gazebo or tarp or would it need to be placed inside for the silicone to dry?

[Cliff]

There are two different seals or applications of silicone used. The inner seal is the one that holds the glass together and is inbetween the glass where it joins together. The outseal is the one that is placed on top of that to give the inner seal some more strenght and make sure it will not leak.

This below thread explains how to replace the outer seal, just incase I'm not explaining it well enough

http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/aqua...ad.php?t=52239

[Ashurbarnipal]

Ohh, lol. Yeah, that's what I meant by resilicone it, lol. Already have my masking tape and whatnot ready for it, just gotta finish cleaning it out.

I'm storing it at my folk's home as I'll have to move out of this apartment soon, so hopefully it'll be alright to dry it in their gazebo as they don't have space for it right now

[cat_fish_lady]

Fun project!

[Ashurbarnipal]

As for stocking, I think I'll just stick with LPS corals. Apart from that, I'm thinking longnose hawkfish, bartlett's anthias, and a marine betta.

I'd like to do one of the smaller tangs like the Caribbean blue or White Tail bristletooth, but I'm not sure if this tank is too small

Dimensions are 51 by 20 by 18 (it was a custom tank for some fish store made by dutch folk)

[Ashurbarnipal]

So, I could really use some advice about my sump, since I've never set one up before. I've been reading for the last week or so on sumps, but there are still some things I don't quite get.

The hole on the tank is drilled almost exactly at the top of the water level, and I'm thinking of doing a 30-40 gallon plastic tub as a sump, so I'm wondering two things:

What kind of pump/plumbing do I need? I was thinking a 1000 gph pump for the return and I'm wondering how one controls the water level in the return so there's enough excess space for the drainage line should the return pump fail. I've heard check valves mentioned, but don't fully get them.

The other question is, how important is it that the baffles be water tight? All the rubber tubs I'm looking at have very uneven surfaces which would prove difficult to make watertight. I'm wanting to do something along the lines of this: http://www.melevsreef.com/acrylics/sumps/f/sump_f.html

[Dave66]

From my book list

Natural Reef Aquariums, by John H. Tullock, Microcosm Ltd. Publisher - One of my favorite reef books to recommend to the new hobbyist, as Tullock covers plumbing, temperature control, lighting and filtration systems in detail, and follows it by step-by-step instructions on how to set up the aquarium and establish a living reef by using live rock and live sand. What makes this book different is the detailed description of different conditions in reef regions like the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Reefs with his recommendations on how to simulate a specific region in your aquarium. The author stresses using natural processes in aquariums, and limits equipment as much as he can in his descriptions.

All you need to know about plumbing a sump Ash. A check valve only permits a fluid to go in one direction. A check valve prevents back flow.

Dave

[Ashurbarnipal]

I actually already have that book, though I admit I haven't gotten to the part about sumps yet.