55g Build.. *first SW tank

Thanks guys. I guess ill try and see if they can order a new top brace for me.. I should deff get one with the center piece?
As far as the gsp goes, im going to see if the lfs will take him back.. otherwise im going to keep him and not worry about adding corals,but im sure ill get the bug to add corals though at some point :-/

 

i think im going to just go buy a new tank, One of the lfs' has a $1 gallon sale going on and im getting worried now that this tank will not survive very long..it already is used and abused and 55 gals of water doesnt look good on the floor.

 

So i have the stand done, just needs to be painted. It actually came out really good haha ill put some pics up tonight. I have everything set up and did a test run and the overflow, sump and return work perfectly. The only problem i have is the skimmer i bought is too big to fit inside my sump.... i was thinking of returning it or selling it, and getting a HOB skimmer and hang it on the side of my sump since i have plenty of room under my stand. I haven't really seen anyone do this.. im assuming it would function fine right?

 

So i got the stand done, tank drilled, did a test run and everything works great, ill put up some pics tonight but i have one question, the skimmer i bought is too big to fit into my sump... bad planning on my part , so it wouldnt be a problem to just pick up a HOB skimmer and hang that off of the sump right? Theres plenty of room for it.

 

I don't see why it wouldn't work the same. I would go for yet.
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That what i though , cool. soooo anyone wanna buy a reef octopus nwb-110? lol

 

"Is the LR you have right now in saltwater with at least an air stone? If you do this, then you can save the rock and then put all of the rock that you have in your tank when you go to set it up. By keeping the LR wet, you can maintain all the bacteria on it and you shouldn't have much a cycle at all. Good Luck to you."

this is somewhat true you will get an ammonia content from this because when u take lr out of water some of the bact dies off and die off decomposes to ammonia.Thats why we use raw shrimp for tank cycling instead of fish.A shrimp will cause more ammonia in a few days than a damsel in over a week.

Also you need to check what the water level has to be with that hob skimmer since it is designed to hob of a tank full of water not a water level 10 inches down.You might be able to rig up some suction cups to hold the skimmer lower into the water but it still might not work since the bubbles have to travel a certain distance to reach the collection cup.I would cal who ever you are ordering from and ask them what is available for the space you have and the gallons of your tank.

Getting the new tank for 55 is definitely worth the cost.$55 for alot more peace of mind.It shouldnt leak but still need test fill it with regular water before you waste your salt water on a leak.I placed mine flat on my kitchen floor for a few days and kept an eye out for water on the floor then i scooped the water back out.If you do this on your wood stand and it leaks you have a swollen area on pretty stand And if you have a leak just return it for another no problem.

Hope that helps.

 

Thanks for the info,

I have filled the tank a few times and let it sit for a long time to make sure it didnt leak and it was all good, as far as the brace is concerned i was asking the owner of my lfs and he told me that if you have an older aquarium, they used thicker glass, which i have, and therefore didnt have the center braces. Then he showed me a newer tank and the glass was half the thickness of the stufff mine is made out of. The last time i had my tank filled i did measure the center and the sides and the center bowed out about 1/8".. so he suggested a brace made from aluminum that be placed on top of the tank before i fill it.. any ideas?
As far as the skimmer i guess im going to have to look around and see if there is anything that i can use, otherwise im going to drill the sump and put a small 5 gallon or something that the skimmer will fit in, attached to it.

 

After drilling the overflow hole, You can see the thickness of the glass here.




Stand before its painted

 

Wow, that tank has weigh alot! Good thing ya braced it!

Lights, go get a 1ok and blue actinic! That should get you down the road a bit! But the coral bug is highly addictive and I'd be reading up on different lights in the next few months! t5 verse metal halides verse leds! All have pros and cons!

Good luck on the build and welcome to the addiction!lol