Red Sea Reefer Remix (AKA: the tank I got as a consolation for moving)

J

jgann

Premium Member
This isn't my first tank, but it is my first tank build to post which means I'm not sure what to put or not so we’ll dive in. I’m the kind of guy that likes to know the “why” as well as the “how” so here’s my “why”.The backstory...30+ years ago it started with freshwater. It was all the budget could stand and saltwater was still a myth, an unobtainable dream. Like most of you it was a gateway drug, one tank led to another, bigger and bigger until finally a salt tank came along that I could afford. A 70gallon DAS (the old school one - Dutch Aquatic Systems) changed everything. It was fish only with Texas stone in it (only a few rich eccentric folks had a reef tank). All was good until the Lion Fish I adopted from a buddy that was moving made it his personal buffet. Over a one week vacation he decimated the tank and then died of gluttony. Crushed and traveling too much it was the end of aquariums. Over the years I watched the hobby evolve and thought, "one day".[ ] Finally the day came. About three years ago I dove in with a new 60g cube from Planet Aquarium. I took my time, cured BRS rock for three months, built it slow and careful. All was happy except I couldn't get any corral to grow, tried everything and no one could figure it out. I took it all down and started over and then all was happy - and aquarium life was good - until we found the new house (that we weren't even shopping for) and moved. With the promise of a bigger tank in the new house for moving I sadly broke down the 60g and moved my anemones and a few fish into an IM40 AIO at the new house (actually I didn't move it - Jeff Smyada did for which I thank him / and paid him!).[ ]Next post: Is looking at a new house with aquarium locations in mind a normal thing?
 
Welcome to the club, and yes, that's totally normal.  After I replaced the TV with an 8' fish tank in our last house my wife made sure there was a mutually acceptable place for it in the current house before we decided to make an offer.  Replacing the floor in a fish room with something waterproof before you move furniture in is normal too, or at least that's what I practice saying in front of the mirror with a straight face in case I ever move again.Think of it this way, at least you aren't talking about moving walls to accommodate an equipment room.
 
Looking at a house with a tank in mind.So, we liked our house, weren’t looking for a house, but then found a house that we didn’t even know we wanted. Minimal requirements for a new house were: a pool (check)  a three car garage (check) and a place for an aquarium (check). On the initial walkthrough I was looking for a place for the next aquarium and the stars aligned in the living room there is a built-in cabinet/shelves unit that would be great for a long tank (60” wide). The wall behind where the tank would sit is the master bedroom closet so in pre-purchase negotiation, with the wife, I agreed to buy the house if I could build a fish closet in the Master Closet (this is important, always barter for the aquarium before agreeing on buying a house). She agreed and the wheels started turning, as a bonus, the end wall of the fish closet is the garage wall so it gets even better, the mixing station sits about 5’ from the fish closet wall. I love it when a plan comes together.It took 9 months to find the aquarium (combination of getting moved then having time to look). The tank is a RedSea Reefer 525XL. Picked it up local and hired three strong people to help me move it. The move when good, sold off the stand and the factory sump since I’m remoting the sump and started working on the support for the cabinet. When you start adding up the weight of everything going in the tank you get a little paranoid so I decided that I wanted it to be “rock-solid not worry in the middle of the night strong”. I built three torsion boxes of 2X4’s and installed them under the cabinet. Where I had room I used 4X4’s as support under the boxes, where it was tight I used 2X4’s and in the middle, I used 1” pipe (this also gives me the ability to adjust it if something gives a little. All finished, I think if there’s a tornado it’s my safe place! Support in place, the tank is now happy on the shelf.View attachment 5303Next up: The Fish closet (AKA: So many decisions) 
 
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