Brianemone Posted April 21, 2005 Report Share Posted April 21, 2005 i had planned a cuboidal shape but then i thought that i could fit in more corals and give the fishies more room if i went longer and shallow what are your thoughts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted April 21, 2005 Report Share Posted April 21, 2005 better lighting to the bottom if it's shallower. more surface to air ratio for better aeration. perhaps more aesthetically pleasing. yeah why not! why dont you design your tank completely different?! i have some ideas that you could ponder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 21, 2005 let hear them or email me them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted April 21, 2005 Report Share Posted April 21, 2005 Ideal small tank dimensions are 1200X600X600. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Posted April 21, 2005 Report Share Posted April 21, 2005 I find a tank that is real good, and actually have the most of is:- 300mm x 200mm x 200mm. Perfect for breeding killies. Alan 104 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted April 21, 2005 Report Share Posted April 21, 2005 i'll draw it up later and post here. it may or may not be feasible, but it's an open minded approach! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 21, 2005 i was think like this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted April 21, 2005 Report Share Posted April 21, 2005 well here's a top down look of two options, top one is acrylic tank and bottom is glass. Dimensions are whatever you want them to be, but I was thinking 1200 long, 500 high, 600 deep. Brian - I think 400 high is too low - you will always lose about 50mm (25mm glass bottom and substrate, 25mm from top of tank for water level) Two holes in the bottom (1 & 2) for closed loops, each feeds an eheim 1060 (or better). First outlet to eheim feeds spray bar, second outlet to eheim feeds SCWD which alternates between top outlets (3 & 4) Overflow (5) is built outside the tank to provide more physical space in the tank. The acrylic tank has bow sides so waterflow moves around the tank smoother, of course this would cost alot more to make. Otherwise the second tank could be an option, more joins but simply done like this for uniqueness rather than the usual boring rectangular shape! It should give quite a unique view from the front having bowed or hexagonal shaped sides. Perhaps better reflection of light too? Anyway, hopefully this should give you some ideas at least. Another option I was thinking was having 'boxes' (similar to the overflow on the back) on the sides so you could fit a stream or other type of powerhead in there without it being (overly) visible from the front. I'm just trying to think outside the square,... excuse the pun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 21, 2005 the trick is with this tank to keep it "small" if i go 500 deep i would want 250w and it would look "big" my wife said im alowwed to upgrade cuase im building the cabinet for it to keep away little fingers and such i think the long shallow look would actually be quite nice like a tide pool sort of thing (nice open top maybe) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted April 22, 2005 Report Share Posted April 22, 2005 just dont forget the 50mm or so you will lose in height. it doesn't sound much, but 50mm over 400mm is quite considerable. i wish i went to 650mm on my tank, being 600mm it's more like 550mm useable. do what i did and draw the dimensions on a big piece of paper and put it on your wall. play with dimensions that are aesthetically pleasing to the (or rather your) eye. i really like the overflow at the back idea (as I've drawn above) and think it would be ideal for a tank your size as you dont take up extra space yet still retain the 'small' look and feel. since it's at the back, it'll never be seen. you really need to optimise space in a 4 foot tank. if you are ever up in auckland, come see my refugium, it's 1200mm long (4 foot) by 550mm deep and 450mm high. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 22, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 22, 2005 yeah i figure 3cm at most lost at the top due to over flow, and im making the cabinet my self so i can have it near on flush (two cm overhang just for looks and stability) so 120 long by 60 deep by 45 high the reasons i want it so shallow are to give easier light penetration for 2x 150W (plus actinics) and also because its different. every one seems to have deep tanks stacked full ok rock against the back wall it think the effect of the shallow tank will exaggerate the height of the acros that will be in the tank and eventually make it look like a forest of coral that the fish can swim through rather than swim by Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2005 so, claire (my wife) has decided that she wants to buy a house, (it makes sence) so the smallish tank dimentions can go out the window the tank is not "allowed to be huge (ill be pushing it to get to 6 foot) so my plan is make it rather deep (front to back) the final dimension will be decided by the house obviously (kindof ) so the plan is to get all the things i need for a larger tank and then get the tank its self most things like water movers are generic and will do well in any large tank the only thing is height which will determine the MH wattage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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