Pat's 6 feet long - 125 Gallon Set Up

New to this size last I did was a 75 planter but that was a few years ago. Back in the game. so I recently got a hold of a 125 glass tank. It’s 6’ long and has two corner overflow boxes curved. It use to be a saltwater tank and I going to use to do a planted freshwater tank. I have the tank, stand and, canopy so far. The tank is very dirty. Every time I go online or to the local fish store I get more lost lol everyone has different ideas.

So far I’ve just been refurbishing the stand and canopy. I did fill the tank about 1/4 of the way to check for leaks. No leaks and overflow boxes were bone dry.

The plan in my head so far was to run 2 Eheim Pro 4+ 600’s and 2 Eheim 300 watt heaters and 2 72” Beamswork DA 6500k led lights. I actually have heard good things about these lights. I would be growing light to moderate plants nothing crazy the cheap plants anyone use this light?

After going to my local Fish store he recommended that I use the sump holes That are already drilled in the overflow boxes to do the plumbing for my canisters. He recommended about 3/4 of the way down the overflow box on both overflow boxes to drill and put 1 inch bulkhead with a strainer on it so that there would be water flowing into the overflow boxes and then to pipe the other one over the top of the overflow box with two nozzles.

Just looking for more ideas and comments on what people think. I am not interested in doing a sump box I like the canisters I’ve used in the past.

Again this is all new to me again def over my head this time.

Thanks for reading and guidance. I’m sure I missed a thousand questions I have running thru my head for this tank.

So there are a few pics.
-The tank now in the garage
-The tank from the previous owner
-The canopy being worked on
-Pic from local fish store of plumbing idea they suggested

 

I love me a canister filter, but you’re crazy if you don’t use the predrilled holes and go with a sump. NavyChief20 can help you with that, he’s the sump king. Sumps are incomparable in terms of filtration, which is why most salt water tanks use it.

If you absolutely insist on using a canister, I’d do a Fluval FX6 instead of buying two separate Eheims.

 

It was recommended I do two canisters due to the tank being over 4’ in length. Yeah I’m pretty set on going canisters. They recommend I use the holes in the tank with canisters too.

 

Mornin Pat. That's a good tank, I love my 125s. At that size you really should go sump. Canisters are great and they can perform well but at 90 gallons and above I see a lot of people daisy chaining them. AquaticJ can tell you more about that. With a sump you will not only use those overflows but you will have a much higher circulation ratio and you will have massive amounts of filter media and a volume increase. The other advantage is easy water changes and reduced operating cost. You don't need to go fancy on the sump. Many of mine are sterilite containers. When petco/petsmart does their dollar per gallon sale I usually pick up 4 or 5 of their 40 gallon breeders and build sumps for resale or for friends of mine. The pump which some argue is the expensive part can be purchased very inexpensively if you know to stay away from pumps that have the word aquarium in it.

Water chemistry control is incredibly easy with sumps and your problem will rapidly become not chemistry imbalance but having chemistry set too well that your fish keep spawning. That's the problem I have. My JDs, GTs, Convicts, and Pacus are spawning out of control.

If you decide on canister then absolutely listen to AquaticJ. I have some tips for boosting flow and return path if you like.

 

Wow that's one heckuva tank! For a tank that size I would go with Chief's suggestion of a sump. If you are deadset on going with 2 canisters, instead of 2 Eheims I would go with 2 FX6's to get the most filtration/flow. Of course nothing beats a sump for larger tanks.

I have 2 canisters on my 75 gallon cichlid tank (1 SunSun 304B, 1 Eheim Pro 4+ 250)

 

NavyChief20 I guess I’m not opposed to the sump pump I’ve just never used one or never thought of one and have no idea how to use one I’ve used canisters in the past that’s the only reason why I wanted to use them is there a particular sump pump you recommend premade easy to use for somebody who has no idea what they’re doing lol

 

NavyChief20 I guess I’m not opposed to the sump pump I’ve just never used one or never thought of one and have no idea how to use one I’ve used canisters in the past that’s the only reason why I wanted to use them is there a particular sump pump you recommend premade easy to use for somebody who has no idea what they’re doing lol

So you need a vessel (sump) and whatever style you want to make that sump. Then you need a pump. In this case sump does not mean submersible pump as the word "sump" usually means. Basically it is an expanded water volume (tank) under your tank and it houses your return pump, heaters and media.

The easiest and cheapest is a trickle tower. You can pick up a sterilite container from walmart say 20 gallon or so pretty cheap. Then get a sterilite 3 or 5 drawer storage tower and remove the bottom drawer. Pull all the drawers and drill 1/4" holes in the center only (the area that the framing is around). This will make a colander effectively. Put lava rock in all drawers except the top two. Very top put some poly fill batting and next drawer down some plastic pot scrubbies. Tap a good sized hole in the upper part for water from your overflow pipe to fill into your trickle tower. This assembly goes into your container at one end. Put more media (lava rock) in the rest of the tub and you can put your heaters in there as well. I put a separate container in there that I put my pump in so it won't suck up nastiness. Then plumb everything to the tank and you're good to go. This will also allow you to drop bags of media into the sump to rapid cycle other tanks for later.

The polyfil needs to be cleaned out every 2 weeks or so depending on species of fish. Water changes are ridiculously easy since you just add to the sump. Depending on your sump size you are increasing your total water volume significantly as well as removing all equipment from the display tank. This is great especially if you have 3D backgrounds and you have that natural look.

Hope that helps a bit.

 

NavyChief20 thank you. Is there a prebuilt system that you just add pump and media, hoses and go? I have a budget for filtration for about $400. Do I only need a sump or do I need more. So am I only using one of the overflow boxes? What about the other corner?

 

NavyChief20 thank you. Is there a prebuilt system that you just add pump and media, hoses and go? I have a budget for filtration for about $400. Do I only need a sump or do I need more. So am I only using one of the overflow boxes? What about the other corner?

Yeah you can buy prebuilt systems however the price ramps up quickly. Its much cheaper and better IMO to build your own. If you have a $400 filtration budget you can build all the sump you want for say $100 of that. I would do dual overflow that way you draw from both ends and have the return centerline. That way you promote proper fluid mixing.

 

So if I do end up doing 2 EHiem 600’s do you think that will be enough? I have used Ehiem in the past and I’ve loved them.

 

Best way to clean this tank. It’s really dirty from the saltwater use. The previous owner did extra bead of silicone just in case but it seems like it’s peeling a little bit is now the time to cut that out and redo. The seals on the sides actually look good .

 

I would go with a filter that has a larger turn over rate then the Ehiem 600, it's rated at 264 gph. Look at the FX 4's or the FX 6's if you go the canister route. Big tanks really need 2 canister filters, each one needs to be able to support the tank on it's own. That's just in case for some reason a filter goes off line, the other one takes over.

 

Yeah a 125 being 6 feet long you’re going to need one on each side if you go with an Eheim canister. As I mentioned before, the FX6 would probably work alone, but id use a spray bar. I still think not using the sump would be silly in your case, especially considering the aesthetic look of having no tubes hanging on the sides and keeping your heater hidden in the sump.

max h I believe the Eheim he mentioned does 330 gph.

 

max h and AquaticJ I am looking into the FX4 and FX6 now. I’m thinking I could do 2 FX4’s that put me around 1400GPH and I can actually get them a little cheaper then the Eheims and they seem like they have better output.

 

Best way to clean this tank. It’s really dirty from the saltwater use. The previous owner did extra bead of silicone just in case but it seems like it’s peeling a little bit is now the time to cut that out and redo. The seals on the sides actually look good .

Wet the inside down use a water vinegar solution and scrub. Then flush it out. Those deposits are a pain to deal with I know.

 

Yeah a 125 being 6 feet long you’re going to need one on each side if you go with an Eheim canister. As I mentioned before, the FX6 would probably work alone, but id use a spray bar. I still think not using the sump would be silly in your case, especially considering the aesthetic look of having no tubes hanging on the sides and keeping your heater hidden in the sump.

max h I believe the Eheim he mentioned does 330 gph.

Even at 330 gph it's marginal with 2 filters. The one thing I did forget to mention was your lights, on my 5' 150 gallon I have a Beamswork 72" DA FSPEC and a standard DA light. You should get good plant growth with a pair of DA's. I started with the FSPEC on the 150 and thought that it just wasn't getting enough light distribution front to back so I added the standard DA to the front half. of the tank.

 

max h and AquaticJ I am looking into the FX4 and FX6 now. I’m thinking I could do 2 FX4’s that put me around 1400GPH and I can actually get them a little cheaper then the Eheims and they seem like they have better output.

I have a pair of FX 4's on my 150 and love them.

 

You really can’t go wrong with Fluval canisters, I even like the 106-406 series a lot.

 

You really can’t go wrong with Fluval canisters, I even like the 106-406 series a lot.

I haven't used any of the 06 series filters, I keep stumbling into Magnaflow deals that are too sweet to pass up. My other 2 tanks are running 4 Magnaflow 360's, I may have $400 total into those filters combined. They are doing a good job on the 100 and 55 gallon tanks.

 

NavyChief20 I will try that this week. I’ll take pics. Ty

 

max h I’m glad someone else has the Beamswork lights they seem good for the price. So I did see a few options. I def want the 72” and I am going to do 2 of them and I want good pant growth. I was looking at the DA 6500k I think they at $120 each on Amazon with 2 timers too. But I see DA and DA FSPEC???

 

powerwash it

 

Fuzzyfishkeeper Never heard that one before. That safe? I do have an electric power washer.

 

Also check eBay for them one seller that goes by Topdogs has some units that where used as Demo's for about 2 weeks. The lights look brand new still, he also has the timers in stock. I know his shipping is fast I get my orders within about 2-3 days.

 

I don't know how much dirt is in your tank and how hard it is but if you ever get to the point where scrubbing in doesn't work light powerwasher would work and ive powerwashed my glass before with no issues probably be easier for you and your thicker glass just an option if you get their

 

NavyChief20 I will try that this week. I’ll take pics. Ty

Yep. Takes some elbow grease especially if its wicked bad.

 

Both my 100 and 150 gallon tanks at one point where saltwater systems. The white vinegar actually works pretty well on coraline deposits. It may take a well soaked rag placed on the deposit for some time to soften it up. I've also had good luck using a razor blade.

 

Both my 100 and 150 gallon tanks at one point where saltwater systems. The white vinegar actually works pretty well on coraline deposits. It may take a well soaked rag placed on the deposit for some time to soften it up. I've also had good luck using a razor blade.

Yeah the blade trick works just gotta be careful.

 

NavyChief20 max h Yeah razor blade has been working good. So I noticed that in the front corners the silicone was peeling a little. Called my friend I got the tank from he said he put and extra bead on just in case on top of the original stuff. I was going to razor blade the old stuff out and put a new bead of silicone on the corners. The seals look good on the tank.

 

NavyChief20 max h Yeah razor blade has been working good. So I noticed that in the front corners the silicone was peeling a little. Called my friend I got the tank from he said he put and extra bead on just in case on top of the original stuff. I was going to razor blade the old stuff out and put a new bead of silicone on the corners. The seals look good on the tank.

Did he put extra on or more on later? Silicone doesn't stick to cured silicone so hopefully he didnt come back later n give it to her. If you do strip it out use ge silicone 1 works great but you gotta know what you're doing with caulking.

 

NavyChief20 So I just finish cutting out the silicone in the front two edges and ordered some Aqueon Aquarium Silicone off amazon. The bottom and the back look good so I'm not going to touch them and the seams look new still he only did an extra bead on the front sides. Tomorrow I am going to move the tank outside and let is soak with vinegar for a few days then use a non scratch sponge. Once its clean ill silicone the edges ive been watching videos how to do. Do I really have to tape or is it a look thing?

max h So ive been reading about the Fluval FX4 and watching videos and I really like them so that's what I am going to do. I'm gona do 2 FX4's and use them with the overflow boxes holes that are pre-drilled. Did you just use the regular media it came with or did you make changes?

 

The only thing I did was add polyfil where it would fit in the baskets. They don't come with any carbon, but have bags if you want to use it or something like Purgen. It does come with a carbon impregnated sponge but who really knows how long that lasts.

 

max h I read you have to be careful with carbon and live pants what do they mean?

 

max h I read you have to be careful with carbon and live pants what do they mean?

No idea unless they are talking about the carbon removing liquid ferts quicker

 

So my tank has two curved overflow boxes in the back corners. The fish store suggested to plumb the the canisters thru the two overflow holes on the bottom. And then about 3/4th's the was down the curved overflow drill a 1.75 inch hole and put a 1" bulkhead with a strainer on it so water will always flow into the overflow box for the canisters. I can't find any info on this online. Anyone ever heard of this or can point me in the right direction?

 

max h I’m glad someone else has the Beamswork lights they seem good for the price. So I did see a few options. I def want the 72” and I am going to do 2 of them and I want good pant growth. I was looking at the DA 6500k I think they at $120 each on Amazon with 2 timers too. But I see DA and DA FSPEC???

max h so your recommending the regular DA for planted tank not the DA FSPEC?

 

so I recently got a hold of a 125 glass tank. It’s 6’ long and has two corner boxes curved. It use to be a saltwater tank and I going to use to do a planted freshwater tank. After going to my local Fish store he recommended that I use the holes That are already drilled in the overflow boxes to do the plumbing for my canisters. He recommended about 3/4 of the way down the overflow box on both overflow boxes to drill and put 1 inch bulkhead with a strainer on it so that there would be water flowing into the overflow boxes and then to pipe the other one over the top of the overflow box with two nozzles.

Can't find any info on this or find anyone else who has done it. Help??

 

I'm actually running one of each on my 150. The DA FSPEC I was able to get for under $100. When I went to look for another they where all over $100 so I went with the straight DA model. One thing that is different is the straight DA has 6500K white LED's and the FSPEC has 10,000k LED's. Everything I have read the 6500k is the temperature range you want. My 100 gallon has a pair of 48" ET Beamsworks light that are 6500K lights and I have had great plant growth with it.

 

 

Why not just use the holes that's already been drilled? Have you considered going with a sump?