Cdklos

**UPDATE**

Hey Guys! Update on the new tank, and a few questions.

Got the stand sanded and stained, came out quite nice I think, I built a sump inside the stand to catch anywater that may overflow from the sump, I’ve heard some horror stories and I want to do everything possbile from flooding my floor. Got the sump cleaned out and looking like new. Cleaned the tank with water and some vinegar, got a bunch of guys from my office coming over tomorrow morning to help me put it in place. I ordered a bunch of stuff this weekend and I should be able to get started plumbing mid-next week. 

2 Questions:

1. I got a bunch of “dry rock” from the guy I bought the tank from. It was all sitting in his garage for about 7 years. He had it in a tank at some point before that. It’s about 250lbs. of rock. How do I clean this rock so that it is ready to go in my tank when I’m ready? I want to get ahead of it, everything I have read sounds like it will be a month or so of soaking it before I can put it in the tank. I have gone ahead and put all the rock in some water with a little bit of bleach and some pumps to circulate the water. Where do I go from here?

2. I need to get some overflow covers made and also I want to add another section to my sump. Is there somewhere local I can get some acrylic cut so that I can weld it in myself, or is there someone that can do it for a nominal fee? I want to add an extra area for filter socks in my sump before heading to my skimmer.

Question? I installed a 105 gallon storage tank for RO water and added 1 cup of bleach to the tank to disinfect it before I drain it and fill it for good. Question is, can I pump the water with the bleach into the sump to clean it up also? There is a lot of sediment in there that needs to be washed out anyway. I was gonna use vinegar and water, will the small amount of bleach used to cleaned the sump cause a problem in the future?

Based on my limited amount of research I think I will be shooting for an SPS dominant tank. There is a huge light box with bulbs and ballasts and what not that I would be more than happy to sell. Don’t know what they go for but I can post some pictures later and maybe someone could make an offer. I am located in Hutto.

2 hours ago, Paula said:

Way to jump right in! And welcome to the forum. I'm still relatively new and these guys have been extremely helpful.

Thanks Paula! I tend to jump into the deep end when doing stuff, but that’s what makes it fun right? Thanks for the warm welcome!

Knowing the guy I bought it from it will be the best protein skimmer that money could buy at the time. Being at least 7 years old that won’t be a problem? At what point do I add the rock and water?

There is a picture showing a close up of the crack. I can take a larger picture showing more context tomorrow when I get back to it.

I realize "Beginner" and "240 Gallon" is kind of an oxymoron, but go big or go home...

I recently acquired a 240 Gallon tank that is set up to be a reef tank, although the farthest it every got with the previous owner was about 1 month with water and some rock in it. It has been sitting in a garage for about 7 years. I purchased the whole set up and I want to get started assembling the tank and getting it going. I have no idea what I am doing, but I have been doing a lot of research and I think I have a few ideas...

1. I want an Apex controller

2. I want (2) Kessil AP700 lights. The light box that came with this tank is old technology and I don't want to deal with the big metal halides. I also like the look of a more open top tank.

The tank was custom built, the stand was custom and the sump was custom. It has a 4', 60 gallon sump which seems about right from the research I have done. The skimmer was the latest and greatest when it was new, 7 years ago, but it hasn't been run but maybe 2 months its whole life. Although it has a crack in it, not sure if i can fix that with some aquarium silicone or epoxy or what not.

I'm looking for some direction and some help if anyone can help guide me in the right direction. I want it to be high quality, and I like redundancy too. Also, I like to have as much automation as possible. At this point, I'm not even sure what questions I need to ask...So I'm hoping someone can spur some conversation and help me figure out what the right questions are to ask. I look forward to joining this community and learning from anyone that is willing to take the time!!

**Note** These pictures are of the tank when it was originally set up approx. 7 years ago, it is in pieces right now, in my dining room.**