Turn overflows into wet/dry filters?

[seancj]

I'm looking at a 900 gallon bowfront tank that is 116" long by 48" tall and has two large overflows that are 14" wide and 8" deep. This will be a freshwater community tank, with several discus, large schools of rainbow fish or giant danios, and 300 plus neon green tetras.
The problem is that the custom steel stand that comes with this large tank is only 18 or so inches tall. So, there is not enough room for a sump underneath it. The previous owner had all filtration behind the tank in a separate room, which I can't do.
Do you guys see any reason why I can't turn both the overflow boxes into very tall wet/dry filters? Create a small durso stand pipe to keep about 8 inches of water in the bottom, place an eggcrate shelf above that, then fill them both with bio balls and top them off with some filter pads for mechanical filtration. The return pump would basically be run inline underneath the tank.
Would these two 'overflow wet/dry filters' along with two or three FX5 canister filters be enough to handle this size tank with above mentioned bioload?
The tank is drilled for a closed loop, so I can run that for extra flow.
What do you guys think?
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/sonofgaladriel/tallwetdry.jpg

[rickztahone]

i'm sorry but i can't help you with the overflow question but i just wanted to say congrats on finding the large tank you were looking for. whenever you can some pics would be great! a tank that size would be my dream tank. 48" tall would be a PITA to clean though

[rickscics]

I think you can make it work fine. I would consider using less bio balls more filter floss and a little taller Standpipe. It seems like if the Filter floss is not sufficient then the bio balls would become pretty messy in time.
I think I would try at least one foot on the stand pipe maybe two feet of bio balls and a foot or so of filter floss. I use Polyfill from cheap pillows to save $$ and it works wonderfully. You can experiment to see what ratio works best.
Rick

[target]

48" tall would be a PITA to clean though

Just get out the scuba gear. Dream tank for me as well.

[Dkarc@Aol.com]

Can you get us a pic of the tank??? Or atleast a better idea of how/where the overflows are at in the tank? Most likely the overflows are on the back wall, and towards the sides of the tank....would you be against taking the space between the 2 overflow boxes and connecting them with a sheet of acylic (im assuming the tank is acrylic due to size). This wall would create a much larger area for filtration. It would then be very similar in design to a Tenecor tank with their "built in filtration" system. Basically a false wall. In that space you could then do a similar design to what you propose....this should give you much more filtration capacity, depending on how it's all laid out.

Or, since the tank is drilled for closed loop just run several LARGE canister type filters. Eheim or Fluval (cant remember which) just came out with a monster sized unit....2-3 of those would do you just fine.

All depends on what you're willing to do to the tank.

-Ryan

[seancj]

Thanks for all the input guys. I'm getting the same responses locally that this 'overflows as wet/drys' should work. Now I just need to figure out how I am going to get this 1700 pound tank in my house and on its stand!:confused: This tank is 1" thick starphire glass, not acrylic!
Here's a pic of it sitting in the current owners garage:
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y90/sonofgaladriel/900.jpg

[target]

That tank is crazy! And glass!! That is going to look sweet when you get it home and set up. As for getting it home, that will be quite the challenge. you have a lot of strong friends who owe you a favor?

[jeff@zina.com]

Now I just need to figure out how I am going to get this 1700 pound tank in my house and on its stand!:confused:[/IMG]

Trade houses with the current owner... :D

Jeff

[Tropical Haven]

That is one awesome size tank but is going to be a real challenge to get it to your house. Congrats on the purchase and I wish I had that tank, that would look great in my basement. :D

[seancj]

Oh, I haven't purchased the tank yet. I'm still thinking it over. I've got to have everything in place before I make a committment and purchase. If I don't think I can get this thing safely into my home, I won't be buying it.
At least I can rest assured that the overflow box filtration will probably work so I won't have to worry about that.

[Jhhnn]

Might want to hire professionals to move it... not cheap, but they're bonded and insured, so if anything goes wrong, you're covered.

Wherever you put it, I'd be sure that the floor will hold it...

I'd strongly consider creating stacked baskets (opaque acrylic?) for the biomedia in the overflows w/ attached stainless steel wires to get 'em back out, should the need arise. Also some kind of gasketed (?) drip plate at the top to distribute the water flow...

You could still have a long low sump- might be great for an algae scrubber...

[seancj]

Hello all.
I'm afraid that I won't be getting this tank afterall. The seller has a couple of local buyers that will most likely get to this tank before I can.
Its probably for the best. The dilemma of safely transporting this tank 9 hours from there to here, getting it into the house and up on the stand, along with the budget busting price are just pushing the boundaries a bit too much.
I'm back on the search for another big tank, hopefully one a bit easier to manage and closer to home.
Thanks again for all the advice and suggestions.
I promise to share in the set up process and final display once I've found the right tank!

[jeff@zina.com]

I'm back on the search for another big tank...

Build it. :)

Jeff