How to properly set up a stock tank?

[Alexander1312]

I bought this 150-gallon stock tank, and it arrived today. To me, this is an emergency tool only, but I would like to be ready before I need it.

Now the question is, how do these need to be setup properly to work in case of an emergency?

How should lights, skimmer, flow, heater etc be setup temporarily to make this work, and what practices proved to be not efffective or even problematic?

 

[Kensington Reefer]

depends on your intent...

 

[Alexander1312]

depends on your intent...

Good point. Temporary holding tank for a mixed reef, both fish and corals.

 

[Kensington Reefer]

Good point. Temporary holding tank for a mixed reef, both fish and corals.

PM me...

 

[SupraSaltyReefer]

PM me...

Why……share the knowledge here so others can learn. Promise I won’t post it on social media

 

[Alexander1312]

Why……share the knowledge here so others can learn. Promise I won’t post it on social media

That was my thinking too. And share on social media haha.

 

[Darkxerox]

@sfsuphysics

 

[H2OPlayar]

It needs an appropriately sized heater and a way to move water to mix with oxygen, with some live rock for filtration ready to go. Wavemaker or pump works fine.

A light is a nice to have, as is a screen. An ato will save you some time but you can make a mark on the outside of the tank and manually top off to that mark.

That's about it.

 

[PjFish]

Milk crates weighted with live rock or zip tied together work good getting the skimmer the right depth..Then you don’t have to worry about power heads alone breaking the surface allowing oxygen exchange.. But regardless you need a small pump breaking surface water tension..There are many types of mesh covers out there from exact fit to oversized. Ive normally gone oversized that way I can easily snap together a pvc frame no glue needed then bungee the mesh around the frame and tank allowing more room for maintenance each to their own..I prefer the mesh up higher a bit vs using the skimmer as a raised tent pole..Pvc frame can rest inside the stock tank also allowing a tighter fit when the mesh is bungee around the lip of tank. Depending on what season and or if its outside in an non heated area insulated slip ins can help a lot maintaining heat at night or just in general all the time. There are numerous ways to hang temporary lighting like those free standing adjustable metal racks made to hang lights mainly designed for growing plants which work great. Cord management is number one keep organized and off the ground. I’ll hang extension cords from the ceiling then zip tie cords plugged into them together or utilize the light rack. GFCI with pigtails are handy and can plug into any properly grounded extension cords. Here’s a few pics to get an idea of what can be utilized that aren’t specifically made for aquarium use which dramatically lowers prices lol..Oh one of the mesh pics has a bear please do not think for one second mesh will help in any circumstance especially if you have them in the neighborhood!!