Joe's Starfire 210

plutoniumJoe · #1 10-26-2009, 03:53 AM

I have been working on this build since April. I have what I think is about 90% of the materials that I will need to get this tank up and running but I am sure that many more surprises will pop up.

The Old Tank
I currently have a 75g with a 20g sump. I love it and it is really showing the signs of a maturing tank. Good sps growth and healthy fish. I wanted a tank for about the last 10 years but my wife didn't give in until my 40th. I ran a saltwater tank when I was in university and missed the tranquility it provided. Short sightedly we thought that the tank would be great in what might some day be our dinning room and although it is a great focal point, lugging water and other tank maintenance is tough when you have to go through the entire house.

The New tank.
I have a couple of tangs and wanted to get something that would be adequate for them and future fish. Length wise I wanted at least 6ft. I had visited Green Spotted Puffer's tank and I liked how wide it was although he suggested 30" I'm going with 28". I have two 250MH and I didn't want to upgrade the ballasts so I thought the maximum depth could be 24". So those are the dimensions. 72X28X24 =200Gallon.

mseepman · #2 10-26-2009, 04:07 AM

Sounds great! I've been planning a big tank upgrade for a long time too so I know how you feel. I'm looking forward to this thread. Post lots of pics as you put it together.

Where are you getting the tank made?

plutoniumJoe · #3 10-26-2009, 04:15 AM

I don't know if the second floor would hold a 200g tank and we were planning on refinishing the basement so I went to work on planning our new "Family Room" to include our fish family members.

The basement room is about 14X28 and we mostly used it for junk storage and piano. A year ago a pipe that led to the kitchen burst and I had to take down the valance on the right to get to the pipe to fix it.

I know many would have just fixed the valance but the 1970s paneling had to go.

My plan was to put the aquarium against the far wall where the piano sits. Behind the wall is a cantina in the garage. In the floor of the cantina is drain. Unfortunately there is about a 30" concrete foundation a third of the way up the wall. The rest is wood frame so I figure I could somehow drain over the foundation into the drain to make water changes easier.

On the right side of the wall is a shutoff that leads to the outside hose so that you can turn off the sprinkler without going outside. I figured I could tap into this line and run a line to the ro/di near the tank.

I had to use a pressure fitting as I had a tough time getting around the back to sweat the joint properly and I was afraid I would burn down the house if I got too aggressive with the torch. The line went perfect I just needed to get it to where the tank would be. I knew that the wall was going to be behind book cases and the tank so the easy thing to do was to cut the drywall, drill the studs, and run the line. All went well and I even patched the drywall good enough that the cuts aren't noticeable.

plutoniumJoe · #4 10-26-2009, 04:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mseepman

Sounds great! I've been planning a big tank upgrade for a long time too so I know how you feel. I'm looking forward to this thread. Post lots of pics as you put it together.

Where are you getting the tank made?

I will be building the tank myself. I have the glass and I built the sump and things went pretty good. I hope I am not biting off more than I can chew though.

mseepman · #5 10-26-2009, 04:21 AM

Wow, you're braver than me.

You must have a drawing of what you are putting together...would love to see that on the thread.

I bet this is going to be one very interesting build!!