OKC Newb's 120 Gal. Build

[Adam Houston]

My shipment of CaribSea LifeRock came in from saltwateraquarium.com over the weekend!! Got a great deal compared to Amazon and chewy.com (also seen in picture is life rock & flat rock from my LFS Prestige Worldwide Corals)

 

[Adam Houston]

Here’s my cad style diagram I came up with for the aquascape I have in mind- it’s basically going to be 2 massive purple arches…custom built by my dude who owns a local coral spot @HeartlandCorals

 

[Adam Houston]

The aquascape build is underway R2R Fam!! The idea is to create 2 arches that I can eventually attach corals to similar to this stellar looking aquascape by @Jack Ravensbergen

 

[Adam Houston]

Picked up 40lbs of free Fiji rock from a local R2R’r not too long ago and finally tossed them in a bleach & water bath. I’m so stoked I will be picking up my aquascape this weekend! I plan on using some of the Fiji rock to create a series of caves for the center of my tank between the 2 arches. More updates coming soon R2R Fam!!

 

[Adam Houston]

Just added the custom built CaribSea arches to the 120 yesterday!! Very pleased with the finished product. Shout out to Bobby Sway @HeartlandCorals for doing a stellar job. This aquascape is definitely poppin’ now!!

 

[Fish Styx]

Hey, dude. I've been MIA for a bit. Just dropping in to check on your progress. I know I'm late to the party, but looks good so far. Any more progress?

 

[Adam Houston]

Hey, dude. I've been MIA for a bit. Just dropping in to check on your progress. I know I'm late to the party, but looks good so far. Any more progress?

Man I’ve been MIA for a couple months myself!! My car broke down on me in July so I had to save up for a while to get a truck. I’ve definitely been using your advice along the way so I appreciate it man! Hoping to get the rest of my equipment soon so I can setup the sump and get it cycling in the near future

 

[Fish Styx]

Man I’ve been MIA for a couple months myself!! My car broke down on me in July so I had to save up for a while to get a truck. I’ve definitely been using your advice along the way so I appreciate it man! Hoping to get the rest of my equipment soon so I can setup the sump and get it cycling in the near future

It's a long game, anyway, bud. It'll just make it that much sweeter when you finally get wet.

 

[Adam Houston]

It's a long game, anyway, bud. It'll just make it that much sweeter when you finally get wet.

Haha dude I’m so ready to get this thing filled up! I just need some lights, powerheads, rodi unit, sand & salt but my lease is almost up so prob have to wait til I get a more permanent place. It’s def going to be sweet & unreal when I finally set it up, I’ve never had saltwater fish so I’m sure I’ll be mesmerized

 

[cattlegirl7]

Haha dude I’m so ready to get this thing filled up! I just need some lights, powerheads, rodi unit, sand & salt but my lease is almost up so prob have to wait til I get a more permanent place. It’s def going to be sweet & unreal when I finally set it up, I’ve never had saltwater fish so I’m sure I’ll be mesmerized

Hit Bobby up. We may have some lights or powerheads for you. If you haven't gotten them yet.

 

[Adam Houston]

Hit Bobby up. We may have some lights or powerheads for you. If you haven't gotten them yet.

Man I wish I was able to setup my dream tank but I hit so many setbacks and now I have to downsize since I’m moving soon. I appreciate the hospitality though!

 

[Adam Houston]

Well I contemplated selling this setup but after all the time & effort I put into the refurbishing process I really can’t give up on my dream tank. I just entered the Top Shelf giveaway so fingers crossed!! Here’s a pic of the sump area, getting ready to paint all the pvc plumbing to match the interior a bit so stay tuned

 

[Adam Houston]

Finally moved into a new spot where the garage gives me plenty of room to work! Tried using cerium oxide to clear up a few scratches & problem areas on the 120 but honestly after 1.5 hours I didn’t see a noticeable difference.

 

[Adam Houston]

After 2+ hours of additional polishing I was able to remove several light scratches & swirl marks. Realized at this point I’m probably a little too OCD but there is a noticeable improvement in clarity. Pics & updates coming soon

 

[Adam Houston]

Finally have some downtime between work and band rehearsals to put the finishing touches on this 120. Hoping to move it into my living room within the next week or two….can’t wait!

 

[Adam Houston]

My OCD kicked in again so of course I had to spray paint the pvc & fittings with a metallic charcoal marine paint to somewhat match the topside grey on the interior of the stand & canopy. Did a touch up base coat of Behr Noir chalk paint on the exterior of the stand, canopy & doors followed by a transparent matte polyurethane top coat so we should be good to get it moved inside & begin the setup later this weekend

 

[Adam Houston]

After a ridiculously busy week of prepping this tank and plumbing I was finally ready to have it moved into the dining room on Saturday. Here's a look at the plumping setup which I could not have accomplished without the help of my local dude who is a straight up saltwater setup guru! This is my 1st ever saltwater tank so don't expect a ton of automation, controllers, reefmats, refugiums etc I will be keeping it pretty basic and efficient with this build so there probably won't be too many bells and whistles in the beginning Lol