[What should my first set up be?]

Yea. Thanks for the suggestion. Will look into it.

[What should my first set up be?]

Thank you. That is helpful. I am thinking of splurging on lights with AI prime. Would appreciate other options if they are better.

[25 Gallon Waterbox]

Lovely tank. Would you please share your weekly maintenance schedule? Assuming small tanks require regular water changes. I am new to saltwater and I am used to freshwater where you can even do 100% WC per week :D .

[What should my first set up be?]

Hi, 

I am new to the saltwater hobby. I have experience caring for discus (70g) and high-tech (40g) planted tank FS setups. I am enamored by videos of Danny's aquarium and am keen on starting with a saltwater (coral) tank that is relatively low-tech (canister or hang-on-back filter or no filter, light, regular water changes).

Would you have any thoughts to share on this? 

Option 1: My best shot would be all-in-one tanks and preferably a used setup so I can also get the corals. 

I prefer that over a setup from scratch mainly because every mistake setting up and establishing the tank is extremely expensive.

Option 2: Go with a clownfish and anemone set up—still 30g max.

 

 

 

 

[Looking for help with removing silicone & reseal.]

Here's what I used.  A combination of a paring knife with a flexible blade, and fine, strong wire.  Use the knife to get started, and use the wire as a garrote.
 
 

It did the job! Planning to sand the overflow to remove the silicone.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Wave makers]

Hi,

I am a discus fish person venturing into saltwater. I am curious to create a mangrove ecosystem. While most hobbyists use traditional wave makers like Ecotech marine to create flow, I also see certain other methods online. I am curious to see why power heads/wave makers are preferred over these methods. Thanks in advance.

1. Panta Rhei has a proprietary wave making technology as shown here.

 

 

2. SCWD wavemakers as found on marine depot. Salt water aquarium also featured a large aquarium where flow is created from the return pump.

https://www.marinedepot.com/scwd-wavemaker-switching-current-water-director-squid-1-inch?utm_source=mdcsegooglebase2&utm_medium=cse&utm_campaign=mdcsegooglebase2&utm_content=3Q1113&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuMDhy6-k6AIVTuDICh3PxwxjEAQYASABEgKqoPD_BwE&

 

3. DIY solutions like these that create realistic waves

 

[Looking for help with removing silicone & reseal.]

Awesome! This is a great idea. Will order the flexible pairing knife. I have the exact string from my gardening project. Will use it to remove the silicone.

[Hanging fixture]

I bought mine from HD, used it to bend conduit and returned it the same day. That would be my suggestion for you as well.

[Looking for help with removing silicone & reseal.]

Hi, I have started to remove silicone from the 120g tank. While removing old silicone was easy, I am not able to remove the silicone around the overflow. Looks like the overflow is siliconed with a layer of silicone between the overflow and glass. It is proving to be rather difficult. After about 30 min of hacking at it, I was barely able to move one seem of the 2 overflows. I am looking for ideas to remove the silicone effectively so the overflow comes undone completely. 

[Reseal 120 - help.]

Great. Thanks a lot. I will do exactly that.

[Reseal 120 - help.]

Meaning Trim flaps and forget about it? Or trim flaps and reapply silicone?

[Reseal 120 - help.]

Thank you. I agree with your premise. I will keep you posted on my leak test results. 

I agree that it's no easy under taking. As it's a 120g tank, I would like to admit avoid flooding at all costs. Hence thought I'd reseal it (not rebuild it). 

[Drilling a tank.]

Very true! Now am researching articles on resealing the tank.

[Drilling a tank.]

I ended up getting a used 120g drilled tank instead. In hindsight, it's a lot more work that I thought even if it is a drilled tank :/. Replumbing, resealing, the whole works.

[Reseal 120 - help.]

I bought a used 120g tank (reef ready) that needs to be resealed. I will do a leak test this week to make sure that the tank holds water.

I would like to just remove the silicone flaps (currently, my finger nail could get under it easily) and replace them with new dab of silicone.

I am located in College Park. I have never done a resealing job and would appreciate if someone could spare a few hours on a weekend to assist me as I do it.

Please let me know if you are up for it. Would be ready to compensate for meal and conveyance. 

[Drilling a tank.]

Thanks a lot @realypk for the detailed description. It really helps.

[Drilling a tank.]

@ImGoingCoastal can I know where (online/store) you bought it from?

[Drilling a tank.]

@ImGoingCoastal I am located at College Park, MD. 

@AlanM The details of October meeting are on the website? I am looking to have them all uniformly at 1". It might be overkill but it ensures that all PVC fittings are readily available.

@YHSublime & @treesprite Thank you. I will look into templates. 

[Drilling a tank.]

I've confirmed that my tank glass isn't tempered. I want to take the next step to drill it but am scared that I will crack it.

Am looking either for tips to do it right (planning to get drill bit from jehmco). Would also appreciate if someone would like to help me with the process.

PS. It is for a freshwater discus tank.

[ABS plastic in DC area.]

I am looking for 1/16" or 1/8" ABS plastic. Where can I find it in the DC area?

[eshopps overflow.]

I bought the tank off of CG and the owner did not know if it is tempered or not.

[eshopps overflow.]

I am planning to add a HOB overflow to my 75g tank. Was wondering if they are reliable. 

Any other brands that you would suggest?

[DC pump 600GPH.]

I am looking for suggestions on DC pumps that will help me get 600GPH. I have a 30g tank with 1" outlet and 3/4" inlet.

I was looking at Jebao 3000 but I was afraid that even the lowest setting might be too high.

I prefer DC pumps for the control and silent operation but if there are other options, let me know.

The sump is 3 feet below the stand.

Thanks in advance,

[Aquarium level]

Sorry all. I finally realized that my level is messed up. It gives different readings when the level is measured from left-to-right vs the other way around. 

Bought new ones from Ace and the floor is pretty flat. Couple of shims should do the trick.

[Aquarium level]

I just built a stand for my 2'x2' frag tank (deep blue with bottom frame and rimless top) to be placed on. I realized that my floor is not flat. There's a ~3/4" bend between the front and back of the tank. 

In order to level the tank, 

A. Is it easy to create a level platform using concrete? I'd place lots of trash bags and then create the platform on top of my floor. Is this asking for concrete leaks in living room? 

B. Should I measure the angle of the floor and cut 2x4s that bend with the floor so I can place the tank on top of the 2x4 platform? 

 

I want to avoid using shims as it is unsightly and also only supports the edge of the frame. Attaching the pic of the stand here. It has a flat top for the tank to sit on and a flat base for the sump to go in.