Holly crap, look at the size of that Pump and Skimmer

Yeah the skimmer is a decent size but its that pump that Im still amazed by! Its huge! 300 watts too, so a LOT of power consumption. Hope it end up being worth it. I refuse to use powerheads this time around.

Hope the pump is fairly quiet:cry:

Yeah I hooked up the pump when I got it for a test and its way quieter than I thought. Once its in the stand it should barely be heard...

I want to build some rock columns using rods and drilling the LR. What do you guys recommend I use for the rods and where did you get them? I want something not too thick. Im not really interested in using PVC either.

I will post some updated pics of this project soon. I have finished off the stand and canopy besides the doors which will be attached with magnets to keep things really easy. Its all primed and ready for paint which will be done tonight! The stand and canopy will be white, which I do not see too often with aquariums. Really works well in our living room.

I have also finished wiring and mounting the lights and man they are BRIGHT! Im super impressed so far with the T5's. Much nicer coverage than halides and way less watts. VERY nice coloring with the Giesemann daylight and actinic bulbs.

Im going to do the same thing with rock columns but i think (not sure yet) im going to go the pvc route. For the base i plan on using an H shape, and a straight pvc piece attached to the middle. This way i can have a stable base and just put rocks over top of the base to cover it. I was also thinking of using plastic rods.

Acrylic rod maybe?

What kind of plastic rods are safe in the aquarium? I have had a hard time finding anything that would be safe.

Some pics...

My camera phone really cannot pick up the brightness of the lights but here goes:


Actinics:

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...h/DSC00517.jpg

Actinics/Daylight:

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...h/DSC00518.jpg

Stand/Canopy without doors (needs to be painted white, this is just primed):

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...h/DSC00515.jpg

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...h/DSC00521.jpg

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...h/DSC00520.jpg

Another update with regards to the plumbing...I tried drilling the sump and it cracked very easily. I spoke to a glass place first and they had told me to be very careful drilling 1/4" glass because its so thin. I know many people do it with no problems but mine cracked. Not really sure why but anyways, I am back to my original idea of using rubbermaid containers. I already have a few but want a bigger one I think. Problem is, I keep finding ones that are perfect but made of PP. Im not even sure what PP is but I thought it pretty much has to be HDPE to be safe. Anyone?

After doing a bit of research, looks like PP is used for food packing, so maybe safe for a sump???