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120 Gal. Kansas Tank

Started by Guest_iturnrocks_* , Sep 17 2007 10:44 PM

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35 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_iturnrocks_*

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Posted 17 September 2007 - 10:44 PM

Now that my tank is mostly set up, I figure Ill start sharing my pics here. To cut down on multiple posts, when I take new pics, I will just add them as a reply. Hopefully my pics will get better as time goes on.

Heres the whole tank. You can see my DIY overflow on the back. The orange tub underneath is my temporary filter until I get some new acrylic.
Posted Image

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#2 Guest_joia2181_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 07:20 AM

Nice tank!
can you take a pic of your overflow? Looks like a solid setup!

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#3 Guest_iturnrocks_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 07:44 AM

Nice tank!
can you take a pic of your overflow?

Heres the general idea, laid flat before I cemented it together except you take out the plug on the back.

Posted Image

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#4 Guest_scottefontay_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 10:49 AM

excuse my ignorance, I've never used an over-flow before. The pic of it set up in the tank looks like there is a fifth pipe running down to your sump tub. Is it connected to anything (e.g., pump) or is it just gravity (siphon) flow into the tub. What type/flow-rate/brand pump are you pushing the system with? I have a 90 I want to set up with an over-flow system sometime this winter, and possibly one of my 55 gallons. Thanks.

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#5 Guest_BullHeadsrdfish_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 10:59 AM

Great Tank! Do you have a list of fish you put in it?

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#6 Guest_iturnrocks_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 11:18 AM

Great Tank! Do you have a list of fish you put in it?

Longear Sunfish
Orangespotted Sunfish
Common Shiner
Redbelly Dace
Red Shiner
Redfin Shiner
Fathead Minnow
Central Stoneroller
White Sucker
Orangethroat Darter
Mosquitofish
Slender Madtom

There may be some other minners that I havent identified. When seining, I tried to get them into the bucket as quickly as possible, so I may have grabbed some oddballs. There may also be some young creek chubs, but I will take them out once they are more recognizable.

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#7 Guest_sumthinsfishy_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 03:50 PM

What is that at the surface in the first picture on the surface in the middle?
Looks like a dead fish or something.

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#8 Guest_Skipjack_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 05:16 PM

Nice. You definitely have a few creek chubs in there.

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#9 Guest_iturnrocks_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 05:54 PM

What is that at the surface in the first picture on the surface in the middle?
Looks like a dead fish or something.

Well since the fish have since changed positions, and I havent found any dead fish, we will just have to speculate.

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#10 Guest_iturnrocks_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 06:29 PM

looks like there is a fifth pipe running down to your sump tub.

There is a pipe that runs to the tub below. It is just open into the tub.

Here is a diagram of how the system works

Posted Image

First with any siphon you want to be able to easily get it going so tapping an airline valve into the high part of the siphon is a good idea.

Second, if the pump ever stops (power failure, tank cleaning) you dont want to have to re-prime the siphon. Thats why the pipe goes back up instead of going straight to the filter. If the pump is shut off, water will remain in the siphon part of the overflow system (color blue).

To prime the siphon pour water into overflow on the back and the front, then hook up a piece of tubing to the valve, and suck the air out until you see water in the tubing. Then close the valve and your siphon is running.

Note: If your return line is submerged in the tank, you have to drill a hole in the tubing at the water surface or install a check valve in your return line otherwise when you turn off the pump, water will backflow down the return line and drain your tank to the level of the water output. By drilling a hole in the return line, air is allowed in the line in case of a power failure which breaks the backflow siphon action.

The idea of an overflow with undertank filter prevents a pump from being clogged with debris because the pump is situated after the media of the filter, so it only pumps clean water back to the tank. The overflow system pulls water over the side of the tank by means of the siphon, so no pump is required to get water to the filter.
Its best to drill the hold facing down, otherwise you will have a fountain because of the water pressure in the return line.

It works pretty much the same way a store bought overflow box works except my return pump is rated at 1200 gph, so I needed a larger diameter siphon.

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#11 Guest_troutperch beeman_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 08:34 PM

I had a similar set up at one time but it was very noisy. Does this set up male a lot of noise?

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#12 Guest_iturnrocks_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 08:45 PM

I had a similar set up at one time but it was very noisy. Does this set up male a lot of noise?

It has the potential to make a lot of noise. As you can see in the whole tank pic, the rubbermaid tub has the lid on it (I just cut out holes for the input and output). This cuts down on a lot of noise.

The noise pretty much comes from the water leaving the pipe and splashing in the sump. The rubbermaid tub is only a temporary filter until I get around to bonding some acrylic together. I will be adding a splash guard then which will reduce the noise even more.

My temporary filter is only about 1/10th as noisy as my original filter:
Posted Image

But I am trying to have a stream riffle tank so a little sloshing adds to the mood.

Other things that would further reduce the noise would be to put doors on the front of the stand (which I plan to eventually do) and eventually I plan to close off the back of the aquarium which should eliminate just about all the noise. The only noise then will be from an air pump feeding my powerheads.

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#13 Guest_iturnrocks_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 10:49 PM

I finally got a decent in-tank pic of a darter:

Posted Image

I hid a piece of tubifex cube under that rock on the left.

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#14 Guest_NativeLover_*

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Posted 18 September 2007 - 11:55 PM

I like your setup! Your fish are beautiful! I don't know if I would have the know-how or time to build my own filter. I'd just buy three 30-60gal filters. To me that is more expensive, but effective and easy to maintain. Just my opinion though. I want to upgrade to a bigger tank at some point.

Adam

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#15 Guest_iturnrocks_*

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Posted 19 September 2007 - 07:33 AM

the 120 gallon was the best priced large tank for the money, it cost $220. a 125 gal was like $100 more, a 90 gal I believe was almost as much as a 120.

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#16 Guest_scottefontay_*

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Posted 19 September 2007 - 10:00 AM

Thanks for the info.

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#17 Guest_iturnrocks_*

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Posted 19 September 2007 - 10:40 AM

What type/flow-rate/brand pump are you pushing the system with?

Although the exact pump I use seems to no longer be available, this is the closest thing I could find. This pump appears to have all the power in a smaller package.

BigAlsOnline Rio Pump

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#18 Guest_bullhead_*

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Posted 19 September 2007 - 09:55 PM

Very nice. I always like to see homegrown equipment.

What's up with everyone's aversion to creek chubs?

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#19 Guest_teleost_*

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Posted 19 September 2007 - 10:02 PM

What's up with everyone's aversion to creek chubs?

I can't speak for everyone but I can tell you that IMO creek chubs have big mouths and big stomachs. They'll eat anything including tankmates and likewise make lots of poop. Creek chubs also get a foot long. They simply take up lots of space with little payoff. So many fish....so little tank space.