DIY Frag Rack

[JRR1285]

I finally decided to get around to making my own frag rack. I have seen the ones using the mag float but I wanted to make something using smaller magnets.

I picked up some epoxy coated Neodymium magnets from Amazon. I already had the egg crate laying around. Using some crazy glue gel the results are in the following pics.

I know it's not the cleanest rack but it went together quick and it's very easy to tweak the size and shape of the rack. The four magnets have plenty of holding power. I probably could have done it with 3 or maybe even 2 depending on what type of frags were going on it. The two little legs are to keep it from tilting down if something bumps it or if it's loaded a little heavily.

I am debating whether or not to paint it black using krylon fusion. I think I'll use it as is for now and maybe make a black one soon.

What does everyone think?

 

[thegrun]

You might want to paint it black with Krylon spray paint, the black color will slow down algae growth compaired to white.

 

[McPuff]

Or you could just let it get covered with coralline algae... it will happen anyway, even if it's painted black. I'll have to do a search for those magnets... good idea!

What is the size of each magnet (guessing 1/2") and how thick is your glass?

 

[JRR1285]

I figured either color would get covered in algae but had read black may be a bit better with it. I mainly wanted it to look nice in the tank and thought black would stand out less. I really didn't want a frag rack in my display but I don't have a choice right now.

Tank is a standard 29 gallon so I believe it is about 3/16" thick.

You'll find the magnets on Amazon using this description:

CMS Magnetics® N50 Disc Neodymium Magnet 1/2"X1/4"

If you get something else I would make sure that you seal them or just get the epoxy coated ones.

 

[neuro]

hey there was actually a thread on DIY frag racks with the neodymium magnets. Don't know where it is right now, but we covered the magnets in epoxy resin just like you bought. I (and the OP of that thread) were able to incorporate the epoxy resin into the egg crate to make it more seamless.

Someone mentioned the rubber coated ones cracked for them.

Looking back, I should have just bought them precoated, as I resin coated them separately on my own with store-bought molds.

I also went ahead and bought a rack from frag-a-rack.

In the end, I should have just bought the rack from frag-a-rack. When I did a cost comparative analysis, it's a much better buy in terms of money, the mess created, time/labor, and space required to do a frag rack properly.

 

[JRR1285]

After seeing the really nice racks from frag-a-rack I will most likely be buying one from them instead of building a black one. I would rather just buy one then buy the krylon fusion paint and take the time to put it together.

This white one will do for now though.

 

[mfinn]

I would paint it too.

Also, you really need to keep a eye on those magnets.
The epoxy coating will not stay intact for very long.

I've made a bunch of them and used the epoxy coated ones on the outside of the tank and they always seem to corrode/rust eventually

 

[Larz_1]

I built my first frag rack with egg crate, zip ties and an old Tunze magnet.
It works great, but looks bad.

Now I have two of these.

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/catalog/product/view/id/662/

Your rack turned out MUCH better than mine.
If mine had looked as good as yours, I probably would have been happier with it.

 

[T.louderback]

Nice design. theres a guy in livermore that sells coral that has a bunch of egg crate frag racks

 

[T.louderback]

oops I forgot this isnt the bay area form lol