Steve G

Nice! But how do you get equipment into and out of the room? Planning a 150g in wall project.

Clever but I don’t think it will work. It would require excavation and there are legal reasons I can do anything to that side of the house. Here is a photo of the more realistic entryway to create but I’m not sure there is enough clearance between the bar and the utility closet to make it viable. 26” at most. Planning a 150g in wall project.

To right of the door is a bathroom. Redoing that would cost way more (in money and my wife’s good will) than any custom tank, so it’s not an option. I will think about Jon Lazar’s suggestion of cutting wall next to utility closet and turning that other closet into an entryway. It might be too small but worth considering. Planning a 150g in wall project.

Right. I need to quote original so it’s clearer which suggestion I’m replying to. Planning a 150g in wall project.

Hmm. That actually could work. I don’t know how well that entryway would work but I could close off the current entry and slide the tank closer to the middle of the viewing room and make it a corner in-wall. Intriguing! Planning a 150g in wall project.

It doesn’t matter what I do with the door. I can remove the door altogether. With a standard rectangular tank, the entry to the room is blocked. Planning a 150g in wall project.

That’s what I would have done except to be able to enter the workroom you have to slide the tank into the corner, which is not ideal for viewing the front display. Planning a 150g in wall project.

My other idea is to find a builder who will make a custom tank with a notch, something like this: 60" ______________________________________ | | | | 12" | |___________ | | 12" |________________________________________________| 72" Is that a hard thing to get? Who makes tanks like that?

Yes. I put in another thread here:

Planning a 150g in wall project.

Planning a new in-wall project and I need help deciding where to cut the hole in the wall and what size tank to put there. As you can see from the attached pic, the viewing room and fish workroom are not very well lined up. Also, the only possible entrance to the workroom limits where I can place the tank. (Don't worry, I'll figure out what to do about a door. That's not my concern). One option is to slide the (rectangular) tank down toward the corner of the viewing room but I fear it won't be a good viewing experience. The other thought I had was to get a custom (acrylic) tank that cuts the corner as shown in the pink shape in the pic. Also, I have no idea where to shop for tanks. Any and all advice appreciated!! Steve

On the topic of what to put in the work room here is what I have in mind. Looking for ideas on what I am forgetting: - sump and refugium ~55gal - q tank ~20 gal - saltwater mixing barrel - freshwater reservoir plumbed to smaller auto topoff plumbed to sump - RODI set up to service the two barrels - deep sink - workbench and lots of wall shelving - floor drain (floor is tile) - dorm fridge for fish food - two stools for work bench - ladder/catwalk for getting elevated above tank to reach in and service tank and lights. Planning a 150g in wall project.

Attached photos show the viewing room and work room perspectives. Ideas? Thoughts? the work room already has a window for ventilation and tile floor. I’d like to add a floor drain but it might require drilling into the foundation. I am also thinking of building a custom non-rectangular tank and stand so I can build closer to the edge of the room and still be able to enter the work room. I have to figure out what to do about the door to the work room. Maybe a sliding door or pocket door. the current door opens in and would hit the tank/stand. There isn’t a lot of room for it to swing out but that’s a possibility.

Friends, I have been been out of the hobby for several years, but looking to get back in. My goal is to plan a new in-wall tank with fish room behind it. I would love to get advice and suggestions from this community. It would be awesome to have some knowledgeable club members visit my house (in Takoma DC) to look at the space and help me plan. I can post some dimensions and pictures of the space here later tonight. Thinking about 175 gallon. I will need a lot of automation because I travel for work. Thanks in advance. Steve

I think 150g is about the size I'm going for, probably 4' long. I had this skimmer on a 90g which never had more than 4 or 5 fish, had a refugium with macro and a deep sand bed in the main tank. That being said, I'd like to plan for a larger bioload if i want one. Sounds like i should hang on to the skimmer and can wait to upgrade in the future.

My main questions are about advances in technology, specifically in the areas of reef lighting and controllers, since I've been gone. I also will need lots of advice and ideas for this in-wall project I'm planning. I will have about 4' or 5' of length to work with on the wall cutout and a roughly 9x11 empty room behind it with tile floor and easy access to the electrical panel, water supply, and a window. The possibilities... I'll post my specific questions elsewhere on the forum and hopefully will get to a meeting to pick people's brains and see what they have. This will be a long planning process, in part so I can save up the $$$ after having put so much into buying the house. But if anyone has ideas with these parameters already, I'd love to hear them. I'm in the blue sky fantasizing stage right now. My first specific question is how big a tank/bioload can an AquaC EV skimmer handle? Depending on the answer, I may have a used one for sale Steve

Hi all, I just rejoined the community and look forward to getting back into reef keeping. I sold off my tank around 2012 I think, and stayed in touch with the scuba divers of WAMAS through training and trips, but stopped visiting the forums and meetups. We just bought a new house in Takoma, where there should be room for a new in-wall tank project, and I figure it's high time to get back in! Can't wait. Well, I do have to wait. It will take a little time to accumulate money and plans for this project... Meanwhile, I want to do a lot of learning to get back into things. Much of my knowledge is obsolete, and I didn't know that much to begin with. Hopefully this time around I can educate myself a little better, especially about the construction, plumbing, automation, and lighting/electrical aspects, since I was faking it the first couple of reef tanks I kept. I look forward to getting lots of advice and help from this community. Steve G, still in DC

Hi. I haven't been on this forum for a few years, but wanted to get myself onto this thread because I'm always interested in dive trips. I was trained by @DaveS and went on a couple of trips he organized. He's been a great dive instructor and trip leader/organizer and would highly recommend signing up with him (and I'd like to go on a future trip myself if work/family/budget allow). One thing I learned is that fellow reef aquarium junkies make great dive trip companions because they really appreciate and understand the marine life. Steve

Hi, it's been a long time since I've been here on the WAMAS site but I wanted to mention that I'll be diving with my son this weekend (Sunday before Memorial Day) at Lake Phoenix, in case anyone else might be there. I know a lot of WAMAS members dive, so I thought I'd see if anyone might want to join us. Driving from DC early Sunday morning. Steve

Wow, LCDRDATA, you are an unlucky reefer. I have lost two fish ever due to carpet surfing. In both cases the fish (a green chromis and a juvenile clownfish) were being bullied and would likely have died of other causes. Here's what I do. I only cover the edges of the tank with eggcrate in the week or two after I introduce new critters to the display. After that, I remove the eggcrate. Jumpers are usually certain species of fish (jaw fish, for example, are notorious suicidal maniacs) or certain times, like when the territory changes, sex changes, or a new fish is introduced. I've never kept eels, so I don;t know much about their behavior. That is totally creepy to think they exit the tank. I wouldn't want to have one in my bedroom. Snails and crabs that wander out of the tank are a different story, but I usually don't sweat that stuff. They usually find their way back in the tank when they realize the high tide isn't coming :; Good luck.

One major caveat to those people who think they can get by with no water changes. You have to be ready with the *capacity* to change water on a moment's notice, in case anything bad happens (external pollutants, a large stinky creature dies, corals start a chemical war, ammonia spike, etc.) Changing tank water is like dental flossing. It's a tedious chore. Some people can get by doing less of it, but it can only help to keep it up regularly and you'll always be nagged to do it more. And bad things can happen if you let it go. Steve

I change about 14 gallons every two months or so in a 75 gallon tank. My tank has been up almost seven years and is stuffed with live rock (display and sump) and a deep sand bed. I don't feed very much even though I have 8 fish (3 chromis viridis, 2 ocellaris, 1 flame angel, 1 watchman, 1 mandarin dragonet). I do have some issues with valonia and had an aiptasia outbreak (since controlled). Also, I don't tend to keep delicate inverts other than an anemone that's doing fine. This schedule has worked for me. My main reason for not changing the water more frequently is space. My "fishroom" is my son's bathroom, so I can't keep tubs set up in there for more than two days every other month. If you want to be TOTM, have a bare bottom, limit the LR in your display, have any problems, or your system is new, do more frequent water changes.

I can lend you a PH and TDS. I can bring in to work tomorrow. I'm more than happy to help if not tonight, but if you really need to move it right away a 38-gallon move can be done by one person. You need a few buckets and hoses. I'm guessing it's three feet long and pretty light when empty.

What do you need help with? I work near there and live not too far away. Unfortunately, tonight is not good for me. Steve