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The start of my 75 gallon build... and questions

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Oct 2, 2009
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This weekend I will start working on my 75 gallon tank. I had just started to make decisions about what type of flow I was going to have, powerheads vs closed loop when the person whose supposed to help me drill the holes is trying to talk me out of a closed loop :confused:. This is my very first drilled tank and I want it to be as clean inside the tank as possible. I dont want wires or powerheads all over the place.

My first of many questions is, on a closed loop how do you block the holes so that an octopus doesnt get in them? I was thinking screening but that will eventually be blocked with crud from the tank so I dont know that it will be a viable option in the long run.

If I had 1 inch holes drilled in the tank for the closed loop he said I would need a very strong pump... something like a mag 24. How much flow is to much flow for an octopus?

:lol: I feel like a virgin octopus keeper all over again :lol:.
 
What do you plan to plumb into the loop? Just the pump for water movement? Let live rock/sand be the filter (fine for a reef w/ light bioload, but a bit risky for a messy predator IMO (although I have VERY limited ceph experience)?
You get big steps down with flow rate as you plumb turns/ items (filters/skimmers) into the line. I would be hesitant to see real advantages to a closed loop design outside of some small increase in tank security.
AS to covering the inlet bulkhead, I would think anything that would be octo proof would catch the crud. I doubt that this would be good in any component of the loop and would be a huge source for fouling the water if not regularly removed. I would suspect that a basic pre-filter pad could be used to slide down over the intake kind of like a HOB filter cartridge and could be easily secured. This would allow easy access to the prefilter to remove the organic waste and not be a burden on the biological filtration going on.

Just my two cents worth in general tank design.
 
SabrinaR;171243 said:
This weekend I will start working on my 75 gallon tank. I had just started to make decisions about what type of flow I was going to have, powerheads vs closed loop when the person whose supposed to help me drill the holes is trying to talk me out of a closed loop :confused:. This is my very first drilled tank and I want it to be as clean inside the tank as possible. I dont want wires or powerheads all over the place.

Exciting!

My first of many questions is, on a closed loop how do you block the holes so that an octopus doesnt get in them? I was thinking screening but that will eventually be blocked with crud from the tank so I dont know that it will be a viable option in the long run.

There are several ways.
You could get something like this:Search results for: '' - Bulk Reef Supply
and glue nylon window screen around it.
You could also go with a standard threaded strainer and get something like this
Search results for: '' - Bulk Reef Supply
to go over it. There are other foam blocks with holes in it, so look around for one you like - or get a block of foam and make the hole yourself. Zip tie it to the threaded strainer voila.
Or you could make your own by getting a length of threaded pipe and drilling lots of small holes in it, cap the end and screw it into the bulkhead (use a threaded one).
For any of these solutions get two - much more octo safe to swap them instead of having a big hole in the tank open while you clean. :biggrin2:

If I had 1 inch holes drilled in the tank for the closed loop he said I would need a very strong pump... something like a mag 24. How much flow is to much flow for an octopus?

Mag 24? No way! That would provide way too much flow. Unless you are putting the pump on a the floor below the tank or very far away. Octos can take a variety of flow, so something in the middle would be good. I think a quiet one 3000 would be fine, but I would also put a valve on the output so you can throttle it down if you like. A mag 7 should be plenty as well.
 

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