# 125 fowlr



## 00nothing

Sitting at work dreaming about getting home and doing work to my new tank and figured I would stop in and say Hi to some old friends

In the process of building a 125 fowlr to act as a grow out for a couple of coral cat sharks and thought i would share some of the details here on the P

The tank as stated is a standard 125 purchased used and undrilled it will be a combination of the most interesting and efficient filtration (read cheap) I could find. Filtration will all be housed in a 55 gallon sump and will consist of a octopus extreme 160 skimmer a large RDSB (remote deep sand band) as well as an ATS (algae turf scrubber (read up on these guys they work in fresh and saltwater and are awesome for keeping water conditions at peak)). Flow will be handled by a 1000-1500 gph return pump as of yet to be purchased and pushed back through 1 inch return piping that is throttled to 3/4 at the in tank retruns. Drain Lines are 1.5 inch drains using what is called the Silent and fail safe overflow system developed by a member of reef central and appears to be one fo the best overflow setups going when combined with a coast to coast style overflow box

http://www.beananimal.com/projects/silent-...low-system.aspx

Well that the equipment and project in a nutshell so now I will tell you where I am in the project and tonight will post some pictures as well as maybe a how to on glass drilling

As it sits right now the tank is empty and 3 of 5 holes have been drilled the rusty stand it came with has been stripped sanded and repainted and I have Stained pine project panels to insert into the front of stand to hide the sump that my wife calls ugly (to me the plumbing is just as pretty as the tank). Next thing to do is complete drilling and start building the sump I will do my best to document all this and get it all posted on here

and since we all know 









I will start you off with this one so be patient till i get back later tonight with some saltwatery goodness


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## Winkyee

Get some pics up eh?
of the tank and the front^^^


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## Ægir

Awesome man, sounds like a great project. Bean's overflow setup is pretty sweet, and thats what i will prob use on my next tank with a coast to coast style overflow box.

The one thing i really would advise you change would be the TAS... After days and days of reading with no conclusive results to the claims that it can "eliminate all skimmers, fuges, blah blah blah" I decided to build one from spare parts, and try it for myself. If you look around the DIY forum i made a build thread, and documented how it worked in my tank. Unless you are lighting the screen with a MH, and plan on having a large screen setup I can almost guarantee that a fuge with some cheato, and or mangroves will benefit you more in the long run and not be a hastle to deal with. The main problems i ran into with my setup was ambient light from the scrubber partially lighting my tank and causing algae to grow in the display (wouldnt be a problem in a stand or remote location) my pump wouldnt work with my ocean pulse wavemaker so it was hard to give the algae dry time, and lack of screen size and light for my aquarium (followed recommendations i found online and still was too small)... Basically the only way it would be worth it (from my experience) would be atleast a 175W halide suspended in the center of 4 2'x2' screens in a square or something similar.

How i see it, your skimmer is like waves crashing (oxygenation and natural skimming) the TAS is like tidal zones where algae grows and is partally exposed to air for periods of time, fuge is tidal pools or kelp fields and obviously DSB and sand beds have the same aerobic and anerobic bacteria properties of sand in the ocean. Replicating things that happen in nature isnt a bad thing, but you cant replace all of those things with one like many people claim TAS can...

Keep us posted man, cant wait to see some pics


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## Ba20

x2 on frontal shot's


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## 00nothing

Thanks for the kind words guys I am really looing forward to completing this project in regards to the TAS its kind of a last minute decision as a means of nitrate export. I had thought about going with a refugium but would rather use the space for a large DSB had some interesting conversations with anthony calfo regarding these and am hooked on the idea planned it for my last large tank but never incorporated def doing it this time. The ATS will be more of a trial item that can easily be removed from the system.

without any further delay here are some pics and I will be posting a very quick how to drill glass in another thread
For more chicks check out the album http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/0603/00nothing/125/

I won't waste time giving a play by play on the pics I am sure you are all smart enough to figure out what is what



























































































Not me in the last pic thats the preverbial friend who sits around and stresses me while i take a drill to the big glass box

well thats is for now i need a regular holesaw so i can drill the holes in the overflow box and attach it to the tank and then next week will be plumbing time


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## Ægir

00nothing said:


> Thanks for the kind words guys I am really looing forward to completing this project in regards to the TAS its kind of a last minute decision as a means of nitrate export. I had thought about going with a refugium but would rather use the space for a large DSB had some interesting conversations with anthony calfo regarding these and am hooked on the idea planned it for my last large tank but never incorporated def doing it this time. The ATS will be more of a trial item that can easily be removed from the system.


What are your plans for the scrubber in terms of screen size and lighting? Personally i would add baffles in that 55 gal for a skimmer compartment, return pump, and refugium compartment and do a remote DSB in a bucket or something similar. In the refugium you could have some cheato and mangroves and 4" of sand or something. Just trying to give you some other ideas and spare you the experience i had... i dont feel they are remotely effective on a small scale compared to other techniques

Heres where you can read my experience with the TAS on my tank TAS DIY And like i said, it worked OK but has serious room for improvement... And if you are doing this you need to order a patch of pre-grown turf algae, from everything i have read you cant just grow it from thin air despite what people tell you

Great pics BTW, keep up the good work!


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## His Majesty

good job on the drilling. nicely done.

look forward to keeping track of your progress. im sure it will turn out to be a great setup


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## 00nothing

Thanks guys I am really proud of the patience I am showing in this build its been a bit of a headache at points getting the correct pvc fittings and the bulkheads is a bit of a chore in this part of the world but 2 trips to various parts of toronto and some to my local lowes and I have almost everything I need. Big headache for me right now is that I am placing the 55 gallon sump directly on the floor (was hoping to have a small stand to keep it off my flooring) but the tank is to tall and i wont be able to remove the skimmer body if i do. of my 3 possible sumps they all have an issue (see the pics) the 30 is to small for my liking the 40 breeder is to tall when sitting in the stand and the 55 jsut barely lets me get the skimmer out so 55 gallon it is


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## Winkyee

I like the drilling, nice...
Keep the pics coming eh.


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## 00nothing

Well money being tight and me being busy i havnt had a lot of time to get any work done but made a bit of head way today got some pluumbing dry fitted and bought some sand

Got the Overflow dry fit in



















Still need to grab the unions and ball valves

Now sand I am a cheap ass when it comes to spending money on things like sand no way in hell am i spending $50 on a bag of "LIVE SAND" from big als so I was jsut about to settle on a brown calcium based sand (passed the vinegar test) when i came across this $5 per bag


































nice fine grain and not sharp perfect for the catsharks


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## His Majesty

thats a good choice of sand for a very good price.

how many catsharks were you thinking of getting? a 125g is *just* about big enough for one fully grown catshark.


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## 00nothing

Trigger lover said:


> thats a good choice of sand for a very good price.
> 
> how many catsharks were you thinking of getting? a 125g is *just* about big enough for one fully grown catshark.


Its a grow out for a pair of cat sharks they will be moving into a pond when they reach a more mature size but it is best to start them in a smaller tank


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## His Majesty

alright sweet stuff man







good to hear. and yes growing them out in a smaller tank first is best.

is the pond your moving them into yours aswell? a shark&ray pond is my dream. was gonna setup a small ray tank in the garage but i hit a finacial brick wall


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## Guest

00nothing said:


> thats a good choice of sand for a very good price.
> 
> how many catsharks were you thinking of getting? a 125g is *just* about big enough for one fully grown catshark.


Its a grow out for a pair of cat sharks they will be moving into a pond when they reach a more mature size but it is best to start them in a smaller tank
[/quote]

Please excuse my ignorance as I dont know a thing about salt water setups but is your pond inside? If so how big is it or will it be and do you have pictures


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## 00nothing

Trigger lover said:


> thats a good choice of sand for a very good price.
> 
> how many catsharks were you thinking of getting? a 125g is *just* about big enough for one fully grown catshark.


Its a grow out for a pair of cat sharks they will be moving into a pond when they reach a more mature size but it is best to start them in a smaller tank
[/quote]

Please excuse my ignorance as I dont know a thing about salt water setups but is your pond inside? If so how big is it or will it be and do you have pictures








[/quote]

The pond will be an indoor pond yes and never be ashamed to ask a question we all have to start somewhere


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## Winkyee

Keeps pics comin eh?
That sand looks cool.


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## 00nothing

Well been an eventful few days good and bad Managed to smash my skimmer got the plumbing completed and cemented together and tank is full of water but I think I will let the pictures do the talking

tank all painted









55g Sump being built

















I nearly cried over this one its a lot less worse than i acted but still sucked none the less but i think i can repair it









Plumbing all completed and sump in place

















Daddys little angel helping me with the wet test

























wet test went real well had to tighten a few bulkheads and adjust the return nozzle heights but nothing major, the runback for a power out was real good left me about 4 inches from the top of the sump so lots of room

Well thats all for now folks waiting for my return pump getting it sometime over the next few days, Its only on a temp pump for testing. Going to let it run for 4 days or so in the garage watch for any leaks and if all goes well next step will be to move it in the house and start adding the saltwater.

Anyone have any questions or suggestions please feel free to jump in


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## Winkyee

Wow, looks great man.
I wish I'd of thought about drilling before setting my tank up..


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## His Majesty

nice work man. sump looks good.
shame about the smashed skimmer
i think you've done a real good job on the plumming. far better than i could manage. i always need to get someone to help me








keep up the good work


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## 00nothing

Well its finally in the house the sand had some very fine dust so not much to see in tank except a snowstorm but here are the pics once it clears i will start aquascaping but i can now gladly say the tank is done now comes waiting










i was going to hug it but figured standing beside it was good enough









the sump looking all cloudy that floss is only there till the water clears









the stand panels in place jsut resting there till i get them attached


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## Winkyee

Looks good man!


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## His Majesty

its gonna look bitchen when all that dust clears.


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## Malawi-

Hell of a tank so far, great job. I look forward to seeing more photos.


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## 00nothing

few more pics shes full of water and my little bit of live base from my last tank def need to get some more in there

FTS









Diffrent angle









My temp rock structure









The view from my spot on the couch









Its not a lot to look at for now but I will keep adding pics as the tank progresses


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## His Majesty

tank is looking spotless man. got a real clean look to it. very nie









a little bare however you are planning on raising baby sharks so its probably best. although i suggest creating a few overhangs


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## 00nothing

Trigger lover said:


> tank is looking spotless man. got a real clean look to it. very nie
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> a little bare however you are planning on raising baby sharks so its probably best. although i suggest creating a few overhangs


Funny you should say that I found 42 lb piece of lace rock at big als that is the perfect piece huge L shaped piece would create a perfect cave and its flat on top to stack my other rock on for decoration purposes and even an adult coral cat could hide in it now to convince the wife to let me spend 125 bux on one rock


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## Wide_Eyed_Wanderer

I'm liking it, cant wait to see the sharks. After they are sent to the pond what is going to go in here? and good luck man.


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## 00nothing

once the pond goes up this will either go reef or jsut get torn down and sold


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## Ba20

Nice build im Subscribed !


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## 00nothing

Hey guys sorry there hasnt been any updates tank is mid diatom bloom right now but my eel and big eye soldier are in the tank now as well as a coral beauty i got real cheap

The eel cannot stay away from the pvc express and loves taking the ride from the overflow to the sump i am jsut leaving him there for now till I get some eggcrate into the overflow

Also added some more live rock couple of nice shelf pieces


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## His Majesty

damn diatom bloom's are a f*cking pain in the ass.

hope you get it cleared up soon.


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## 00nothing

K guys sorry for the long delay in posting all this but between work some personal stuff and the diatom bloom i havnt been overly interested in posting pics

but without anymore delay

coral beauty and new aquascape 

















Roy my big eye squirrelfish these guys are quite the characters if your tank can have one i highly reccomend it









And my wifes new fish these were must haves for this tank so I was really happy to find them at both a good price and in great health








roy who usually hides all the time loves to swim with them

















Well thats all to show for now theres some more LR in the sump along with my eel who will not stay away from the pvc express down to the sump as well as roy ate a 20 dollar sand perch last night so he's technically still in the tank skimmer is starting to kick in pretty hard so I will be sure to add some pics of that when i get to dump its nastiness

Oh did some DIY moonlights costed me a whole 16 dollars forgot to document it but i will get some pics of that shortly and do a quick write up


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## Ægir

Awesome Bluethroat trigger pair man... if you dont have a screen or lid on your tank i would make one ASAP.


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## His Majesty

great choice of fish









both your blue throats and the squirrelfish are looking in perfect health.


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## 00nothing

Skunkbudfour20 said:


> great choice of fish
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> both your blue throats and the squirrelfish are looking in perfect health.


Now the wait and work begins while i put in a serious effort to obtaining the sharks if i wanted adults it would be easy but expensive but obviously I am not ready for that just yet on that note though i may have a line on a real cheap 800 gallon fiberglass tank just need to install the glass myself. Big dilemma with that though is wether i want a tank or a pond i seriously love the look of ponds


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## Ægir

00nothing said:


> Awesome Bluethroat trigger pair man... if you dont have a screen or lid on your tank i would make one ASAP.


Ya the scren lid is happening this week I thought it was going to be a nice easy trip to home depot for some black eggcrate but apparently they dont have it anymore and i refuse to settle for white so i am going to grab some window screen and diy frames and make my own tops

2 days in the tank and both blue throats have eaten flake and krill soked in garlic guard i couldnt be happier
[/quote]

I just saw a topic on how to make some bad ass ones on RC using window screen kits, and clear plastic mesh... i will try to find it for ya.

My blue throat jumped ship about 2 weeks into having her... and i have no idea what caused it


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## 00nothing

Skunkbudfour20 said:


> Awesome Bluethroat trigger pair man... if you dont have a screen or lid on your tank i would make one ASAP.


Ya the scren lid is happening this week I thought it was going to be a nice easy trip to home depot for some black eggcrate but apparently they dont have it anymore and i refuse to settle for white so i am going to grab some window screen and diy frames and make my own tops

2 days in the tank and both blue throats have eaten flake and krill soked in garlic guard i couldnt be happier
[/quote]

I just saw a topic on how to make some bad ass ones on RC using window screen kits, and clear plastic mesh... i will try to find it for ya.

My blue throat jumped ship about 2 weeks into having her... and i have no idea what caused it
[/quote]

ya that where i got the idea was from the rc post thanks for the heads up though its a real simple build i will make sure i document it for here


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## Winkyee

Shaping up nice Bud








Love the progress!


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## 00nothing

Tank felt like it needed a little something


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## Winkyee

Right on,
How's he doing in tank?


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## 00nothing

Winkyee said:


> Right on,
> How's he doing in tank?


He's doing great very intimidating to all of his tank mates

couple of more pics only because hes so gorgeous i couldnt resist


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## His Majesty

great looking lion.

is he feeding yet?


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