a Whacked 40B adventure

[Whacked]

I am not too happy with how my stand is turning out.
For one thing, its heavy and makes moving it outside to work on it a major PITA. Once the corner tapped the front glass on my 30g FW, that was a scary moment but thankfully nothing happened.
I designed it in AutoCAD so I know everything will fit and work together

Since I have almost $150 into it, i'd hate to dump everything and start over but right now, thats kind of the mood i'm in. It will push everything back,... and I planned on ordering my lights at the end of the month.

I made the stand for my 30g. used nothing but a hand saw and power drill. It came out pretty good for a first time.

stain color is actually much lighter than the pic shows.

Then when I look at the progress I have on my new 40B stand, yuck!

Maybe i'll just use 3/4" plywood and 1x4 frame. I can probably re-use the base plate and yank some of the wood screws to re-use.

Guess this last week hasnt been to good. On my way to take a mid-term (one I didnt study for, but if I failed, I should probably look for a job in a totally different field) I got rear-ended. Thankfully the only damage was tweaked my bumper a bit and the brackets were hosed. Got that fixed then my Dad called, apparently my older brother landed himself in jail for 6 months (domestic). so i'll probably have to take a trip up to Reno to get his stuff. Not looking for any drama with his ex.

Anyhow, needed to vent a bit.

I'll make up my mind later if I want to continue or scrap everything and start over.

 

[Jacob D]

Wow... is that stand in the pic from your 30g? That kind of design is bombproof... but yeah very heavy! Don't get too down... I just dumped my canopy that was completely built to change the design. It took me 3 weeks to convince myself it was the right thing to do. In the long run you gotta be happy with it if you're going to live with it!

Give it some time to rattle around, you can probably come up with an idea or two to salvage most of it.

 

[BS]

is it done yet is it done yet is it done yet is it done yet

 

[Whacked]

if my calculations are correct,
1x4 spruce pine using 600lb uniform load (over guessimate for a 40B)
will have a sag of 0.02" or about .05mm. not very much sag there. not sure what wood the 1x4 is, I checked with douglas-fir and spruce and the numbers were same or better than pine.

probably take 5-6 8ft lengths of 1x4 to frame it. wont need the plywood then but will have to figure something out for doors.
The canopy is something else.

probably should have done that from the start, then i'd have 2 stands more or less matching,...

gah, better sleep on it before deciding anything

 

[Whacked]

yea, that stand is my 30g. its actually pretty light. I used 1x4 and 1/4" plywood for top/bottom frame.
I wanted a really rustic look so I barely hit the thing with sandpaper. it feels rough but has the look I wanted.

 

[Jacob D]

Oh! I thought those were all 2x timbers in the pic... I was thinking "DAMN!"

 

[Whacked]

OK, I'm sittin pretty scared right now.
A co-worker, who has been here 2 years longer than I have, just informed me as of tomorrow he is unemployed.....

Man that sucks. He has a wife & kids to take care of, i'm just a bachelor.

guess my only saving grace is that when work slows down, I go home. I'd rather have a short paycheck than no paycheck. Been doing that for a couple years now. It helps keep my utilization up. Plus i'm pretty diversified, CAD, GIS, MTSI (ACI and Nuke Gage certified plus can run the more common soils tests in the lab), and more recently, environmental water quality sampling.

Makes me wonder if the company will still reimburst my gas spent to go to school, or if the education benefits will get the axe meaning they will no longer pay my books/tuition.

And the air/feel around the workplace when layoffs are happening...

 

[Whacked]

well,...
just placed my order for the Icecap T5 retrofit kit and a few other bits.
Should get it next week.
I was going order the return pump, but DrF&S is out of stock until late next week. I'll place the order then.

I tore down what I built of the stand. I'll re-use the bottom part. Tonite/this weekend, i'll attach the frame to the base and prep things. Will try to work on mouldings and start in on the canopy.

All that and trying to get my homework done, oh, and a report for my data aquasition class.

 

[Whacked]

Didnt get much done last weekend like I hoped.
Homework too much too long.

I did get the inside stand primered/painted and exterior sanded. I want the outside to be stained.

My T5 lights came in and the bulkheads. I ordered my return pump during lunch so I should get that next week.

Tonite i'm going to double check my canopy drawing and notes and see what progress can be made there.

I really need to take some pictures

 

[Jacob D]

Sounds like it's coming along Ken.

How about some details on your lights and pump? What are you going to be doing for flow inside the tank?

 

[Whacked]

From Reefgeeks I picked up the Icecap 36" 4x39W SLR T5 High-Output Retrofit Kit with 2 ATI Blue plus, a ATI Aquablue and a KZ Fiji Purple. Figure I should get a good color and growth with that setup.

The Return pump is the Quietone 3000. I'll tee the return so some flow into the 'fuge. I'll also split the return but haven't decided if I'll go with a spray bar or 2 nozzles. If I go with the nozzles I'll run them to the front corners and have them spray towards the opposite back corner-ish.

Since I'll have about 500gph (actually less 'cause of the fuge) I'll supplement flow with a pair of koralia's. I have a pair of Knano's in my 20g now and I like the chaotic flow I get with 2. so i'll probably use a pair of K1 or K2 or maybe a mix, depends on final rock placement.

This is still slow going. Time and money are cramping this build. I hope to have everything done and cycled by June. Except the ATO I 'should' have everything I need by mid-month.

I still haven't drilled the tank. I know, I'm slacking. I do have the hole saw tho.

This is spring break week so no classes. Hopefully I can make more progress and post some pics

 

[Whacked]

yesterday I got the QuietOne 3000 I ordered from DF&S.
I went to Lowes today to get some plumbing pieces. Glad I took a bulkhead with me, a 1" bulkhead uses a 1.25" elbow. I'll have to take a fitting from the pump so I can get the right sized pieces next time (forgot it this trip). I also didnt see any reducers. I'll stop by OSH this week and see what they have. I know that they have PVC gate valves. I dont like the ball valves lowes sells. they are just so dang hard to turn.

I made some progress on the stand/canopy and finally, a PICTURE!

canopy pieces leaning against the fence and a shot of the back of the stand. The canopy is the 2nd version. I used 1x10, 1x4 and 1x2. It will sit over the tank and cover the trim. It overlaps by 1.5" but thats on purpose. the stand will have a similar 'lip' and cover the bottom trim.
I'll be running a 2x4 at the back of the stand that the canopy will attach from. This should take some of the weight off the tank. It will also be a second hinge point so I can flip the whole thing up if needed.

Only thing I havent figured out is how to mount the T5's. I thought about running 1x's but that will add to the weight so now i'm thinking of aluminum angle pieces. That wont rust and it wont warp and its light. One of them I can have box piece to put the ballasts on. I thought about drawer sliders and plywood but the smallest sliders lowes had were steel. I'm not that interested in fighting rust. If I can find some that were aluminum or at least powder coated that would be different.

another pic of the front of the stand

It needs 1 more coat of paint inside and the trim/moulding before being stained.
so its kinds almost starting to look like the rendering I posted on the first page.

 

[bbl_nk]

Looking good! What are you going to do when you get all the build stuff out of the way

 

[Whacked]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14813741#post14813741 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bbl_nk
Looking good! What are you going to do when you get all the build stuff out of the way

drink a beer

 

[RiOnRoxXx]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14813762#post14813762 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Whacked
drink a beer

I like the way you think Whacked! Progress is looking good!

 

[Jacob D]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14816343#post14816343 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RiOnRoxXx
I like the way you think Whacked! Progress is looking good!

+1

Getting closer!

 

[Jacob D]

I went to Lowes today to get some plumbing pieces. Glad I took a bulkhead with me, a 1" bulkhead uses a 1.25" elbow.

I just re-read and this struck me. You're not screwing an elbow onto the external (male thread) of the bulkhead are you? If not I'm lost, I've never seen a bulkhead that took a different size pipe.

 

[Whacked]

OK, I have a question for ya'll

Should I drill for the overflow in the middle or offset to one side?

I plan on doing the rock/foam back wall and I plan on the upper corners being bare glass so I can attach a pair of K1 or K2's. No matter how I 'scape the wall with the bulge from the overflow in the middle, it might seem a bit to symmetrical. If I offset I'm thinking of putting the overflow about 12-15" from the corner.

What do you think?

 

[Whacked]

OK not really a update.
Now that school is over one would think that I'll be back building with gusto. but other things popped up. My poor tanks, a bit neglected, apartment is a disaster, nephew was recalled back to active duty, got to spend the next 2 saturdays getting recertified for ACI. Just one thing after another.
So this last week I tackled getting my tanks back in shape. The FW tanks were easy. But yesterday when I cleaned out my 20g SW, I put in a little more water than I usually do. I wasnt too worried, heck it evaps pretty fast but overall no big deal right?
yea right.
Just as I was going to bed I looked over at the tank and there was water all over the floor. My tank was leaking.
OK, I figured maybe it had a pinhole leak up at the top trim. This tank I got used and its been resealed and had the top trim replaced. So I scoop out some water.
Still leaking at the seam. Damn.
I'm tired and want to go to bed dangit, not spend all nite mopping the floors. So I grabbed a nylon cargo cinch I had, wrapped it around the tank just under the top trim, and got it as tight as I dared to. Then I pulled out 5 gallons of water before it finally stopped leaking.
Thankfully it wasnt leaking when I got up this morning.
I do have a 15g tank with some FW cherry shrimp in it. been wanting to get rid of the shrimp for awhile. A co-worker showed intrest but he just moved and not ready for anything yet. If I dont find a home for them they'll be cichlid food.
So i'll use the 15g as a temp tank and dumpster that 20g

On the bright side, the 20g had to be moved before I can fully set up the 40g. Now Ive got some motivation so hopefully I can make some progress. and with the 20g out of the way I can cycle the 40g without worry.

 

[Jacob D]

Sorry to hear about the leak. I've been there myself, it's not a good feeling.

Regarding the overflow box, I think only you can decide that one. It's just a matter of personal taste. Ofsetting it a little won't make a lot of difference functionally.

Now that you have some motivation sounds like it's time to put it to good use