ArtFully Acrylic (Adam B)

I would think that just high enough to equal the height of the tank would look the most proportionate so wouldn't imagine any interference with the structural supports for the top at that level.

With the new rendering what do you think about having the two small side access doors made taller? It would give you a little more room to access your plumbing, but I personally think aesthetically it would look better too...

Eeerrmmm....can I have a job as the Safety Control Officer for the school?? As you can clearly see I have a WHOLE BUNCH of experience thinking about and ensuring the safety of children

Yeah I have to agree as well with the two larger doors for top/bottom. I understand the 3rd small door on the bottom due to the brace, but on top that door is seemingly useless. Even if having two doors means the brace is right inside the opening of the door when you open it you will still have better access and better symmetry/aesthetics from the outside. Originally, I thought you would have had the side doors be taller, going almost all the way up and then had two large doors top and bottom for further access. I just wonder how difficult those side doors are going to make access if you really need to get in to do something with your plumbing...again we don't really know dimensions. Also, with the bottom doors, if having them large and hinged seems weird, what about making them "faux" doors that are simply removable panels? That way you maintain the look of doors, but they don't get in the way swung all the way out when you need to get into the sump... Just my 2 cents...

Your sump should hold the volume Scott, but per its specs it will certainly be close so definitely keep an eye as you test it. If it doesn't, but comes close...had you thought about modding your return lines to drill a siphon break hole in the top of the lines so that your drain out from that side is reduced thereby definitely giving you enough space in the sump for your drain out?

Ryan, I actually have one of those right now at my office in Alexandria. If you want to swing by and grab it then its yours . The clip orientation is adjustable. It is one of the round typical white edge of desk type clip on fans...

Well, great news! Things have worked out with the new shop space location. I moved in on Saturday this past weekend. For those of you who have seen the "shop" I have been working out of up to this point you will know that small would be an understatement since it was my homes garage...and only a single car garage at that. 200 sf of space doesn't give much room for multiple builds at a time at all! As business has increased over the many previous months the only way we see to keep up and reduce the length of our growing lead time was to get into a real shop space where we could then have multiple builds going on all at once and now that has become a reality. Our shop is now located 10 miles further than previous just inside Manassas off 234 and Balls Ford Rd. We now have 1200 sf of space to work with though =)...that of which we are absolutely stoked about, but nervous at the same time of course. As many of you know, this started as a hobby for me and I don't think I originally would have dreamed of it growing as quickly as it is, but you all and many other aquarists and fish lovers have certainly had a substantial impact on that. Thanks to WAMAS and everyone for their continued belief and support of our business. And a very special thanks to Chris. Chris just ordered from us last week and once he found out that we were moving the shop he graciously volunteered his time to assist with the move in exchange for help moving his tank once we finish building it. I see it as a very generous offer and will always be grateful to Chris for his assistance. It was tremendous.

7210 Gary Rd Unit E, Manassas, VA 20109...less than 10 miles from the house in Chantilly =). I will be up there for the better part of the weekend for sure after I get everything packed up Saturday morning.

I had a feeling when you said "friends" were giving you crap that you were talking about Steve lol. You defaced my ARTFully done Reservoir just to avoid getting a Tunze? Shame on you! hahaha ME <<------ Jumping on the pick on Yauger band wagon Oh, and I move into my new shop this Saturday so that swing through you mentioned with a big box of Krispy Kreme will be in order soon

Welcome VA Jeremy and BIG welcome to WAMAS. All of the guys (and gals) on here are phenomenal and can be a huge help. Even with 20yrs of saltwater experience you can still likely learn many things with this bunch and certainly can make quite a few new friends! If you don't know already, they are having their quarterly club meeting this Sunday in Vienna (not too far from you). It would be a great opportunity to go out and meet some of the gang face to face. I won't be there this go around but that is only because I will be busy moving into my new shop space =) Woo Hoo!

What sizes are you using for your intake and return(s)? Are all three of those hoses on the side returns? If doing a gravity fed return through small opening (i.e. 1/2" bulkhead) you will likely not get enough return flow to handle the pumps intake volume. Having at least 2 returns is good for redundancy when working with things like chaeto in the event that one gets clogged. However, don't depend on the combined flow from 2 or 3 to handle your return flow. Ideally, they should each be sized appropriately to handle ALL of the flow in the event of this worst case scenario. At a minimum if all 3 are return lines then the entirety of your flow should be able to be handled by just two of them...otherwise you may be asking for an overflow of the fuge if one clogs and the other(s) can't keep up. Cool creative little conversion though

Hi Jim, yeah I have looked at a few of those. Though they are attractive price wise they haven't had what I need in its entirety so far though. Generally, when setup for power the ones I have found may only be on a 15 or 20 amp circuit...which I have a tendency to blow consistently . The bigger issue though usually is no water supply...gotta be able to water test my tanks before customers pick them up you know . Never had a leak, but better safe than sorry so I always water test. Thanks so much for the suggestion though. I encourage more great ideas from you and others =). I have located a sweet spot which I am trying to secure, but I won't know for a few days if it will pan out so the search rages on in the interim.

Oh no, it will be fine then...I just didn't want to hear you calling me over for scratch repair so quickly

Looking good! How are all the kids reacting to the ongoing changes now? The addition of the temp fish stickers was a clever idea...love it...just be careful when you remove them .

Hello again all!! I have already been introduced months ago on here and many of you already know me and my work quite well , but I figured this was an appropriate spot to drop a line and say THANK YOU to WAMAS and all of its members. You all and the glowing referrals you have sent my way have really grown this little business to something special that continues to grow everyday. In fact, we have gotten so busy that we have been painstakingly looking for a suitable shop space in the area to move into. If you have been by my "shop" lately picking up an order you certainly understand why...the garage at my house certainly simply can't keep up with this volume anymore . With that said, if anyone knows of or happens across a location that may work please don't hesitate to let me know. I am quite particular about the space and its cost as even though we are growing quite rapidly its not quite big enough to knock out the "other" job just yet so I want to keep the costs reasonable so I don't have to pass on too much of that additional expense to all of you guys when you call upon our services. What I am looking for is a warehouse/garage type/flex type space that is at least 500 square feet, but preferably 700-1000 square feet. I am trying to find something that won't require lease terms greater than 1year (as I may need even bigger in short order if these things keep up like this ). Most importantly I really don't want the cost of this location to exceed $1000/mo + utils. If you know of, or have a place that fits this please let me know via PM or email. I would greatly appreciate it. As you know, I am currently located in Chantilly, but would consider areas such as Manassas, Fairfax, Annandale, Falls Church, Springfield, or Lorton...but I certainly want to remain in the NOVA area. Thank you ALL again for your business, your friendships, and your accolades!!

Is your rock already live and teaming with critters? If not, why don't you just put down some egg crate on the tank bottom and work it out while still dry before the water? Besides...depending on your intended population you will prob want your rock in before your sand anyway so you don't have any critters cause a rock slide on you.

Oh but of course

Remove hose end from water supply, direct towards nearest vegetation out front, use hand to form seal around hose end, apply mouth to end of hand, suck hard for 1-2 seconds and quickly direct hose end towards vegetation and let the plant thirst quenching commence

Awesomeness , I would certainly have hoped so...a leaking tank of course would be bad for business =). And I can certainly see that the blue backer worked out just as I had hoped it would on there =)

Umm Hmmm...I was about to say If you put them up high right under the overflow yes I would expect this to possibly be a problem, but 1/2 way or a bit more down I would think would create a pretty decent rotational current...Ahh screw it...just put one on each side wall and one smack in the middle of the front panel to cover all your bases...I'm sure the kids won't mindlol

Looks Like it is about time to change that signature ;-)

Oh, and for the other question asked...the overflow is 6" deep.

Wow, Scott you have been busy with this thread and I have been so busy with your build and others I failed to even notice the new thread till now . To address a few things here.... Back on Page 1 regarding baffle height...your baffles were setup to provide you optimal volume while maintaining enough available area to handle a power failure. Of course this could have been changed at any point prior to welding in the baffles to your liking . You don't have to worry about that ATO popping a seam though guys. That is an ArtFully Acrylic sump after all so is well built. H-E-double hockey sticks, even the baffle for the ATO chamber is 1/2" thick. With your MP40's mentioned setup...see how it goes the way you described, but I would recommend a flip...the two MP40's midway down the wall containing the overflow and the single on the other side. Your returns are oriented high to get your surface agitation and push your surface proteins etc down to the overflow. Theoretically, I would presume this option as the more beneficial flow, but only testing will tell...and of course your aquascaping will play a role in this as well. Regarding the recommendations by Bowie Reefer, once again he is right on the money. Outlaw even did the same thing on his. He had enough room for the elbow on the main siphon drain, but the height it was cut to was a bit off so was just easier to remove. The elbow isn't really necessary. In fact, only real function it serves is if you slot it similar to as shown on the Bean Animal site to handle any water slide junkies who manage to find a way into the "Park". However, the way your weir is setup the sheet of water overflowing should be so thin that these water slide junkies should not be gaining regular or even infrequent admittance. Regarding the silence...yes, this is also why I love this system and recommend it highly. However, yours is configured with no teeth which makes it even more quiet .

No Cleano el Tanko o die-o!!!