300 Liter -> 1200 Liter --- Ideas??

[kleeblatt]

Hi Peoples,

we have a 300 Liter Salt Water Reef Aqaurium:

We now have received a 1200 Liter (2.5 Meters long) Aquarium, and we now want to build it up, and wondering if anyone has any ideas? Should we start from scratch, or use the 300 Liter contents.
We do want to have a hole drilled in one corner so we can have the filter and stuff below in the cabinet. Any ideas how to test this tank that it has no leaks without filling up ALLL 1200 liters?

 

[melosu58]

Seems to me that filling the tank is the only way.

 

[mfdrookie516]

welcome to AA I am on the same page as Mike, i dont see how there would be a way to test it without filling it up... Are you planning on keeping the current tank as well? If so, i wouldnt take out what you have in it, looks like a nice setup as it is...

 

[kleeblatt]

No - we have a small apartment, and one 300 Gallon Saltwater tank will be enough. We are gonna take then the 80 gallon Saltwater tank and turn it into my bass (african chilids) and turtle aquarium. They are currently living in a 20 gallon aquarium and its way to small.

But yeah.. being that we live in Germany, water costs alot, and filling 300 gallons up and throwing it immediately out, will costs a couple hundred euros.

But so then the next question would be... whats the best design for the new aquairum?

Ideas we are pondering:
1. Hire a glass cutter and cut a hole in it, so we can have the equipment tank below. or
2. Have all the equipment hang over the side (will this be enough for 300 gallons? Or will there not be enough room on the side to properly maintain
enough equipment)

3. Inside, we want to take 60% of the length and use for a reef, and then the rest as a sandy beach with an atoll.

4. We had been using Ocean Direct Black Sand... (from Florida), and the we have noticed that alot of our fish are dying and I am wondering if its because of the huge amount of metalic substances in this sand. When our magnet glass scraper falls in the sand, its covered in fine black particles, which shows there is a lot of bad stuff in this sand. we assume this is the reason our fish that scoop up the sand and filter it through their gills keep dying.

So come on peoples... if you had a new 300 Gallon Tank, how would you create it?

 

[austinsdad]

I'd have it cut and do two overflows in order to do about a 75g (minimum) sump/fuge underneath.

Fill the entire tank with all pumps on to text for leaks - assuming the overflows were all built and the sump is in place.

You will likely be able to use the existing rock, coral, and 10-20% of the current sand with new sand. Use the top portion of the exisiting water - prior to using the stuff after the rocks have been moved and all the foggy stuff gets stirred up. So just about all the existing water, all the rocks, and maybe some sand, with new mixed salt water and you can get going fast.

You likely will not have any cycling, but keep a large volume of ready mix salt water after the move just in case.