Lets start a prop tank.....

inactive · Feb 19, 2010

... Hmmm... I've been getting itchy and a little bored with some parts of the hobby. Unable to upgrade the the show system I want, or start the large propagation system I dream of, I've decided to start a "Nano Prop" tank.

Everything is still up in the air... Everything is undecided, and I am open to all ideas. I want to keep things simple for the most part, but not ghetto.

I want to go "green" for the lighting and build a LED system, but I also want to start checking out LED only coral growth and response. Like I said before, everything is still in the air on this so lets figure it out and I'll start working towards it.

As always, I gotta save as much money on this as I can.. I have no problem cleaning old equipment, modding or fixing used stuff or trading for whatever to get this running. My display tank has turned into a hybrid prop-show tank and I HATE it. The desire to upgrade my reef will be put on hold, and my desire to start another tank will be filled.... win!

So who's got some ideas?

macawmagic · Feb 19, 2010

I really want to setup a prop tank with 3 of those 48" LED fixtures that one of the local vendors just posted for sale. Said 1 actinic was as much par as 2 t5 actinic. Wanted to do 2 actinic and 1 daylight and see what could grow under that. Problem is that its like $700 worth of light.

inactive · Feb 19, 2010

I'll be building the LED fixture from the wiring of the leds to the welding of the hood. It will be a little bit of cash, but not as much as buying it from someone else.

J&O'sdad · Feb 19, 2010

First things first we need to decide on what tank we want. I am thinking we should get like a 30 breeder or something like that. Small tank but nice real estate.

mgny · Feb 19, 2010

I went with a 33 long. 48 x 13 x 12 . Tons of space. Paid $70 bucks at the lfs and drilled it myself.

inactive · Feb 19, 2010

I like the dimensions on that. I was also considering building a custom acrylic or glass tank. If that was the case, I could do like a 6" high tank of some sort. If the tank is that shallow, and I build a top down box, I could get some awesome macro video/photos! Part of the reason for the tank would be to feed my media addiction! 12" high is nice, but 6" is sexy!

Myteemouse · Feb 19, 2010

if 12 is High 6 is sexy 8 would be PERFECT..
I would go acrylic for sure due to the ease of modding, drilling, and overflows...
Are you gonna tie into your main sump for filtration??
Also if you go with egg crate I would suggest going with black..

JNye · Feb 19, 2010

glass cages will be your best option for that shallow of a tank, they have quite a few nice dimensions available for cheap, no way you could build one cheaper and screw acrylic

schg · Feb 19, 2010

I've only heard bad things about glass cages, so think about it before pulling the trigger if that's an option.

Going DIY is nice if you have experience with it, but in most cases it will look DIY (but for a prop tank, who cares?). Glass is easier, but will look sloppy, and acrylic is clean but more difficult.

8" tall would be sexy as hell, but anywhere from 8-12" would be fine.

wicked demon · Feb 19, 2010

I have seen some DIY LED's done up with aluminum stock instead of heat sinks, one guy in my local club does a pretty slick job, and the are 2w high output, he has some sps under just LED and they are doing well, and his macro is out of control.

MitchReef · Feb 19, 2010

Sweet idea Kray. I'm in the assembly stage on a 20L prop tank just now. I already had a lot of what I will be using, so the size was a no-brainer. I will be excited to follow along on this one.

inactive · Feb 20, 2010

No worries guys, If it is DIY, then I will do it 99-100% Laying my own acrylic down will be no problem. Silicone and glass? piece of cake.

Welding 1/16" aluminum plate is difficult... building a box is easy.

inactive · Feb 20, 2010

8" tall it will be.

Scored 25lb of live rock(thanks klepto/RC) to start nuking with my previous 15lb. Sweet!!!! One step at a time.

DML08 · Feb 20, 2010

cant wait to see it.. I have a 24x24x12tall tank sitting in my shed, ready for a bigger house so I can stop having a dang frag rack in my display.. I hate it.. good luck Kraylen.. we expect pics..

inactive · Feb 20, 2010

I know how you feel D, I plan on keeping a few smaller racks in my display for SPS only. Other than that, everything else can grow in my frag tank.

inactive · Feb 20, 2010

Found a 20H and a 50L, both glass tanks. Hm, wonder if I can rig these to whatever system I start.

inactive · Mar 3, 2010

Well, Project Ghostbox just took a turn...

I've been curing rock in a cheap bin and trying to figure out how to rig a cheap frag system and guess what happens....

Voice: "Kraylen...."

Me: "?!?!?"

Voice: "I see your efforts Kraylen.... "

Me: "?!?!?!"

Voice: "Take this, it will aide you in your ventrue"

Me: "?!?!?!?" *takes thousand dollars*

Voice: "Goodbye Krayleeennnnnnnnnn"

Me: "?!?!?" *dumps rest of beer out*

So......... now we start a new project.

Thoughts?