Pros/cons of an in wall tank? Pictures of your setup please!

OutColdCRNA

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We are in the process of designing our new house build and my wife dropped a mind bomb on me. She said what if you had a whole office and put your tank in the wall? My mind was swirling at the potential dream fish room! Tank would potentially be a 8 footer! Would love to hear peoples experiences and pros and cons of having an in wall tank!! Thanks everyone!!
 

cilyjr

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Definitely add cabinet doors to allow access from the front.
This is advice given to me by someone who did not do this.


Also allow a recess trim like a window do not set it flush with the drywall.

My previous 180 before I moved across the country

20171108_190820.jpg
 
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IMG_1250.jpeg

Potential room space, for a fish room/office. The red line is a doorway that wouldn’t be there. Would be replaced with wall and door access would be from the right of the room.
 

cilyjr

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Will you be adding an equipment room behind this tank?
Also feel free to hit me up, although my current tank is not in wall. I have done this twice. Once with the tank pictured which ran for about 12 years and then I helped a friend do the same thing.
 
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OutColdCRNA

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Will you be adding an equipment room behind this tank?
Also feel free to hit me up, although my current tank is not in wall. I have done this twice. Once with the tank pictured which ran for about 12 years and then I helped a friend do the same thing.
We posted at the same time. Picture of the space from a floor plan above your last post.
 

cilyjr

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We posted at the same time. Picture of the space from a floor plan above your last post.
Right on.
Partition the office, add a sink and go to town.
If you're going to be tearing some stuff up, consider having an electrician run a couple of dedicated 15 amp circuits. If you aren't comfortable doing it yourself.
 
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Another thing I had considered was actually allowing the tank to hang into the room about a foot allowing for some side view.
I did think about that actually. This will be all completely new construction so was planning on running multiple 15-20 amp circuits to that room in preparation.
 

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We are in the process of designing our new house build and my wife dropped a mind bomb on me. She said what if you had a whole office and put your tank in the wall? My mind was swirling at the potential dream fish room! Tank would potentially be a 8 footer! Would love to hear peoples experiences and pros and cons of having an in wall tank!! Thanks everyone!!
I set many of these up for customers at ,y LFS. The biggest requirement is room or access to tank behind the wall and biggest challenge/con is thinking backwards. Where we go into tank and scrape facing glass and siphon gravel, you are cleaning whet would be the back glass and getting a siphon in there. I recommend an access door in the front to clean the front, actual front
 

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Definitely add cabinet doors to allow access from the front.
This is advice given to me by someone who did not do this.


Also allow a recess trim like a window do not set it flush with the drywall.

My previous 180 before I moved across the country

20171108_190820.jpg
I in fact just mentioned access door as you are working opposite without it
 
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OutColdCRNA

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I set many of these up for customers at ,y LFS. The biggest requirement is room or access to tank behind the wall and biggest challenge/con is thinking backwards. Where we go into tank and scrape facing glass and siphon gravel, you are cleaning whet would be the back glass and getting a siphon in there. I recommend an access door in the front to clean the front, actual front
I’ll have the whole room behind the tank. Will put a sink and cabinets to the left wall of that room. I did think about having to do all the work from behind unless I can place some access doors above the tank.
 

vetteguy53081

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I’ll have the whole room behind the tank. Will put a sink and cabinets to the left wall of that room. I did think about having to do all the work from behind unless I can place some access doors above the tank.
Ideal and should be an exciting project
 

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Definitely add cabinet doors to allow access from the front.
This is advice given to me by someone who did not do this.


Also allow a recess trim like a window do not set it flush with the drywall.

My previous 180 before I moved across the country

20171108_190820.jpg
I'm curious if that was me?

I have an 8 foot in wall tank. And one great difficulty is only accessing it from behind.

I knew the risk upfront, but that didn't change my decision.

20240406_134617.jpg


My compromise was to make the upper crown molding slide so that I could pull the jump screens forward to allow easy access from behind.

20240406_134658.jpg


Sometimes it requires someone calling out orders from the front so that certain things can be places properly.

I'm not sure if I would change anything if I had to do it all over again. I like the simplicity it portrays from the front.

I also added a tinted film to the back so that I can view the tank from behind but not see through to the backwall from the front. But I since removed the tint and no one had commented that the blue wall is a distraction. It's sort of great because now I can see clearly from behind.

One thing that gets commented on a lot by fellow hobbyists is how quiet the tank is from the front. It is virtually silent unless I have the door to the room open.

One of the greatest advantages (I'd say) is the ability to sprawl out behind the wall. I have so much equipment behind the scenes that isn't limited to having to fit under the tank.

20240406_140017.jpg


20240406_140042.jpg
 
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OutColdCRNA

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I'm curious if that was me?

I have an 8 foot in wall tank. And one great difficulty is only accessing it from behind.

I knew the risk upfront, but that didn't change my decision.

20240406_134617.jpg


My compromise was to make the upper crown molding slide so that I could pull the jump screens forward to allow easy access from behind.

20240406_134658.jpg


Sometimes it requires someone calling out orders from the front so that certain things can be places properly.

I'm not sure if I would change anything if I had to do it all over again. I like the simplicity it portrays from the front.

I also added a tinted film to the back so that I can view the tank from behind but not see through to the backwall from the front. But I since removed the tint and no one had commented that the blue wall is a distraction. It's sort of great because now I can see clearly from behind.

One thing that gets commented on a lot by fellow hobbyists is how quiet the tank is from the front. It is virtually silent unless I have the door to the room open.

One of the greatest advantages (I'd say) is the ability to sprawl out behind the wall. I have so much equipment behind the scenes that isn't limited to having to fit under the tank.

20240406_140017.jpg


20240406_140042.jpg
Do you have a YouTube video of your tank lights moving on a track? I believe I saw your tank earlier today!
 
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OutColdCRNA

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Definitely add cabinet doors to allow access from the front.
This is advice given to me by someone who did not do this.


Also allow a recess trim like a window do not set it flush with the drywall.

My previous 180 before I moved across the country

20171108_190820.jpg
I’m curious as why you suggest not running the tank flush to the drywall?
 

cilyjr

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I'm curious if that was me?

I have an 8 foot in wall tank. And one great difficulty is only accessing it from behind.

I knew the risk upfront, but that didn't change my decision.

20240406_134617.jpg


My compromise was to make the upper crown molding slide so that I could pull the jump screens forward to allow easy access from behind.

20240406_134658.jpg


Sometimes it requires someone calling out orders from the front so that certain things can be places properly.

I'm not sure if I would change anything if I had to do it all over again. I like the simplicity it portrays from the front.

I also added a tinted film to the back so that I can view the tank from behind but not see through to the backwall from the front. But I since removed the tint and no one had commented that the blue wall is a distraction. It's sort of great because now I can see clearly from behind.

One thing that gets commented on a lot by fellow hobbyists is how quiet the tank is from the front. It is virtually silent unless I have the door to the room open.

One of the greatest advantages (I'd say) is the ability to sprawl out behind the wall. I have so much equipment behind the scenes that isn't limited to having to fit under the tank.

20240406_140017.jpg


20240406_140042.jpg

I must say, you are one of the few people who's advice I would take seriously, I feel we tend to find similar solutions!
So if you ever see one of my threats asking an opinion please post!

That aside, My in-wall tank had black PVC sheets that were magnetically detached to the back of the tank so if I were working from the back room I could simply remove them. It also made for scraping the back very easy and washing the sheets was also easy.

That setup was running metal halide and one of the challenges was making it so I could open up the cabinet doors and push the lights into the finished room or be working from the finished room and push the lights back into the equipment room. For more on this please visit this old thread. I wouldn't recommend posting there however since I have abandoned it for the 320 gallon that I currently have.

 
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OutColdCRNA

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I must say, you are one of the few people who's advice I would take seriously, I feel we tend to find similar solutions!
So if you ever see one of my threats asking an opinion please post!

That aside, My in-wall tank had black PVC sheets that were magnetically detached to the back of the tank so if I were working from the back room I could simply remove them. It also made for scraping the back very easy and washing the sheets was also easy.

That setup was running metal halide and one of the challenges was making it so I could open up the cabinet doors and push the lights into the finished room or be working from the finished room and push the lights back into the equipment room. For more on this please visit this old thread. I wouldn't recommend posting there however since I have abandoned it for the 320 gallon that I currently have.

Love the idea of the black pvc sheets! That’s genius!! I’ll read through the thread!
 

Sisterlimonpot

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Do you have a YouTube video of your tank lights moving on a track? I believe I saw your tank earlier today!
Sounds like mine

I must say, you are one of the few people who's advice I would take seriously, I feel we tend to find similar solutions!
Thanks. I looked at the old thread you posted. I was taken back by the Aqua Controller. I still have my ACIII. Ahh the good old days! Haha

So if you ever see one of my threats asking an opinion please post!
It seems lately, I'm reserved to only replying to certain posts/threads and I'll admit I don't click on much these days.

This thread was interesting because it's a topic I've given a lot of thought to.
 

cilyjr

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Love the idea of the black pvc sheets! That’s genius!! I’ll read through the thread!
I think we're I to do it again, i'd either do it partially in wall like discussed above or I'd do it on a corner where I'd have 2 sides viewable.

I now have a 3 foot depth tank and love that view looking through the 6 feet.


It seems lately, I'm reserved to only replying to certain posts/threads and I'll admit I don't click on much these days.
I go through phases, where I'm all up in everyone posts, then weeks where I'll read a thread title roll eyes and walk away.
Example "what's the best light?"
. I was taken back by the Aqua Controller. I still have my ACIII. Ahh the good old days! Haha
I think I was using an AC junior there. I also had an ACIII at 1 point.
I was just saying to someone, had I not been so deep into Neptune systems from slowly grabbing parts over the years, I'd try a hydros.

Remember before they got bought by Bertram, you would call customer service and they would make you feel stupid for even making an attempt to reach out...
Their user manual was written by a user then they decided to adopt it. I think it was russm I might be wrong though.
 

HAVE YOU EVER KEPT A RARE/UNCOMMON FISH, CORAL, OR INVERT? SHOW IT OFF IN THE THREAD!

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  • Other (please explain).

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