Coral Tank from Canada (1350gal Display Tank)

[Milky3]

nineball just read the entire thread this is going to be an incredible build!!!, looking forward to seeing the progression of your tank in the days to follow simply outstanding.

 

[swissgaurd]

Hi Vic...as the guy who put the floor together, allow me to clarify Peter's description of the floor. We put down a floor strength dimple board (comes in a large roll, look like the membrane they put on the outside of a foundation), then two layers of 1/2" plywood, staggered the joints and reversed the direction on the second layer. Each piece was about a 1/8" apart and then we screwed them together with lots of 1" floor screws. The hardwood was nailed down with a layer of wax paper between the hardwood and plywood. (A flooring company put this down, sanded it and applied three coats of finish).

Hope that helps

John

hi john
thanks.
i was looking for the membrane in the picture,sounds and looks like a good solid subfloor,the membrane will help keep any moisture away from the wood.

thanks
vic

 

[swissgaurd]

I'm the Project Manager for Peter and was wondering if anyone has a suggestion for what type of finish we should use on the panels we will be installing above the tank that will hide the lights and tank top. The wood will be maple and we are thinking of a marine grade clear spar finish. The other wood in the bar area is just finished with a semi-gloss latex polyurethane. My concern, if valid, is about future off-gassing. I don't think the marine grade would off-gas after it is cured, but thought I would ask the question.

John

john
the marine grade spar varnish works really well around water.
ive put it on a few stands,also have framework around my inwall tank,with the semigloss marine spar with no ill effects on oak,i would recommend staining the wood first before applying the spar varnish.also ive had the tankwater up to 82 degrees and nothing happened to varnish.
i love this stuff.ive even put it on my cedar garage door and my picnic table

vic

 

[mr.wilson]

I'm the Project Manager for Peter and was wondering if anyone has a suggestion for what type of finish we should use on the panels we will be installing above the tank that will hide the lights and tank top. The wood will be maple and we are thinking of a marine grade clear spar finish. The other wood in the bar area is just finished with a semi-gloss latex polyurethane. My concern, if valid, is about future off-gassing. I don't think the marine grade would off-gas after it is cured, but thought I would ask the question.

John

Great tank, and great build thread Peter. Thanks for putting in the extra effort to document everything.

I would avoid a spar varnish (tung or linseed oil & polymer-based) and use an epoxy (fibreglass) like the West System.
http://westsystem.com/ss/
I deal with these guys because they are local.
http://webhome.idirect.com/~edd/smith.html
If you are buying a lot of it, then you can buy it here.
www.compositescanada.com

Shawn

 

[stevek480]

Hi Peter,

I've been following since you came over from the NTTH thread and I haven't posted in this one yet, but I must say the progress you've shown so far is astounding! Your house and tank are truly amazing and this is really the stuff dreams are made of. I've read Chingchai's thread as well but I read a majority of the thread after it took place, which is good but I think you do lose something along the way. I am excited to be a part of this from the beginning.

Steve

 

[plyr58]

Thanks Drew, I don't think you realize just how effectively and positively you close down endless basement conversations on some of these topics. Your feedback is both timely and welcome.

If I may.........what about the 'gunk' that comes from the automatic head cleaner on my skimmer? John from DQI has nicknamed it 'Robbie the Robot' from Lost in space!

Peter

PS. my plan is to publish the SOP for the ongoing maintenance in this thread for approval from the thread members before it gets nailed to the elevator door.

Thanks for the compliment. Over the years you run into all sorts of odd situations and spend a lot of time trying to figure out what you believe is the best solution. Since I used to often install and maintain these show aquariums in people's homes and business that knew very little about the system other than that they were very pretty, I spent a lot of time on redundancy, automation, and general cleanliness. No sense in re-inventing the wheel if it has worked before, though there is always more than 1 correct answer to these sorts of questions.

Anyways, I have used a 1:3 or 1:5 (can't remember which) mixture of vinegar and water on drains dedicated to skimmer output before. I would do this once every 2-3 weeks depending on the skunk-iness of the skimmate. In one case we had a particularly bad problem with the smell coming from the skimmer drain. The customer was very unhappy so we scouted online and somewhere found an electronic valve (like this one though I don't remember the exact one we used) which we plumbed to a water line and let the controller turn the water on for 20 seconds once every 3 to 4 hours. That, combined with the vinegar treatment every other week, kept things clean and knocked any smell right out.

Also a bag of carbon over any drain vents can help with the smell somewhat as well.

 

[plyr58]

By the way, 20 seconds every 3 or 4 hours was waaaay overkill, but his wife wasn't the big fan of the tank that he was and any possible smell she sensed set her off on him, so running it that often was more to keep her from bothering him than anything to do with the necessity of keeping the drain line cleaned out. I imagine that once or twice a day would have been more than sufficient.

 

[mr.wilson]

Set up a solenoid and a timer to run hot water down the drain once a day for a minute or so. Your source water RO/DI waste water should be directed down the same drain to keep the odour below the trap in the drain.

 

[SunnyX]

Most impressive! :thumbsup: I cant wait to see what you do with the aquarium.

 

[northernreefer0]

northernreefer, we do have medication for that you know. At least in Canada............ooops! Then again, if you are truly Canadian you may not fully appreciate the nuance...........Australians do, Australians understand crazy real well.

Peter

Your funny Peter... I would love to see the tank when completed. Any plans on making a section of crazy Aussie Acans??

 

[356ray]

I came across your thread today and just finished reading it from the start. I am so impressed with not only what you have been able to complete but also your attitude to the reef community. I have finished building a house and have included a space for an in wall tank and a very small fish room. I can only hope that when I begin my tank build that is half as good as yours. Thank you for providing much inspiration and sharing your knowledge.

Ray

 

[brian@sen]

For the folks who have been hiding behind the curtains just watching please feel free to step out and say hi.

Hi.

 

[john baker]

Hi nineball you have obviously have planned this build down to the last coat of varnish. i am Australian and probably a lot crazy, my planned build is only going to be a 500 gallon build but with a large dedicated fish room under our house. fish room is finished only. It is interesting to watch and read about your build. We have another build going on in our suburb http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1431387 so we are crazy. I will follow this build.
John

 

[Dipandots]

As most of you know, the tendency in this place is sometimes driven by individuals ( I forget the correct term ) who scoot through just stirring up unnecessary debate for the sake of argument.

For the folks who have been hiding behind the curtains just watching please feel free to step out and say hi.

I believe the term you were thinking of was "troll". Maybe.

Also, hello from your neighbor to the west. Your tank is truly an inspiration to any reefer. I will definitely enjoy watching your build to see what's possible in this hobby. I can't wait for more updates and may I ask for any more pics? :wave:

 

[shannonpayne86]

Wow, what a truly inspiring build.

 

[Aquatics Elite]

Hi Peter, it is such a delight to see a tank build of this magnitude and incredible design. What makes it more of a thrill for me is knowing it is taking place locally here in the GTA. Even my wife is glued to your thread! Best of luck throughout the build!

 

[nineball]

nineball just read the entire thread this is going to be an incredible build!!!, looking forward to seeing the progression of your tank in the days to follow simply outstanding.

Thank you Milky, I should have an update soon.....

Peter

 

[kikireef]

Peter, I have been following since the first page. I have been planning on upgrading but that won't happen until I upgrade my house in a couple years. I am completely speachless at the work you have done to your house and the careful planning you have put into such a beautiful work of art, and it is art. I have and will be subscribed and following for the days/months/years to come.

 

[nineball]

hi john
thanks.
i was looking for the membrane in the picture,sounds and looks like a good solid subfloor,the membrane will help keep any moisture away from the wood.

thanks
vic

john
the marine grade spar varnish works really well around water.
ive put it on a few stands,also have framework around my inwall tank,with the semigloss marine spar with no ill effects on oak,i would recommend staining the wood first before applying the spar varnish.also ive had the tankwater up to 82 degrees and nothing happened to varnish.
i love this stuff.ive even put it on my cedar garage door and my picnic table

vic

Thanks Vic. every bit of input goes along way. I remember Chingchai's thread became almost encyclopedic with information and as such became a very valuable tome to our hobby. This certainly helps raise John's confidence that we are headed in the right direction.

Peter

 

[nineball]

Great tank, and great build thread Peter. Thanks for putting in the extra effort to document everything.

I would avoid a spar varnish (tung or linseed oil & polymer-based) and use an epoxy (fibreglass) like the West System.
http://westsystem.com/ss/
I deal with these guys because they are local.
http://webhome.idirect.com/~edd/smith.html
If you are buying a lot of it, then you can buy it here.
www.compositescanada.com

Shawn

Shawn, thank you very much for this. I think I remember a discussion 'somewhere' about off gassing on this very topic and I assume this is the summary of that discussion. Thank you for taking the time to pitch in.

Thank you also for your support, it is sincerely appreciated.

Peter