90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

[jeebus]

Okay, so as most of you know, My wife and I found ourselves here at HFB a few weeks ago looking for a 90 gallon tank, so that we could upgrade from our current 30 gallon set-up. Most of you also know that we started a thread to try and get as many answers to the most basic questions for a 90 gallon set up.

Well, this topic is to share with you all the process of us buying, setting up, and hopefully, eventually stocking our 90 gallon tank. So here we go...

Here is the tank as it was purchased, and discussed here:



Here is a layout of all hardware purchased today to setup the tank with, and discussed here:



Eheim Canisters 2217 & 2215:



(The 2215 is performing biological filtration, and the 2217 is performing chemical filtration.)

Tank with the cut to fit egg crate light diffuser:



Aragonite being rinsed:



Aragonite being added:



Eheim's plumbed:



Spraybar with sponge filter:



Dual Eheim intakes and Jager 250w heater:



Everything in place waiting for the rocks:



Okay, at this point I forgot to snap a picture of the rocks installed before filling the tank. So here's the tank, with rocks, after it was filled:



Here's the final picture of the night: Oydessea twin bulb (Actinic & 12k)



I'll post some more updates tomorrow.

[CichlidFan]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Sure is pretty.....I am beginning to wish I had bought that one..... :)

CF

PS....that tank will clear up alot by morning with that sponge in there...

[Zulaab]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

How is the center water inlet going ?
The Jet spray if you didnt get it I know for sure you can get at City Pets...  Last time I was there they had the shepard's crook in stock too, but it wasnt until I asked like 3 times for them to order it in because I needed it.

[eklikewhoa]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Very nice start!

[jeebus]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Thanks everyone! We're not out of the woods yet. We still have to eventually put fish in this thing..

Anyway, I'm working tomorrow but my wife is going to swing by Citypets and see if they have any of the Eheim curved discharge tubes. I have been mistakenly been calling that the Shepherd's crook all day. As for the Shepherd's crook, I think I'm going to pass on it as I really like how my spraybar is doing and I don't think I'm going to need it at this time.

If I can't find the curved discharge tube, then I might just add a spraybar elbow and keep the output flowing in the back center, towards the intakes in the back left. After a while, if I start to see severely stagnant areas, I might invest in a powerhead, just for funzies.

I'm very glad I was convinced by everyone to not glue my rocks. I've moved them 3 times already tonight trying to get the perfect look! lol...

Alright, I'll report back tomorrow with more updates & pictures.

[Zulaab]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Give it a few weeks from now and then report back to me about the spray bar, and if you have had to reset it      

I am positive they have them in stock.   In the other post is the model number you are looking for.  They are all going to be numbered starting with 4004xx -- or 4004xxx (either 6 or 7 digit) -- the 4004 is the size of the pipe and you will need 12/16mm pipe or 1/2in equivalent.

The Jet spray should run you about $10 and if / when you get the Shepard crook it will run you another $10 (or there abouts)

[eklikewhoa]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

I like and use the spray bars for all my canisters....but then again I have the regular outputs from my wet/dry, 2x250gph powerheads and a 1600gph TUnze keeping the water from moving anything less then crashing wave  

[jeebus]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Okay, here's an update to the tank..

Here's how it looked this morning, after 12 hours of turning the pumps on:



Here's how it looked tonight after 24 hours:



Immediately after taking this picture this evening, I vacuumed the substrate, cleaned all the filters, and did a 20% water change. I still have a little cloudiness, but it should be gone with in another 24. I did a preliminary strip test and all levels were in check, except for water hardness.

Here are a few close-ups of the filtration system:

We are trying to discreetly hide our intake tubes & heater behind this plant:



Here is the spray-bar that has been the topic of so much conversation. This is coming from the 2217:



Here is what I did with the output for the 2215:



I put a spray-bar elbow on, and aimed it towards the front left, which helps create an under-current in sync with the spray-bar's top-current. I get a lot of water movement in the tank with this setup. The only thing I might do differently is to eventually pull the sponge filter out and install a power-head in the upper back right corner. We'll see as time goes on.

Here are a few more close-up shots of the finished setup of the rock formations:

Left:


Middle:


Right:


Okay.. the only thing left to do is wait before dropping in some fish. On deck first will be a couple of Plecos and some Yellow Labs. Maybe 4 to 6? I know eventually we want some Rainbow Red Tropheus, a couple of more colorful exotics, and maybe even a few clown loaches or blue lobsters for the bottom. Who knows really..

All this and of course our 30 gallon is cycling right now as well in preparation for my wife's Flowerhorn - which by the way, I think has better medical coverage than I do at this point!

[eklikewhoa]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Looks good.

[CichlidFan]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

YEp......still regreting not jumping on this tank when I had the chance...... :)

You've done a great job with it you guys....good work.

CF

[jeebus]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Thanks! CF, you've still got first dibs if we ever decide to go... bigger? lol..

Okay, I'm looking to start adding my first fish tomorrow night or the next night. I'm going to pick some baby Yellow Labs from the LFS (probably 4), and I already have 2 two inch plecos to add as well.

My question is this, does anyone know where I can go to get a different kind of Pleco? I'd love to find either a Tiger or Zebra, if they're even available locally.

[CichlidFan]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Well they are available, but why not keep the expenses low in the beginning....Andy has a couple nice Imperial Pleco's for 30.00....they are healthy and look very nice....and you can get 20 for the price of one zebra.... :)

CF

I'm sorry....Andy is the owner of FISHLAND on westheimer blvd off the beltway.

[jeebus]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Oh no, I should have clarified, I'm not buying any expensive fish now. I just wanted to know if other Plecos were available. I'll probably wait a month or two to make sure all cycling is complete before dropping any real money on fish.

But I'll go visit Andy over at Fishland and scope it out. Thanks!

[myjohnson]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

tropheus, tropheus, tropheus.......a good liking tank like that needs good looking fishes!

[jeebus]

Re: 90 Gallon Cichlid Tank From Beginning.. 56k WARNING!!!

Okay, here are some updates! We dropped two (2) Plecos, three (3) Labs, and (3) Zebras. Here are the pics:

The whole gang:


The Labidochromis:


The Pseudotrohpeus:


Exploring:





I have to say, this is the most happy I've been since we started a year ago. Watching these fish swim in schools and explore the rock formations is just mesmerizing. We're gonna add some Rainbow Red Tropheus next month. We're gonna start with two, and maybe go up to four. Beyond that, maybe a few Zebra Plecos, a couple of Clown Loaches, and maybe a few Peacocks. Once we get to that point, if the tank isn't crowded I might add just a few more Labs & Zebras as they are my favorites.

We also dropped a baby crawfish in last night and with in seconds he had taken residency under one of the rocks.