Crabs 155g In-Wall Fish Room Build

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gig em said:
I assume you have to deal with the tank getting too cold in a basement? In Texas we only ever have to deal with over heating, with the exception of the 3 months out of the year when it's cool outside
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No I have 3 heaters with controller on my tank no issues
 
IHaveCrabs said:
Quick Update:

I hooked up my RODI system and did some research on well and septic systems and the addition of salt water! Happy with the results that there is not much to worry about.

I also hooked up a 2 stage TDS Meter (after RO and after DI) and a 1/4" line pressure gauge.

TDS before the RODI System is ~770-780..
TDS before after the RO and before the DI is ~20-30.. Based on this I had to do a little more research.

It turns out that my RO unit was not 96.2% effective which should be much much higher. This was due to my pressure being at 45 PSI.

Next purchase came very quickly.. Booster pump. Expecting delivery today!
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Update on the RODI...

Don't be a dummy like me... The booster pump goes after the pre-filters and carbon filters... I was wondering why my first pre-filter o-ring was failing. After moving it before the RO membrane it is performing so well taking TDS down to 12 (from ~780).
 
I purchased some braided tubing sleeves for my dosing (red) and ATO (blue) tubing to dress things up a bit.

Tanks are also on the way so I should see a delivery on the next week or two!

4639086b500ccc1aaa5662b28d02669c.jpg


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Stand Design for the 60x30x20" Main Display.

Some context for the picture:
  • The "Back" of the stand is facing the main basement room and will have the bar rail (which is why the plywood is extended)
  • The "Front" of the stand is facing the fish room. This is the only side that will NOT have a plywood skin. Thoughts here?
  • The long runs without main supports will be done in 2x6" (Back will be skinned with 1/2" Ply and the front will not. Should I skin the top portion of the front for more rigidity?)
  • All other runs will be 2x4"
  • Top and all sides (minus the fishroom main opening) will be skinnned in 1/2" Plywood
  • Lastly, the purple horizontal 2x4 across the "Back" will also be skinned with 1/2" ply for additional rigidity from the Teal 2x6 to the Purple 2x4".

Does anyone think the front 2x6 run of 60" without Plywood skin is too risky?? Does it need additional support? If so, I'd have to do something similar to the back due to the Rubbermaid Sump being 31" deep..

Back (Bar/Basement Side)
View attachment 22300

Front (Fishroom Side)
View attachment 22299

Bar Front - Sketch
10958e3f803e8fad00cc55f052647437.jpg
 
Last edited:
To all the DIYers out there.. I need your opinions!!!!!!

So I am working on how to build the front opening and I'll only have about 16" of vertical space available to me. I'm also hoping not to have to use any hinges due to salt creep.

Here is what I have...
At the top on each end, I have slot openings that are the size of a 2x4 that allow for the door piece to slide in.
Each piece will have a wood overlap by 1" on one of the sides (to go with the moulding.
On the bottom, I'm running a piece of PVC with a 90 degree from both ends. This will be the backstop for the bottom so the Door panels do not feel the need to slide in..

Benefits:
No metal to rust
Will look clean from outside
Simple design, easy to implement.
Entirety of the door panel can be removed which allows for more headroom (given the limited space)
Cons:
May be tough to remote and replace
May have to add handles to the front which will take away from the design.

From the Back
View attachment 22309

From the Side
View attachment 22308

Overall View
View attachment 22307
 
IHaveCrabs said:
To all the DIYers out there.. I need your opinions!!!!!!

So I am working on how to build the front opening and I'll only have about 16" of vertical space available to me. I'm also hoping not to have to use any hinges due to salt creep.

Here is what I have...
At the top on each end, I have slot openings that are the size of a 2x4 that allow for the door piece to slide in.
Each piece will have a wood overlap by 1" on one of the sides (to go with the moulding.
On the bottom, I'm running a piece of PVC with a 90 degree from both ends. This will be the backstop for the bottom so the Door panels do not feel the need to slide in..

Benefits:
No metal to rust
Will look clean from outside
Simple design, easy to implement.
Entirety of the door panel can be removed which allows for more headroom (given the limited space)
Cons:
May be tough to remote and replace
May have to add handles to the front which will take away from the design.

From the Back
View attachment 22309

From the Side
View attachment 22308

Overall View
View attachment 22307
Click to expand...
C'mon, I know there are plenty of you that have opinions!!

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Some BIG news!!

Got the delivery set up call for the tanks! FRIDAY IS THE DAY

So my fiance was pissy with me yesterday (unrelated to the tank delivery, or so I think...) so to cheer myself up, I purchased two of these guys! Bahaha
aaeb68fd31185b751fd2703ba3be83ca.jpg


I've also been working on prepping the fish room tearing out more of the junk shelves and counter the previous owner installed poorly.
ad668c0ca7e9148ab79f55696075b44c.jpg


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gig em said:
Man, this is one aspect of northern houses I'm super jealous of, having basements to have a bar and fish room! In TX our soil is about 1" deep and then it's solid limestone! This looks like it's going to be an awesome build and set up. Do you expect elevated humidity issues in the fish room? How will you limit it?
Click to expand...
Oh man. Yeah, digging (or blasting) a basement in that would be expensive!

Only downside is flooding potential!

Edit: Totally thought I missed responding to this comment but looks like I did already! Scatter brained todsy.

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Thanks [MENTION=746]coral49[/MENTION] for the T5HO retro lights. I'll put them to good use!

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Did a little work on the t247 bulb replacement to remove the green and red LEDs.

Side by side comparison:
1f7441247cf73b3417ef12f1ab77740a.jpg


New Light only:
9e4cab840d52106d1cdd925cbf944944.jpg


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