# Fish Room Update - Added 300 gallon Acrylic Tank



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

My old 125 leaked for the last time. No desire to reseal it again. It has been retired (end of discussion :lol: ).

Had a friend that I talked into selling me his 300 gallon acrylic tank. It had a lot of scratches and needed work and I got it for a great price.

Here is a "before" pic









Here is the tank just after I finished buffing/polishing it (a little blurry from my camera phone)









I aquascaped it this weekend and am filling now









Found some cool boulders at a local Masonary supply shop - they just look "Tanganyika" to me









Gonna put my Mikula group (2m/5f) in the 300



























Gonna put some altos in too


----------



## du3ce (Sep 11, 2012)

nice set up!!


----------



## Deeda (Oct 12, 2012)

Nice pick up and great job on the acrylic polishing! Those fish are going to look awesome in that tank.

BTW, I love the new scape on the tank. I don't usually like squarish rocks but those look nice laid out that way.


----------



## MSUDawgs56 (Feb 1, 2005)

Awesome score! Can't wait to see them moved in!


----------



## ialtalal (Mar 12, 2012)

nice tank man


----------



## cichlid-gal (Apr 27, 2012)

Fantastic job on the tank polish/cleanup. It just sparkles. And your new rocks have a very "old" feel about them if that makes sense. Can't wait to see everyone in their new home. Great job Razzo!

and this is a beautiful pic ... I love the black and blue combination


----------



## slimbolen99 (Apr 28, 2006)

Sweet tank. Do you recall what they were selling the 'boulders' as?


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

slimbolen99 said:


> Sweet tank. Do you recall what they were selling the 'boulders' as?


Arkansas Fieldstone


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

Hey guys, just an update,... the tank has been filled and stocked and has been in service for almost a week. I am very happy with the buff/polish project and would definitely do it again (only much faster next time :wink: ). Here's a few pics:

Full Tank Shot









Left side









Center









Right side









And some fish pics (of course)  































































As always, I hope you enjoyed the images.

Russ


----------



## lilscoots (Mar 13, 2012)

How big are those frontosa? they almost look small, in that tank. Also, they're beautiful.


----------



## TMB60 (Jan 6, 2011)

Holy Cow Russ!!! You've got the WOW factor going on with this one. Looks great - nice job!

Tom


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

lilscoots said:


> How big are those frontosa? they almost look small, in that tank. Also, they're beautiful.


Thank you 

They are, kinda, a young wild group. Alpha is only 8" and just became mature. Beta is 8.5" and there is one big female at 8" and the rest are much smaller.


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

TMB60 said:


> Holy Cow Russ!!! You've got the WOW factor going on with this one. Looks great - nice job!
> 
> Tom


Hey Tom, how have you been buddy?

Thanks for the kuods  Hope you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving

God Bless,
Russ


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

Alpha has been shy (to me) since being put in the new tank. Finally getting him closer to the front of the tank...


----------



## JimA (Nov 7, 2009)

Very nice, those rocks on the left are fantastic,very "lake" looking.. 5th pic down in your update is amazing Front and Calvus? POM =D>


----------



## Tzone (Jun 30, 2012)

love the tank. Your Fronts are stunning. How old are they? And what are the dimensions of the tank if you don't mind my asking?


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

Tzone said:


> love the tank. Your Fronts are stunning. How old are they? And what are the dimensions of the tank if you don't mind my asking?


Thank you 

The tank is 96" length x 24" width x 24" height

Age??? It is a wild group - on the younger side. Alpha just reached maturity and he is 8" long (beta is 8.5").


----------



## S4surf (Oct 18, 2006)

Nice tank and fish as usual Russ,

Boy I do miss my group bad when I see pictures like this.

nbd, but that is a 240 gal with those measurements, not a 300.

Steve


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

S4surf said:


> Nice tank and fish as usual Russ,
> 
> Boy I do miss my group bad when I see pictures like this.
> 
> ...


Really! Are you sure about that?

Huh, it was sold to me as a 300 :lol: I did get an amazing deal even if it is 240. The 96" long and 24" wide is what I like. The height is not that important (just makes it easier to clean and catch fish). I really wouldn't want it any taller.

:lol: I am actually kinda happy about that, that makes my reservoir tank system that I use for water changes better. 300 put me on the edge of what I wanted to have (with my reservoir capacity).


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

Ooops, please delete.


----------



## testeve (Sep 17, 2012)

I googled a tank volume calculator and plugged in your dimensions. 240 gallons

Beautiful tank btw! :thumb:


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

Just curious, assuming my tank is a 240

Do you think I can figure 30 gallons of displacement for my boulders and sand?

Just trying to figure out if my 55 gallon reservoir tank is adequate for a 25% water change?

240 - 30 = 210 gallons

30% = 63 gallons
25% = 53 gallons

Russ opcorn:


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

testeve said:


> I googled a tank volume calculator and plugged in your dimensions. 240 gallons
> 
> Beautiful tank btw! :thumb:


Thanks, that is actually a better size for me :lol:


----------



## S4surf (Oct 18, 2006)

Trust me russ it's a 240 just like mine 

Being 96" it would need one of the other measurements to be 30" to be a 300. every 2x2 cube is 60 gals.

I used to do 30% but 25 will be fine assuming your not feeding too many live foods. If you have the space the barrels like the other guy showed is the way to go. they are cheap and some come with covers. you could put roughly 110 gals in the same footprint as a 55 gal tank. I can buy them for $10-$15 a piece and they are great if you want to tap them with pvc. just make sure they are food grade...

Yes, you'd be close to 30 gal of displacement with those rocks. they remind me of the back to nature modules only heavy 

I'm very sorry to read you lost your Kilessa's sp???

Steve



Razzo said:


> Just curious, assuming my tank is a 240
> 
> Do you think I can figure 30 gallons of displacement for my boulders and sand?
> 
> ...


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

Thanks Steve. I am actually glad it is not a 300. This 240 is perfect for me - it's big but I can still reach inside if needed.

I am very interested in those barrels - do you have a link to something that is food grade?

Yes, I lost a wild group of kilesa some time ago (bad water change, big pH drop, and I was not home to catch it). I did get some more but have since sold them to somebody who is loving them. I still have a group of their F1 fry but they have been sold and will be shipping out soon.

For now, my 55 gallon reservoir tank should do fine for a 25% water change. My food selection for my frontosa produces minimal waste and consequently my nitrates do not rise as fast as some other foods.

Thanks again,
Russ



S4surf said:


> Trust me russ it's a 240 just like mine
> 
> Being 96" it would need one of the other measurements to be 30" to be a 300. every 2x2 cube is 60 gals.
> 
> ...


----------



## testeve (Sep 17, 2012)

Question: there is a used 125 acrylic at a lfs by my house for a steal, but it is pretty scratched up. Nothing deep, mostly fine surface scratches. So what did you use to get the scratches out of this tank and was it difficult?


----------



## S4surf (Oct 18, 2006)

Hey russ,

Here is a link to some of those barrels,

http://www.bayteccontainers.com/rechigdenpol.html

I'm sure if you shop around you can get them cheaper locally.

I used to get mine in the old days from dunkin donut's. they had batter or something that came in them.
Nowadays, I don't think they cook anything other than a microwave sandwich. but another local might.

Cheers,
Steve


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

testeve said:


> Question: there is a used 125 acrylic at a lfs by my house for a steal, but it is pretty scratched up. Nothing deep, mostly fine surface scratches. So what did you use to get the scratches out of this tank and was it difficult?


Is there any crazying? Scratches can be buffed & polished - crazying can not.

Here you go:
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forum ... al-Buffing

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forum ... k-question

After reading those, if you have any questions, please let me know.

I would definitely redo another tank with the experience & knowledge I have now.

Hope that helps,
Russ


----------



## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

S4surf said:


> Hey russ,
> 
> Here is a link to some of those barrels,
> 
> ...


Thanks Steve, that is good to know for us reservoir users!

Russ


----------

