250gal Island tank project

[class clown]

looking great! My favorite detail is that light cable conduit - man.. I would have never thought of that in a million years, but it makes so much sense for an island tank. cool!

I'm looking forward to see how the ties work for around the center overflow. this will be my first time watching an island tank come together - very exciting!

 

[dragoneggs]

Very nice Mark! The attention to detail is great for sure Good luck with the aquascaping! I know for me having a touch of OCD, that is the most mentally frustrating part of the hobby!

My girlfriend says I am a bit obsessive too! Maybe that is why I suddenly feel stuck with the aquascaping.

 

[scubajames]

Looking good Mark. I've always wanted an Island tank, and you thread is inspiring & a great learning experiance.

 

[dragoneggs]

Well, I have run into a bit of a snag. I have cracked three sched 40 1in valves, 2 of them on installation, and one cracked after two days running my main pump. See post #29 for photo of temporary set up. Good thing I noticed some air coming out of my main pump returns... I examined my pump and heard some hissing and found a thin crack along the parting line of the valve. This could have been disaster as I have the pump sitting in a little 2 gal tub!

Now I have hold off on aquascaping and plug the CL intakes around the base of the center overflow and remove the four valves and replace. Must be a bad batch... three breaks on seven installs! Good news is distributor says he will send new ones today and replace all 15 in my system!

 

[Krish]

Bummer man...But glad you found out sooner than later. Hope you get it sorted out soon so you can get back to where you left off

 

[dragoneggs]

No worries really... I have been going pretty hard at it and need to back off a bit and plan a little for what is next. One thing I know is that is is always beneficial is to take your time... plan... execute and then pause and make adjustments, revisions, etc. Looking back, that course of action rarely is wrong. It is very easy to charge ahead due to the excitement and regret it later.

 

[dragoneggs]

I did make some progress tonight and ordered the 'clean up crew'. I have an order in for some Astraea Snails and Blue legged Hermit Crabs. I am looking forward to introducing these guys! Remember, I started this project in April!

 

[szidls]

Hey Mark,
Congrats on the tank project! This is gonna be a showpiece for sure. Just one little "watch out". On your closed loop strainers......Be sure not to aquascape where you can't get to them to clean. Also I only slightly thread them in so it's easy to remove for cleaning. Keep up the good work.
Scott

 

[Ed Hahn]

nice tank

Very nice set up. I especially love the center overflow. I love several fish in my center overflow. I will be studying your overflow for some time. I also love your sump.

 

[Scooterman]

That is a lot of work there Mark, looking great. It must of taken some time to plan it because if you miss one thing LOL it could be a difficult problem to fix. Great work, congrats on the water & look forward to seeing the progress!

PS, I'll relocate your thread to the member Showcase forum.

 

[dragoneggs]

Thanks Ed and Scooter... today I hope to get some of the 1in flex hose routed under the floor.

 

[bc_slc]

looks great. The center overflow and closed loop were very well designed. I would get as much rock in there as possible to let it start curing. You can aquascape later.

Mat

 

[dragoneggs]

Thanks Mat! Yes, I put 110lbs in and found I need a bunch more to do what I want so I am hunting for some Marshall Is rock. I plan to tie it up against the overflow to create some 'shelves'.

 

[matts125]

Great looking 250 I must say!!!
You have your work cut out for you with the aqua scaping!!
with all the locline on the bottom it will be very difficult to aquascape...
I cant wait to see it all done!!!

Matt

 

[tamarindthai]

yes,sound like it looking better and better everyday,,keep on going just like energizer

 

[dragoneggs]

Okay... most of the flex hose is routed under the floor. one mistake is I should have labeled each of the hoses. I have 8 hoses routed and two more to go. These two will have to wait until I disconnect the temp main pump setup.

I also picked up some more rock thanks to Eric at Veralte Aquatics. These are now sitting in my sump. I had to swap out the four 1in valves under my CL intakes due to cracking several on install. Maybe a bad batch... but definitely weird.

I worked on the electrical a bit too, installing a power strip. I designed the housing to accomodate a second power strip as I am now at nine plugs and counting. I will try to post a couple more pics of the progress tomorrow.

 

[jsmkmavity]

great to see it finally coming together. i have no patience for a project like that. i would have put water in it the first day and then regret it later. cant wait to see the aquascape.

 

[dragoneggs]

Hey I will be in Sandpoint on Thursday for business!

I normally don't have alot of patience either but this project has had so many facets that I have always been able to find something to do while waiting for something else.

As far as aquascaping... I am struggling with this. Having a center overflow and four sided viewing is making it a real 3D design issue not to mention that fact that I want to hide the locline and CL intakes all on the bottom of the tank!

 

[jsmkmavity]

anyone who can work on a tank for 9 months befor water will be able to figure out the aquascape!

 

[dragoneggs]

Yes it has been quite a journey and so much still to do just to get to 'maintenance' phase!