Custom Aquarium dealers...I want a cube!!!

dots

dots

Premium Member
Who makes a quality custom glass aquarium?.....

I have heard of Lee Mar, but the website is in construction and seem to be an elusive breed.

Glass cages........I have heard good and bad nearly at equal numbers so am unsure.

I am graduating, and have a job lined up......so unfortunatly it looks like you guys are stuck with me for a while, sorry!!!

Anyway I am planning on moving out of apartment living hell and finding a house. I am considering following my own advice to Edwin and getting a new tank when I do.

Now that I got my feet wet on the 37g a couple of years ago and cut my teeth really well on the 75g. I am going to go all out and go for a cube........three sided viewing with low iron glass, hopefully rimless.......30"-36" L/W and 18"-30" deep.....still playing with the dims.......

The main thing is I want to avoid PHs in the tank and am trying to design a CL system that is as hidden as possible......thinking about a PVC manifold at the corners......which may screw up the braceless look.......

Here is a thread that I have been looking at and am a while from starting this, but all good plans need to start early and thought I would ask for ideas......look at maxrep12's in the middle of page 12.....that is what I am thinking of

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=344317&perpage=25&pagenumber=12

Oh yeah......its going to be all SPS and BB and am considering 3-250 MH (PFO pendants) on a custom rack to be angled from each of the three sides to give illumination to the sides not just the top so as not to get shadows, but up higher so you can look down into the water without a canopy in your way......


Ideas, suggestions? Best dimensions? What would you do if you were setting up something like this?
 
Last edited:
I will be purchasing low iron glass from a guy from another forum. This will be my second purchase from him so I know he is legit. If you're up to the task of building your own tank, maybe you'd like to split the shipping or something.
 
Hey Doug,

I too am in the same boat as you. I really would love a sweet cube for SPS only. Sooo... if I find something, I will let you know and if you find anything that looks promising, send me a note - maybe if we bought 2 we could get a better deal?
 
You two might want to get together I am a ways out, but before I even think about collecting parts, I will have it all planned out.......

This is why I always suggest to the new folks not to jump into a big one right away......so many options and ways to screw it up and get stuck with something you hate.

Im pretty zeroed in on what I like/dislike/want in a tank to make this one to end up like. Which hopefully will be easier.......but check out that other tank.............its purdy....
 
Last edited:
I would do a chamber in the back for an overflow that takes the full width of the tank. You get a good skim of the top that way. You can also drill the bottom like the big coral tank at Coral Reef Shop. The return water is pushed up and makes little waves on the surface.
 
I am building a 2' cube all sides low iron, will post pics once I received the glass. Got the glass from the same reefer Casshern got it from.

There is a local glass tank builder here who used starphire glass but the it will cost you ~ $15/gal.
 
to eliminate PHs and have enough flow for anything, go with a small 6-8" middle centered overflow on the back of the tank using a acrylic similar to a megaflow setup.

Have two bulk head returns for 2 Mag 9 or > equipped with SCWD's and spray bars made out of PVC.

This will work also as a base for your rock work giving it stablity to be stacked centrally and give you plenty of random flow throughout the rock work leaving no dead spots. The flow wont be highly pressurized, but you will easily have over 1600gph flowing through the spray bars.

The sump wont be too easy to work with considering the overflow and return position, but it would be damn cool and very cost efficient.
 
Thanks for the ideas guys they are much appreciated!!!

BTW, did anyone check out that tank.........inspiration I tell you!!!!

So, is there any other tank builders other than the ones listed?

And just for the sake of discussion..........should I consider a one piece acrylic? Would you or wouldn't you and why? From what I have seen the highest carity comes from the glass ones......no?

Most acrylic ones I have seen have been scratched, hazed, and warped.....with a little bubbling and crazing mixed in.....
 
acrylic has way higher clarity than glass. It just scratches easier. If you want acrylic, you could try kritter tanks. He does all my acrylic work and they've always been exquisite.

As to the warping,etc, you could avoid that by moving your lights up (too hot) and getting thicker acrylic to avoid bowing. I have an 18inch acrylic cube made with 1/2in acrylic and external overflow. I gotta say, I love that tank though I havent had a chance to set it back up.

The bubbling, and er crazing.. I think you're referring to the seams right? Theres no way to avoid that. But a good builder can really make beautiful seams, with minimal bubbling.
 
Crazing is a hairlike crack I am sure that you have seen on the surface. These hairline crack can be caused by using solvents on your acrylic. Overtime, they can propogate and crack all the way through.....

I had a CPR bak-pak do this and is very rare for them to do it......however you can reseal them with a heat gun.

I personally have never liked Acrylic, but hey.....I thought it would make for good conversation......
 
Doug, check out www.aquariumobsessed.com for their tanks, they are top notched, a little pricy, but u get what u paid for. u can always ask them to see if they are gonna do a custom for you, I am sure they will. I am thinking to get their 180 once I settle down with where I am gonna live.
Also check out deltec tanks, they are very nice too.

if you don't want any powerhead in your tank, you better do some serious planning, and fluid dynamics :p To my experience, it's really hard to plan it right the first time. even if you carefully planed out all the close loop, u will end up with places where there's no flow and places which is hurricane like. I found the best way to fix this is setup a dummy tank, setup everything like it is, tinker with it until you are happy, then move on to the final production of the actual tank. since computation in this case will not work let me tell ya, tried it before, failed miserably. u can't really simulate the full fluid dynamics in the fish tank. especially we are keeping SPSs, not gold fish. let me know if u need help.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9582463#post9582463 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DarkDevil
Doug, check out www.aquariumobsessed.com for their tanks, they are top notched, a little pricy, but u get what u paid for. u can always ask them to see if they are gonna do a custom for you, I am sure they will. I am thinking to get their 180 once I settle down with where I am gonna live.
Also check out deltec tanks, they are very nice too.

if you don't want any powerhead in your tank, you better do some serious planning, and fluid dynamics :p To my experience, it's really hard to plan it right the first time. even if you carefully planed out all the close loop, u will end up with places where there's no flow and places which is hurricane like. I found the best way to fix this is setup a dummy tank, setup everything like it is, tinker with it until you are happy, then move on to the final production of the actual tank. since computation in this case will not work let me tell ya, tried it before, failed miserably. u can't really simulate the full fluid dynamics in the fish tank. especially we are keeping SPSs, not gold fish. let me know if u need help.
Click to expand...

Yeah those are interesting. Ill have to look into those. The best thing I like is that they have thier own forum here and through there website seeing some examples.....It could be the place I am looking for.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1015687
 
Last edited:
After looking at the thread myself....I think that is exactly what I am looking for.....thanks Mike......
 
That is a nice set up. I will be following along. I am itching for a in wall 60x32x24.
 
Doug, we should get together one of these days. I have retaken my measurements and I think I will be going 54x32x28.

That way I can still vave a sand bed without being blown all around. I know you are BB, but if this is going to be the focal point of my living room, I want it to also look real. I can still use my lights and just add 2x110 VHO. I will upgade my sump ( I already have a 55 aga), my skimmer will need to upgade but my reactor should be fine for now. I have 1 Seaswirl, so I will most likely need to get another. It is starting to come together in my head....I am shooting for December. Merry Christmas to all....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

J
Has anyone used injection molding for a custom part?
Replies
2
Views
238
Joe's Coral Reef
J
D
Structural support for 125 gallon aquarium
Replies
7
Views
537
ddang
D
L
Equipment help
Replies
9
Views
302
oliver729
O
wvned
Is this really a thing?
Replies
3
Views
218
OrionN
OrionN
FOX-FACE fanboy….
Calcium reactor components
Replies
7
Views
436
FOX-FACE fanboy….
FOX-FACE fanboy….
Back
Top