BK's 110 Gallon Build

[Schplitter]

Yeah I am looking to do around 400 lbs and end up buying 40 lbs from the store to seed it. I'm tagging along

I would make that in 8 50 lb batches since the Oyster Shell comes in 50 lb bags. Makes it nice and easy to make your shapes before the salt deteriorates.

Is it cost effective?

You are looking at:

$16.00 for a 50lb bag of Oyster Shell. I'm sure this can be found cheaper.
$ 4.00 for the salt but you can make about 100 lb with it so lets say $2.00 for 50lb
$ 5.00 50lb Cement but you can make about 200 lb with that bag so 1.25 per 50lb

That's $19.25 per 50lb. If you do the sauna you will not have the cost of all the water changes I'm doing so that's really not a factor.

So you are looking at $0.385 per lb. I would say that beats the price of LR.

 

[Schplitter]

I tried to spraypaint the inside of the canopy a few minutes ago to find out that was a HORRIBLE idea. Not only did it not cover well at all but the whole house stinks now. I'll try again tomorrow night with a brush and roller like I was supposed to do it in the 1st place. The 1st attempt at a shortcut has officially gone wrong!

 

[VSpeck]

I made some more progress over the last couple of days. The main part of the canopy is now complete. I still need to cut the openings for the doors, buy and add some trim and paint everything.

This thing will be 7ft tall when it's completed. The tank will be 38" off the floor. The viewing panels will be between 40" and 67". It may be a pain to maintain but at least it will look pretty lol.

Here is a picture of the inside of the canopy. I added a whole bunch of supports to make sure nothing sags over time. I also added silicone/caulk to every single inside corner to make sure no moisture reached the wood. This will all be painted with acrylic pain to make sure it stays solid for years to come.

Looking hood bk. Are you using mdf?

 

[Schplitter]

Looking hood bk. Are you using mdf?

I am. I realize it's not the ideal material to use for this with all the water and all but I wanted a smooth (no wood grain) finish so this was the easiest way to accomplish it. I will coat the MDF with several coats of good quality paint so there really should not be a issue with it. The tank is standing on the lumber structure also so if for some reason the MDF starts to fail the Stand will still hold the tank and I can rebuild the skin.

 

[VSpeck]

I am. I realize it's not the ideal material to use for this with all the water and all but I wanted a smooth (no wood grain) finish so this was the easiest way to accomplish it. I will coat the MDF with several coats of good quality paint so there really should not be a issue with it. The tank is standing on the lumber structure also so if for some reason the MDF starts to fail the Stand will still hold the tank and I can rebuild the skin.

If you start to see any fuzz at all in the future recoat with paint again. It will take in water and expand aroun the edges wherever water hits it. I would use a wipe on poly or other durable material on all the cut or routed edges before you paint.. I had a cap fall apart and start dropping chunks of fuzz in the tank and cause me problems. I don't want to be a downer just trying to give you a warning ahead of time.

 

[smoothdog]

This stuff is a little pricey but will definitely seal that MDF completely. 3 quarts put a thick coat on both levels of my 8' x 2.5' frag tank/sump stand as well as the inside and outside of the support structure. If you spread it thin I think you could coat the entire inside and seal the edges of your stand/hood with a quart. I only put mine on thick to protect against dings.

http://www.sanitred.com/shop/permaflex.html

 

[Schplitter]

If you start to see any fuzz at all in the future recoat with paint again. It will take in water and expand aroun the edges wherever water hits it. I would use a wipe on poly or other durable material on all the cut or routed edges before you paint.. I had a cap fall apart and start dropping chunks of fuzz in the tank and cause me problems. I don't want to be a downer just trying to give you a warning ahead of time.

I appreciate the input. It's better to be safe and spend that extra 5 minutes than to have to rebuild this thing in a couple of years.

This stuff is a little pricey but will definitely seal that MDF completely. 3 quarts put a thick coat on both levels of my 8' x 2.5' frag tank/sump stand as well as the inside and outside of the support structure. If you spread it thin I think you could coat the entire inside and seal the edges of your stand/hood with a quart. I only put mine on thick to protect against dings.

http://www.sanitred.com/shop/permaflex.html

Thank you. I just purchased one gallon. That should do it for the inside for sure and give me some extra for future fun.

 

[Reeferhead]

Very cool BK but I find it odd that your going with a glass tank and a glass sump. If it was anyone else on this board I would say, "Right on, you made the right decision, glass is so much easier to maintain, your going to love it." With you though... well... it just seems wrong! :lol:

 

[rackman]

umm... can you change your avatar back please:lol2:

 

[Reeferhead]

umm... can you change your avatar back please:lol2:

No kidding :lol:

 

[Schplitter]

Very cool BK but I find it odd that your going with a glass tank and a glass sump. If it was anyone else on this board I would say, "Right on, you made the right decision, glass is so much easier to maintain, your going to love it." With you though... well... it just seems wrong! :lol:

Ha ha I know it felt wrong but it just made better sense to just go with stock equipment after the last tank I built and sold before I even had a chance to take pictures of it. The original plan was to build the "swoopy" tank again but this is just easier. I still have plans to build the 12-16 foot tank in the basement once we finish it. That's going to be acrylic for sure. Think of this as my "frag tank "

 

[VSpeck]

umm... Can you change your avatar back please:lol2:

+23

 

[Schplitter]

+23

No kidding :lol:

umm... can you change your avatar back please:lol2:

Sorry guys. I got some weird looks at the office and at home. I figured it was a better choice to change it to something safe before I get fired or have to sleep on the couch lol

 

[Schplitter]

While I'm waiting for the super paint I cut out the holes for the doors.

 

[smoothdog]

Looks good! You're movin' right along. Do yourself a favor, if you want to avoid the stink eye from the wife, paint it in the garage. :lol: It will cure at extremely low temperatures, just store the pail inside until you are ready to mix and use it, so it isn't too thick to mix and spread. I'd seriously consider getting a cheap throw away squeegee to spread it too. It's actually a recommended way from the manufacturer and if I had it to do again, that's what I'd do.

 

[Schplitter]

Looks good! You're movin' right along. Do yourself a favor, if you want to avoid the stink eye from the wife, paint it in the garage. :lol: It will cure at extremely low temperatures, just store the pail inside until you are ready to mix and use it, so it isn't too thick to mix and spread. I'd seriously consider getting a cheap throw away squeegee to spread it too. It's actually a recommended way from the manufacturer and if I had it to do again, that's what I'd do.

Does it really stink that bad? I figured I was safe in the basement. I guess I can always fire up the heater in the garage if it gets too cold.

I guess this stuff is like very thick paint? I'm going to have to figure out how to keep it off the front of the cabinet since there is probably no way to make sure it looks nice and flat without runs.

 

[dbuesking]

I painted mine in place and never had to much smell up stairs.:spin2: It is a great product. It was the best thing I could have used for waterproofing all my wood. I even used it on the unistrut bracing on my stand. I mixed 3 different batches. Mix as much as you think u will need for the job you are doing and use a throw away brush and pan. you will be glad you did.

 

[Schplitter]

Still waiting for the super paint so it was time to add some detail to the doors. Very bad picture but it looks nice in person.

I also painted then outside of the hood with some primer and white latex paint. I think it turned out pretty good. Still missing the trim...

 

[Schplitter]

The super paint arrived. Thanks smoothdog for suggesting it and telling me how to use it. This stuff is nasty sticky but it's like a plastic coating. Reminds me of the epoxy coating you can buy at HD for your garage floor.

The inside of the stand is coated with the super paint and the outside was painted with four coats of high quality semi gloss latex paint. I can sink this thing in the ocean and fish it out without damage to the wood.

 

[smoothdog]

That stuff is awesome isn't it!? Thank Nook, he's the one that I found out about it from.