# New 75g Setup (Picture heavy)



## atljar (May 5, 2013)

First of all would like to say thanks to the forums. I haven't posted at all, but *** read a tremendous amount and learned a ton. This has been a several month project for me, and have just started to try and cycle the tank. Just a few days in so far. I plan to get some African cichlids (haps and peacocks) once it is ready. Enjoy! -Jared

The basics...
75 Gallon flatback hex Sea Clear acrylic tank
Eheim Pro III Thermo Canister Filter 2180
Mag Drive 9.5 pump for undergravel jets
Vectron V2 400 UV system
BeamsWork double bright LED lighting
90lbs Texas Holey Rock from local guy
75ish lbs of CarribSea cichlid Sand
Few different varieties of plants

Homemade everything else you see...

The location....









The Location, side view









Planning fitment









Planning fitment









Tank outlined from basement view. You can see all the floor joists I sistered together. Overkill? Likely. No structure issues down the road here.









Sistered joists over foundation wall









Texas Holey rock pile









I drilled a hole to make a cave with a carbide hole saw and chisle









Trying to figure out layout. Driftwood was found in my creek. Baked in the oven for hours, then soaked for weeks and weeks. 









Underside of my cave 









Second cave built into side of rock









More Layout planning, sideview 









Driftwood and rocks









Driftwood









Supplies for the stand









I have two Bengals, they have been very curious what is going on and manage to get into tons of pictures









4x4 supports laid out









4x4 layout









2x4 tie the main posts together with hurricane bracing









Here you can see how the 2x4 transfer weight









Stand in place, just under lip of partition wall









Powerstrip installed inside stand









MDF facing put onto stand









MDF facing









Coat of drywall mud over MDF









Hinges installed









Sanded down and getting ready for paint









Painted









Top board painted and trimmed to match partition wall









Test fitment of tank onto stand









"HA HA, I will get into your tank once there is fish in it too!"









Doors came from an old TV cabinet I bought for $1 at St Vincent Depauls









Doors after sanding, primer, paint and new hardware. I added like 2000% to my initial costs 









Bottom of tank drilled, undergravel jets in place









Some handy miter saw work for the canopy I built









Canopy 









Return for the filter, all plumbing is internal to the tank, all with UV resistant clear tubing to blend in as best as possible









Undergravel jet testing









I coated the intake tubes with silicone and graveled them to blend in better. Again clear pickups









Jets coated in gravel too, installed in tank with egg crate









Night mode light testing









Full brightness LED testing









Sneak look at the plumbing setup. Valves setup everywhere to change flow direction/amount and allow for maintenance. Also lots of threaded connections to allow for cleanouts. Jet pump can also be used as siphon to fill tank or drain tank. No 5 gallon buckets here









Intake manifold connections









Finished project, full of water!









Back side of tank. I wanted a 360 degree viewing tank without clutter of lines/filters etc









Landscaping layout









Other side of back









Side view where you can see the filter return


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## dgorsk (May 3, 2013)

i like the idea of the stand. looks good


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## joehorse20 (Mar 11, 2013)

Very nice


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## At1Maverick (Mar 7, 2013)

Speechless but had to type something. The craftsmanship is unbelievable


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## ratbones86 (Jun 29, 2012)

Nice looks good


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## amcvettec (May 11, 2012)

Love the idea of the stand and the 360 viewing! Great work!


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## NJmomie (Jan 17, 2013)

You put in a lot of work for this tank and it shows. I don't see any fish though. Are you still cycling it? How many gallons? Though I love driftwood, it looks too dark next to lace rock. Also, real plants would give a more natural look to the tank. Just my opinion.


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## B.Roberson (Nov 6, 2011)

yummy  hey, wanna swing by and help me rebuild my 75 stand? Should only take you 20 minutes or so with your expertise 

loooks beautiful


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

I am glad to see you put the tank entirely on the stand, not partly on the railing, as one sketch suggested. Partly on the railing would have been a disaster. The way you have it now, if you ever decide to fill the tank with lead instead of water, you should still be good with respect to the weight


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## atljar (May 5, 2013)

fmueller said:


> I am glad to see you put the tank entirely on the stand, not partly on the railing, as one sketch suggested. Partly on the railing would have been a disaster. The way you have it now, if you ever decide to fill the tank with lead instead of water, you should still be good with respect to the weight


That idea seemed worse and worse the more I looked at it, lol.

Thanks ladies and gents. Tank is a 75g, still cycling right now. Starting to see Nitrites, so going well


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## kuopan (Jan 10, 2012)

wow.. great project.. i like how you built it into the half wall.. the plumbing system is also neat!


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## letsgoflyers6387 (Jul 19, 2010)

Looks great. Your hard work & research definitely paid off. The 360 degree view is awesome. What kind of fish are you planning to put in there?


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## Frank H (Mar 11, 2013)

Such an awesome build! Thank you for sharing !!


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## bwestgsx06 (Sep 21, 2011)

really great man


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## Daniel Jacobsen (May 17, 2013)

Thumbs up!!!


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## ratbones86 (Jun 29, 2012)

So what do you plan to stock the tank with? You narrowed it down to certain species yet?


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## DontPanic (Apr 2, 2013)

That looks amazing. Glad my girlfriend didn't see this because she would be nagging me to build some thing like it :lol: Very interested to see how it looks once the fish are in it.


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## ryanfl (May 4, 2008)

Wow, awesome work man. I want to hook my filters up to PVC tubing.


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## dgaddis1 (Nov 30, 2006)

Great job on the stand and canopy, but I have a question about the filters. Am I missing something, or are the filter intake/outlets just coming up through the bottom of the tank? I ask because if your filter/piping springs a leak nearly your entire tank will drain empty.


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