System v4.0: Snow edition

So after being in the biz for the past three or four years I'm happy to be back to being just a hobbyist.  Now living in a new place, new job and having some spare time, I want to get back into the breeding part of the hobby.  Never had enough time, so now it is purely for fun.
 
I'm still not sure what I want to breed (be it fish or invert) so I'm trying to make a system that will let me do a little of everything.  Not happy with what I'm seeing tank wise, I plan on making the entire system to do the following:
 
1) Must not be bigger than 5' long, or 2' wide.  
2) Weight when full of water must be less than 400lbs (second floor).
3) Must be easy to clean/feed/take care of.
4) Just broodstock in this system, larval and live feeds are for later.
5) Keep it under 50 gallons, sump included.
 
I've got a couple rough ideas I'll sketch out tonight/next couple of days.  I'll take pics as I build it, as I'm sure there will be new ideas once I get this system built.  One last thing - making the entire thing from wood, with the only glass being for viewing.

I keep going back and forth on designing this.  By trying to be as flexible as possible, it seems I'm ending up with Jack-of-all-trades and not being efficient one way or the other.  Pelagic or demersal?  I can't decide.  
 
Now I'm toying with an invert system addition which wouldn't be made of wood, but plastic. 
 
Decisions, decisions.

So after running numbers and time/effort etc.  I ditched the wood and went back to tanks.
 
Two 15's
A 10
And a 30L 
Are now ready to be painted in the garage.  I might grab a 15 for a single stand alone tank in the bed room, but for the most part thats about all I can do being upstairs.
 
Now to work out a stand/frame for them. 

Have fun!

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]

Was hoping to have tomorrow to work on them but I couldn't find the right plywood for the the stand.  It's all good, I still need to paint the tanks, order bulkheads/drill bits etc.  Oh and buy tools

So got some things accomplished today, hoping for more tomorrow:
 
Plywood cut/bought: Check
Top w/Light for 10G: Check
4' LED Strip light (very bright, equals 100W, uses 19):  Check.
 
Funny thing is I got the top w/light and the 4' Strip light at Walmart of all places.  (Also found some sweet, sweet blue and black 40G tubs for 16$ too).  The shop light was 25 bucks - and comes with a hanging kit you'd find on a light fixture.  I'll get some pics tonight of the tanks w/lights.  Still need to get 2x4's to make frame, but I can get that tomorrow. 
 
Really thinking of trying one of the titanium heaters w/external controller - Apt stays around 68-70, so I'll need something to bump temps to 80ish. 

Working on what to use for a sump, as I think I'll just be running two 15's and a 10 for broodstock.  The 30G is looking like it will be set up for something else.
Still need to put my 30G rimless JBJ tank up too.

I'd like to see that led strip light from Walmart. I have a need for something like that. Just $25?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ken

Yeah I was pretty shocked myself.  Uploading pic now. 
 

Light over two 15G tanks.

 
UPC: 681131080323
Great Value 4ft LED Shop Light 1850 lumens, Cool white, 100 Watt Equivalent, uses 19 Watts.
 
I'd like to find more of them, the store just had the one.
 
Looks to be this:
http://www.amazon.com/Fei...-48-Inch/dp/B00MJUCQB0
Just labeled with the walmart brand (And much cheaper)

I believe I need to head over to Walmart! Hopefully they will have it in stock.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ken

So after hitting Menards today for something totally unrelated, I came home with a module system that took all of 10 minutes to put together. 
 
(Still not where it is going to be, and I need to pick up a third railing set).
 

 
4'x17" 6' tall.
 
Ends x2 (24 ea)= 48
Railings x4 (9 ea) 36
Cut to fit wood x4 (4 ea) 16
Wire to fit shelves (under wood) x4 (3 ea) 12
 
Total: 112 ~ 120 with tax.   Cheaper than building it from wood (and buying tools) and totally movable.   I'll paint the wood and drop down the second shelf 6" and that should be good.  The sump will go on the bottom shelf (another $30 total).  Overall I'm pretty pleased.  Each shelf is rated for 2000 lbs, so not worried about 300

Looks sharp! Is the metal painted or coated? If not, I would suggest sealing it somehow. I wish I'd clear coated my metal rack.

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

It's powder coated brown/tan, I'm debating about painting over that as well.  Not super worried as I'm only running 40ish gallons on that system.  The main issue is temperature is going to be -10's for the highs the next few days this week.

Gotta say I forgot how fun and easy these are to work with.  It took me longer to move the tanks/wood than it did to adjust the level of the two crossbeams.   
 
Originally planning two 15's and a 10 and use a 20G for a sump, now I might just use a single 15 and one 10G.  I need to get a bigger sheet of plywood for the feet to sit on (or just use a couple of 2x4's so I can spread the weight out, plus screw the feet into those).
 
Other than some odds and ends (ordering bulkheads/plumbing etc) starting to come together.  Heater and pumps are on the way from Amazon, so looking like the third week of January I should be able to get it running if all comes in on time.

Another change - using a single 30G (36"x12") to house a group of similar fish.  I like the idea of not having to drill tanks/get bulkheads and do all sorts of plumbing.  
 
Just need to clean it out and paint the back and it is ready to start the cycle. 

So, are you still trying to decide whether to go with demersals or pelagics?  As a fellow breeding nut I don't know how you're going to be happy with so few tanks.  Have you picked out your target fish yet?

Dave I'm stuck in being in a second floor apartment.  Still not sure if I'll be living here after a year (being transferred is big possibility).  Probably demersals, but if I need to I have a garage I can modify for more room.   My car might not like me during the winter tho!
 

V5.0 coming in August - moving to a bigger place where I can have an actual dedicated fish room.   Tanks on hand:
 
10G x1
15G x2
20H x1
30 x1
40B x1
75 x1
After running the numbers, I just can't see ever using 10G tanks for broodstock - simply as the needed parts to plumb them into a system are just not cost-effective.   Best example I can give is that four 10's will be about 41-42" wide if stacked side by side. Three 20's will be about 37-37.5" if stacked side by side, and have a third more volume.   I'm also going to use 40B's as broodstock, as the surface area is insane for the size of the tank.  (And one 40B still uses less wall space than four 10's!)
 
Debating between another couple tanks.  Trying not to get carried away before I move, but I'd like to be able to get systems up and running so I can start searching for possible broodstock.
 
I'll have a new thread (v5) once I'm moved in.  The steel racking I got will be used in the livefoods/larval room, perfect for BRT's!)

Interesting thread, I am on the finishing up stage of a system with a 90, a 55 and a 50, UGFs, and a sump, have water in all and adding salt, have some 'live' gravel to add once the salinity is up, and just for fun several female mollies converting to salt. I have another 55 in the fishroom for growout .
 
Re: wood tanks, I am looking at the Instant Ocean marine 3/4 ply, fiberglassed. I made the sump for the 3 tanks of this. Its well covered in Frank Hoffs book. I would wind up with 6 sections of 28gals, probably 26 with lower water level. I am looking at this for some small fish breeding tanks. It'll be another month before I start it, but have the marine ply now for a unit.  It will be on a 2by4 stand.
 
So far so good on the start, I am thinking of going down to Tropicorium next week for some starter stuff, I also have a 'pod' rack, several 10gal tanks, and several 5 gal buckets on the bottom with some 3 gal Walmart square water jugs on 2nd and 3rd shelves, with 2 liter bottles on the top. But its all not functioning yet, major effort is on the 3 living room tanks.
 
Why did you rule out the ply tanks? After looking at options it seemed the ply was the easiest way to get the 6 'tanks', all in one unit for me anyhow.
 
Fascinating thread, thanks for sharing.

Jake
We are all in this together

I haven't ruled the ply tanks out yet - there is still a part of me that wants to make a 48"x36"x30" for a display.  The single sheet of glass would run about 100ish (1/2" or more thickness, 5/8's maybe), the wood and materials another 300ish.  The problem I run into is once I build that tank (and put it in the basement) it will never come out - and that isn't a great idea when renting

Maybe just make it 30" high ?
 
I like Franks dimensions for the Instant Ocean units, but just trimming it a bit. Building the sump was interesting,  48" L by 15.5" wide by 18.5" high. All measurements exterior. It sits inside the legs of the 90G or I'd have made it wider.
 
Insides and the edges with about a 4" overlap of the fiberglass. I did two coats, it used just under two quarts. I think its where its going to be for pretty close to forever.  
 
The 8' long Instant Ocean unit will cost about $145 in 3/4" Marine Ply and $180 in epoxy. Six pcs of 5/8s glass 12 X 12, and 2 large tubes of silicone. Another  ~ $35.  I have some pvc 3/4" stock, and a length with ball valves for the plumbing, 6 bulkheads were $ 30.
 
I think that six 28 gal glass tanks would cost more.
 
When its done I'll get some photos of it.

Jake
We are all in this together

Some good points - I went back and re-read through the IO tanks in Hoff's book.  Not worried so much for dermersal spawners (probably spelled that wrong), but for pelagics.   I was toying with 2x2x3' tall  tanks to see if I could get away with one sheet of glass in the front.  Would probably work (and I'd make two so to tie them together with an egg collector) OK and hopefully not be a pain in the behind to move.

Jake and Arc Katana, I am also a big believer in fiberglassed plywood tanks.  They can be made in non-standard dimensions, easy to break down and move from your apartment and unbreakable.  If all else fails you can cut them apart with a circular saw and use the panels to make a new tank.  However I don't think you need the more expensive marine plywood, regular 1/2" may do.
 
Your idea of 36" high tanks is another good one and should work well with demersal spawners.  No matter what fish you're working with, you should get more fertilized eggs and better spawning rises out of the 36" height.

Good points, I mentioned a 30" width to get it through a standard door opening.
 
I epoxied my ply tank so I think a good quality ply would do also. And I think on the 8' unit I would prefer two 4' ones just to make them easier to move, if need be. The added cost of two 4' units rather then one 8' would just be for the extra end.
 
The 24" depth of the 90G is about as deep as I want to work in. For a big wall display tank more is nice. But its not going to happen for me.
I think the 24" depth will work for smaller pelagic spawners.
 
I am curious how many ply tanks there are out there?

Jake
We are all in this together

Lots of big freshwater ply tanks - and a few saltwater ones.  Monsterfishkeepers.com has lots of builds on there.

Big link of plywood tanks:
 
http://www.monsterfishkee...s-load-warning.288821/

Thanks for the link, a great diy site.  Much to think about here.
 
I am making a simple swap on my system units, the long box is going to be a refugium and what was the refugium will be the sump. A bigger refugium allows  more macroalgae, and hopefully more pods. While there is ample room in the sump for the drip/dry filter, skimmer and return pump. I think I am going to tie in the refugium to the main system, it adds another 50 gals, will do some more nitrite/nitrate reduction, and add some pods to the system in the tank with the mandarin, gobies and similar sized fish.

Jake
We are all in this together

I'm always a huge fan of more water volume

Me too, those ply monster tanks are sure eye candy. The weight on some would collapse most house floors, still, one for pelagic spawners with a good egg catcher sure makes for lots of  day dreams. I'd be very happy with a 2-300 gal one. 
 
Maybe when I grow up.

Jake
We are all in this together