New salty 29g biocube

JDowns · May 16, 2019

2.25" should be enough, but will be a tight fit considering you don't want things rubbing.

My only concern with have to pull out the drawer to deal with the skimmer is it just introduces a PITA factor and the likely possibility of banging your head with a pulled out drawer anytime you need to work on the skimmer.

I wouldn't shorten it until you decide on a skimmer and sump. If you can push the skimmer to the rear and depending on the skimmer cup size you may only need to shave a 5-6" off the drawer depth.

These types of cabinets are notorious for the bottom blistering with any type of water spills. I would look into some sort of protective mat. I've used these on all my tanks as a protective barrier.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KJFHDFN/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Scdell · May 16, 2019

Bleigh said:
They are shenendoah cabinets. I found that the oven shelf support is rated at 300 pounds... and that's just a shelf with 6 pin brackets. Other floating shelves are rated at 15 pounds per square foot. I guess I should probably ask the stone guys about bracing. They won't give the warranty without proper bracing. They had to add extra supports for my kitchen island for that reason. It was too long of an overlap to be covered by the warranty without extra bracing.

So two more questions. 1) I was told that I wouldn't be able to fit a skimmer in the cabinet. Are all skimmers tall? If not, any suggestions for brands? 2) A friend told me that the bottom of the tank is definitely going to be tempered, but I've done all the tests I can find to do, and it looks to be untempered. Here's one of the videos I watched to check. The screen doesn't change at all when I look at my phone through polarized glasses and the bottom of the tank. Is there any chance it could still be tempered?

Check into the Tunze DC Skimmer's. They are good and short. I have a short cabinet and that's what I use.

siggy · May 16, 2019

Bleigh said:
I can take out the drawer and put on a false front then.

Bleigh said:
I thought about shortening the drawer too.

ether or. Whats the side cabinet for? electronics or stuff, I have reef gear in three locations and its a PITA.

Bleigh · May 17, 2019

JDowns said:
2.25" should be enough, but will be a tight fit considering you don't want things rubbing.

My only concern with have to pull out the drawer to deal with the skimmer is it just introduces a PITA factor and the likely possibility of banging your head with a pulled out drawer anytime you need to work on the skimmer.

I wouldn't shorten it until you decide on a skimmer and sump. If you can push the skimmer to the rear and depending on the skimmer cup size you may only need to shave a 5-6" off the drawer depth.

These types of cabinets are notorious for the bottom blistering with any type of water spills. I would look into some sort of protective mat. I've used these on all my tanks as a protective barrier.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KJFHDFN/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Not going to lie... I had to look up PITA.

The mat is smart!

There will be doors on two sides of the cabinet. So I can access things on the side without a drawer too.

Bleigh · May 17, 2019

Scdell said:
Check into the Tunze DC Skimmer's. They are good and short. I have a short cabinet and that's what I use.

Thanks for the recommendation. I did not realize there were so many options for skimmers... I'm sure that's the case for all the things...

Bleigh · May 17, 2019

siggy said:
ether or. Whats the side cabinet for? electronics or stuff, I have reef gear in three locations and its a PITA.

It's a slide out... like a spice rack. I thought it would be nice to put on my testing chemicals and stuff in there. I'll have one piece of stone set over both cabinets and I'l try to center the tank on that as well as possible. The tank should be pretty accessible on all sides, which will be nice.... i think.

Bleigh · May 17, 2019

Eagle_Steve said:
That and make a wish list. If you line out what you want to do, you can browse through the stuff on BRS and they have dimensions listed out in the open. It has been very helpful with some of my stand builds since some are very minimal and fill a small space.

Started the wish list... btw... i suspect it will grow after this weekend, as I have no clue what the options even are. Right now...

Sump with extra empty compartment
ATO
Refugium

Bleigh · May 17, 2019

I found this link and I really enjoyed it. I subscribed to his youtube channel... Is it weird to binge watch aquarium channels?

siggy · May 17, 2019

I wanted to do this with my current build, Have a 6' cabinet built with side cabinets/shelves granite top for a 4' tank, My wife liked the idea until she seen the price.;Stop That slide out was a good idea if you have to loose the drawer. personally I would shorten it to about 6-8" deep plenty for food and such, I live with zero.
Im no expert or pro (far from it) but like most I had to have a fuge and all that. I found that they are a PITA

and a cause for problems and require time, effort, Iron and additional testing, added supplements etc. Its a hobby within the hobby and something that is not really needed on a new tank. I no longer have one and life is more better. If your established tank has difficulty with excess nutrients then that is A option or tool to combat that issue.
Now were is the old man emoji

Bleigh · May 17, 2019

siggy said:
I wanted to do this with my current build, Have a 6' cabinet built with side cabinets/shelves granite top for a 4' tank, My wife liked the idea until she seen the price.;Stop That slide out was a good idea if you have to loose the drawer. personally I would shorten it to about 6-8" deep plenty for food and such, I live with zero.
Im no expert or pro (far from it) but like most I had to have a fuge and all that. I found that they are a PITA and a cause for problems and require time, effort, Iron and additional testing, added supplements etc. Its a hobby within the hobby and something that is not really needed on a new tank. I no longer have one and life is more better. If your established tank has difficulty with excess nutrients then that is A option or tool to combat that issue.
Now were is the old man emoji

I got the cabinets for a great deal. There is actually two matching uppers and a second cabinet for my laundry room (I put that cabinet on wheels so I could move it easily when socks inevitably hide behind the machines). I'll post a picture of that too. I finished it last night and haven't decorated or finished organizing, but I think that turned out nicely... Still need to get a top for that cabinet too, but I figured I can do it all at the same time as the tank stand. Total for all 5 cabinets, shelves, doors, AND mounting equipment... $250.

My reason for wanting a refugium is that I'd really like to keep a goby. I know they like pods. Obviously I can regularly buy a bottle, but if they're growing in the tank, then that's one less thing I need to go to the store for. Also, I kind want to get an idea of how all of it works before I start the bigger tank. I'd rather make mistakes with something smaller that won't be as hard to remedy than regret doing or not doing something for the bigger tank.

siggy · May 17, 2019

great deal on the cabinets, laundry looks good. I currently have a bunch of pieces/rubble of live rock in the sump/fuge chamber, coral skeletons, frag disks/plugs curing or anything I remove from the display goes in, this is a old school Bio-fuge and works well for pods and also snails and crabs that crawl out. BTW is a problem fish Jail too

Bleigh · May 24, 2019

I'd really like to put a tuxedo urchin in my tank. I have tons of algae on the glass that I clean everyday. I can stop that once I order it. The website says that a 20 gallon tank is big enough. I know urchins are bad to dislodge things and like to carry things around with them. I think that would be fun to watch.

Captain Quint · May 24, 2019

Bleigh said:
I'd really like to put a tuxedo urchin in my tank. I have tons of algae on the glass that I clean everyday. I can stop that once I order it. The website says that a 20 gallon tank is big enough. I know urchins are bad to dislodge things and like to carry things around with them. I think that would be fun to watch.

I always enjoyed seeing my move about munching away. Can be somewhat of a bulldozer at times. haha

Bleigh · May 29, 2019

Does everyone have a different thread for every tank they have?

So I ordered a LR 25 sump from acrylic habitats for the 60 gallon cube. I can't wait for it to come in! Also, I can't seem to stop buying frags..... Picture as evidence....

So I was thinking about potentially plumbing a frag tank in with the cube and sump. So the frag tank would sit right next to the DT. Has anyone done this? If so, what is your experience?

NY_Caveman · May 29, 2019

Bleigh said:
Does everyone have a different thread for every tank they have?

I have seen people do both. In my experience, there are few who end up maintaining both threads, but some do. If you keep it all here you could edit your title up top by clicking Thread Tools. If you decide to start a new thread make sure to add a link for us here.

crusso1993 · May 30, 2019

Bleigh said:
Does everyone have a different thread for every tank they have?

So I ordered a LR 25 sump from acrylic habitats for the 60 gallon cube. I can't wait for it to come in! Also, I can't seem to stop buying frags..... Picture as evidence....

So I was thinking about potentially plumbing a frag tank in with the cube and sump. So the frag tank would sit right next to the DT. Has anyone done this? If so, what is your experience?

No, you're the only one! Lol (giving you a hard time... obviously!)

+1 on @NY_Caveman above

RobW · May 30, 2019

Nice tank! Laundry room looks good too!

Captain Quint · May 30, 2019

Bleigh said:
Does everyone have a different thread for every tank they have?

So I ordered a LR 25 sump from acrylic habitats for the 60 gallon cube. I can't wait for it to come in! Also, I can't seem to stop buying frags..... Picture as evidence....

So I was thinking about potentially plumbing a frag tank in with the cube and sump. So the frag tank would sit right next to the DT. Has anyone done this? If so, what is your experience?

Yup...you're addicted. lol

Bleigh · Jun 13, 2019

NY_Caveman said:
I have seen people do both. In my experience, there are few who end up maintaining both threads, but some do. If you keep it all here you could edit your title up top by clicking Thread Tools. If you decide to start a new thread make sure to add a link for us here.

They started building the sump today, so I started the new thread.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/60-gallon-cube.613323/#post-6163192