Fresh Water Fish Tank

[Poseidon]

What do you mean by "
The second one I would extend to 5'-6' for the output of the canister"

 

[unibob]

Instead of having the canister feed over the top of the tank, have it feed up through bottom of tank and then just have a overflow sort of thing. (I think is what he meant) and I'm not sure what would happen in event of power outage in this case.


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[TORX]

I agree, drain out of the top, then feed the bottom. Although the pressure down on the return at the bottom may be an issue with the heavy pressure pushing down on that line. That is a lot of water to sit on a small return pump. So confused.

 

[AdInfinitum]

Sounds like an awesome skimmer! LOL

I assumed that it would be welded into a base box of some sort. (worth considering to help solve the filtration/ circulation issues and prevent the bottom area from being anoxic). It is possible that flush mounting the pipe to a disk of acrylic will continue to cause problems due to the pressure at the base of that water column. Stace has a couple of water towers in the store, how are their bases designed?

If you don't weld it into a hole in a box. I have some 1" acrylic plate around that you could mill a hole halfway through and weld it in to support the bottom seam from deforming under pressure.

 

[Aquariums by Design]

another option would be to drill a hole at the bottom with a strainer that feeds directly into an inline pump sitting on the outside of the tube. Then take the feed from the pump and plumb it up and returning back into a hole drilled close to the surface. Along the way have it pass through an inline filter much like a CO2 reactor that would have valves on each side you could turn off to remove the filter for maintenance.
Very simple system and minimal hoses etc. inside the aquarium. You could even run an inline heater as well.

 

[Poseidon]

I see what you guys are saying. Sounds like more money and complications then I thought of when I bought this thing lol.
It is only 13-15gallons total, you think that drilling the bottom would cause structural issues?

 

[AdInfinitum]

The bottom needs to be fully supported anyway, just drill the same size opening in the supporting board of the stand to pass the pipe through and no part of the bottom is unsupported.

Drilling a hole for a bulkhead in the bottom would also allow you to get to the inside of the seam to reweld. I am out of methylene chloride at the moment (limited life so I only buy some when I am building...one of the guys had some in the for sale threads) but I am pretty sure I have some Weldon 16 around you could have to run a bead around the outside of the seam for a little insurance.

 

[Poseidon]

so parker plastics in london said they would be able to install and entire new bottom for 35$, which doesnt seem like a bad idea to me, that way i know its done right at least. ( thanks ad infinitum for the referral)

so heres what im thinking for filtration.
drill two holes in the bottom of the tank, the drain at the very bottom and the return i will run several ft up the middle of the tube via a 1/2'' pvc line.
i will have the drain run into a TLF 150 or 550 reactor, then the out line of the reactor i will have a pump (not decided on one yet, plz help) which will return the water to the tank, it will be approx 4' of line for the pump, plus sucking the water out of the reactor.

this is my idea, a complete closed loop with valves of course to change out the media in the reactor.
I NEED your ideas and opinions, hack my idea to pieces

thanks!

 

[EricTMah]

That's not a bad idea, but you're going to clog that TLF reactor pretty quick. You may even want to make your own canister type filter with lots of floss.

If it were me. I'd get a Rena XP2 to run the whole thing.

When deciding on the pump keep in mind you're going to have to deal with the complete height of the tank as head pressure. With the output running directly into the tank the water will be pushing down on the output. Even if the output pipe doesn't reach to the top.

If you're looking to keep this on the cheap side. I'd just run a sump, reverse the lines going into the tank. The riser is your overflow, and the bottom as your input. Have a up flow tank. But you'll need a reliable check valve for the input line or it'll all back flow once power is cut.

Good luck Brandon.

 

[jeffopentax]

Somehow freshwater just got complicated!

 

[EricTMah]

Somehow freshwater just got complicated!

LOL

That's why I'd never have a FW tank again. My natural reef instincts kick in and make it complicated

Brandon- I'm sure you will be fine with your plan listed above. But that's just my opinion how I would set that up.

 

[Sewerat]

Closed loop idea is good, use a canister system but rather then going over the top use the holes, connect the hoses directly to the bulkheads. Or go old school, under gravel air pump only.

 

[EricTMah]

Under gravel with a air pump or power head would be the cheapest way. Just be ready for regular water changes.

And because it's so difficult to clean this thing. I personally would run RO/DI water in it.

 

[Poseidon]

well it came with an undergravel filter, but ive never run one, and after some research, it just looked like all the crap was sucked under the gravel... well that doesnt do me much good with the stuff just sitting there rotting.... or am i missing something.

eric, would you use the rena xp2 as the pump as well?

 

[EricTMah]

well it came with an undergravel filter, but ive never run one, and after some research, it just looked like all the crap was sucked under the gravel... well that doesnt do me much good with the stuff just sitting there rotting.... or am i missing something.

eric, would you use the rena xp2 as the pump as well?

Ya. I'd use the XP2 for everything.

As for the under gravel. That's essentially what it does. But if you lengthen the riser tube to close to the top, you could stick your siphon hose down the lifter tube and do water changes that way. This way you can siphon most that gunk out with your WC's

 

[Poseidon]

Ah I see... That could work...
I have a 4' riser tube and a bottom plate with it.
How far down do I stick the air stone in the tube ?

 

[EricTMah]

As far down as you can get it! Some people like using an air stone on the end. But I prefer to use nothing. Creates large bubbles that rise up the riser tube, which forces water up and pulls water down through the gravel plate.

The more bubbles you have the more water will be displaced and more water flowing through the gravel.

 

[Poseidon]

Hmmm... I'm liking this idea... I never though about just siphoning the tube to clean out under neath the gravel....

 

[EricTMah]

Sounds like you just want to throw this together for a budget. This would be your best and cheapest option without getting too complicated.

If you're just going to throw some FW fish in it. This is exactly what I'd do. You could even hide the riser with plastic or silk plants.

Good sized air pump, some gravel, some plants, fish and you're done!

Cheap and easy!

 

[AdInfinitum]

The other option with a UG filter is to plug a powerhead on top of the riser tube and use the venturi tube for air to break the surface.