My new 420 tank

[blfuller123]

Well, I guess I could have posted this in the DIY forum, but it qualifies as a large tank so its here. I just got rid of my 75 gallon tank and am upgrading to a large in wall tank. I hope this will keep me happy for several years. It will be the largest tank I have owned. I have owned a 300 gallon in the past so this is a pretty big step up for me.

This tank is going to measure 96x42x25 and I am making it out of 0.75 acrylic. It is going to have two external overflows. The tank is the last thing I have left to build and I ordered the acrylic today. I hope to pick it up within the next week or two. It is going to be a slow build because my busy season at work will be starting up in about two weeks. The tank is going into the wall between my kitchen and my garage. I am going to build a wall in the garage to make my "fish room". My garage is insulated and I plan on insulating the room as well.

I have a 100 gallon rubber maid sump that I am going to use. I will have a 40 gallon refugium on the tank. I built a beckett skimmer that has 4 injectors that will be run by a sequence manta ray. I have a sequence barracuda that is going to be used for a circulation pump. The tank is for now going to be a FOWLR for now so I am going to use 6 4 foot VHOs for lights.

Not much to take pictures of as of now. Here is the wall that is going to be in. The wall is 12 feet long and the mirrors frame in the picture is about 5 feet long by 3 feet tall for reference.

 

[46bfinGA]

hey blfuller123,i pmed you earlier over at the reef tank.sounds like you got a nice little project going on.cant wait to see your progress.thats going to be a sweet setup.

 

[blfuller123]

Here is a link for my skimmer.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=856481

 

[blfuller123]

I have the acrylic sitting in the garage now. I am hoping to get it cut this weekend so I can start putting it together. Still nothing to really take pictures of. The skimmer is up and running on RobinsonFam1's tank.

 

[blfuller123]

We finished up cutting all of the acrylic last night. A little change to the tank. It is going to have a volume of 480 gallons and measures 96x48x24. I thought whats another six inches. Anyway, I just got finished finishing the edges with my router. I also just finished glueing the first piece. I will snap a picture or two later. The camera battery is charging right now.

 

[blfuller123]

Ok, here is a shot of one side that is glued now. Gonna have water in it real soon now

 

[jaze36]

Looks like you are off to a good start can't wait to see the rest.

 

[blfuller123]

Got a couple of more pieces glued up.

 

[blfuller123]

Here is a fit check on the top piece. The two center braces are glued in. I will glue the outer part after I get the overflows done. All of the braces are 6 inches for referance.

 

[IMM3DOORSDOWN]

wow id hate to see how much money you need to dish out for lighting,filteration,and water flow with your electricity bill.

your tank looks awesome all you need is a wet suit and you can join them.subnmit new pix when your set up

 

[Reefologist]

Four Twenty. Man that is a cool size tank. Reefer Madness....

 

[TandN]

WOW more pics more pics

 

[blfuller123]

Not 420 anymore, I went a head and did 48 inches front to back so it will be 480. As far as lighting, it is just going to be VHO for now. I will be using a sequence barracuda and a sequence manta ray for pumps (I am wiring everything up for 220volt). Nothing to extravagant, just big (at least for me).

 

[xtrm suv]

any bubbles in the joints?

 

[blfuller123]

Letting everything cure a bit before cutting the teeth for the overflows, I started working on the overflow boxes. These will measure 18 inches wide by 4.5 inches deep and I havent figured out how tall yet, but they will both have three 1 inch drains. Here is the botton of the first one with the holes drilled and tapped.

 

[blfuller123]

xtrm suv- I have a couple of really small bubbles in one of the joints, but nothing I am going to worry about. I cant see it causing a problem. The tank is going to set in the garage full of water (for water testing) while I build the stand and get the wall in the garage built.

 

[Kent E]

I love it! I love the fact your building it yourself even more :thumbsup:

 

[blfuller123]

Didn't get a lot done today. We took the kids to the GA Aquarium so my tank is looking a little small right now. Anyway, just finished up the overflow boxes so I thought I would post a picture. I am going to try and lay out the back wall of the tank for the teeth on the overflow tonight and get them cut out soon. Cant do much more until I do that. When that is done, I will put the top bracing on and then last but not least, put the bottom on. I would like to try and get this done this weekend because I have to travel for work on Tuesday. If not, I am not gonna worry much about it. The last thing I want to do is rush anything.

 

[blfuller123]

Just got one of the overflows teeth done. The teeth are .25 inch wide on .5 inch centers and are 1.5 inches long. This was a PITA without some kind of jig, but I like the way they came out. Probabaly do the other set tomorrow. In the picture, the tank is sitting upside down on my table.

 

[MickyB]

How many 4X8 sheets of 3/4" did you have use to make the tank. Is the Acrylic Cell cast? How much is it a sheet? You make it look easy.