54 Corner with lots of DIY

[tundra1000]

Sorry for the lapse in posting. I will take a few pics to show anything not already done and also to explain my present predicament. The blue is because the family jointed decided it would look very "oceanic" and we wanted something different. All the curved surfaces are a 3/8" bendable plywood. This is a 5 layer ply with the grain running the same direction on all layers. There is no steaming involved. The trim is a composite material made to be bent.

-Matt

 

[icechimpee]

Amazing skills you got there Matt.

Keep us posted on how it's doing.

 

[girlygears13]

My hubby is a carpenter and is very adamant about building in the round being a PITA. Good work, do you have any kind of livestock list going?

 

[bpcardona]

Great build.... there are tons of ideas running a muck in my head now. I love the way you constructed the lid.


Also a gratuitous link to my build. LOL

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2139127

 

[tundra1000]

This build is coming back to life

This build is coming back to life

So it has been a long time...

Shortly after my last posting we knew we were going to be moving so the build was put on a hold. A couple very positive things have come out of this though. My young family is now the proud owner of our first home up in the lakes region of New Hampshire. My third child and my first son was also born this past August. Needless to say, the aquarium hobby took a back seat in 2012.

Back to reefing...
The new home has afforded me the room and the longevity I have been waiting for. I have bought a 180gl aquarium along with a 75gl for a refugium. I need to pick up another 75gl for the sump. To go with this I purchased a Reeflo Hammerhead and 2 Lumen Max II with a dual galaxy 250watt ballast and 250watt radium bulbs. I am continually purchasing more equipment and hope to be at a point soon that it will be worth making a new thread for that build but I do expect it will take most of this year to be ready for water. The basement sump room alone is a lot of time.

Which brings me to my reason for posting here. We have decided to finish the 54 corner build since it is almost ready and will allow us to have an established tank before the 180 is complete. Maybe I'll transfer over or maybe I'll keep both tanks, time will tell.

A funny thing happened when the stand was put into the room in the new house. My wife said the same thing many of you did about the color. The blue had to go. I chuckle because she picked it out and I just didn't argue. So here it is now. The hood is being painted and retrofitted to fit one of the lumenmax II.

As a recap, a herbie style overflow:

 

[tundra1000]

Changes inside the stand

Changes inside the stand

I made a few changes inside the stand. I changed direction of the ten gallon sump and because of that I had to rip out the electrical chase. Not sure how I am going to proceed with electrical organization. I may just mount the dj strip on the back of the stand so I can reach between the wall and stand and flip switches. That would keep all connections away from the moisture.
Also. I added a 5gl fuge which will hold some rubble and chaeto. The ATO tank has the cover which can be seen in the pics. You can also see below the manifold that directs flow to the fuge (left side) and dt on the right. Added some extra Ts for future reactors if I need them.

 

[tundra1000]

So that is all for new pics right now. I hope the new stand color gets a better reaction than the first one. I would really appreciate any insight on a return pump and skimmer. I am very tight on space and am curious about the new Cadlights pipeless skimmer, also for about half the price the SC 301 on ebay seems to be well liked for the money. For the return I really have no thoughts other than I don't want to spend more than I have to. I need 5 ft of head plus elbows and would like around 150gl an hour. Any thoughts? I hope to finish up fuge plumbing and return line this week so I am open to any suggestions.

Thanks for taking the time to read,
-Matt

 

[Laddy]

Since you have very limited space, I'm sure your thoughts are on a submersible pump; ehiem, tunze on the top end, and rio on the lighter side. I think if I were you I'd give the Reeflo Blowhole 850 a shot......you could mount it above the return portion of the sump inline.......its not exactly cheap, but I never really understood setting up systems in excess of a thousand dollars only to really have a $40 pump standing watch when you're off at work.

Anyway, that's my thoughts.

 

[cubalz]

Nice job on the project. The new color looks way better than the old. Much classier...

 

[widmer]

Gosh I really liked the solid blue. Maybe she would have liked it more if it were a little darker shade. Either way, excellent craftsmanship :thumbsup:

 

[tundra1000]

250 watt Radium!

250 watt Radium!

Got some done today. The Lumenmax II is mounted in the hood. I am definitely going to need to do some heat management. I am thinking a 4 inch fan on each side bringing air in and then two going out through the top close to the middle so the air rushes up past the Lumenmax and out. Would love some thoughts on this? Despite the heat I have to say the color and brightness look great. I can't wait to see the effect with some water and life in the tank.

Some pics:

 

[tundra1000]

Gosh I really liked the solid blue. Maybe she would have liked it more if it were a little darker shade. Either way, excellent craftsmanship :thumbsup:

Yeah, I could have gone either way but the wife gets the call on the paint color. I can deal with that because I get the call on whats inside and whats underneath so can't complain. She actually encouraged the 180 build:dance: so I am not going to make waves. Thanks for stopping by. I've enjoyed some of your projects.

-Matt

 

[tundra1000]

Return Plumbing

Return Plumbing

Since you have very limited space, I'm sure your thoughts are on a submersible pump; ehiem, tunze on the top end, and rio on the lighter side. I think if I were you I'd give the Reeflo Blowhole 850 a shot......you could mount it above the return portion of the sump inline.......its not exactly cheap, but I never really understood setting up systems in excess of a thousand dollars only to really have a $40 pump standing watch when you're off at work.

Anyway, that's my thoughts.

Laddy,

After your post I looked into the Blowhole and am quite intrigued. I have puzzled over it though and I am not sure how I could get it work without some major changes. I am having a hard time picturing it above the sump and having it overcome the initial suction. Do you have any experience with them? I am certainly intrigued.

Other than possibly coming up with a way to use the Blowhole I am between the Sicce Syncra 3.0 or the Tunze 1073-040. Any thoughts?

Once last update. The manifold shown in the above picture is not going to work. Some how I got the idea that a 1/2 inch return line would work good. I have since drastically changed my mind. I am going to run 1" straight up with some reducing t's inline for feeding the fuge and 2 reactors.

-Matt

 

[tundra1000]

Finally an update!

Finally an update!

I have been very busy with school and work so this has gone much slower than I would like, but finally...

Ordered and received some of the final pieces to the puzzle:

Also completed the plumbing:

My clownfish will have to wait a bit longer for the upgrade as I do not want them to be the first inhabitants of the 54.

The tank has been undergoing tap water flow test for the last 24 hours and so far I am quite pleased. I will be recording a video tour later today as it will be easier for me to translate my thoughts on the system to you. This is important to me because if anyone has thoughts or recommendations I want to make needed changes prior to filling with salt water.

Thanks,
Matt

 

[tundra1000]

A few more..

-Matt

 

[owenspackman]

Really great work with the stand Matt. Put my amateur skills to shame!

I need those hinges you've used, where did you get them from and do you know what they're called? I also got the same DJ power unit as you for my stand! Happy with it?

 

[tundra1000]

Hinges

Hinges

Really great work with the stand Matt. Put my amateur skills to shame!

I need those hinges you've used, where did you get them from and do you know what they're called? I also got the same DJ power unit as you for my stand! Happy with it?

The hinges are for kitchen cabinets. These are meant for a full overlay door which provides the extra clearance I needed. I have installed more kitchens than I can count and my father owns a kitchen design and install company so I pulled these out of the shop. They are stainless steel to boot. Give me the width of your opening and then the width of your doors and I can help you pick the right hinges. Rockler also has some good info that might help.

http://www.rockler.com/articles/understanding-hinges.cfm

-Matt

 

[tundra1000]

Short Tank Tour

Short Tank Tour

Short vid of the setup.

Any suggestions are welcome as I do not want to do major changes after saltwater is added. I need to fix the fuge drain so it is a little quieter. I am thinking just make it a durso. I am also not sure what to do for heat. I have a temp heater I will throw in the dt but I would like to find something compact enough to put in the sump. Possibly 2 small heaters? Only hardware left is to mount the Lumenmax II, build the ATO, and add the BRS carbon/gfo reactor.

Appreciate all input,
-Matt


<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mwdQtD4o3Bs?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[owenspackman]

Short vid of the setup.

Any suggestions are welcome as I do not want to do major changes after saltwater is added. I need to fix the fuge drain so it is a little quieter. I am thinking just make it a durso. I am also not sure what to do for heat. I have a temp heater I will throw in the dt but I would like to find something compact enough to put in the sump. Possibly 2 small heaters? Only hardware left is to mount the Lumenmax II, build the ATO, and add the BRS carbon/gfo reactor.

Appreciate all input,
-Matt

Like the video Matt. It's a neat little set up and you've done well to get so much inside the cabinet. Whats your plan for lighting the fuge?

 

[sp0k]

good job on that build...nice info on the vid......