Another Canadian Reef! 600 gallon Penninsula!

[Cougarman]

Oh well I am setting up a 510 gallon tank, do you think 1/8 thick steel would work and 1x1 tubes?

The tubes on my stand are 3/16 and typically Lukas over engineers things. I don't know enough about the material to answer whether 1/8th at 1 x 1 would suffice.

My previous tank was a commercially produced 300 gallon marineland. The stand literally had six 3/4 inch plywood supports, about 6 inches in width, located around the perimeter, and it held over 3000 lbs.

 

[Cougarman]

I really like the dry box idea....I may have to borrow.

Subscribed!

I agree the dry box is a neat idea. we will see how well it turns out.

 

[Cougarman]

Cougarman

Nice to see you putting a new system together again!

I'm looking forward to seeing it come together!

Thanks Bax. Good tohear from you. Glad to see you're still surfing the large tanks forum.

Jared

 

[Cougarman]

So in preparation for the stand being delivered, I had a piece of 3/4 inch maple plywood cut. I feel more comfortable with an extra 3/4 inches of plywood under the stand for strength purposes. I also put together a sheet of commercial grade vinyl flooring and cut it to fit the stand. The vinyl is designed for garage floors and made to park your car on. It is very tough stuff waterproof and can be cleaned easily.

 

[fixx198]

Understood, maybe consider having 4 MP60's Two on each side, one on top and the other one on the bottom, they have enough strength to push water that far.

Good luck, will keep following along.

Have you considered a close loop system. You can install bulk heads in your dry chambers and plumb jets to the far end off the tank useing you rock scape to hide the plumbing. This would be less expensive and would give better control of the water flow.

PS nice looking design.
steve

 

[Cougarman]

Have you considered a close loop system. You can install bulk heads in your dry chambers and plumb jets to the far end off the tank useing you rock scape to hide the plumbing. This would be less expensive and would give better control of the water flow.

PS nice looking design.
steve

No this tank will have no closed loops. Just powerheads. The theme of the build is simplicity and reliability. I should be able to achieve excellent flow with strong power heads, wave boxes and a controller. All of which I own already.

 

[tntneon]

Nice build Cougarman ,

What is the function of the holes in the eurobrancing ?

Funny I'm also in the phase of building the stand for my 150 G , and i saw you welding , i have to say you look alot like my father yesterday (seen from behind) , it's funny but not a joke, you realy look like him :lmao:

greetingzz tntneon

 

[Cougarman]

Nice build Cougarman ,

What is the function of the holes in the eurobrancing ?

Funny I'm also in the phase of building the stand for my 150 G , and i saw you welding , i have to say you look alot like my father yesterday (seen from behind) , it's funny but not a joke, you realy look like him :lmao:

greetingzz tntneon

Thanks tntneon. Your father must be a goodlooking man!! Actually it's not me welding the tank. I think it's Lukas's brother or father.

There are no holes in the eurobracing. The diagram I sketched actually doesnt have the eurobracing. The tank will be built with 3-4 inch eurobracing to help prevent watersplash onto the sides. The one thing I hate the most is cleaning salt off the outside surface of the glass. I've got some active fish and they love to splash.

 

[tntneon]

.. The one thing I hate the most is cleaning salt off the outside surface of the glass....

I know the feeling , if you try to wipe it off it's like you just greased the front glass :uzi:

greetingzz tntneon

 

[janey]

WOW, I will be following ..

 

[Cougarman]

WOW, I will be following ..

Glad to have you onboard janey

 

[Cougarman]

Today Lukas delivered the stand..... It was huge and heavy. Somehow three of us were able to drag it inside the house and position it. We put a 1/2 inch layer of foam under the stand to compensate for any discrepancies against the vinyl and wood. A layer of 1/2 inch plywood with another layer of foam will sit between the stand and the future tank.

For the finished tank I wanted to have the middle to upper 1/3 of the viewing sides at eye level, so we made the stand 3 feet tall. With 2-3 inches of plywood and foam, and a 32 inch tank, it should work out just right.

Next we're going to work on supporting the floor and creating a path for the plumbing. The most difficult part will be re-assuring my wife the finished project will look much nicer.

 

[dahenley]

im a tall guy, and to see how tall that stand is.... makes me cry..... (i wish my current tank were that high off the ground.....)
Good Luck.

(i noticed in the picture, the plywood and the foam is a few inches short in second to last picture. are you going to have to cut 2 pieces to make it work, or is it just shifted in that picture?)

 

[Cougarman]

im a tall guy, and to see how tall that stand is.... makes me cry..... (i wish my current tank were that high off the ground.....)
Good Luck.

(i noticed in the picture, the plywood and the foam is a few inches short in second to last picture. are you going to have to cut 2 pieces to make it work, or is it just shifted in that picture?)

Ya one of the things I wanted to make sure is that this tank was high enough that I didn't have to bend my knees to look through it.

The piece of foam is 8 x 4 the stand is 8.5 x 3.5. We will cut the sheet then use the excess for the extra 6 inches needed.

 

[dahenley]

that is fine for the Foam, but i wouldnt do it for the Ply top.....
i would buy 2 sheets, cut them, and make them seam in the middle over the square tubing center brace.
i know there isnt a lot of pressure on that seam, but i would rather there be good support through-out the sheet, and with the seam being over the brace, it just ensures it...

thats just my opinion though..

 

[Vanpire]

What size steel did you use for your stand?

 

[explor3r]

This is going to be a nice build, I will be tagging along for progress, love the tank size:fish1:

 

[Cougarman]

that is fine for the Foam, but i wouldnt do it for the Ply top.....
i would buy 2 sheets, cut them, and make them seam in the middle over the square tubing center brace.
i know there isnt a lot of pressure on that seam, but i would rather there be good support through-out the sheet, and with the seam being over the brace, it just ensures it...

thats just my opinion though..

Thanks dahenley. For some reason I'd prefer the seam of the foam in the middle too, but when I think about it it shouldn't matter because there will be plywood under the foam to support it no matter where the seam is.

What size steel did you use for your stand?

The steel is 3\16 gauge with 2 x 2 rails and 2 x 3 posts.

This is going to be a nice build, I will be tagging along for progress, love the tank size:fish1:

Welcome explor3r!

 

[dahenley]

I ment I would buy 2 sheets of plywood and make the seam in the middle.

As you said. The foam doesn't matter

 

[pciscott]

I was able to find a building material place that has 4' x 10' sheets of Plywood so you can do it without a seem. Tank is going to be nice and I like the height as well. Good luck with your build, I will be keeping an eye on as well.