Used Tank

[Dadof4]

I'm actually setting it up for a Porc, two Auriga Butterflyfish, and a few other bright colored small fish yet to be determined. I was thinking one or two Clown Fairy Wrasse but I'm not sure how that would work out on space.

It's going to be a while before I get the tank up, I have to reinforce my floors first, so I have time to get over the unsightly scratches that will be covered with live sand. It'll be tough but, I think I'll manage.

[t1gerbee]

how do you re-enforce floors?

[Dadof4]

I have to add support from underneath. I have to put some 4"x10" beams that run perpendicular to the floor joists in the basement and then use steel jack posts to add the weight bearing aspect. My house is over 110 years old and the floors are starting to dip from old age.

[t1gerbee]

it's so annoying. All you people with basements and 'crawl spaces' .. no one ever built a house in the UK with 'Crawl space' !!!!

I'm on the second floor and REALLY want a 6 foot tank, but i'm sure a second floor couldn't take it...

but have no idea how to go about re-enforcing it. Everything i've read talks about doing the same as you're going to do, extra beams and steel jacks.. but i can't very well knock on my downstairs neigbhors and ask if they mind having steel jacks in their living room.

just re-read your stock list, those butterflies are going to cost a pretty penny, better hope you get a friendly porc of that will end up one expensive puffer meal!

[Dadof4]

it's so annoying. All you people with basements and 'crawl spaces' .. no one ever built a house in the UK with 'Crawl space' !!!!

I'm on the second floor and REALLY want a 6 foot tank, but i'm sure a second floor couldn't take it...

I don't think your floor would hold that much concentrated weight. The tank and water alone are 4840 kg (estimated) then add live rock, sand, sump, and refugium and you're looking at much more.

but have no idea how to go about re-enforcing it. Everything i've read talks about doing the same as you're going to do, extra beams and steel jacks.. but i can't very well knock on my downstairs neigbhors and ask if they mind having steel jacks in their living room.

Well, you could paint them brown, get some artificial coconuts and leaves, kind of give them a Caribbean look to their living area.....

just re-read your stock list, those butterflies are going to cost a pretty penny, better hope you get a friendly porc of that will end up one expensive puffer meal!

Do you think the porc would go after them even if I put them in at the same time and roughly the same size?

[t1gerbee]

marine puffers.. it just not possible to tell what they are going to be like. I've been on thepufferfroum over a year now and have read threads of porcs taking chunks out of other fish or worse killing them outright...

and other threads where people have kept them fine with things..

Mine did ok with other fish but argued with the other marine puffer..

I think it really does depend what personality they have. If i was going to do it, i'd get a very small one so it can grow up on dead food and not had much chance to experience 'live' food...

and i'd put in all the other stock after that and see how it all goes for several months before adding the butterflies..

that way you can suss out any possible aggression before adding the butterflies...

[Dadof4]

Any suggestions for tankmates?

[t1gerbee]

gentle ones, feeding and ability to deal with stress are an issue with butterfly fish.. so i wouldn't get anything aggressive or too boisterous...

[Dadof4]

Can't give up the idea of a Porc. Butterflies will have to be off the list.

[t1gerbee]

i think that is a good plan... butterflies are dodgy at the best of times without a little messy water dog in there..


What is the volume of the tank again? With a Porc you're looking at a fish only tank as they will eat corals, so have a look at the angels, tangs, triggers, eels..

[Dadof4]

It's a 180 gallon. I was looking at eels and trigger fish originally then i saw the butterflies. I'll have to revisit that idea again.

[t1gerbee]

180G is a nice size, loads of options out there for you...

I love some of the more unusal angels, and the pink tailed trigger is beeeeaaaaaaaautiful.

Not the most scientific site, bt it has good basic information about alot of marine fish, and good pictures... and compatibility chart..

some of the minimum tank sizes are a bit odd, but it's a good place to start..

http://www.tropicalfish4u.co.uk/Fish/Sa ... arineFish/

Uk site so don't get over excited and start ordering fish.

[Jay.B.]

... The tank and water alone are 4840 kg (estimated) then add live rock, sand, sump, and refugium and you're looking at much more...

a 6'x2'x2' tank has a total volume of 41,472 cubic inches, that's 680 Litres, multiplied by an SG of 1.023 gives a water weight of 696Kg. Bering in mind that when you add rock you displace water, so it won't be as straight forward as adding the weight of the rock to the total... you're probably looking at a ton and a half max (that's probably still over estimated) with sump volume and tank/cabinet weight, that's 1500 Kg, still a lot, but no where near as much as 4.8 tons

so you may be able to have a 6' tank

[Dadof4]

... The tank and water alone are 4840 kg (estimated) then add live rock, sand, sump, and refugium and you're looking at much more...

a 6'x2'x2' tank has a total volume of 41,472 cubic inches, that's 680 Litres, multiplied by an SG of 1.023 gives a water weight of 696Kg. Bering in mind that when you add rock you displace water, so it won't be as straight forward as adding the weight of the rock to the total... you're probably looking at a ton and a half max (that's probably still over estimated) with sump volume and tank/cabinet weight, that's 1500 Kg, still a lot, but no where near as much as 4.8 tons

so you may be able to have a 6' tank

Damn, you are correct. Bad math on my part converting Lbs to KG.....I feel like an idiot now....This is what happens when you do math after working a 12 hour night shift. I'm going to go bury my head in the sand and hide for a while.

[Jay.B.]

LOL the only reason I knew was... I use an online conversion website hahahaha I work out the volume in inches then put it in the box, pick what I'm converting from and to, and HEY PRESTO!!!

http://www.onlineconversion.com/volume.htm

down the right hand side you can pick what you want to convert... length, volume, weight currency etc... the link is to the volumes page, it has been probably the most useful and most used website in my bookmarks list LOL I would be lost without it