Bryan,
The chamfered (bevel) edge refers to the header beam's corner that I removed during the construction. Basically, picture the lower corner that is closest to the tank top having been cut off at a 45-degree angle. This allows more space next to the front-top of the tank and helps to prevent shadows. Here's a photo that shows what I am attempting to describe. It's the white area (wood sealer) at the top of the opening...
I have eleven of the LED's across my tank. This seems to be a good amount as the light is evenly dispersed and when at full moon level, the quantity of light is just right... in my opinion.
Marc,
Thank you very much. A friend and I had been kicking around a few ideas such as an acrylic frame that we would "string" just like a tennis racket.

Ultimately, I felt the acrylic would bend and flex too much so I decided on the steel frame instead.
AcroSteve,
The CA electricity costs definitely makes you decide just how dedicated you are at keeping a reef tank. There have been several who felt the cost was too extreme and either downsized or left the hobby completely. It's completely understandable. Just to give the rest of you an idea of how crazy this gets here, our highest summertime bill was just a few dollars shy of $1000.
Lunchbucket,
My friend actually picked the mesh up from a gentleman here on RC. I believe it came from some type of construction but I'm not sure just what that is. I did find something very similar, if not exact, that is used for bird control. Here's a link to a supplier (note that their clear type is actually NOT UV treated, despite what their site proclaims)...
http://www.usnetting.com/HTML/bird-netting.html
paeSona,
Thank you very much.
bulkhead,
Thanks and
thanks.
Joseph