Wesley's 72

[Wes888]

Got it used, dried, and abandoned. Before at the ex-owner's apartment:

After move it to my home, soaked, cleaned, and cleaned again:

Hand cleaned every single bio-ball. The pump is kinda noisy. I ordered a Quiet One bump to replace it and will see if it's better.

Not sure if it'll work, but I plan to use this overflow area for Ulva Lettuce Algae.

Ordered some LR and they should be here tomorrow. :)

Hope it's not too many picture.

 

[yote]

Looks good.But you dont need that bubbler.It'll just cause a lot of salt creep.
Not to sure about all the sand in the overflow either.But I guess it'll work,just make sure nothing can get in that drain pipe or your gonna have a floor covered in salt water.

 

[ndepratt]

sand is definitely unnecessary... will just be more upkeep in the long run. Most likely you're going to get some pretty sweet cyano down in there, lol.

Like yote said, the bubbler is not necessary. They are used in fresh water because freshwater tanks aren't typically sumped, and don't have surface aggitation.

Got skimmer plans?

 

[Wes888]

I see. I'll suck out those sand tomorrow then.

I've ordered a skimmer and should arrive in a couple of days. I'm gonna put it right next to the pump where the thermometer current at, and move the thermometer to the little compartment under the bio-balls.

Got a few different models of Hydor Koralia to try out, and a cheapy wave make as well. Everything should come in place in a few more days.

 

[wontonflip]

Wow...awesome tank to have been left behind. which goes to show...one man's trash is another man's soon to be awesome fishtank :)

 

[ndepratt]

tank looks brand new... lol

 

[Alexander]

tank does look brand new. its an awesome score!

 

[cthegame]

looks great. In addition to all of the above comments, i would also get plenty of live rock. or mostly base rock and some live rock. In time they will all become LR.

 

[Wes888]

I see some people use milk crate instead of a LOT base rock to create a big rock wall. I'm gonna to try to use the soda crate, maybe a few of them in place of base rock. Would that work? What do you think?

 

[Alexander]

cant say I have ever seen this. what exactly is the plan i dont know if i follow you.

 

[mng777777]

Awesome find! Your new tank looks great. I would skip the crate and just get some dry base rock. You can pick it up pretty cheap and it will become LR over time from being in the tank with the LR. The purpose of LR is to create surface area for the beneficial bacteria to grow in your tank. The crate does not have near as much surface area as rock does. Using the crate accomplishes the same visual outcome, but robs you of the beneficial bacteria that would exist on your base rock. The bacteria is a LARGE part of your filtration and without it you will battle algae, nutrient, and water condition problems in your tank.

 

[Alexander]

I think Justin is absolutely right there. Baserock is cheap.

Another thing that would be really fun and would give you a chance to do things more your way would be to go to www.garf.org he has a ton of info about making your own aragonite rock. I plan to make tons of this in the future for the next tank i setup.

 

[mng777777]

+1 Alex! I think that every little bit we can do to stop the wild harvest, the better. I too plan to make my own rock the next time around.

 

[Wes888]

cheap is a relative term. :D

I shopped a couple of local stores, they want $10-$20 a piece or $2+ per pound on the base rock. I bought 20 pound and that's all you can see in the tank right now... Can't even cover the base. That's why I'm considering using at least one crate to push the LR (that should be coming today) right above the sand line.

 

[mng777777]

I would shop craigslist, ebay, and some of the online dealers until you can find rock that works with your budget. It would be a mistake to skimp on this vital step. I always see good deals out there, just be patient. Like I said before, you can make it look good but you will be missing a vital part of your filtration.

 

[Alexander]

That is why i suggested making your own rock. it will be fun and cost even less than baserock

 

[dustin_P74]

look at marcorocks.com rock is about 1-2 dollars a pound and shipping is only 10 bucks

 

[mng777777]

not sure how far these are from you, but:
http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/for/1181007504.html
http://newyork.craigslist.org/lgi/for/1180005233.html
http://newyork.craigslist.org/lgi/for/1177771537.html
http://newyork.craigslist.org/wch/for/1177689720.html

 

[Wes888]

look at marcorocks.com rock is about 1-2 dollars a pound and shipping is only 10 bucks

That's pretty good deal! Much better than my local stores!

not sure how far these are from you, but:
http://newyork.craigslist.org/lgi/for/1180005233.html
http://newyork.craigslist.org/lgi/for/1177771537.html

Mineola is about 30 minutes from me. Looks like it's the same person, just nobody wants to buy it. He has lowered his 100lb LR from $4/lb to $3/lb. Wonder if it'll go even lower. :D

I've about 70 lb of LR ordered and should be here tomorrow. With my existing 20 lb base rock, I think it should be enough for my 72 gal tank. By the way, the LR I got, including fedex 2 days shipping, comes out to $3.16 per pound. Not too bad at all.

 

[mng777777]

I would call and find out how he's storing it, how motivated he is to sell it, and if there are any corals hiding in that rock, then make an offer. If you go check it out, make sure it doesn't have a strong foul odor like rotting fish. It should smell like the ocean but not week old seafood. Bring an Ice chest or some buckets, and lots of rags. Cover the rocks with the rags and then pour some of the tank water over them to soak the rags and keep the LR moist. Good luck! Let us know what you decide.