Maroun.c 390 G build thread

[maroun.c]

Hi all,
Few months back I started a thread for my 340G tank upgrade which kept getting delayed till it was time to upgrade a bitmore before going with this build.
So Finally the build have restarted, going with a 390 G tank instead so basically an additional 8 inch in length and a couple of inches in width...

Most of the plans onthe 340 G thread remain the same:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1864999&highlight=maroun+c

A small recap:

History:
Started with an 80 G custom built tank with fish and softies 1998-2005

upgraded to a 150 G in 2008

Which I managed to fill with nice LPS and SPS that I picked up when on travel as Lebanon till recently was kind of limited in resources for livestock and equipment for Marine tanks. Big thanks to many people that I met on travel or assisted me find the best products, as well as received me in their homes to show me their tanks and share frags...

Tank was later moved to my parents house while my appartment construction was getting finished and for the last year acted as a holding tank. this is the last picture of the tank before it became a full mess of corals lying here and there awaiting the final move. Since then I ahve got lots of growth on the corals.

Plans for the tank and room construction images can be seen at the 340 thread, shortly tank will be the main piece of the reception area with 2 seating areas and a dining room having visibility on it.

Drop ceiling with lighting aligned with the tank.

Tank is surrounded by cabinets. Decided to go with a protruding tank Vs an inwall tank to creat a more dynamic look.

Hand drawn Sketch

 

[maroun.c]

New tanks Specs:

-390 G (1400L)DT
-Final dimensions are 88"x34"x30" 220x85x75 cm
-Additional In stand Sump and another one in fishroom in attick, in line Frag tank and connected tank for automated water changes should add around 260G (1000L) so upping the total system volume to around 650 G ( 2400 L)
-Starphire on front and side pannels.
-Front and side access to tank, side access was very important and caused many modifications of the design of the cabinetry. Theoratically I should get 2 smaller closets close to the tank which are open on the stand and tank level from the side providing a bit less than 2 ft access.
-4 x 4" vent tubes with Turbines to vent the Stand, Canopy and Fishroom. Canopy will be an open space over the tank till ceiling from inside so opefully that and the venting will stabilize temp and cause chiller to run less.
-1 HP Resun Chiller.
-Dedicated heavy load power lines from building supply to isolate the tank from appartment electricity. Generator backup and 13 Amp UPS for added security as we get daily powerfailures.
-Lighting 3 Lumenbright 250 W mini pendants (16x16x7) Wanted to get the large ones but they are not available for DE bulbs. Will supplement with 2 ines of T5 from front and back so hope it'll be enough. My main concern is the side to side covereage as the Lumenbrights cover 2 square feet each. so basicaly 3 reflectors will cover 3x24 inch that is 72 inches. Not sure if having the reflectors 4 inches away from each other and from the edges of the tank will result is shadows or dark areas... Any input on this is appreciated.
-3x 250 W Coralvue dimmable ballasts for easier light acclimation as these reflectors should be much more intense than the lighting I'm using currently.

 

[maroun.c]

will spare you the complete set of infrastructure and room construction and jsut post a couple of pictures at start and end of the build and the in wall setup.

room looked just scary:

Double Wall built for humidity and temp isolation was just great to house all the tubing:

Lines to fishroom:

Sealed with Cement and the Tank corner finally taking shape.

Drop ceiling installed.

And the finished product with lights centered to tank.

 

[qwuintus]

Wow nice!

I for one, would appreciate more construction pictures.

Keep posting!

 

[syedjilani]

Looking nice.... Love to see more progress..

 

[maroun.c]

Wow nice!

I for one, would appreciate more construction pictures.

Keep posting!

Thanks qwuintus
The full series is on this page.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1864999

 

[maroun.c]

Looking nice.... Love to see more progress..

Thanks Syed.
More to come soon.

 

[maroun.c]

Glass Finally arrived.
And of course the moment I picked up the camera for some shots my assistants jumped in to pose for the shots.

[/quote]



Big difference between Starphire and Regular glass for the bottom and back of the tank.

Glad I decided to go with Starphire which should help with more accurate colors in pics as well as less distortion I guess. Glass thikness was kept at 15mm. Tank builder was fine doing it with 12 but I decided to stay on the safe side.

 

[maroun.c]

Tank assembled on site. Couldn't be done directly on the stand due to lack of back access. still with the use of a hydrolic table to take it up it shouldn't be that difficult.

Tank was assembled by a very old Friend Maher, who'se attention to fine detail and perfectionism amazed me. Big thanks for a job well Done.

Wanted to take much more pictures but seeing the rate at which the assembly went I didn't want to stress him out.

Under the close watch of the wife:

 

[maroun.c]

Now the best thing of all is how fast the whole thing went.
The time between the first picture with the silicone being put on the first pannel and the last one where the front pannel was stuck to the glass was only 6 minutes 31 sec
No clamps, belts or even masking tape other than the one on the seams was used.
Most important End result is just perfect. Will post some pics of the seam and tank later on.
Eurobracing will be added, Hopefullig upon filling it up we will not need to add a center brace from front to back...

 

[maroun.c]

Stand was delivered.
4x4 cm 3mm think steel (1.6x1.6 inch 1/8" steel bars)
Was 2.5 inches taller than ordered so had to cut down a bit from the legs, hopefully that won't make it very hard to clean under it.
Also wasn't impressed by the epoxy paint they did so had it resanded and repainted on site by 3 coats of epoxy. which took a few days to get done.

No positioning conflicts between in wall setup and stand excpet that the added length would have placed the tank top too close to the vents so I decided to have it cut ddown to the requested height 38 inch (95cm)

Have used Leveling feet on my 150 G tank however with the added weight of this tank I was afraid it would fail or that the screw threads would break so will be shimming the tank.
Will use this Russian Marine plywood under the tank:

and this one under the sump

They both have the unsealed sides where they were cut. Is there any need to seal those and what would you use:

I'm planning to use some type of aluminum fiber and a thick rubber on top of it belwo the feet. The aluminum fiber is very thin and I can add more or less to level the tand and the rubber will serve to equalize pressure under the feet which are covered by a steel sheet.
Any comment or recommendations on other material to be used?

 

[krjackso]

oh my. Love to see this one come together. Literally. Probably a silly question, but why the height difference in glass panes? Coast to coast overflow?

 

[maroun.c]

oh my. Love to see this one come together. Literally. Probably a silly question, but why the height difference in glass panes? Coast to coast overflow?

Thanks.
Yes external overflow, not side to side though as part of the tank will extend out of the wood cabinets. so a piece of glass will be added on top of the side pannel till the edge of the overflow later on.

 

[dave.m]

They both have the unsealed sides where they were cut. Is there any need to seal those and what would you use

I would look for some sort of plastic T-molding or edging. Look for something similar to this.

It needs to have a channel routed down the centre of the side to be inserted into. It is usually made to just go in by friction fit, but I would use rubber or contact cement to make it water proof.

Dave.M

 

[maroun.c]

Thanks Dave.
any info on the material to level the stand would aluminum fiber and rubber on top be OK to use?

 

[dave.m]

I am not familiar with those materials. What do others in your area use?

Dave.M

 

[maroun.c]

Most would use marine plywood, or any other hard wood, rubber, acrylic, but was told so far that even plywood would start to fail after prolonged exposure to water, same for most woods, Rubber might dry out and breakdown, Acrylic can dry out and craze and small pieces start disintegrating, Rubber will dry out and gets thinner, Acrylic might get crudhed and tiny piecess would go out from under the legs...

 

[d3hree]

I would use an epoxy paint to seal the plywood.
The only real difference between marine plywood and standard ply is the amount of layers or plys used ( so I am told )
I agree that using marine ply doesnt make it water proof to prolonged exposure.

This is going to be a great build to follow, great work so far!

 

[dave.m]

There are many wood sealers that should make your wood safe for many years. I don't know what makes are available to you there. I know Pentox can keep wood very well preserved for many years.

Dave.M

 

[maroun.c]

Thanks will try to look for Pentox or any other decent sealant I can find here.