Yes I plan on building it myself. I think I will use a thin sheet of acrylic glued to plywood as the base and thicker acrylic as the sides. I will section it off into three sections. This will act as braces for the sides as well. The stand will be built using 4x4s and 2x4s. That way I can create a space for lighting and a sump underneath the tank itself. I may add shelves for storage and such. As for the lights I planned on using compacts and two 400 watt metal halides. maybe three 250 watt. Are T5HO the same as compact lights? The sump will be made out of an extra 55 gal I got for dirt cheap. I made a sump for my two 55 gal tanks and it worked great. What are raceways? As for the corals. I am very new to saltwater so I plan to take it slow. I will start with mushrooms, ricordea, and xenias. Then I want to move forward. That is why I want a tank that can support many types of corals. I have a feeling this will be a single large investment and then I will have to wait before adding on to the system. I am also looking into a ro/di unit for the system. All this is in the planning stages. I have to wait until I am out of the Army and we have settled into our own house. So I have lots of time to pick your brains and learn.
Thanks for the reply. Oh by the way I was reading about someone having trouble getting the flow rate right on their sump. I picked up a float switch for a sump at home depo for pretty cheap. Your pump plugs into same plug that the float uses and it will switch your pump on and off depending on the water level. You will need a one way valve so the water won't backflow through the pump.This to can be found in the plumbing section or the outdoor lawn sprinkler section. I can not always get online from Iraq so maybe you can pass this tidbit on for me. Thanks again.