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FishBeast's first rack plans. Advice needed.


FishBeast

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I am finally taking the plunge into serious shrimp breeding. I am going to build my rack from the Bunnings rack-it with 6 tanks. I want to keep the design simple and use sponge filters. I also need to ensure that water changes are able to be done with minimal fuss.

The plan is at this stage to have pipes running to each tank purely for water change purposes. So the idea is to use the taps to isolate the RO tank from the pipes to drain water from the tanks, and then isolate the drainage outlet and open the RO tap for the top up.

I am after any constructive criticism and general comments which will help me come to a final plan.

Rack1_zps21c117d5.jpg

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Looks good dude, with the rack it system, just make sure you have a piece of 19mm ply on each shelf to reduce the flex/warp of the beams & then foam on top of the ply of course. :encouragement:

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Hi mate, looks good but with a couple of extra pipes you could run a sump with auto top up from the ro tank.

It will keep the parameters all the same and with more water it will be more stable.

Cheers mick

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The added bonus with the sump is you can run one heater and one chiller connected to keep all at constant similar temperature, one of my main reasons for going sump. Plus as sticky pointed out, larger water volume equals more stable conditions. If using sump on multiple tanks, a uv must be put inline too.

+1 on the marine ply. Looking around $40 for 900x600mm, better than the MDF rack it provides, had some cut to size at bunnings yesterday and am relieved to have the extra support, best insurance premium.

Great plans, look forward to seeing pics as it develops. :encouragement:

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Hi mate' date=' looks good but with a couple of extra pipes you could run a sump with auto top up from the ro tank.

It will keep the parameters all the same and with more water it will be more stable.

Cheers mick[/quote']

I want to keep this design pretty simple to start with. Perhaps if I change my mind down the track I will build new rack and then modify this one then.

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Thanks for sharing the plans.... A simple design/setup, is related to the success of the tank/breeding. If there are WQ issues, WP fluctuations etc...having a simple build may end up being more difficult to sort out to get the setup running well,etc.....

As others have mentioned, best to design the "perfect tank", and execute what you currently want, i.e. sponge filters only...but important to have provisions for upgrades ready and waiting.

It it maybe just a drawing and obvious, but the taps should be on the downward pipe, rather on the main line ? Not sure whether I've explained that well.

Looking forward to pics and updates...exciting times :-)

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Ok, I think that you are right BlueBolt. I know nothing about sumps and I can use some advice because I am thinking that if I build a sump I will end up blindly copying someone else's without really understanding why they designed it their way.

So am I right in assuming that a freshwater sump is a lot simpler than a salt water one? Is it really just about having say 3 chambers, one for pump, 2nd for media and 3rd for inlet?

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There's many in the forum that have amazing design sumps..... For simplicity and personal preference, I use cannister filters, and have them all diverted to a "sump tank" (not a sump as such, see pic).

77456E57-1F7F-4577-98F7-A2D9CD67A404-9334-00000B2AF4ECEF12.jpg

All additives and water changes etc..are done at the sump tank, and never at the shrimps tanks. I have added another 2217, and a denitrator since. I opt for this format, more for a precaution....i.e. Having 2 x cannister filters, plus a sump pump, adding more insurance just in case something happens etc.... Yes, a tad over board and more $ , but works for me :-)

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Thank you. That is definitely food for thought. That's a great idea and I will give it some thought.

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I will be heading to Bunnings tomorrow to pick up my rack and ply. I will be getting a price for 3, Length 800 x Width 400 x Height 300 tanks, divided in half with a lid and a single hole drilled in for each section.

At this stage (depending on budget) I have chosen to go for a pump and sump setup. I will be wiring it up with power points at each division for light, possible filter, air filter in case I need to isolate any section. I will hard wire in a industrial quality digital timer, a backup temperature solenoid/alarm which will trigger an alarm if the temperature gets too low but most importantly if it gets too hot. If the heater gets stuck on the alarm will go off and the power to the heater will be cut.

So the next step will be to finalize my plumbing layout and design the sump.

Happy HAPPY days! :happydance:

Rack1_zps54c0367b.jpg

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I know it's already been mentioned but I though I'd remind you, the taps are in the wrong place, they should be on the vertical pipe(at least the first one on each tier should be). The way you have it at the moment means you can't adjust the flow to the first tank without affecting the flow in the second tank. If you put it on the vertical pipe after the T piece then you can adjust the flow in both tanks independently. :encouragement:

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I know it's already been mentioned but I though I'd remind you' date=' the taps are in the wrong place, they should be on the vertical pipe(at least the first one on each tier should be). The way you have it at the moment means you can't adjust the flow to the first tank without affecting the flow in the second tank. If you put it on the vertical pipe after the T piece then you can adjust the flow in both tanks independently. :encouragement:[/quote']

Ahhh... Yes now I understand. I will do that.

I bought my rack and ply today which means that I can get my final measurements together and start designing the sump. Pictures to follow soon. I spend an hour or 2 in at Bunnings today pricing things that I will or may buy and I'll tell you what, this stuff aint cheap.

Just as well my farm is undergoing massive upgrades at the moment and my bosses boss gave me permission to scrap all of the old wiring. I cashed in 35Kg's of it today which paid for the rack. I am guessing that I have about 50Kg's left over there which I won't even pay for the tanks. I have never had custom jobs done before but I figure $150 per tank... Really not sure.

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Awesome work Fishbeast! Can't wait to see this come together, it's such an exciting process!

The cost can add up quite quickly, when you take into account tanks, PVC fittings, substrate and the like but it will be so worth it in the end.

:encouragement:

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Thanks guys. I guess you have all seen a Rackit rack before but here it is anyway. I grabbed some 18mm dark grey 4 ply to use as shelving which suits very well.

untitled-1_zpsd500b0f2.jpg

In hindsight I should have gone the 2100mm high rack because I wanted to have 5 shelves using the top one for storage. Oh well. The board behind are there for ideas. I think I will be using the off cuts you can see at the back of the 2 lower shelves to fix the power points to.

Here is the tank design that I have in mind. Tell me what you think. They will be (LxWxH) 900mm(/ by 2) x 600mm x 350mm. I want to have 2 holes drilled, one for inlet and one for outlet. I like the way Squiggle had the glass divider at the front of his tanks which are used for a substrate free feeding area so I have adopted that as well.

tanksesign1_zpsb6e3f333.jpg

Each tank will be 189Ltr so a total of 569 before filtration. I am still researching trickle filtration and have not come up with a design yet.

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Looking great! good to see you are going for 600mm deep tanks, that way the weight will sit more on the beams rather than just relying on the shelf.

It's going to be amazing!

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Thanks guys. I guess you have all seen a Rackit rack before but here it is anyway. I grabbed some 18mm dark grey 4 ply to use as shelving which suits very well.

untitled-1_zpsd500b0f2.jpg

In hindsight I should have gone the 2100mm high rack because I wanted to have 5 shelves using the top one for storage. Oh well. The board behind are there for ideas. I think I will be using the off cuts you can see at the back of the 2 lower shelves to fix the power points to.

Here is the tank design that I have in mind. Tell me what you think. They will be (LxWxH) 900mm(/ by 2) x 600mm x 350mm. I want to have 2 holes drilled' date= one for inlet and one for outlet. I like the way Squiggle had the glass divider at the front of his tanks which are used for a substrate free feeding area so I have adopted that as well

.

hi mate

what size are in between each rack ?

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"hi mate

what size are in between each rack ?"

480mm which will give me a minimum of 115mm between the top of each tank and the rails. That's allowing for the thickness of glass and foam. Pretty tight. How much space do you think I will need?

Also there is 905mm from upright rail to upright rail and I am going 900mm wide on my tanks with the intention of including in the plan a mention that end to end must not be any longer than 900mm.

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Ok so here is the final layout of the tanks. Please look over and use your experience to find any issues that you can forsee so I can make any necessary changes.

tanksesign1_zps40203b7d.jpg

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What size bulk heads are you using? Cause a 50mm hole is massive, you'll only need 35mm for a 1"/25mm bulk head & 45mm for a 1 1/4"/32mm bulk head, 25mm bulk heads are usually enough for a small system like this. Also, the best way to locate the position for the hole is to use the washer from the bulk head set as a template & put it in place, leaving about a 5-10mm gap between the top & the side of the tank, then with a felt tip pen draw a circle on the glass using the inside of the washer as a guide. :encouragement:

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I have 25mm parts chosen in my list for Bunnings but when I pulled out the tape measure and looked at how small 25mm was I thought I must have been mistaken. I will check it against a proper 25mm PVC fitting.

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If they are the black 25mm bulk heads from Bunnings then you will definitely need a 35-38mm hole, I have drilled hundreds of these & use the 25mm bulk heads to great effect in most of my tanks, for a 500L system they will be plenty big enough. :encouragement:

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I had a quick check and he diameter of the 25mm PVC is 30mm so I am thinking a 35mm hole will suffice. Thanks for that. I want to get the steel stainless strainers that JohnH used in his journal for the Bunnings 25mm bulkheads.

http://www.duralirrigation.com.au/Product/Stainless-Steel-Strainers.html

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Yeah they are the ones most of us use, I got mine from Powell Industries. :victorious:

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