Leo's 250g Reef

[Flipside]

Hello R2Rers!

I've been out of the "build thread" mid for a couple of years now. Hurricane Harvey did a number on my tanks but I'm slowly getting back at it. Well.... Life has had some turmoil since then too. But, no sense in getting all cloudy on what I'm trying to accomplish here.

Just a brief history on me... I've been in the reef hobby since 08, but have kept fresh and saltwater fish since I was a kid. I love in the Houston area and the local reef club is what really helped educate me in the art. I love the local reefing folks but can't handle the politics. It's my cryptonite... What can I say?

I have some of my old tank videos and personal reviews on my YouTube channel : https://www.youtube.com/user/LukLeo

If you're interested. They are a bit raw as I'm no videographer. LOL!

Currently, I'm running several 50g lowboys. One is in the house and I'm only running kalk. I'll try to get some pics of it as I transfer stuff to the (segway) bigger tank.

So, on to the fun stuff!

I found a guy selling a 250DD for $550. It may have been less... Not really sure. It came with stand and canopy and it doesn't have a scratch on it. The silicone appears in excellent condition, but I have read the horror stories. I'm scared to death that something may start leaking on me, but that's the chance we all are submitting ourselves to. At least that's what I'm telling myself.

I drove to hill country to get it. It was a long drive and I was just getting over a nasty cold. I do a lot of driving for reef stuff; so it would've been no skin off my teeth to just drive away, had the deal been sour. However, the tank was in that good of condition! I was shocked, paid the guy, had his teenagers help me load it in my trailer, and drive home with a smile!

Right now I'm cleaning an old sump out. It's pretty large so I'll have to get crafty on getting it under the tank. I'll post pics as I go but it'll definitely be a bear!

I broke my old skimmer but I need a larger one anyway. It's all cleaning out in the backyard now.

I'll attach some photos of the sump cleaning but will try to be less lazy about it later. I'm kinda posting from work right now (shhh)!

The sump is around 48"x24"x20" I believe. I'll measure it later too. Total water volume will be well over 300g. That's been my goal for years!

 

[COreef8]

Hello R2Rers!

I've been out of the "build thread" mid for a couple of years now. Hurricane Harvey did a number on my tanks but I'm slowly getting back at it. Well.... Life has had some turmoil since then too. But, no sense in getting all cloudy on what I'm trying to accomplish here.

Just a brief history on me... I've been in the reef hobby since 08, but have kept fresh and saltwater fish since I was a kid. I love in the Houston area and the local reef club is what really helped educate me in the art. I love the local reefing folks but can't handle the politics. It's my cryptonite... What can I say?

I have some of my old tank videos and personal reviews on my YouTube channel : https://www.youtube.com/user/LukLeo

If you're interested. They are a bit raw as I'm no videographer. LOL!

Currently, I'm running several 50g lowboys. One is in the house and I'm only running kalk. I'll try to get some pics of it as I transfer stuff to the (segway) bigger tank.

So, on to the fun stuff!

I found a guy selling a 250DD for $550. It may have been less... Not really sure. It came with stand and canopy and it doesn't have a scratch on it. The silicone appears in excellent condition, but I have read the horror stories. I'm scared to death that something may start leaking on me, but that's the chance we all are submitting ourselves to. At least that's what I'm telling myself.

I drove to hill country to get it. It was a long drive and I was just getting over a nasty cold. I do a lot of driving for reef stuff; so it would've been no skin off my teeth to just drive away, had the deal been sour. However, the tank was in that good of condition! I was shocked, paid the guy, had his teenagers help me load it in my trailer, and drive home with a smile!

Right now I'm cleaning an old sump out. It's pretty large so I'll have to get crafty on getting it under the tank. I'll post pics as I go but it'll definitely be a bear!

I broke my old skimmer but I need a larger one anyway. It's all cleaning out in the backyard now.

I'll attach some photos of the sump cleaning but will try to be less lazy about it later. I'm kinda posting from work right now (shhh)!

The sump is around 48"x24"x20" I believe. I'll measure it later too. Total water volume will be well over 300g. That's been my goal for years!

Welcome back to the hobby! Tell your wallet I'm sorry.

Glad that sump is getting put back into service, that is a nice one! Perfect setup for a big refugium and a big tank. I am curious why that float valve in the return chamber is so high? Seems like a power outage could overflow the sump if that's where the ATO fills.

Really looking forward to an upcoming build thread!

 

[Flipside]

Thanks COreef8! I'm happy to be getting back into it!

The valve really isn't that high. When I get it under the stand I'll show you what I mean. The sump has tons of capacity during a power outage.

 

[COreef8]

Thanks COreef8! I'm happy to be getting back into it!

The valve really isn't that high. When I get it under the stand I'll show you what I mean. The sump has tons of capacity during a power outage.

Awesome, I'm looking forward to seeing it!

 

[Flipside]

So, here's the tank, stand and canopy off to the left. Please pardon my mess as I'm renovating the living area. You can see my little 50g lowboy in the background. I'm using one of those newer Icecap Kalk Stirrers for supplementation, and that's all. My buddy hooked me up with the little sump under there. It's made by BAO. I'll be selling it off when I get the other tank in place.

I'm still cleaning the tank out to prep it for water leak testing. Bear with me. I have a crazy job and it doesn't leave me with much play time.

Here's my lowboy (though, it's really dirty here):

I wanted to try those Aquaticlife T5 supplements. I have AI Prime HD's (only 2) in there. The black things on top are just some lenses to help spread the LED's out a bit. I removed them, but may add them back on the 250g. I'll likely have to upgrade my lighting, but we'll see how the 48' fixture works over the 60" tank, first.

I plan on running a calcium reactor, biopellet reactor, and ozonizer on the 250g as well. They are just "things" that I'm used to using and has helped in in having successful tanks in the past. It'll all be older equipment for now... When given the opportunities, I'll upgrade as I go. (they should be fine for awhile though...)

More to follow!

Oh, these are all pics from an iPhone XS so they aren't the greatest. When things start getting "real," I'll break out a better camera.

 

[COreef8]

So, here's the tank, stand and canopy off to the left. Please pardon my mess as I'm renovating the living area. You can see my little 50g lowboy in the background. I'm using one of those newer Icecap Kalk Stirrers for supplementation, and that's all. My buddy hooked me up with the little sump under there. It's made by BAO. I'll be selling it off when I get the other tank in place.

I'm still cleaning the tank out to prep it for water leak testing. Bear with me. I have a crazy job and it doesn't leave me with much play time.

Here's my lowboy (though, it's really dirty here):

I wanted to try those Aquaticlife T5 supplements. I have AI Prime HD's (only 2) in there. The black things on top are just some lenses to help spread the LED's out a bit. I removed them, but may add them back on the 250g. I'll likely have to upgrade my lighting, but we'll see how the 48' fixture works over the 60" tank, first.

I plan on running a calcium reactor, biopellet reactor, and ozonizer on the 250g as well. They are just "things" that I'm used to using and has helped in in having successful tanks in the past. It'll all be older equipment for now... When given the opportunities, I'll upgrade as I go. (they should be fine for awhile though...)

More to follow!

Oh, these are all pics from an iPhone XS so they aren't the greatest. When things start getting "real," I'll break out a better camera.

WOW! I'm super jealous, that display tank has so much potential. What are the dimensions? It looks close to 3' front to back. That deeper display is #1 on my dream tank wish list since you can take advantage of the depth so much during aquascaping.

That shallow tank is a seriously legit setup too, are you going to keep running that as-is when you set up the 300 gallon? All I can think of when I look at that is the perfect frag tank setup but it is definitely a cool shallow reef setup now too.

I just put the 48" dimmable hybrid on my tank but mine is only 5' long and 23" deep. If you have the 60" T5 then it would be comparable to my 48" T5 on a 60" tank, and it covers the whole tank well at 1' above the water. You'll have the added challenge of getting full coverage from front to back, which is a problem I'd like to have!

You'll definitely get a lot of R2R attention when you start setting this tank up, haha.

 

[Flipside]

WOW! I'm super jealous, that display tank has so much potential. What are the dimensions? It looks close to 3' front to back. That deeper display is #1 on my dream tank wish list since you can take advantage of the depth so much during aquascaping.

That shallow tank is a seriously legit setup too, are you going to keep running that as-is when you set up the 300 gallon? All I can think of when I look at that is the perfect frag tank setup but it is definitely a cool shallow reef setup now too.

I just put the 48" dimmable hybrid on my tank but mine is only 5' long and 23" deep. If you have the 60" T5 then it would be comparable to my 48" T5 on a 60" tank, and it covers the whole tank well at 1' above the water. You'll have the added challenge of getting full coverage from front to back, which is a problem I'd like to have!

You'll definitely get a lot of R2R attention when you start setting this tank up, haha.

Man, thank you! Seriously, too kind of you!

The tank is indeed 36" front to back. It's a standard 250g Deep Dimension made by Marineland (60"x36"x27"). I've always loved the footprint of these things! I have several buddies in the hobby that have the 300g version, but it's too long for that spot where my 50g lowboy is.

Since we're on that topic, my dream dimensions would be 66" x 36" x 30". I had a couple of quotes sent to me to the tune of $5500 and $7000! I'll have to wait a couple/few years before I can do that.

As far as the lowboy is concerned, I actually have 5 of those lowboys. I'll try to get some pics of the livestock here in a few... Gotta check my cloud photos.

 

[Flipside]

These are all I could find. I don't have a huge bioload, but it's decent. I have a yellow tang, a target mandarin and a psychedelic mandarin, 3 chromis, 2 clowns, a couple of conchs, and a few sps. The big green one is a plate coral that grew funny in a buddy's tank. LOL!

These pics are a little old. The corals have all encrusted now. There are some digi's and others missing from these shots, but not much. I think I have around 17 corals in there. Obviously, I need more. LOL

 

[motortrendz]

Welcome back.... love the 250dd. Hope it all.goes good for you. Following along on your journey.

 

[Flipside]

Welcome back.... love the 250dd. Hope it all.goes good for you. Following along on your journey.

Hey! Thanks!

 

[COreef8]

Man, thank you! Seriously, too kind of you!

The tank is indeed 36" front to back. It's a standard 250g Deep Dimension made by Marineland (60"x36"x27"). I've always loved the footprint of these things! I have several buddies in the hobby that have the 300g version, but it's too long for that spot where my 50g lowboy is.

Since we're on that topic, my dream dimensions would be 66" x 36" x 30". I had a couple of quotes sent to me to the tune of $5500 and $7000! I'll have to wait a couple/few years before I can do that.

As far as the lowboy is concerned, I actually have 5 of those lowboys. I'll try to get some pics of the livestock here in a few... Gotta check my cloud photos.

Yeah the custom dream tank always sounds amazing until someone actually hands you a quote for it, haha. The first time I realized I wanted a tank with those deep dimensions was when I saw Steve Weast's tank back in the early 2000's. It was a beautiful aquascape, and just so happens to be the exact dimensions I'd want for my dream tank (though maintenance would be a pain).

That's awesome, how did you end up with 5 lowboys? You're ready to start your own frag farm

 

[COreef8]

These are all I could find. I don't have a huge bioload, but it's decent. I have a yellow tang, a target mandarin and a psychedelic mandarin, 3 chromis, 2 clowns, a couple of conchs, and a few sps. The big green one is a plate coral that grew funny in a buddy's tank. LOL!

These pics are a little old. The corals have all encrusted now. There are some digi's and others missing from these shots, but not much. I think I have around 17 corals in there. Obviously, I need more. LOL

That is by far, the biggest fungia I have ever seen

 

[Flipside]

That is by far, the biggest fungia I have ever seen

Haha! It's quite a piece for sure

 

[Flipside]

Yeah the custom dream tank always sounds amazing until someone actually hands you a quote for it, haha. The first time I realized I wanted a tank with those deep dimensions was when I saw Steve Weast's tank back in the early 2000's. It was a beautiful aquascape, and just so happens to be the exact dimensions I'd want for my dream tank (though maintenance would be a pain).

That's awesome, how did you end up with 5 lowboys? You're ready to start your own frag farm

I've actually seen that tank in the past! Gorgeous setup! I wish!

Yeah... I had dreams of grandeur a few years ago. I couldn't get things of the ground. Life's something else! God things coming though!

Tonight I went to clean all the old calcium and coraline out of the tank. Two sides are going to take a bit more work than I thought. I'm hoping to have a new picture to post tomorrow evening. Crossing fingers!

 

[Flipside]

So, not huge progress, but I've been trying to scrub this "build-up" off the glass. I'm hoping to have more of this done this weekend. It's tougher than usual... I may have to go the acid route, but been using vinegar so far.

More to follow when I get this bad boy cleaned up!

 

[Dierks]

Welcome back to the hobby! Tell your wallet I'm sorry.

This!!! Haha!! Welcome back and you have yourself a beautiful tank there! Following along!

 

[Flipside]

Finally got some time to get a little more work done. To get my 80g sump under there, I had to do some cutting.

It's 100x's stronger now. I had to cut the center brace out. The sump barely squeezed in there.

I'm hoping to get the plumbing in tomorrow. From there... Leak testing.

 

[Flipside]

So, as to not continue ticking-off my family, I really needed to get the tank out of the center on the living room (not to mention, off the rug!) This took so much longer than expected! I had to drain the majority of the water out of the shallow tank and move it out of the way to get the big tank in it's new spot. My fish were highly stressed and my corals were out of the water for about 30 minutes. Ugh! I don't know if there were any losses because I had to leave town the next morning. I'm a little nervous to be honest...

However, now I'm nearing the finish line!

 

[Flipside]

So, I guess I have to let this tank go.

I really love the dimensions, but after trying to clean it up with everything known to man I was still unable to get the glass cleaned off enough for my liking. Ah well... So, I'm shutting this one down.

I have a friend that wants to give it a go, so I'm giving the tank to him. I do have another build coming though.