Build Thread: TKERacer619's 600gal SPS Tank

[tkeracer619]

Man oh man.. A visit is due for me in the next couple of weeks! Everything looks great... FRP is such a good idea, there won't be any salt spray on the walls! Keep the updates rolling.

Thanks, you're welcome any time.

I'm tagging along from here. Read through everything and you're doing great work! Looking forward to the progress.

Thanks! After looking at your build thread I thought to myself "what if I take down the north wall and take over the gfs office" and quickly reminded myself that was part of the deal :lol: she gets an office, I get a fish room . Now that I am 90% uninjured and healthy there can hopefully be some good progress over the next two months.

I like the size of your room. Have you thought about lighting yet? I know I am going to try and have the ability to have at least some fixtures I can turn on separately that are fairly bright and white as a secondary light to regular lighting. You know what reading color charts can be like in low light.

Thanks, I wish I had a few more feet but will take what I can get! It's just enough to fit everything. The single light in the middle is pretty bright with the LED bulbs I have but I am also going to install a light above the sink. I'm going to get a sheet of plastic or similar to put over the sink to use as a fraging and testing station so the light above the sink should do the trick. I have a ton of shop lights I could use if turns out I need more lighting.

 

[VanJuKy]

Thanks, I wish I had a few more feet but will take what I can get! It's just enough to fit everything. The single light in the middle is pretty bright with the LED bulbs I have but I am also going to install a light above the sink. I'm going to get a sheet of plastic or similar to put over the sink to use as a fraging and testing station so the light above the sink should do the trick. I have a ton of shop lights I could use if turns out I need more lighting.

I think half my problem is middle aged eyes.:headwally:
I also see that another wife that got a new washer and dryer out of a build! Happy wife, happy something, or something like that. :lmao:

 

[cdrewferd]

Wow, I just found this and can't wait to see this setup. I'm working on setting up my meager 58g tank, and those stands look awesome. I'm also in Westminster, let me know if you need a hand with anything.

 

[tkeracer619]

Wow, I just found this and can't wait to see this setup. I'm working on setting up my meager 58g tank, and those stands look awesome. I'm also in Westminster, let me know if you need a hand with anything.

Thanks! If you're volunteering I am sure we can find something to do, getting the sand into this beast is coming up soon :lol:

 

[tkeracer619]

They said it couldn't be done...

They said it couldn't be done...

So this is something I haven't talked much about. When I really got to cleaning the tank I discovered the glass was heavily damaged from coralline etching. For those not familiar it happens when coralline algae is left on the glass too long. Not exactly sure why it happens but it happens and the damage while not that deep into the surface permanently scars it. I don't know how I missed it when I purchased the tank but since I knew they were there... it was going to drive me bonkers. It wasn't just a few spots, it was hundreds. Most were dime sized but many were quarter sized.

They looked like this. A real eye sore. Most of this stuff is covered up once wet but I knew it would be a distraction.

I purchased many different things to try and polish them out. High quality Cerium oxide worked but it was super tedious and caused distortion (a lensing effect). I spent countless hours working on it and got to a point of frustration that wouldn't let me continue. Either I had to find someone who could repair it, replace the panes, ignore it, or scrap and replace the tank. I called companies left and right eventually learning to leave out the fact that it was an aquarium. No luck. Then I found a company called GlassRenu, the website feels a bit like an infomercial, but I figured I had nothing to lose by contacting one of their technicians, there was only one in Colorado. Jim @ Castlewood Glass Repair. After a long discussion we setup an appointment and he took a stab at it. GlassRenu actually uses proprietary sanding disks and essentially resurfaces the glass.

After a full days work he had done the left side and half of the right side. He wanted me to fill it and see what it looked like with water. It looks great!

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4BUtnJKCc7U" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

He came back a few weeks later (after forgetting what a royal pita it is to do this inside a box :lol and finished the right side and the front pane.

Here is the result!

Let me tell you, after years and years of seeing people trying to fix this issue on glass aquariums only to accept that it cannot be done. It can be done! I must warn you, it isn't cheap. Most tanks you would be better off scrapping. But if you are stuck in a situation like me, this does work, just be prepared to pay for it. Jim is one hard working dude and it took him 16 hours to get it done. This was awesome and totally worth it! Minus a few scuffs that will be hidden by sand the thing looks brand new!

My to do list is getting shorter! We're almost there!!!

 

[JonezNReef]

Wow that looks awesome.
I hate the fact that my tank has this on the back side but knowing I will upgrade again one year makes it easy to live with. With a tank that size I would probably opt to get the glass done like that too.

 

[tkeracer619]

Yeah, I'm pleased with the results, he did an incredible job! I left the back alone since I'm not going to scrape it and it will just get covered in coralline anyways.

 

[balz3352]

Awesome to know this is an option especially in CO. Since im here too!

 

[WLachnit]

Very cool. Is your tank low iron glass or starphire? Or regular glass?

 

[tkeracer619]

Awesome to know this is an option especially in CO. Since im here too!

He wasn't too sure about climbing into another tank but... given enough time he may forget how bad it sucks to sit like that for 8 hours a day :lol: Hard working dude! Outside scratches are a breeze.

Very cool. Is your tank low iron glass or starphire? Or regular glass?

It's a Miracles aquarium with viewing panes made from 3/4" Starphire.

 

[jimmy n]

Awesome build TK. Tank is huge! Following.

 

[tkeracer619]

Awesome build TK. Tank is huge! Following.

Thanks and welcome aboard!

The chore this weekend is plumbing and you guys get to see how :crazy1: this plumbing job is going to be :lol:

 

[BigBlueTang]

Thanks and welcome aboard!

The chore this weekend is plumbing and you guys get to see how :crazy1: this plumbing job is going to be :lol:

Sounds fun


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[tkeracer619]

Sounds fun


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Sounds like... you're volunteering. See you around 9-9:30 tomorrow morning :wave:

 

[tkeracer619]

Plumbing Obstacle Number One!

Plumbing Obstacle Number One!

This doorway...

This door is in the way. I thought about moving it to the left side of the tank but the stairs are made of concrete. and I would have had to clean out my garage and move all kinds of stuff. I don't want to open that can of worms right now. Going to have to go around this...

I stripped the stone and wood off of the stairs, cleaned them up, and cut a chunk of drywall out.

The plan is to run the piping over the top step and extend the stairs out. They aren't equal drops per step so I plan on fixing that as well. I need to run three 1.5" and one 2" schedule 40 pvc pipes.

Started cutting materials... I chose the same ply I made the BTA and QT racks from. 3/4 11 layer ply.

The first step is to anchor some plywood strips to the back of the concrete. Since the concrete isn't very flat I made temporary jigs and had my GF stand on them to set the strip so the top of the board was secure as well as positioned lower the same distance as the thickness of the ply. I then used a hammer drill to drill the holes for the anchors.

Repeat for the bottom step.

After vacuuming and wiping off the concrete I used a wood/concrete construction adhesive on the backs of the strips and 5 minute two part epoxy in the holes.

I used 3/16" x 2-1/4" TapCon Concrete Screws to anchor the strips to the concrete. I used my impact driver to shoot them in.

The strips are secured... time for a break.

 

[sirreal63]

Awesome stuff Brother! I am amazed that they managed to clean up glass, super amazed they were able to do it to star fire glass, being that is a little softer and harder to polish. Your painting skills are far superior to mine.

Love the shoes, do you wear them often?

 

[tkeracer619]

Plumbing Obstacle Number One!... Part Two.

Plumbing Obstacle Number One!... Part Two.

I didn't actually take a break... I worked on this solid from 10am to about 6:45pm. I'm exhausted and also fighting a sinus infection... been sick for 3 weeks :thumbdown.

I cut out the two boards to be used for the top step. Secured the two boards together with some dewalt bar clamps. Glued, screwed, and then pocket screwed from the back side. I love Kreg pocket screws but in a application like this it is nice to screw from the other side, the Kregs like to move around on the final tighten, and screwing from the other side keeps them from moving. It's overkill but only took a few more minutes so imo it's worth it.

I used the same construction concrete on the edge that will be in contact with the top of the bottom step and wood glue on the edge of the top strip.

Put the top step in place and then used screws to secure it to the strip.

Check it out, it holds the bundle of pipes!

Repeat for the bottom step but since no plumbing is needed to go through the bottom step it got square edge reinforcements.

I used a Dovetail Saw to trim the baseboard to the right length.

I installed the adhesives on this step, put the stair into place, and fired screws into the anchored strip. The concrete isn't very even so I took up the gaps with some wood shims.

I marked the shims then pulled them out, smeared the construction adhesive on them, and put them back into place. They're strong as an ox. I'll finish them with the same 3/4" hardwood that is in the rest of the house. The bottom step will get a sheet of 1/2" subfloor and the top will get a 1/4" sheet of subfloor.

 

[tkeracer619]

Awesome stuff Brother! I am amazed that they managed to clean up glass, super amazed they were able to do it to star fire glass, being that is a little softer and harder to polish. Your painting skills are far superior to mine.

Love the shoes, do you wear them often?

:lol: Nice one, that's my girlfriend, she wasn't excited to make her debut in the thread but I told her it was past due :love1:. One step at a time

Thanks Jack! I was about to give up hope with the glass, it really is huge! It took him about 4 hours to get his technique honed in but never stopped cursing the glass. He talked to the manufacturer of the grinding disks and they hadn't really had much experience with it. It was a lot of work to avoid swirls on the outer areas. There are some left but I told him not to worry about it. Not a new tank, going to get scratched, and they are nothing compared to the etches.

My house has taken roughly 9 to 11 coats to cover up the high gloss dark forest greens and barbie pinks :lol:. I've had a lot of practice

 

[BigBlueTang]

Eh. Looks alright I guess.











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[tkeracer619]

Eh. Looks alright I guess.











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Obstacle two should pose another challenge! Should be fun!