My 265g Reef Tank (Starting from Scratch) Let's GO!

[Rhinotronics]

Hey fellow Reefers!!
Welcome to my new addiction. I would like to thank all of you who follow my new build and also thank everyone who helped me by providing advice and knowledge. I have done one saltwater tank about 20+ years ago and it was a 37g simple tank. Boy things sure have changed. I decided to get back into the hobby for several reasons. First off, this is a gift to my wife and also a gift for the whole family. We recently had our first son and since we love the ocean and marine life so much, we want to raise our son to respect and enjoy it too. We are avid scuba divers since we live in Florida, and what better way to bring the ocean into our home then a Reef Tank. With that said we decided to go BIG!! 265g tank is what we decided on in our living room. After much research and advice from our LFS we made the order. Here is what we are starting off with.

Marineland 265g with corner Overflows 84"X24"X30"
Marineland Monterey Stand and Canopy (Black)
Tsunami Custom Sump 48" with Refugium (Red & Black)
Tsunami Custom ATO 25g with Dosing Reservoirs (Red & Black)
Smart ATO 150
Reef Octopus Regal 250SSS Protein Skimmer
Ecotech Vectra L1 Return Pump
Ecotech MP40ESW Powerheads (x2)
Ecotech Radion XR30wPro LED Lights (x3)
Ecotech Radion XR15wPro LED Light for Refugium
Ecotech ReefLink Wireless Controller
Ecotech Vortech Battery Back-Up
Apex Controller
Apex Automatic Feeding System
Apex Advance Leak Detection Module
Cobalt 300w Heater
Corallife Turbo Twist 36w UV Sterilizer
Plumbing all Red and Black
Philips Hue LED Strip Lighting for inside Cabinet
Philips Hue Motion Sensor for auto on lights when opened.
Kill A Watt PS10 Surge Protector
Live rock Haitian Premium 200lbs
Live Sand Fiji Pink 220lbs
Refugium Miracle Mud 20lbs

 

[Rhinotronics]

The Tank has arrived

 

[Rhinotronics]

This thing is gonna be beautiful.

 

[PJS]

Nice equipment choices! Sounds like it's going to be a killer setup!
Congratulations on your new addition to the family and your new adventure! I'll be following

 

[Rhinotronics]

Other things I plan to do down the road is setting up an RO/DI room that will be located in a room that is next to the tank. The cool thing is I'll be able to set up an Auto water change system that will run through the wall and to the tank. I plan on doing 2 large 75g or 100g tanks for storage.

I also plan to have a custom Apex Cabinet built next to the tank on the right side that will match the Marineland Stand and Canopy.

I designed the idea based on a few different designs I've seen that I liked. I just feel having all this equipment under the tank will start to make it look cluttered. I'm shooting for a very clean install look, so why not make it better by having a clean looking cabinet built that will allow to show off some of the equipment, plus give me a work area and some storage.

I have an 11' wall I am working with so I plan to center the tank, but then use the right hand side to the wall as the cabinet.

Any ideas?

 

[McMullen]

DANG!!! Gonna be GREAT!!

 

[PJS]

That wall is just begging for a 265!

 

[PJS]

Just a curious thought...
What's below the tank location, basement, crawlspace? Are the floor joists running perpendicular or parallel with the tank?

 

[Rhinotronics]

Just a curious thought...
What's below the tank location, basement, crawlspace? Are the floor joists running perpendicular or parallel with the tank?

Concrete slab. As far as directly under the wood. Not sure. But I've been assured that the even weight distribution should be fine.

 

[Rhinotronics]

That wall is just begging for a 265!

I know right. My only issue was before the wall was bear there was a 300lbs water feature that had to be moved. What a pain but will be so worth it.

 

[PJS]

A slab is even better!
Nice water wall feature!

 

[Rhinotronics]

I posted this in a different thread when I was doing research, but I figure I'll post it here too.

My Sump has been a bit of a debate for me and my LFS. We went back and forth for a few different reasons. I originally wanted to get a Bashsea brand Custom Sump, with a separate 25g ATO. Similar to this.

But after everything was said and done it turned out it would take months to get a Custom Sump made by them. So my LFS designed and sent off these ideas to a local Sump builder in Clearwater, FL called Tsunami and it looks like they are going to make it and try to stick with the black and red theme I am wanting. Here are the designs my guy came up with.

I sure hope that it looks awesome when it arrives. It's hard to imagine what a finished product will look like when you don't have close examples from the same company. But I have seen some Tsunami Sumps out there.
I also hope the design works well for the system. I tried to do as much research as I could on water flow designs and the best ways to set up a Sump design before giving the go ahead. But with so many different types and designs I had to eventually just put my trust in my LFS and the company making it.
Along with the Reef Octopus and all Red and Black hard plumbing I think it's going to be sweet. Hope to get the Sump next week. Pics will surely follow.

 

[pdt7361]

Exciting times...I need a 265

 

[SantaMonicaHelp]

Hey fellow Reefers!!
Welcome to my new addiction. I would like to thank all of you who follow my new build and also thank everyone who helped me by providing advice and knowledge. I have done one saltwater tank about 20+ years ago and it was a 37g simple tank. Boy things sure have changed. I decided to get back into the hobby for several reasons. First off, this is a gift to my wife and also a gift for the whole family. We recently had our first son and since we love the ocean and marine life so much, we want to raise our son to respect and enjoy it too. We are avid scuba divers since we live in Florida, and what better way to bring the ocean into our home then a Reef Tank. With that said we decided to go BIG!! 265g tank is what we decided on in our living room. After much research and advice from our LFS we made the order. Here is what we are starting off with.

Marineland 265g with corner Overflows 84"X24"X30"
Marineland Monterey Stand and Canopy (Black)
Tsunami Custom Sump 48" with Refugium (Red & Black)
Tsunami Custom ATO 25g with Dosing Reservoirs (Red & Black)
Smart ATO 150
Reef Octopus Regal 250SSS Protein Skimmer
Ecotech Vectra L1 Return Pump
Ecotech MP40ESW Powerheads (x2)
Ecotech Radion XR30wPro LED Lights (x3)
Ecotech Radion XR15wPro LED Light for Refugium
Ecotech ReefLink Wireless Controller
Ecotech Vortech Battery Back-Up
Apex Controller
Apex Automatic Feeding System
Apex Advance Leak Detection Module
Cobalt 300w Heater
Corallife Turbo Twist 36w UV Sterilizer
Plumbing all Red and Black
Philips Hue LED Strip Lighting for inside Cabinet
Philips Hue Motion Sensor for auto on lights when opened.
Kill A Watt PS10 Surge Protector
Live rock Haitian Premium 200lbs
Live Sand Fiji Pink 220lbs
Refugium Miracle Mud 20lbs

Hi Rhinotronics,

I am glad that you have such addiction to this hobby!
I hope your wife and your son like it a lot

Looking great How is the tank now? What fish do you plan to have?

Zhenya

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

Looking good!

 

[Rhinotronics]

Hi Rhinotronics,

I am glad that you have such addiction to this hobby!
I hope your wife and your son like it a lot

Looking great How is the tank now? What fish do you plan to have?

Zhenya

Thanks!! I appreciate it. Actually the tank is not even set up yet. It's all ordered and arriving at my LFS within the week. The tank arrived today, and I decided to go up and visit it just now.

We are waiting on the Custom Sump that should arrive hopefully in a week or two. Then it's install time. Be sure to follow along as I will be posting pics of the install and progress.

 

[imustbenuts]

I wish you the best of luck with the Marineland tank. Unfortunately, have heard of a few failures on their large tanks. Glad to see you're going all in though. This hobby is addicting!

 

[ycnibrc]

awesome everything top notch except for the tank manufacture.

 

[jp_75]

Whats wrong with Marineland tanks? Planning to buy 90 or 110 gallon soon? Thx

 

[Rhinotronics]

Whats wrong with Marineland tanks? Planning to buy 90 or 110 gallon soon? Thx

Yeah, I'd like to know too. I didn't find much negative feedback on them when I did research. They are a huge company that's been making tanks for years and years.