180 build from scratch!

[maroun.c]

Michika,
The tank manufacturer who built my tank put a small rectangular long piece of glass along the front and back pannels. he said this will strengthen the base of the tank a lot. also it will protect the silicon opn the lower pannel seams where the pressure is very big. I guess it's a good thing to add on your tank if you still can. the way he did it is to glue that support before he glued the front and back pannels but I don't see why it would not work if you attach this piece after the pannels have been glued. I hope this makes sense as it's not easy to describe. try to check my 150 build thread, it could be visible on the tank pictures, if not inform me and I'll take some pictures and post them for you. is it a coincidence that my camera was sent to repair too? stil I will have it back in two days now.

 

[eshagha]

nice work

 

[michika]

Maroun.c,

Nice build! I see what you are saying about the glass on the bottom. I'll bring it up tonight when we visit the builder who is cutting glass for us. When you get your camera back, can I get a top down shot of those internal braces? Please?

Thank you eshagha.

 

[maroun.c]

Sure no problem.
Unfortunately eurobracing is not available here so I had to go for those glass braces on top and the manufacturer did those in the bottom without even asing as he said these are essential. They do look a bit ugly however both the upper ones and lower ones will not show when the wooden stand and canopy are installed.

 

[michika]

I have never before heard of them as having to be essential. I've only ever seen them on maybe 2 other tanks before.

 

[maroun.c]

Don't know for sure, however I have seen 1000 Gallon tank the guy has in his store, and 6-7 smaller big tanks that have been there for years without any leaks so I do trust what he says. He did not charge me additional for them or anything. but it's true that I have never seen them elsewhere.

 

[michika]

Some photos! Most of these were taken with a P&S camera so the quality really shows. I miss the flash on my DSLR.

Stand in its somewhat final position. Yes that fugly fan will be coming down.

Tentative plan for the powerbox/control station. Sorry that flash thing again.

Glass for the eurobracing and overflow

Still waiting on the order of teleposts. For a big city like this, its dumb not to have these kinds of things in stock.

Next step is to notch out the plywood for the bottom portion of the stand, and to finalize some sump details. We have confirmed that we will be skinning the stand in maple and will most likely be going with a shaker-type style of doors. I'm looking at stains now, and think I may go with the gel based Minwax in a dark chocolate-red color. I still want to be able to see the grain, but I do want a darker color.

Sunday May 4th is the day the tank is going to go up onto the stand. Once the eurobrace has sat for a few days Kevin will be setting up to drill the tank. Its a bit of a sore spot that he didn't want to drill the tank before assembling it, but its getting done now, so no skin off my nose!

 

[michika]

I figure I will also need 200g of salt water to get this system started. I'm coming up to the end of my current salt, Red Sea Coral Pro, and am on the fence with what I want to start this new system up with. I've secured some live sand and additional live rock which I will be adding into this to help get it off the ground.

Suggests on salt?

 

[WinnipegDragon]

I'm yet to start my tank, but I'll be going with Tropic Marin Pro Reef. It's decently priced around here, and has very nice Alk/Calc/Mg numbers from most tests I've seen.

 

[michika]

I can't find it here locally, but J&L has it. Have you used it before?

 

[WinnipegDragon]

No, I'm still getting my first tank up and running.

I used IO in my Red Sea Max, but I didn't keep the tank long enough to evaluate salts or anything. TM was just locally recommended, and I liked what I read about it.

 

[michika]

I've used pretty much everything that was available locally. Might as well see what else is out there before I decide to go back to something I've used before.

 

[JustinReef]

Looks great! I am actually just int he process of ordering glass to build a new aquarium myself. Im kind of scared because I have never done it before. I did build a glass overflow and working with the glass and silicone was nice and easy and I was amazed at how strong the bond was, so that gave me some confidence that I could do it. I know a whole tank is a dofferent story but I hope it works out!


I have a question though about the glass. How thick is it? Maybe you already mentioned that but I missed it. Also, what kind of glass did you ask for or end up getting? The place I am dealing with only has tempered glass but can pre drill the tank for me. Is this a good or bad idea? What else do I need to look for?

I am going to ask these things in the DIY area but I thought I would ask you too.

Great work!

 

[corals b 4 bills]

Iv'e been following your build and your doing a great job, as a Gen. Contractor I have to say that you and your husband are moving right along for not being in the trades, Iv'e always wanted to build my own tank but my wife would have me purchase my own because of the liability factor but I can't wait to see it finished. If you are interested here are some pictues of my set up on my 155, a couple of my CGFI electrical panel, my auto top-off water tank (left) Fuge (middle) and sump on the right, I can get about a week out of my fresh water resivoir before fillups it's run by a JBJ auto top off device hard plummed from pump to sump I might give you some ideas, Good job so far! Mark BTW if you wern't married to....him I would just have to move to Canada because your a build'n/reefer'n woman to my own heart .

 

[michika]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12342871#post12342871 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by justinpsmith
I have a question though about the glass. How thick is it? Maybe you already mentioned that but I missed it. Also, what kind of glass did you ask for or end up getting? The place I am dealing with only has tempered glass but can pre drill the tank for me. Is this a good or bad idea? What else do I need to look for?

I am going to ask these things in the DIY area but I thought I would ask you too.

Great work!

Thank you.

The tank itself, the four sides and the bottom, is 1/2" glass
The overflow is 5/8ths (it was cheap!)
The eurobrace is 5/8ths as well, and it is 4" wide.

All the glass came from Bow Valley here in Calgary. We've paid a total of $430 for all the glass and silicone used. $300 for the tank itself, $100 for the eurobrace and overflow, and $30 of silicone.

 

[michika]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12343045#post12343045 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by corals b 4 bills
Iv'e been following your build and your doing a great job, as a Gen. Contractor I have to say that you and your husband are moving right along for not being in the trades, Iv'e always wanted to build my own tank but my wife would have me purchase my own because of the liability factor but I can't wait to see it finished. If you are interested here are some pictues of my set up on my 155, a couple of my CGFI electrical panel, my auto top-off water tank (left) Fuge (middle) and sump on the right, I can get about a week out of my fresh water resivoir before fillups it's run by a JBJ auto top off device hard plummed from pump to sump I might give you some ideas, Good job so far! Mark BTW if you wern't married to....him I would just have to move to Canada because your a build'n/reefer'n woman to my own heart .

Very nice photos!

Kevin is an Electrician by trade, and between our two families, we know pretty much someone in every trade. It really useful when you need a tool, or some creative thinking.

 

[jnarowe]

corals b 4 bills: Sweet setup and I love the avatar. Very cool! I grew up on the Peninsula and miss it a lot.

 

[corals b 4 bills]

Thank you, I did not build my tank itself but everything else I did, 5 months from now I am upgrading to a 220 inwall with fish room, 100 gallon sump, huge deltec skimmer, sink, you name it. The only reason I'm able to upgrade is because I am adding 400 sq.ft. to the living room-I'm so Stoaked!

 

[jnarowe]

very nice. I would tour as many in-wall systems as you can. There are better skimmers than the Deltec (cough, cough) :lol:

 

[corals b 4 bills]

Such as......hey I'm willing to listen when I'm going to spend $2,000+ for a skimmer.