[Andrew H]

I've had this 17 gallon Mr. Aqua sitting in storage for the past few years and I thought it was time to finally set it up. I built the stand for it after seeing a similar stand on Pinterest. I added a door to the front with some leftover corrugated metal I had and used it to cover the sides as well.

The stain I used on the wood matches the stain I used for the three beams I put up when we bought/gutted/renovated our home. So it kind of ties the room together a little bit more than if I had just gone out out and bought some generic stand.

I don't know how I'm going to lay this tank out but I know I want a nice thick carpet and a good mixture of colors.

Tank - Mr. Aqua 17 gallon 24"x12"x14"

Lighting - Ecoxotic E-60

Substrate - Floramax - I bought three bags around the same time I bought the tank. I may use some sand in some spots but I will definitely be putting in some Osmocote Plus tabs into the substrate.

Filter - Eheim 2215

I will be using co2 for this tank. I plan on getting a 5lb tank and glass pipes. Not sure which ones yet 'cause I haven't done much research into the different options out there. Read somewhere that reactors work better than diffusors? Any recommendations?

 

[mot]

Fabulous. Very creative with the corrugated metal.

Just love this room, love the tank, love the TV. A+.

 

[FlyingGiraffes]

Cool stand and Banksy art.

 

[kman]

Great job on the stand! Based on the design of your room, I can't wait to see what you do with the tank.

 

[ch3fb0yrdee]

Amazing setup. I love the layout and overall theme of the room!

 

[Andrew H]

Fabulous. Very creative with the corrugated metal.

Just love this room, love the tank, love the TV. A+.

Thank you, sir!

Cool stand and Banksy art.

Thanks! I actually want to take the Banksy art down; would like another tree canvas piece to replace them.

Great job on the stand! Based on the design of your room, I can't wait to see what you do with the tank.

Thanks! Appreciate your help and input regarding lighting. I'm going to need a lot more input when it comes time to order my filter and CO2 equipment.

Amazing setup. I love the layout and overall theme of the room!

Thanks! Didn't expect to get this many compliments on the room. Spent a lot of time working on the house and the wife and I are really happy with the way it came out. Here's some more pics of rest of the open room area before I had the tank set up.

The kitchen to the left of the tank...

Walking in from the front door...

From the main room. See the cool betta statue near the fireplace??

This is the other project I've been spending a lot of time on; welding together these 4'x8' panels to go in between the columns of a 300' block wall around the house.

Now I really need to order some equipment for the tank to get this tank journal back on track!

My Ecoxotic E-60 gets delivered tomorrow! If it seems too bright resting on the rim of the tank I may looking into building a hanging kit for it out of some galvanized piping and cable wire. Should be cheaper than the $35 Ecoxotic wants to charge for their hanging kit.

 

[Jvidi]

Everything about your house is awesome. Just by looking at where you live I can tell this tank is going to be the bomb. What kind of fish do you usually prefer? I am definitely excited to see this thing develop.

 

[Andrew H]

I'd really like to keep a small school of rummynose tetras in this tank, maybe a pair of GBRs. I'll have to see how planted it gets to really determine what I should be keeping in there. Even thought about just having a couple of crazy looking apisto's in there by themselves; we'll see!

 

[Coralbandit]

Nice build all the way around roud:
You won't go wrong with your fish choices either.
I'm in!

 

[dru]

I've had a 60p in the wings for forever too

Good luck on yours!

For a canister I am planning on using a SunSun 302 because I have one laying around unused

I know Petsmart is closing out the Fluval 106 for ~$60 so if you have one in the area that might be an option for you

 

[Powerclown]

Welcome to home improvement!! lol,to answer your filtration question,Eheim 2213/2215 will do the job in a 60p very well.

 

[FlyingGiraffes]

Thanks! I actually want to take the Banksy art down; would like another tree canvas piece to replace them.

I would have to agree. Have you taken a look at any yet?

 

[Andrew H]

Nice build all the way around roud:
You won't go wrong with your fish choices either.
I'm in!

I used to have a pair of GBRs. Even popped out some fry but they ended up eating them all.

I've had a 60p in the wings for forever too

Good luck on yours!

For a canister I am planning on using a SunSun 302 because I have one laying around unused

I know Petsmart is closing out the Fluval 106 for ~$60 so if you have one in the area that might be an option for you

I only saw the huge fluval canisters that they were clearing out.

Welcome to home improvement!! lol,to answer your filtration question,Eheim 2213/2215 will do the job in a 60p very well.

That's funny. When I was looking them up people were suggesting the 2211 would work fine but a 2213 would work better; so then I started researching the 2213s and discovered that it would work fine but a 2215 would work better. Then when I looked into the 2215s... people said it would work fine but that a 2217 would work reaaaally well. These were all suggestions for people with the same tank size as me.

Soooo, I will probably be picking up the 2215 and replacing the green lines with clear hose. Then I need to start looking into glass pipes and what not.

I would have to agree. Have you taken a look at any yet?

I've been keeping an eye out for them but haven't had any luck. I could have sworn I saw one at Wal-Mart a long time ago but I didn't see any the last time I was there.

 

[kman]

Re filters, IMO, the 2215 is good fit for a 60P, heavily planted with fish. If you just have a lightly planted shrimp tank 60P, the 2213 would be fine. I can't imagine the 2211 would be adequate for all but the lightest of bioloads. The 2217 would probably give more flow but I don't know if it's really necessary. Nice, perhaps, if you have the room (as long as the flow isn't TOO much), but truly not needed in the majority of cases.

 

[Andrew H]

Re filters, IMO, the 2215 is good fit for a 60P, heavily planted with fish. If you just have a lightly planted shrimp tank 60P, the 2213 would be fine. I can't imagine the 2211 would be adequate for all but the lightest of bioloads. The 2217 would probably give more flow but I don't know if it's really necessary. Nice, perhaps, if you have the room (as long as the flow isn't TOO much), but truly not needed in the majority of cases.

Looks like I'll be ordering the 2215 today. I can always adjust the flow is it's too much, correct?

 

[dru]

I only saw the huge fluval canisters that they were clearing out.

They are out there. My local petsmart has two that have been sitting on the shelf for about a month.

That's funny. When I was looking them up people were suggesting the 2211 would work fine but a 2213 would work better; so then I started researching the 2213s and discovered that it would work fine but a 2215 would work better. Then when I looked into the 2215s... people said it would work fine but that a 2217 would work reaaaally well. These were all suggestions for people with the same tank size as me.

:hihi:

This made me actually LOL

 

[ch3fb0yrdee]

You house and layout is like the dream house. If I had a layout as nice (or a house for that matter) the GF wouldn't hesitate to allow me to keep as many tanks as I want! Ha Ha! Keep up the great work and keep us posted.

 

[NotCousteau]

Awesome stand, tank and home. Yeah, the 2215 sounds about right for your tank. And you can adjust the flow using the shutoff valve. I run a 2217 on a four-foot long 33 gallon, and it would probably be too much for a tank your size. I use the shutoff valve to slow the flow when I feed. Works like a charm.

Good luck.

 

[kman]

Looks like I'll be ordering the 2215 today. I can always adjust the flow is it's too much, correct?

There's no flow adjustment on the Classic series, but if it's too much you can always add a ball valve from Home Depot inline somewhere and throttle it a bit. There are plenty of ways to lower output, but there's no real way to add more if it's not enough! (short of removing the impeller, unplugging it, and adding an inline pump)

 

[ch3fb0yrdee]

Do this if flow is too strong. Cap the end like so.