Join me for a strange one...

[kcress]

Hello Folks,

I'm embarking on a unique build that should have something for everyone.

I've had FOWLRs for about 20 years and decided to give reefing a shot. My existing setup is three 55s chained together with jumps for the the fish to travel over. I wanted something new and interesting to replace it with. I also like technical challenges - boy is this dishing them out. :reading::spin2:

I plan to have:

1) A stand that will have the tank centered on the average viewer's standing face height - like in a public aquarium.

2) The stand will have to drop with the tank running on it for servicing.

3) Extensive man made live rock (MMLR) "wet furniture".

4) Turf scrubbing filtration.

5) High Brightness LED lighting augmentation of,

6) Tracking, direct-solar lighting using a pair of Sun tracking heliostats.

and

7) A VFD based closed loop.


Let's get started:

I have a smokey sheetmetal fireplace that's more work than worth, so I decided to remove it and use the space for the new aquarium. This will also allow me to proceed without hassling my fishes.

Here goes!

This is what it looked like before.

Diving in! A lot of dust and noise and a rented jackhammer.

All demolition done. And, termite damaged wood replaced with new.

Here's what you have with it all removed looking down from above with the chase cap pulled.

This is the opposite view looking up. This is of course where the sunlight will come from.

Here I've rocked it in with green board since water may be about.

Now I need to do something with this brick and ragged concrete.

 

[khaosinc]

this looks like fun. I like projects that start with demolition

 

[billdogg]

I'm with Khaosinc! Anything that starts with destruction has to be good!!!

Keep us informed!

 

[der_wille_zur_macht]

Ohh, this is going to be a good one!

I'm envious of your California sun. There's no way I could do solar lighting here.

 

[Sugar Magnolia]

Very cool! I also love a good demolision. I'm looking forward to seeing this one through.

If you get a chance, post up some pics of your current set up. I'd love to see that too!

 

[BeanAnimal]

Scissor lift (screw or hydraulic) or direct lift?

 

[widmer]

Turning a fireplace into a solar tank - that's brilliant! Tagging along for sure...

 

[Sharpie_]

why not try using those solar tubes? I've seen some good results with those somewhere on this forum.

 

[bmkj02]

Im in on this. Looks fun. Just dont leave us hanging at mid-point pleeeeaaasseeee

 

[-Scott-]

tagging along...

And not to seem unoriginal but I think BeanAnimal hit the nail on the head. A screw-type scissor lift (like the jack in your car) would give you smooth transition and could be run by a very low power DC motor. Not to mention that the coupling would be extremely easy to accomplish. The only problem might be finding one that has the range you desire.

 

[4adam12]

Glad to see you posting your project, definitely looking forward to it.

 

[kcress]

Welcome aboard folks! Hold on as the roller coaster starts into the dark tunnel..

Very cool! I also love a good demolision. I'm looking forward to seeing this one through.

If you get a chance, post up some pics of your current set up. I'd love to see that too!

Here you go.

This is most of the three tanks. 12 feet is actually hard to photograph! If you get back far enough the tank is not really visible. This shot caught a wave in progress.

Here's Tang during one of his 300 commutes a day.

Scissor lift (screw or hydraulic) or direct lift?

Direct Screw. Hydraulic scissor lifts completely waste the entire Underneath. Something I desperately need for the usual stuff. Hydraulic fluid leaks also go badly with living room decor and reefs.

Turning a fireplace into a solar tank - that's brilliant! Tagging along for sure...

Hopefully, eventually squint ing ly brilliant!

why not try using those solar tubes? I've seen some good results with those somewhere on this forum.

I've considered them but having a technical bent want to do much better. Solar tubes tend to have a very short peak brightness. Human vision doesn't actually note any difference between bright and 9x brighter. While the result may be quite sufficient for lighting up some dark cavernous area of a house, the peak is really very short for something that lives on the photon flux, like coral. With a heliostat the brightness can remain nearly constant for many hours as the Sun is acquired and tracked with its reflected image shot into the tank. Also, have you priced them? Ouch!! The good ones are actually silver plated and cost a fortune! Since this will be beaming down from the top of a chimney which generally has to be the highest point on the roof, (by several feet), I'd need a bunch of those extensions which cost hundreds more. The much cheaper Mylar lined tubes don't last. Once the tank is in, access to the space above will be limited.

Im in on this. Looks fun. Just dont leave us hanging at mid-point pleeeeaaasseeee

We shall endeavor to persevere.. !

tagging along...

And not to seem unoriginal but I think BeanAnimal hit the nail on the head. A screw-type scissor lift (like the jack in your car) would give you smooth transition and could be run by a very low power DC motor. Not to mention that the coupling would be extremely easy to accomplish. The only problem might be finding one that has the range you desire.

Again the scissor mechanism is horrid for space under the stand. They are also astoundingly dangerous because of the myriad shearing surfaces as they pass each other - like scissors!

The stand will be motivated by a 3 phase motor controlled by a VFD. A 1/3hp gear drive. I'll get to it soon!

Glad to see you posting your project, definitely looking forward to it.

Hi Adam. Yeah, had to get outta the sand trap as it were..



So picking up where I left off we get the space finished.

Here's all sheet-rocked. Note the left bookcase is gone so the space is now looking cleaner.

Painted! Yeaaaah! Like my color?

To level and lock it all together I decided to use the polymer concrete that is self leveling. It's used for footings on heavy machinery. It's about 10X stronger than regular concrete and obscenely expensive. Like $30 for a 30lb sack.

Please note: They lie when calling it "self leveling". The end result is NOT level.

My able assistant mixing the rapid setup concrete. You only have a few minutes.

I poured the inside of the hole and when that was set I poured the hearth.

Here's how I make a form to allow the hearth pour to not run into the hole. Note the two pipes from the right? Those come out the side of the fireplace chase outside. Not sure what I'll use them for... I just decided to provide them. They have special anti-draft/bug rags specially installed. :worried:

The end result has some fine cracks that have appeared. But it will work, and will be tiled eventually. Large clod-hopper for scale. Note the edge that drops into the low space the stand will occupy.


Next up? (and down and up and down) The stand!

 

[BeanAnimal]

A direct screw drive is going to be pretty tough

4 corners, 4 ball screws, all connected by a single chain drive. You will have to use some fairly stout bearings and ball screws.

You will have to suspend the tank from a frame and use the ball screws in tension to lower the tank and pull it back up. The other way (ball screws in compression) pushing the tank up will not work, as the ball screws will bend and/or jam under the weight. The backlash from the chain will also come into play much more (along with the backlash of the screw itself).

So the tank frame must be VERY STIFF to compensate for any backlash causing the corners to become un-planar.

Certainly doable, but will take some very well thought out plans.

Here is a screw jack company that has some fairly good information:
http://www.nookindustries.com/jack/JackCharts.cfm

 

[serpentman]

Definitely signing on for this one. Very unique idea's!

 

[teesquare]

I love to watch a fellow pedigreed fish-geek at work! I may hassed it - bus the house on a slab - or - wooden sub-floor? Basement or crawl space under it?

T

 

[BeanAnimal]

I leveled my home theater with high end self leveling hydraulic concrete. My basement floor sloped away 2 to 3 inches over 15 feet in some places.

Mind you I have pumped thousands of yards of hydrualic concrete in the mining industry... but was still little prepared for how un self-leveling the product was in my basement and how fast I had to work to ensure a good result.

 

[4adam12]

The stand will be motivated by a 3 phase motor controlled by a VFD. A 1/3hp gear drive. I'll get to it soon!

I have a vfd I will donate to your project if you need it for the stand lift, that is if you don't mind the occasional noise when you go to move it. Keypad even works! Let me know if you need it, I think it already knows the way there.

 

[khaosinc]

I love the lift idea. Sounds like the kind of thing I would try and pull. You must of been some sort of mechanic/millwright to come up with it (millwright myself) LOL.

I could see the tank being lifted on a screw drive from above in a cage with guide rails working almost easier assuming the chimney is up to supporting it, giving easy access to everything underneath. The wall/tank could easily hide the framework and keep the motor and drive away from saltwater.

 

[khull]

I'm gonna follow this one.

 

[kcress]

Bean It will be chain driven. And stiff. Read on.
Thanks for the link!

I may have missed it - but the house on a slab - or - wooden sub-floor? Basement or crawl space under it?T

House is on a standard foundation wall with a crawl-able space under it. This is of course going on the ground floor in the living room.

HOWEVER.. The fireplace footing is stout. This fireplace was 7 feet wide 2-1/2 feet thick and almost thirty feet high!! I shudder to think of how much it weighed.

It was the best fireplace I've ever used. It took four foot logs and never smoked a single molecule.

Then came The Earthquake. (Loma Prieta) <<<6.9>>> That stack of bricks sheared four feet from the ground and moved towards the front yard 3 inches. With dozens of aftershocks a day - some over 5. I couldn't risk it falling towards the house. I thru a rope around it and we pulled it over. It cratered the front lawn to a depth of one brick run. Neighbors ran from their homes thinking another big aftershock was happening. Suckers! LOL!

Anyway, a sweet Uncle came and rebuilt it in the modern form of a wooden chase with a drop-in sheetmetal fireplace. It turned out to be smokey - draft resistant, (in a bad way). When it started catching and killing birds I decided to do this project.

More to your question the recess this is all going to stand in is a solid concrete block that is 30" x 80" x 44" tall. It had a few lays of bricks on the top that I left and covered with the aforementioned polymer concrete.

I leveled my home theater with high end self leveling hydraulic concrete. My basement floor sloped away 2 to 3 inches over 15 feet in some places.

Mind you I have pumped thousands of yards of hydrualic concrete in the mining industry... but was still little prepared for how un self-leveling the product was in my basement and how fast I had to work to ensure a good result.

Yeah and I'm a CCrete noob!

I have a vfd I will donate to your project if you need it for the stand lift, that is if you don't mind the occasional noise when you go to move it. Keypad even works! Let me know if you need it, I think it already knows the way there.

Nice offer! I already purchased the drive though :hmm4: I will figure out something cool to do with yours.. :artist:

I love the lift idea. Sounds like the kind of thing I would try and pull. You must of been some sort of mechanic/millwright to come up with it (millwright myself) LOL.

I could see the tank being lifted on a screw drive from above in a cage with guide rails working almost easier assuming the chimney is up to supporting it, giving easy access to everything underneath. The wall/tank could easily hide the framework and keep the motor and drive away from saltwater.

I'm an EE. I thought of the lift/ lower scheme but since my space is so small there would be no room for the support structure. There are also subtle issues like the the need to eventually enclose this tank space with cabinetry to effectively put the tank outdoors. I can't stand the humidity issues anymore. With a scaffold type lift mechanism you have a greater problem with the cabinetry around the supports, hence, the smaller underneath lift method.
Oh and the chimney is just 2x4s so no dice on supporting anything.