Starting a 250 gal. african cichlid tank and i need help

Most african cichlids will eat plants, although I'm having luck with Java ferns
It's not too big, you could do something spectacular with 250 gallons! (Oh, how I wish :drooling: )

Maybe post some more information, so that people can comment/ help?

Size of planned tank?
Thickness/type of acrylic you plan to use?
Stand?
Lighting?
Filtration?

Along side that, why not say which methods you're planning on using to put the abovementioned things together?

You'll see different recommendations given for acrylic thicknesses. I went with Brad Newton's in this article in the forum library. My 6x2x2 uses 1/2" acrylic and it worked just fine. I used 3/8" for 16" high, and again it's more than ok. As he states, aquarium manufacturers will recommend more. No one wants to get sued. Brad suggests only going up to 30" with 3/4" acrylic, so 1" should be fine for 36", 1.25" if the money is no big deal and you want more of a comfort factor.

If cost becomes an issue, you can easily cut down on the height for cichlids. The length and width are more important. So, consider 8'x2'x2', 240 gallons. Then you can go with 1/2" and save a bundle on the acrylic. And probably keep just as many fish and make maintenance easier too.

You're building my dream tank, you know. I've done 11 acrylic tanks now, and 5 wet/dry, sump systems. I want to do one more that's a good 400 gallon or so system.

One last thing, add a wet/dry sump system to the project. Don't go huge and then try to filter with canisters.

Just my .02

Please give me some more insight into what i would need as far as equipment like pumps, filters, heating, etc...

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Check out this article on sumps. Be sure to follow through the links to part II and part III. That'll give you a lot of info. Keep in mind that he's thinking saltwater, so don't worry about the refugium.

So, think sump with 'wet/dry' filtration. The article explains what that is exactly.

For a pump, I like the Mag drives, and you're looking probably at something like the Mag18 or Mag24 depending on tank size. Scroll down that page and check under 'Supreme Mag-Drive Pumps for Ponds and Aquariums'. Look at the flow rate for 6 foot head. If you went with the 8x2x2 @ 240 gallons, then you'd want the mag24 as it'll push 1700 gallons per hour for about a 7x turnover.

For a heater, go to the Jehmco web site and look at the '500 watt Titanium Heater w/ ETCI Controller'. Don't skimp on the heater and try to use a couple of hobbyist grade heaters.

That'll get you started in understanding what you need to do. Here are links to some pics of what I've done that may help you get a picture of what you can build.

My fish room project

My 180 gallon project These are from four years ago and I've changed some things up, but you get the idea. Ignore the canister filter, bad idea and I scrapped it. The last pics are of the system I used to hold change water and pump it up to the sump for water changes.

One last thing. I went with external Durso's on my fish room tank and have been very happy with them. You'll see pics of them in my fish room project album. Here's the Durso web page that explains what Durso's are, how they work and why they're a good thing to use. Here's an interesting implementation of one.

i was wondering what is the importance of adding living things in the sump. Do the stones and plants help aerate the water?

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I'm assuming you're talking about the refugium. Not often done for freshwater, but could be a place to grow plants to consume nitrates but I didn't find a small one had much, if any, effect. There are more potential benefits in saltwater systems than in freshwater. Here's some info on refugiums for saltwater systems. Google it and you'll find lots more. I was reading that fast growing typical house plants can have a greater effect on nitrate reduction than submerged plants. Just put the roots in the sump. Not sure if it falls under 'sustainability', but you'd have plants consuming the end product (typical for aquariums anyway) of the nitrogen cycle, nitrate.

so i was think of installing a miniature water turbine that is hooked up to an alternator to help cut down on the energy consumption and add a little bit of me into it

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Interesting idea. If you could use the outflow of the pump in some way... I'd be interested to see what you come up with and how much power it provides.

oh and your fish tank room. wow you are the man that is impressive

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Thanks, and if you ever come to the OCA Extravaganza held in Cleveland in November each year, I'd be happy to give you a tour,

ok so *** been looking into the Pump that you suggested. And when I was looking at the article in the forums about build your own tank, his set up is similar to what I was looking for a 6' l x 2' w x 2' h 180 gal alongside a 9' l x 2' w x 2' h 270 gal, so roughly 450 gal combined. Can I run both of these tanks through the same over flow and into the same pump. If so this will maximize the amount of my energy i can produce from my turbine.

Also i know this is going to weigh tons so my guess is that it will crack the tiles that I will put it on.
So my best bet is probably to remove the tiles in that area correct?

If I can run the water from both tanks into the same pump I stayed with the Supreme Mag-Drive Pro 4000-XP will this pump be suficient for dealing with the amount of water that I want to send though it.

Also what are the requirements of my overflow and sump? Also since Im going to be combing both tanks into one sump wont I have to upgrade the heater also. I was thinking the 1000 watt submersible just like the one that you suggested but a stronger one. Will my pump come with a filter or do I have to come up with one also?

ok so I've been looking into the Pump that you suggested. And when I was looking at the article in the forums about build your own tank, his set up is similar to what I was looking for a 6' l x 2' w x 2' h 180 gal alongside a 9' l x 2' w x 2' h 270 gal, so roughly 450 gal combined. Can I run both of these tanks through the same over flow and into the same pump. If so this will maximize the amount of my energy i can produce from my turbine.

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You can run more than one tank on the same sump with the same pump, yes. As far as maximizing energy, at what point do you intend to 'capture' the energy produced by the water flow? I'm thinking as it flows into or through the sump before the return trip to the tank? If that's the case, then number of pumps doesn't matter. You could run a pump for each tank. It might make sense to do that. What reason, if any, for the different sized tanks?

Also i know this is going to weigh tons so my guess is that it will crack the tiles that I will put it on.
So my best bet is probably to remove the tiles in that area correct?

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Or do something to distribute weight. What you want to avoid is having a tile crumble under a corner so that one corner starts to drop.

If I can run the water from both tanks into the same pump I stayed with the Supreme Mag-Drive Pro 4000-XP will this pump be suficient for dealing with the amount of water that I want to send though it.

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I'd be more inclined to keep them separate and sized for each tank. That way you can adjust or tune each separately. How many feet up will the pump have to push the water. Most of the time it's 5 feet as the pump will sit at floor level inside the sump and then have to push it up to the top of the tank, that usually sits about 5' high. Is that your thought?

Also what are the requirements of my overflow and sump?

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Overflow pipe size depends on the amount of water moved. Generally, two per tank. In the 180, each should be 1" in size and able to handle 600gph each. In the 270, I'd probably bump that up to 1.25, so they can handle 900 gph each. Here's a calculator. Regarding overlow style, some of that is personal preference. You can do internal overflow boxes, external overflow boxes, external durco's alone...

Also since Im going to be combing both tanks into one sump wont I have to upgrade the heater also. I was thinking the 1000 watt submersible just like the one that you suggested but a stronger one.

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It's all about room temp and many people disregard that entirely. None of my 6' fish room systems use a heater at all. The mag24's keep the water at just the right temp. If I were you, I"d make the heater your last purchase. Don't even worry about it for now. Get the system up and running, and see what it's normal operating temp is. Then there are calculators that can determine what amount of wattage you'll need to raise it the last few degrees.

Will my pump come with a filter or do I have to come up with one also?

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No, the sump should have a biomedia chamber built in above the water line that the water flow through after being dispersed via a drip tray. That's your filter.

Let me know if any of that's not clear.