# Need Help On Specs For Custom Tank



## zackmorrisl (Mar 15, 2011)

I am going to have Miracles make me a custom tank and wanted some other opinions on tank dims.

I really do not want to exceed the 350-400 gallon mark as I will not have the option of built in plumbing and want to keep the maintenance within reason.
I currently have a 155 bow front and feel it is a little narrow and even at 6 ft long it still seems short. Aside from what is best for the fish I also wanted the overall effect to be visually pleasing and I find long narrow tanks to be kinda ugly.

I am looking for opinions of people who have or have had tanks this size. I dont care what your opinion is if you have never owned a tank this size, there are plenty of people on the net who think they know but I want to hear from people with first hand experience.

These are the dims. I am considering: 7ft long 32 inches wide 2 ft high
6ft long 40 inches wide 2 ft high
They can also make me a bowed glass tank 74 inches long 28 inches at the ends 34 inches in the center 2 ft high

These 3 picks are all around the 300 gallon mark. I really like the appearance of tanks with lots of depth and this will also allow the P's to swim in circles rather then back and forth which would make a shorter 6ft tank more liveable. 
Thanks in advance for any help!


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

Instead of having one built, you could prob get a Marineland "Deep Dimension" 300 gal for cheaper... they are 6 x 3 x 2

Why no internal plumbing? If you want the tank to be visually pleasing... it seems logical to remove everything from the display in terms of filter intakes and whatnot.


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## zackmorrisl (Mar 15, 2011)

Miracles is located about 45 minutes from here so I can save on shipping and pick it up, if I ever had any problems it would just make things so much easier, aside from that they're the freakin Ferrari of the aquarium world! I want a custom tank though and I am attracted to the glass bracing, frameless design and minimal silicone. I would rather buy local as well to help support local business and Canadian manufacturing. My current tank is drilled at the bottom on either side, dont like that much. I want this drilled on the back wall with external overflows. I would also like a pvc bottom and black tinted glass on the back, starphire front/side panels and 3/4 thick glass.

So far I'm leaning in the direction of 72Lx40Wx24 tall. After hours of staring at taped outline's on the floor I think I like that shape for the space better. With a 40 wide tank I think it would make the length less important...It would be nice to get a few opinions though!


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## zackmorrisl (Mar 15, 2011)

No suggestions? ....72x42x24 just ordered


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## rross2007 (Mar 27, 2010)

Congrats...post pics when you get it and when you get it set up!

How much did it cost you?


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## Plum (May 4, 2006)

Zack - sent you a PM to your questions and will answer some of your points here.

Miracles has an excellent reputation, though I have found the too hard to deals with. In Canada I believe, they will (or would not 4 years ago) deal directly with the public. I also offered to use USA addresses and bank accounts as I have such - miracles would not do such.

No less, I had a small shop in Ottawa request a quote.... Both the shop owner and I laughed at the pricing. If memory serves me correct, it was priced around 300% more than highly reputable competitors.

I support local companies as well - when their pricing is not competitive, I go elsewhere so that they can shore up on their operational weaknesses. If a company is not competitive, I go elsewhere, no matter if they are candian or not.

You "should" not need to deal with the company after it is set up.... I have never done so for any of my tanks. If any issues, a bit of thinking and research has allowed me to resolve any possible issues.

Sheets of glass and acrylic come in 8x4 - play with those densions and you get the best $ per gallon ratio.

If you are worried about maintenance, then plot your tank accordingly (filtration). This is where the work comes in... Not in the size of the aquariums. With a bit of planning/thought, you should be able to have the tank automatically change water, and the only maintenance being cleaning the glass and changing your mechanical filtration periodically.

I can't stress enough about planning if you want large, simple, cost effective set ups. There are many things I would change about mine, now that I have a somewhat larger system.


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## zackmorrisl (Mar 15, 2011)

rross2007 said:


> Congrats...post pics when you get it and when you get it set up!
> 
> How much did it cost you?


Thank you

Tank alone was just shy of 3 grand, I picked it up from the factory so no shipping. My original budget was 5 grand total but it will be closer to 7.
If you want to see pics I started a build thread. Its listed as "350 gallon project from hell" I will have it updated this week.


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## zackmorrisl (Mar 15, 2011)

[quote name='Plum' timestamp='1321734557' post='2766551']
Zack - sent you a PM to your questions and will answer some of your points here.

Miracles has an excellent reputation, though I have found the too hard to deals with. In Canada I believe, they will (or would not 4 years ago) deal directly with the public. I also offered to use USA addresses and bank accounts as I have such - miracles would not do such.

No less, I had a small shop in Ottawa request a quote.... Both the shop owner and I laughed at the pricing. If memory serves me correct, it was priced around 300% more than highly reputable competitors.

I support local companies as well - when their pricing is not competitive, I go elsewhere so that they can shore up on their operational weaknesses. If a company is not competitive, I go elsewhere, no matter if they are candian or not.

You "should" not need to deal with the company after it is set up.... I have never done so for any of my tanks. If any issues, a bit of thinking and research has allowed me to resolve any possible issues.

Sheets of glass and acrylic come in 8x4 - play with those densions and you get the best $ per gallon ratio.

If you are worried about maintenance, then plot your tank accordingly (filtration). This is where the work comes in... Not in the size of the aquariums. With a bit of planning/thought, you should be able to have the tank automatically change water, and the only maintenance being cleaning the glass and changing your mechanical filtration periodically.

I've been in contact with Plum via email but I will respond to this post for others who have an interest.

Derek at Miracles is a really great guy to deal with. They do deal direct with custom tanks. I am really happy with the quality and service they have provided me with. Sometimes I did find it hard to get a hold of him but that is simply because he is the owner and deals with all the sales, installs and other headaches involved with running a business. It is really nice to deal with the owner and not some random sales person. He cares about his product and the consumer and made me feel very confident about my purchase. I cant even tell you how many emails and phone calls I made to him, personally I would have been super annoyed with a customer such as myself but he took his time to explain and answer any questions I had.
As for the sheets coming in 4x8, that is just one of the sizes. Miracles buys in bulk and uses huge sheets, one tank that was being made when I picked up mine was something like 14 ft long! They charge by usage not sheet so you dont pay for waste.
I would def. recommend Miracles to anyone looking for new tank. Yes they are more costly but its worth it no doubt.


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