Big Tanks And Big Filters

[sarahw20000]

Hi i'm looking at getting a custom made tank, cabinet, and hood about 84"x 20"w x 28" h which works out at around 780litres / 175gallons.

Firstly does anyone know of the cheapest company that makes custom tanks?

And secondly we're going to be keeping piranhas in the tank so the filtration needs to be at least 5 times the tank capacity an hour, i was thinking of two of the Eheim classic 2260 which does 1900Lph, does this sound okay or are there better/cheaper alternatives?

Thanks for any input, huge tanks are a new thing to me

 

[CFC]

BOSS aquariums are about the best you can find for custom sized tanks, they dont have website but you can contact them on 01324 814203. In most cases with tanks as large as this they will build them on site so there is no heavy lifting to do.

Filtration sounds good though you may want to think about having a sump filter, you can also discuss all your flitration worries with the people at BOSS who will be glad to help you.

 

[Durbkat]

All my tanks are from all glass aquariums but none are custom made do they custom make tanks because their tanks are some what cheap.

 

[sarahw20000]

whats a sump filter? i thought they were to do with marine

 

[CFC]

A sump can be used on any tank, it is just a vessel for holding media which water from the tank passes through. They are usually the best option for larger tanks as increased media volume means you dont need such high water turn over, it basicly works like an oversized slow canister filter. The general rule is that you have 10% of the main tanks volume in media in the sump, in your case 78 litres, you then have a return pump on the sump which turns the volume over at least 3 times an hour.

Durbkat check the location of the poster and you will see they are in England so tank maufactorers in the US are of no use.

 

[Durbkat]

Well how was I supposed to know that in England they didn't have this company their.

 

[CFC]

errm, it says from colchester, UK under their avatar.

You need to learn that not everyone online is from America.

 

[Durbkat]

Ugh, I didn't mean that CFC I said how was I supposed to know that all glass aqauriums didn't manufacture in England.

 

[yvez9]

i would go for a sump filter as well as a 20 or 30 gallon bar tank is quite cheap, just buy some fiberglass panes to build sections and then buy large sponges, floss, bio-balls, peat, whatever you put in the filter and a return pump

if you look up the DIY forum, you'll find tutorials on how to build one

 

[sarahw20000]

So a sump filter would be a cheaper alternative to the two eheims? or would i still need a canister filter?

I spose the sump filter would just sit in the cabinet underneath the main tank, and i could have the heaters in there so they don't get beasted by the piranhas?

 

[yvez9]

absolutely, that's another advantage of having a sump
you can put everything you don't want people to see... like a heater, uv sterilizer, algea!

you can grow algea in the sump to filter out nitrates, although I'm not sure how effective that is.

all you need is a bit of time and DYI skills, a pump, some piping and sheets of glass or plastic, although there's not much to it

oh, you would also need to drill your tank if it isn't pre-drilled. That can be a pain though

 

[sarahw20000]

Ahhh drilling a tank, why do you need to do that! can't you just put a pipe in either end at the top?

 

[trickytree]

Wharf Aquatics, based in Pinxton Nottinghamshire make custom tanks. They do all options including buit-in filters.

 

[Lateral Line]

MerAquatica worth getting a quote from them.

With the filtration question, it depends a lot what you want to do with the tank. Overflows and sumps are great for marines and messy fish, but are not much cop with planted tanks where a couple of Eheims would be much better.

For Piranhas, which are not as messy as Cichlids and big Cats, but messier then small trops, either would probably be okay.

 

[Paul_MTS]

with that size tank I would suggest using a tank aorund 4x15x15 for a sump.

I'ved done a couple of sump set ups now and there not the cheaper option infact sometimes they will work out more expensive but they do do the job well.

You need not worry about drilling the tank, as your getting your tank custom made the company will quite happily drill the tank for you. I think BOSS aquariums may be your best choice as they seem to do a good job on sump set ups from what I'ved heard, MerAquatic can't supply you with the plumbing side of things.

Your main expense with a sump is probable the pumps to run the system, I use pond pumps on my tanks.

research and becareful of what media you choose for the sump aswell, i used "aquarock" in my first sump system and now 1 year later it was causing high nitrates and reducing the flow so the sump had to be totally cleaned out which wasn't fun!