# my 180 stand, canopy, background, and slideout sump....



## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

now that i'm pretty much settled in florida after my relocation from ohio, i'm ready to start up a new tank.
i picked up a 180 with built in overflow a few months ago, along with a 30+ gal for my sump.

in the old house i had a high stand for my 2 75s, and this time around i'm going short, from the floor to the top of my stand is 23", being the sump is about 20" tall that left me little room for easy mantainence so i picked up a pair of double track ball bearing sliders rated at about 300lbs each fully extended (the type used in monster toolboxes), i'll be mounting these to the inside wall of the stand and it will attach to a steel frame which will hold the sump tank and slide a full 2 feet out in front of the tank.
i haven't figured out the doors yet or the trim to hide the screws, but shouldn't be too big of a deal.
i used 3/4 quality plywood and layed a good coat of sweetwater epoxy on the entire stand and canopy.
the canopy will be siliconed to the top of the tank, and i'll be using spring loaded hinges for the one piece lid. once the epoxy is dry enough to sand (monday) i'll be hitting it with my orbital to get rid of the drips then will decide what color to paint it......

i'll post a pic of the sliders monday......
the entire background/floor/overflow will be getting a styro/drylock finishing.......

the ball is officially rolling.....i'm back


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## R-DUB (Jun 3, 2007)

Good to see you back. Another Dry-Lok man. Good Luck!


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

You have "wet" my appaitite for more pics...
Love the slide out sump idea. So far looking good :thumb:


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

here are a few pics.....
brought the stand home from work, already have a good coat of epoxy on it and it's sanded, i'll be painting the stand black over the next couple days and fitting the sliders for the sump, along with cutting some holes for electric/plumbing.
need to pick up my trim pieces too.......but moving right along...

the canopy still needs it's hinges, in the pics it's sitting on top of the stand (obviously LOL)


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## kjhydock (Apr 28, 2009)

Can't wait to see what it will look like after the black paint. I was toying with the idea of epoxy paint, but it's so expensive. This setup will look great. How are you planning on setting up the sump to 'roll out'? It doesn't look like you'll be able to reach any sort of quick disconnects.


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## Auntbeast (Mar 1, 2006)

Hey, you dragged me in here with a tease of a pull out sump!

Get to posting!


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## under_control (Jan 9, 2008)

Demand more pics!


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

stand and canopy is black, going to do 2 more coats.....after i cut my holes for the plumbing.....

















tomorrow i'm starting the slider for the sump.........more waiting for all of you


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## Auntbeast (Mar 1, 2006)

You are fortunate I just moved away from Florida, because I might just have to hunt you down.

That is a great stand and hood, by the way.


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

Thanks, once I get the trim on it'll clean up the edges.....the 3 doors for the stand will cover the entire face/front.
Where were you in florida? We just signed another year on our lease which I was waiting for before I set up my 180.....hate moving tanks


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

started the slide out sump frame.......
tomorrow i'll add some more stock to keep it from flexing, clean up the welds, and drill some holes to mount the sliders. the rails are cut to length (they were 28" long and i needed 23").


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

sump frame is done, rails are mounted, i need to do a little cleanup on it tomorrow and then mount it in the stand.......
pics coming saturday


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## gtsum (Feb 25, 2008)

looking good! The more I see these homemade sumps, the more I am convinced I need to try one


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

sumps are the way to go, the few advantages are....
1.....the water level in the main tank never changes (the sump level is what will change with evaporation)
2......can hide your heaters/pumps etc......
3......are way more efficient imo 
4.......easier to maintain

maintenance is key with any system, my first sump was a pia to clean, my second was a 50 gallon drum and 5 gallon buckets and was much easier even though big....
this 180 has a large built-in overflow, which i'm going to use for my media or some filter socks......

heading up to my shop in a bit to finish the rack.....more waiting for you all


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

here's the tank sitting in the rack/rail......
going to fit it in a bit into the stand......more in a few hours....


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

mounted and functional, it'll slide about another foot out but this is all i need


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

where'd you all go? you were hounding for pics LOL

spent the morning re-arranging the living room (i asked my wife all week where she wanted the tank......didn't get an answer until last minute LOL) but had to re-run some cables for my tv/cable....anyway that's done so i started my test fill and after about an inch of water my overflow has a small leak......
so i'll be evaluating/reconfiguring the overflow box tomorrow, i may go with just standpipes and a compression fitting.....we'll see.

a couple pics....

you can with the stand on its side the large plate which braces the sump frame.......









the ugly overflow which will hold either media or filter bags....


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## illy-d (Nov 6, 2005)

Is there going to be plumbing running into the sump? If so what will happen when you pull the sump out? Will the plumbing interfere with it? I've never had a sump (perhaps you can tell from my questions), but one way to work around this if it is a problem could be to have any plumbing lines/pvc pipes running into the front of the sump so that when you roll it out the pipes would then be at the back - do you follow me?


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

The plumbing will go through the right part of the cabinet (hard lines with valves for water changes/maint), where it enters the center part for the sump it' switch to flexable hose in the shape of a big U so when I slide out the sump there will be minimal bending of the lines.
It will be supported by bunge so it stays up high and level.

There will be 2 1.5" lines from the overflow. one of which will have snaked through it a 3/4" line for my spraybar.
the air lines/electric for my lighting will go up behind the tank.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Very nice... I want to see those full extension drawer glides in action when the 30 is full


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

me too


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

been a little busy, test fill will happen tomorrow night, i've decided to lose the overflow box all together and just use 2 standpipes, they will be hidden behind the background so no big deal........
no longer going to run the spraybar line through one of the drains, it'll go up the back behind the stand.....more flow is always good for O's......

yes this is being specifically designed for oscars


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

SWEET :dancing: :fish: :fish: :fish:

I wish I had fry to offer... it seems they've spawned a million times but the eggs seem to be no good.... :-?


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

i'm not ready yet anyway LOL
i've got a month before it'll be filled and starting the cycle, plus wait until you see what i'm doing for the background........all my tests and knowledge of tanks i've aquired over the past years is being implemented in this tank


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Heh... I'm horrible... I made a stand for two 180's in the fish room and all I plan on doing is putting three sponge filters in em LOL


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

i'm just making a simple sump, have all the pumps and whatever i'll ever need, hitting up lowes tomorrow for my plumbing stuff i don't have......


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## JALOOS (Sep 6, 2008)

Is there any rolers on the bottom of the sump to help it across the floor? I really cant see just 2 drawer slides holding the kind of weight (150lbs or so) without some help. I would recomend some roler wheels/balls onder the sump itself as well.


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

TheFishGuy said:


> SWEET :dancing: :fish: :fish: :fish:
> 
> I wish I had fry to offer... it seems they've spawned a million times but the eggs seem to be no good.... :-?


You don't happen to have twice as many eggs as typical oscar clutches? Oscars seem to need lots of crayfish as part of their diet to breed sucessfully, but if two females pair off, nothing can help but to break them up and find other mates.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

It's definately a male and female. The tubes are plain as day. I'm aware of their liking for crayfish. As a matter of fact the first time I got bells to spawn was after a nice big water change and a few crayfish. They are not in my care at the moment. A good friend of mine in the Youngstown cichlid club needs to breed one more species in order to achieve "master breeder" status and it so happens to be oscars. I lent him Bells oscars but he's having a heck of a time getting the eggs to hatch. They spwaned twice here but they ate the eggs both times. I wasn't trying either... So I turned the temps down on them to put it to an end... They've been with Dave for a few months now... Since the begining of Feb.


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

JALOOS said:


> Is there any rolers on the bottom of the sump to help it across the floor? I really cant see just 2 drawer slides holding the kind of weight (150lbs or so) without some help. I would recomend some roler wheels/balls onder the sump itself as well.


these slides are from a very large snap-on toolbox, the drawer they are for can hold over 600 lbs, no need for rollers........
the sump will be less than 250lbs so no worries


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

Plumbing is about halfway done.....pics coming later....


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

the 2 standpipes, the valve is for water changes and will be hidden behind the background....
i have a compression fitting cut in half for the water level adjust which will go on the top of each standpipe. (yes the front one still needs cut down )









the underside you can see the main shutoff for each standpipe, on the rear one there is a valve with a hose fitting for the drain/fill, my hose will coil nicely in the bottom of this area, power will be in the other part of the stand.

filling it up to test tomorrow.....


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

going....









going....









filled.....not a drip 









the water change drain.....


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

filled the sump up too.....there's a little deflection but nothing unexpected, and it's totally stable


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## gtsum (Feb 25, 2008)

looking good! :thumb:


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

Thanks 

Tank is drained, acing it in it's new home in the living room tomorrow.
Going to start the background this week and get what I need for the sump........
More to come....


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

=D> =D> =D>


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

this segment is called....."how to move a 1/2" thick glass 180 by yourself" 

going through stepped doorways you start with the tank on end, using a piece of carpet on the step and the floor it's going to.....

drop the tank flat so the edge enters the next room, make sure it's on the carpet....
spin the tank once it's vertical, drop flat again, this time landing on a furniture cart......
spin to the angle of attack.....
roll next to stand, lift one end and slide it to rest at an angle on the stand.....
lift other side and slide entire tank onto stand......
this is the important step.......get frustrated with your wife while not letting her know it while you lift tank and she gets the styro into position (after having one tank break at the old house i'll never NOT used styro again, no matter how level the stand is)

next step is to finish up the trim, and make the doors for the stand, then i can start on the background/lighting....
also i shortened the rack for the sump, it was a little tight and was keeping it from working smoothly, i also pitched it up a little so if there is some flex it won't touch the carpet....i need to grind down the bolts a little too as they touch the sump at the moment, this is why it looks uneven at the moment....

some pics...


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Looking good billy ray!


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

Feeling good louis


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

> the important step.......get frustrated with your wife while not letting her know it


 :lol:


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## illy-d (Nov 6, 2005)

Are you going to be covering the sump with anything to conceal it from view?


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

yep there will be 4 cabinet doors......


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

alrighty.....got the rails mounted how i want them, works perfectly i also added a few bearings from a second set of slider i had and it tightened it up considerably so there will now be minimal deflection once it's filled....

here's a quick video i shot.....enjoy and feel free to comment 

vid link won't embed.....


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Very nice work Brian. Looks great so far :thumb:


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

i think i'm going to motorize it too, i have a very nice elec actuator sitting in my toolbox with built in limiting switches........it's that smooth


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Now you're gettting carried away.


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

So far, so very sweet. :thumb: 
With the slide out portion of the stand being pretty tight all around the sump, how is that going to work? Intake, return lines?


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

I'm going to cut a section out of the front just above the sump, that area isn't structural (the left and right boxes are the main supports) so the hoses will clear the stand, the doors/trim will hide it all.....


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

bell said:


> i think i'm going to motorize it too, i have a very nice elec actuator sitting in my toolbox with built in limiting switches........it's that smooth


More power!!! Aquariums done Home Improvement style ...

The sliders were a very cool, very convienant idea.


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

i measured the travel of my actuator today.....only have 6" of throw, i need about 12" for the sump to clear......going to do the geometry but should be able to make it work easily with a levered arm and a few bearings, also thinking of if it ever failed i'll use a pin which could be pulled to disconnect it.
i'm going to get the rest of the stand done before i start playing with that though.....
thanks for the kind words, having played with sumps for many years imo the most important thing is to be able to maintain it easily.....and this was the best solution


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

Frankentank..cause it`s a monster.
Uahhh,Filter....Goooood. :lol:


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

just a few update pics.....doors are done.......
next the trim...


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)




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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

double post.....


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

Sweet as candy. 
Looks to be the "Maybach" of aquariums


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## ben1988 (May 2, 2009)

SWEET indeed. the directions on how to move the tank by your self will come in handy if i cant recruit someone to help when i do the new stand and canopy.


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## Tiberian (Jun 14, 2009)

looks great. I will keep watching to follow the progress as I'm looking to build another tank.


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## @nt!x (Feb 9, 2009)

looking good


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

very nice mr. bell :fish:


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

Thanks all.......I would've gotten more done this week but spent some tank funds to take the wife to disney for the weekend for the 4th LOL
Going to start the background this coming weekend....


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

What's your plan on how you're doing the bg this time?


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

I'm going with the styro/drylok method.....


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Sweet!


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## Dkarc (Dec 30, 2005)

Looks good man. The tank looks better than when it left our greenhouse!!

-Ryan


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

yea....there's a few good scratches in it, but nothing to complain about, especially for the price 
the big overflow which was in it had a few leaks so i pulled it out and went with standpipes....
the sump was from you too 

the background (once done) will be siliconed into place, all the water to the standpipes will go through screens in the background, so the top of the bg will not overflow into the standpipe area, this will let me use floating food again and not have to worry about it going into the sump, there will be an overflow spot though in the corner of the bg just in case the screens get clogged, but it'll be a higher level which won't be reached during normal flow.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Bell, why not incorporate outside overflows like my display tanks?




























with this it doesn't matter what kind of food you feed. There's ZERO clogging. With screens, they WILL clog. I've tried it all...


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

It's in my living room so no external plumbing.....
I'm going to use 1 or 2 grates like in your 1500 strategically hidden....
Haven't started the bg yet.....hours have been getting cut at work and eating my budget........


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

There's discrete ways to do exterior plumbing though


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

yea i know......but my plumbing is virtually done and will work fine, it'll all be hidden behind the background so it will be out of sight......if the tank was drilled on the back i would've gone your route.
plus i have it right up against the wall (maybe 2 inches) which i like.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

I hear ya... But the fact it's drilled on the bottom doesn't matter. My 240 is drilled on the bottom and is set up like the last two illustrations I posted....

You will do it this way... pressure pressure pressure!

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

I just love this method, after 30 sum variations of it I've finally got it perfected... I just want others to do it :lol:


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## Rick_Lindsey (Aug 26, 2002)

TheFishGuy said:


> I just love this method, after 30 sum variations of it I've finally got it perfected... I just want others to do it :lol:


Out of curiosity, how does this style overflow compare with a typical durso etc. when it comes to noise? Does it have the same issues with air getting in as most other overflows?

-Rick (the armchair aquarist)


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## mel_cp6 (Feb 3, 2009)

those are great design. you're a genius fishguy.
its draining from the bottom, yet there's no chance of flooding (if done properly)
the sump and one can do water change with by turning the valve.
and here is the bonus, you can install your sump fairly close to
the same level as the main tank. thus, reducing loss due to head height.

i would've done my tank that way if i had seen it before the pretzel pvc type.
now, its hard to redo an established tank.

bell, when will this be ready?
waiting for it to have some fish in there.


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

i'm hoping to get the background done over the next couple weeks, it'll come together fast once i get going on it.

i'm about ready to sell my cafe bike for more $$ which i am currently out of LOL

things still needed to get before i can fill it......
sump containers, a few hoses, drylok/styro for bg, sand, lights, glass lids......
i have everything else.

i'll get it cycled with goldfish, then will swap in a group of oscars so i can get a pair.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Rick, I'm not familiar with what you're speaking of to be completely honest... Noise only gets out of hand when the 1/3 drain valve gets turned. Let me see if I can find a video to let you hear it...

Operation volume:





Draining:





Thanks for the compliment mel, but I'm no genius...


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## bell (Dec 12, 2005)

youtube link to the sump sliding out for tfg....


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

:lol: Thanks dude


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