Adrienne
Well-Known Member
Been meaning to post in here for a couple of months having spent the rest of my time on this forum under Beginners and Red Sea Max.
In 2008 I purchased a second hand, ex marine tank from Napier and duly collected it in a furniture trailer. It came with a sump however I had no interest in marines and duly converted it to a freshwater tropical, eventually removing the sump and putting in an FX5 cannister filter. Discus, followed by Rainbowfish and back to discus saw the tank change around until October 2015 when hubby and I decided the Red Sea Max C-250 was not big enough and we would start a second tank.
Images of how the tank looked early 2009 - Oct 2015
The tank was sent off to be re-siliconed and I set to work stripping down the existing stand and hood which had been varnished and then stained, bringing it back to the natural pine colour and then staining it with clear varnish.
A sump was built to specifications and along with an ATO made from glass was placed in the cabinet.
An internal overflow was built into the tank as I didn't want it drilled.
Just before New Year the LED lighting unit, 2 x wavemakers, skimmer, pump and ato unit arrived. Exciting!
This brought with it the requirement to do some electrical work around our house as the circuit the tank was to be on was already known to trip the odd time. Fortunately my son-in-law is an electrician and today he ran a wire from another circuit in the house through our ceiling and down the wall behind the tank. The tank sits near a doorway and a small hall cupboard sits just through the wall. His suggestion, which I happily agreed to was to run all the electrical cables through the wall to a set of plugs which would keep the living areas tidy.
lounge wall
lounge wall completed
hall cupboard
The chiller is still to be plugged in to the wall socket as is a heater.
Next on the plan is the plumbing which is currently being worked on. The system will allow for reactors, dosing pumps etc to be added if needed without any great effort.
I will keep this thread updated as more work is done.
In 2008 I purchased a second hand, ex marine tank from Napier and duly collected it in a furniture trailer. It came with a sump however I had no interest in marines and duly converted it to a freshwater tropical, eventually removing the sump and putting in an FX5 cannister filter. Discus, followed by Rainbowfish and back to discus saw the tank change around until October 2015 when hubby and I decided the Red Sea Max C-250 was not big enough and we would start a second tank.
Images of how the tank looked early 2009 - Oct 2015
The tank was sent off to be re-siliconed and I set to work stripping down the existing stand and hood which had been varnished and then stained, bringing it back to the natural pine colour and then staining it with clear varnish.
A sump was built to specifications and along with an ATO made from glass was placed in the cabinet.
An internal overflow was built into the tank as I didn't want it drilled.
Just before New Year the LED lighting unit, 2 x wavemakers, skimmer, pump and ato unit arrived. Exciting!
This brought with it the requirement to do some electrical work around our house as the circuit the tank was to be on was already known to trip the odd time. Fortunately my son-in-law is an electrician and today he ran a wire from another circuit in the house through our ceiling and down the wall behind the tank. The tank sits near a doorway and a small hall cupboard sits just through the wall. His suggestion, which I happily agreed to was to run all the electrical cables through the wall to a set of plugs which would keep the living areas tidy.
lounge wall
lounge wall completed
hall cupboard
The chiller is still to be plugged in to the wall socket as is a heater.
Next on the plan is the plumbing which is currently being worked on. The system will allow for reactors, dosing pumps etc to be added if needed without any great effort.
I will keep this thread updated as more work is done.
Wires still look messy as I am still making a decision on whether to place the controllers on the outside left end of the tank and leave them uncovered or if I place them in a type of cupboard screwed on to the end of the tank stand. The ATO controller will be placed on the right hand end, above the chiller which is not in the stand.
