Which 72” tank is best?

[jnbrex]

I just bought a house and get to have a big tank again for the first time since I was in high school 10 years ago.

There’s a 73” wide, 22” deep, inset portion / alcove on a wall which is shared with the garage, so I’m looking for a 72” tank. For dimensions, I’m thinking around 72”x24”x24” but there’s some flexibility on the depth and height. I’m planning on building cabinetry around the tank to make it look like an in-wall (in-cabinet?) tank.

I’m also thinking of running the plumbing from the back of the tank through the wall behind the tank to a sump in the garage. There’s no need to cram hardware and plumbing in the stand, so I don’t think I need to spend the premium for an AIO system like Waterbox, Red Sea, or Cade. So far I’ve gotten quotes for tanks from Glass Cages, Planet Aquariums, and Innovative Marine.

My wishlist:

1. Low-iron glass front.
2. To keep the interior of the tank as free of equipment as possible I’m set on a coast-to-coast external overflow on the back, which will run to a sump in the garage.

Does anyone have recommendations for other brands, or any other advice on how to choose the tank?

What other features are must-haves?

What type of bracing recommended?

Is my plan to put the sump in the garage a good idea or should I just go with an AIO system?

 

[theMeat]

Congrats
would do a standard 40g long sump with glass sections for socks, then skimmer, then pump to 55g refugium that gravity feeds back to last section in sump with return pump to display. Would look to design for minimal water changes and definitely do an auto top off. In garage would build a wall with a door to house sump area to limit garage air\dust/temps. A coast to coast or any other quality ghost style overflow is a great move, and while I’d gladly spend money on lights for display, or quality slightly undersized skimmer, would sooner save money and buy a readily available tried and true marineland 180 or 220 which would fit your footprint.

 

[jnbrex]

Thanks for the reply theMeat. I definitely will be installing an auto top off, but wasn't planning on a refugium and was instead planning to get an oversized protein skimmer to handle nutrient export.

I don't think it'll be possible to build a wall around the sump in the garage since we want to keep it a 2-car garage. Do you think that'd be a problem?

 

[PeterErc]

What’s your temperature in the garage, heating tank, cooling tank concerns. As stated above if you could isolate the “fish room” to be climate controlled that would be golden. If you are just looking for a sump to hold a skimmer and a filter sock or so, under the tank would be fine with a fresh air intake to the skimmer. If you want to go balls to the wall, build of a lifetime, do the garage up. As much volume as you can. Minds change and what might not be wanted today could be a must have a few years from now.
Sounds like fun and a perfect spot for the tank. Take your time, do the research and most of all enjoy it

 

[jnbrex]

What’s your temperature in the garage, heating tank, cooling tank concerns. As stated above if you could isolate the “fish room” to be climate controlled that would be golden. If you are just looking for a sump to hold a skimmer and a filter sock or so, under the tank would be fine with a fresh air intake to the skimmer. If you want to go balls to the wall, build of a lifetime, do the garage up. As much volume as you can. Minds change and what might not be wanted today could be a must have a few years from now.
Sounds like fun and a perfect spot for the tank. Take your time, do the research and most of all enjoy it

The garage is not climate controlled and it can get pretty hot (over 100 degrees) in the summer. A chiller might be necessary. I live in Atlanta so it doesn't get too cold in the winter and the heaters should easily be able to keep up. There's just no way it'd be possible to wall off a fish room inside the garage since there's only about 2 feet of clearance between where my wife parks her car and the wall with the tank on the other side. The sump and all other equipment will need to fit into that space.

I was originally intrigued by the sump in the garage idea because of the noise reduction that would come with having the skimmer and pump outside of the house rather than under the tank, and the increased ease of maintenance that would come with not having to reach into the stand to empty the skimmer collection cup, fill ATO reservoir, etc.

Also still looking for more info on which tank manufacturer to go with!

 

[PeterErc]

My wife wouldn’t be happy about parking in the driveway, but she would get used to it..j/k
I am south of you in Florida and helped a buddy set up a system in his garage. It wasn’t summer yet and his electric bill ate him alive. It wasn’t long before he too took it down, even with insulating the garage door.

 

[theMeat]

If garage gets up to 100, yeah, a chiller will be needed.
Would be concerned about contaminants getting into tank with sump on ground in garage with cars in and out.
The way a skimmer works is proteins float to top. When enough proteins clump together they spill over into collection cup. If skimmer is oversized you will have to run higher water level in skimmer and collect wetter/less concentrated skimmate. Settings will be more finicky.