135-Gallon Reef Tank Set-Up
The Heart of a Biotope-Specific Marine Aquarium System
Here is the basic configuration for a 135-gallon nearshore shallow reef tank--the center piece of an interconnected series of biotope-specific aquaria.
The heart of an interconnected saltwater system with several biotope-specific tanks is the main display tank—in this case a 135-gallon tank replicating a nearshore shallow reef. Because one goal of this set-up is to learn about the interconnectedness of a natural reef ecosystem, this display tank will be modeled after a specific nearshore reef in southeast Sulawesi within the boundaries of the Wakatobi—the second largest marine protected area in Indonesia.
An acrylic tank was chosen for this set-up for a variety of reasons, including the fact that the plan calls for some custom drilling for a closed-loop system (CLS). The dimensions of the tank are 72 inches long, 18 inches deep and 24 inches high. The length was an important factor when choosing this tank, as it was necessary to have sufficient swimming room for some of the species that will inhabit this artificial reef.
The tank was purchased and placed on a frame, which is built not only to hold the tank, but also to provide a place for sump-based filtration, the CLS pump and wavemaker, and the RO/DI system. Because a saltwater tank weighs roughly eight pounds per gallon of water (saltwater is heavier than freshwater), and because there will be close to 135 lbs of live rock in the tank, the frame needs to be able to handle a significant load. The stand for this tank was framed up with two-by-fours in the same manner as one would frame up a house. The rough frame will be hidden by finish work once the set-up is complete.
This tank has an undrilled built-in center overflow, so the first order of business is to drill a drain hole in the bottom of the tank. Drilling acrylic is not difficult—it simply takes patience and an appropriately-sized hole saw (in this case two inches) available from any major home improvement center. Go slow, and keep the heat down by constantly spraying the bit.
Once the hole is drilled, a two-inch Durso standpipe (either DIY or purchased from Durso directly) is installed with a bulkhead and a two-inch PVC drain pipe coming out the bottom. Because this system is connected to other tanks, the drainpipe splits below the tank with one outlet draining into the sump and the other fitted with a two-inch ball valve. Eventually this ball valve will be used to regulate flow to a connected biotope-specific tank.
The sump for this tank is two chambered with dimensions of 30 inches long, 12 inches deep and 16 inches high. The sump will provide mechanical filtration with 1) a filter sock on the drainpipe coming from the overflow, 2) an in-sump protein skimmer and 3) a filter sponge in the baffle between chamber one and chamber two. A fluidized bed filter (to supplement the live rock’s biological filtration, especially in the case of rapidly shifting bioloads) is also hung on the side of the sump. An external return pump (in this case a Velocity T-3) is plumbed to a bulkhead in the second chamber of the sump and will return water to the tank.
This is the basic display tank configuration. Part 4 in this series describes connecting the tank to the sump in greater detail. Click here to read Part 2. Also be sure to see John Blatchford's articles and blog on this topic.
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