Share your ideas on the ideal Frag tank

[class clown]

nice matt, nice.. very nice! Are you doing SPS in there? if so what made you choose T5 vs. MHs. I love both, just curious. and good god man, what size is that beast - it looks humungously awesome!

Rick - I like your idea of the UV. It'd help for the QT part of it for sure. may have to wait b/c of expenses, but I think this is a seriously good idea!

Luis - I've got a couple extra ball valves on hand, so will likely use these. I've heard similar stories about them getting stuck before, but not neceasrily failing.

 

[Bricky]

Ben,

I'm lighting with T5's on the frag and MH's/T5's on the display. I just want to see what the difference is in coral color when it is only light that is different between the two tanks. The display will have a majority of SPS, but I'll have LPS and zoos also. The tank is 370 gallons and all crystal.

matt

 

[class clown]

Ben,

I'm lighting with T5's on the frag and MH's/T5's on the display. I just want to see what the difference is in coral color when it is only light that is different between the two tanks. The display will have a majority of SPS, but I'll have LPS and zoos also. The tank is 370 gallons and all crystal.

matt

Fantastic. I can't wait to see it filled up with water and corals. I can't imagine how you feel.

 

[Bricky]

Patience, it's a good thing to have.

 

[class clown]

Patience, it's a good thing to have.

indeed.

Well, I made a little progress today. Duane came over with his diamond bit hole saw and we drilled a hole in the back corner of the tank for a drain. I think I'm just going to order up a simple strainer and throw it on there. I thought about building an overflow, but I'm not going to have too much water draining out of there, so I think the strainer will do just fine, plus it's cheap & easy. we made a little dam out of carpenters putting, filled it with some water, and in 5 minutes we were threw!!! i thought it was going to be a lot more complicated than that, but it turned out to be pretty simple.

top down view w/ out strainer:

I also ran to Lowes and bought a little shelfing unit, some lamp chain, and hang the reflector from it. No ballast yet, but I'm starting to make a little progress here!

Lastly, we figured out a way on how I could tie my existing system into the frag tank without adding any extra pumps. I have two existing MJ1200's in my sump running carbon through 2 TLF phosban reactors. I figure I could just extend the output line to the frag tank and use these to feed it with fresh water. I'm also thinking about just attaching them to these U-Tube thingys and loop them over the side of the frag tank so I can direct flow easier.

That's it for today. I'd love to see some more pics of frag tanks or get your input/ideas if you ahve any..

Ben

 

[trido]

Your a maniac. When do you fit work into your day? :lol:

 

[class clown]

Your a maniac. When do you fit work into your day? :lol:

ha ha.. The wife had her own plans last night, so allowed me to work on some plans of my own .


Question: I was thinking I should black out the back of the tank to hide some of the tubing and give it a little cleaner appearance. Is krylon spray paint the best for this, or do you guys have any other tricks up your sleeve?

 

[trido]

Ive used krylon and brush on latex. The krylon is much stinkier and cheaper but required a bit more prep, also the can is useable for future DIY projects. I believe the latex dried harder and is more permanent. How about a piece of cardboard painted black? You could change it out to blue when your board next year.

 

[Dirtsquirt]

Vinyl from a sign shop!

-Dan