# New 125gal. Final



## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

So thank you to you all for your advice so far.. You have pushed me to getting a larger tank for my RB's.... THey will soon be very happy..:laugh:

I got a 100 gal off craigslist for 100$.. crazy deal so i want you all to see! I just drove about 3 hours one way today to get it this morning and its in a happy home now.









Heres a few pics...




Heres a comparison...






Heres my oldy tank.. bout to go out the door.










By the end of the week i will reply to this with pics of it with sand, a new stand, and hopefully a lid. I will get the RB's in asap!!!








Thanks all for reading & replying!









Steve


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## EZmoney (May 13, 2004)

That's a huge difference in size. I'm glad we were able to help steer you in the right direction.
Your p's will thank you for the extra room!


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## jamezgt (Jun 24, 2008)

great pickup! keep us updated on the progress.


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## blbig50 (Jan 1, 2009)

Very nice pick up man, congrats on the new tank!


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## uhjkool (Mar 26, 2004)

Nice tank! Do you think that stand is going to be sturdy enough?


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

yeah the owner didnt know what he was thinking.. he owned oscars at one time in it. He had a bad light that was suspended above the tank with a bunk of plastic pieces for a lid... The stand is so poorly built it looks like he sawed it with an axe. So needless to say i have alot of work todo but im planning on doing most of it this week!

I'll keep you all posted!









THANKS!
Steve


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## His Majesty (Apr 5, 2005)

congrats on the new tank.
100g for $100 is a sweet deal.
glad our advice helped with your decision making
you p's will be very happy.
keep us posted on the progress


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## Lifer374 (Dec 5, 2003)

not bad at all.
What are them demensions?


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

well about the dimensions... it is 72"x18"x23"tall. Which my seller thought was a 100g... I pluged the cubic centimeters into a conversion equation where 1cm cubed = .00432900433gal and my tank is actually a..

130 gallon aquarium!!!
















super excited... It definately seemed larger than a 100 gallon when i compared them...

I am going to get the 2x4's tonight and will begin building the frame tomorrow!!! i'll keep you posted every step of the way!









Thanks all for posting!









Steve


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## His Majesty (Apr 5, 2005)

damn! someone has got lucky this month

130g for $100 is even better. very envious haha

can't wait till its finished


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## Lifer374 (Dec 5, 2003)

I was going to say that didn't look like a 100 gallon. Looked taller.
Good pic up.


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

yeah ive got some engineering thoughts in my head and i knew that it was bigger than twice the other so i wanted to figure out exactly..

So happy it ended up being a 125-130!

Now i need some advice on those plants in the plant thread!

Thanks guys for reading i got the wood. Starting the framework tomorrow on the tank!

Steve


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

Well guys... I just got done with most of the tank stand in the last 2-3 days! I have some pics for you guys to checkout! I still have to finish the wood and sand...







well then slap on some paint.. but other than that i'll be good!!!

Heres some pics.











Lookin good!








Thanks everyone for reading and replying!









Steve


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## massabsamurai (Mar 12, 2009)

pretty cool DIY. So far so good


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

massabsamurai said:


> pretty cool DIY. So far so good


Thanks samurai. I wasn't aiming for a DIY but i guess you can get ideas from it!

oh and your avatar lady looks really mad or something... Just thought i would point that out...









Thanks!

Steve


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## Guest (Jun 10, 2009)

Sweet pick up and DIY Steve! Cant wait to see the end result


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## joeytoad83 (Sep 10, 2004)

good score. myself im a tad hesitant about buying a used tank.


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## His Majesty (Apr 5, 2005)

nice DIY work. love it when people build their own stands

joeytoad, i know what you mean. im also skeptical about buying second hand. but there are some really good deals out there. brand new glass tanks can sometimes be way over priced.


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## joeytoad83 (Sep 10, 2004)

Trigger lover said:


> nice DIY work. love it when people build their own stands
> 
> joeytoad, i know what you mean. im also skeptical about buying second hand. but there are some really good deals out there. brand new glass tanks can sometimes be way over priced.


yeah i have come across a few deals but just couldnt convince my self to buy, youre are right thou new tanks a super pricey.


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## mobbin (May 15, 2009)

tanks can cost thats a hell of a price, im looking for a 96'' long tank and dont wnat to buy a new one which sucks


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

yeah. I really wasnt sure at first but i looked er over.. and no glass flaws so hopefully it will be ok.. Theres no way i could think about spending 500$ on a new tank this size but i'm not super worried. I see no cracks/scratches in it and its 1/2" thick glass exactly... oh and the seams look great so i think it will be ok!

Thanks guys! more pics soon, doing more work on it tomorrow!

Steve


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

got a couple of more pics for you guys! i'll prlly have paint on it by the end of the night! i'll edit this when i do get paint on 'er!

Thanks for reading!



Please take note of the really cool finish border















Heres me...







Thanks all for posting!



Steve


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## massabsamurai (Mar 12, 2009)

nice stand bro!


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

Painted!!! Heres the pics!









Thanks all for reading and posting.









Steve

PS> will ahve the tank on it tomorrow morning! soon after i will have the sand and water cycled in there tomrorow!


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## joeytoad83 (Sep 10, 2004)

looks good.


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## His Majesty (Apr 5, 2005)

stand is looking good. your doing a great job. keep it up


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## Genin (Feb 4, 2003)

great job on the stand and killer buy on the tank.


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

Thanks guys for supporting... I'll have some pics up on the topic in the morning of my tank stacked... I got it on the stand today and it sits high up.. is pretty sweet... almost eye-level so you dont have to lean down to see it!

But I just bought a new computer too tonight! so i'll be playing with it for a while








500$ HP Phenom! QUAD-CORE FTW!!!

Also... I dont know what my best method would be to move the RBs because they are in a 55gallon and the tank is in the place where i want the 125gallon to go... I dont know the best method... should i put my P's in buckets and drain the water? I'll basically have 100gallons of new water anyway.. anyone have any suggestions?









Thanks!!!









Steve


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## Lifer374 (Dec 5, 2003)

If you can, buy one of those cheap rubbermaid 40 gal storage containers. Fill it up as high as it will go...(watch out for the vent holes near the handles). Temporarily keep your fish in there with some filter media, air pump/stone and a heater while you swap tanks. If you run into an issue, your fish will be fine in there overnight. 
I always try to get as much of the old water in the new tank as possible while keeping the fish in the container. 
Fill the tank the rest of the way.
Then start drip acclimation into the container that the fish are in.

When you are comfortable, net the fish, introduce them into their new home. 
Keep the lights off for a day or two if possible.


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

Sweet. Thanks for the idea. Where would you suggest getting these 40gallon rubbermaid containers at? And how durable are they?

Thanks!

Steve


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## Guest (Jun 15, 2009)

Any hardware store, even Walmart will have them. They are extremely durable







Nice stand btw!!


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

yep got the RB's in a rubbermaid. I have the water in the tank on the stand currently but the water is very mucky and want to take a pic when its a little clearer for a better display... It will be about a day before it gets fully cleaned out!

Thanks for posting!

Steve


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

well guys i have the final setup pics!!!

The water is very merky on the couple pics and im working on draining and filling with a hose constantly till the sand gives way all the dirt!

Tell me what you think!




























Thanks guys again for posting!

Steve


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## massabsamurai (Mar 12, 2009)

it looks awesome. Can't wait to get it all set up and for you to post all the new pics as you go along. GL!


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

thanks samurai,

Anyone?: is it normal for water to look as is? I am worried i will never be able to clean it all...

Thanks!
Steve


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## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

Did you clean the sand before you put it in?

Do a bunch of water changes to get it clearer.


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## jamezgt (Jun 24, 2008)

ScubaSteve319 said:


> thanks samurai,
> 
> Anyone?: is it normal for water to look as is? I am worried i will never be able to clean it all...
> 
> ...


My water looked twice as dirty after I set it up. Just leave the filters on and it should be fine. Mine cleared up maybe two weeks later (crystal clear) with an Emperor 400 and Eheim 2217. It should be fine though, just keep up with the water changes and let the filters do the work.


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

alright thanks guys... i'll be doing a couple more water changes after tonight... i'll be done after this one and see how it looks int the morning!

Steve


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## His Majesty (Apr 5, 2005)

setup is looking great








good work


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

Well guys... Finally got my tank up and after draining the water countless times... After switching sand types twice...








The final result!!!









Hope you all like... The powerblasted sand makes the water look really eary with the light...




































Thanks all for posting and hangin in there with me!!

Steve


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## Ibanez247 (Nov 9, 2006)

Sweet tank. I love my 125 but mines different. 6'x2'x18" tall. Lots of swimmn room. Ill never go to a tank under 100 after gettign this one. Well for a single seera I may lol. Nice job on the stand sooo much better than that grimace stand you had lol. Yeah the purple Mcdonalds dude.


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## His Majesty (Apr 5, 2005)

tank is looking really good. nice work

what sand have you got in now?


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## ru4iowahawkeyes (May 11, 2009)

Trigger lover said:


> tank is looking really good. nice work
> 
> what sand have you got in now?


I used powerblasting sand i got from my hardware store. My friend works there and i got the 3 bags for about 12$... down from 20$! So we spent all last night... literally (didn't go to bed til 7 in the morning) and the water looks *absolutely amazing*.

The stand does shine better with the tank above it. So glad we redid the stand because that other one was *terrible*.

So after many tries I finally got it... Now i need to heat the water and get the P's in after the params have been checked!

Thanks all,
Steve


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