My 450g Show Tank

[SpeshulEd]

Just a couple updates on the tank and its inhabitants.

I've purchased an 18x 36w turbo twist to combat the algae growth due to the direct sun exposure. It works, but not enough. This week I'm covering the second story windows with solar screens and hopefully that will do it.

I also reworked my sump a bit to promote better dripping. Did that this week, no photos yet. Next up, reworking my plumbing, I'm not getting enough "umph" out of the pump and I think it's due to all bends and smaller plumbing.

I also purchased the mag float pro. I couldn't get anything else to work successfully with such thick acrylic. It was $200, but well worth the cost, especially with the algae.

I have new lights coming this week and I'm hoping by the end of the month I'll have a canopy and wood panels around the stand. My buddy that does cabinetry is really busy at the moment with a custom job, so he's moved me to the back burner.

Anyway, some photos:

...thanks for looking.

 

[T@nkbuster]

Wow, I am so jealous! I love that tank!!! The thick acrylic makes it look super!! I need to get me a monster tank. Where's that thread that helps with convincing wives and girlfriends....

 

[Egon]

Sweet set up!

Ya gota take some pics of the new sump drip system. I've been looking for plastic peg board for my sump and no joy, so I'm looking for an alternative.

 

[jcardona1]

awesome tank! i noticed you didnt put anything between the stand and the tank. ive read that acrylic tanks need a solid piece of support, like plywood or styrofoam, but not sure if its required...

 

[snow]

so nice!

 

[goldies88]

awesome tank! i noticed you didnt put anything between the stand and the tank. ive read that acrylic tanks need a solid piece of support, like plywood or styrofoam, but not sure if its required...

x2

 

[tcarswell]

Looks stunning. I love the aqua scaping. Nice work

 

[SpeshulEd]

awesome tank! i noticed you didnt put anything between the stand and the tank. ive read that acrylic tanks need a solid piece of support, like plywood or styrofoam, but not sure if its required...

I've never read that before, but that definitely makes sense. I guess I'm a bit screwed on that one.

So far, so good - hopefully it stays that way. The stand does have cross beams across the top to help support it, hopefully that will take care of the situation. I will report back if anything goes drastically wrong. I'm sure the board would love to see what my house looks like with 450g of water on the floor.

Also, the white pipe you see in the background is usually covered with a black pvc pipe. Thats my pipe I use for water changes, and just have a black pvc pipe over the top of it. I usually stick a rock in the strainer to hold it down, but my rays like to play the game where they take the rock out.

I want to add some driftwood to the tank, but I'm still waiting for that perfect piece. The plants hanging in the top, I got from Michaels and just stuck in the eggcrate. I think I might get a couple more yet to kind of fill in the back. The fish seem to like the cover though, my jag usually sleeps in them.

Right now, my biggest problem is the algae, but that is being taken care of. My other big problem is the poo seems to like to collect at the front of the tank. I need to reposition my returns and see what happens, but I think I'm going need some kind of pump/powerhead in the tank to stir it up and get it to the overflows. If I could have my overflows at the bottom of the tank, that would probably help suck it up, but I don't know how to rig the plumbing to stop the water from overflowing my sump (if the power went out) if they were at the bottom.

 

[haynchinook334]

HAhaha.... Was waiting for the full tank shot. Man i fill bad, I could have pack the fishes better then that. I was in a rush...but i'm glad the dats and the bass made the trip.

As for the full tank shot....I'm really anticipating the growth of the bass, dats, and the rays.

 

[SpeshulEd]

Naw, your packing was fine. They weren't bad at all, I mean, four hours in a tote during holiday traffic is a lot. Plus these pictures were taken the next day. All of their fins have already healed up and the couple of scratches are gone as well. They look great!

I'll be taking/posting more photos again soon once the new lights go on the tank. Plus I've learned an editing trick - bumping up the black value gets rid of a lot of the glare. I'm going to look into some filters for my lens as well to try to reduce glare as well. That way, you won't see my belly reflecting in all the pictures.