RocketEngineer
Space is big.
:dance: The oak panels have been sanded. :dance:
RocketEngineer's 75g/125g Setup
- Thread starter RocketEngineer
- Start date
RocketEngineer
Space is big.
You didn't miss anything, I don't have any good pictures showing it.
If you go back a ways there are some pictures of the old overflow being removed. The old one had two 1.5" bulkheads in the back of the tank that left a pair of 2-3/8" holes in the center of the back glass. These holes are how water will get from the internal box (which I still need to install) to the external box.
Any plans to cover those holes with a bulkhead screen or something?
Who manufactured this tank?
Thanks for the quick response.
RocketEngineer
Space is big.
Actually, there will be an internal overflow box installed in the tank. While not quite coast-to-coast, it will be 42" long in a 72" tank. This will provide surface skimming which is the point of an overflow, and keep the level in the tank about 1.5" below the top of the tank. With the internal box installed, the holes will stay clear to let water flow freely into the external box.
Honestly, I don't know who made it. I picked it up used and the guy who owned it before me installed the overflow box I removed. With only one center brace on a 6' tank vs. the typical dual brace layout, it might be an Oceanic but I don't know for sure.
It looks like a Perfecto, the trim on an Oceanic was slightly different. You have done an excellent job on this build!
RocketEngineer
Space is big.
Perfecto is definitely a possibility. I will have to go see if there is a name on the label under the bottom glass. It's not something I have paid particular attention to with everything else I've had to do.
Thanks. It has been fun as well as educational. Hopefully third time's the charm and once I get the 125g installed and running I will have worked out most of the kinks. I still have several pieces to upgrade/add and those will take a while to implement. They will all be for the 125g rather than some future upgrade. Anything bigger would require a new house......
You may not find the Perfecto name, but the anchor symbol is usually a dead give away. In reality it doesn't matter on the brand, but sometimes it is nice to know. Sometimes I miss my old 125, it was probably my most successful sps tank, but I devoted a lot of time and money to it. I usually stay out of people's build threads but your woodworking skills are mad. One of my regrets in life is giving up my woodworking shop, but my job required too many moves too often to drag all that around with me.
Great to hear. I was kind of worried that you weren't going with an in/out setup...
Looking forward to continued updates. You remind me of my father. He is an engineer who could build/fix/do anything. Your learning experience with the "art" and biological/chemical science behind reefing is the same thing he went through when I introduced him to the hobby haha. Great guy to talk design with though.
Good luck.
RocketEngineer
Space is big.
I will look for the anchor when I get home. The pics I have online aren't clear enough to see the label.
I can't claim much credit for the woodwork as most of the stuff I have built so far has involved working in another person's shop. The stand was built using my dad's workshop while the oak was cut at a his friend's much more professional shop. To make the new hood, I worked with a co-worker to get all the pieces cut. The LED heatsinks are being drilled at a second co-worker's shop. Lots of asking for help. Luckily my mother bakes cookies regularly so I can "pay" for their help with homemade goodies.
Don't sell yourself short, the stand for the pentagon tank looks great. Even if there are rough spots on the inside, the finish looks very professional. As my dad would say "Spackle covers a multitude of sins." For me, I'm trying to set up enough of a woodworking setup to do most everything. Still a long way to go on that goal. I understand how to do it, just don't have the tools to practice with. Book learning: yes, actual experience.....not so much.
I always planned an internal/external setup because I have limited space behind the display. It was an oversight when I built the stand for the 75g but I'm not going to build a new one just to fix that as the stand I came out great.
I get the "build/fix/do anything" gene from both sides of my family as my mother's father could rebuild small motors from a baskets of parts and my dad is an industrial engineer that built the house I grew up in from the foundation to the roof. While he did an amazing job on the stand, he rolls his eyes whenever I talk about fish tanks. He definitely has some good ideas when I bounce concepts off him just so long as I don't mention they are for an aquarium.
I have come to realize that "art" doesn't apply the same way it did when I was going through school. We always hassled the "art majors" in college (an engineering school so.....). Now that I am designing stuff that other folks have to deal with I realized how much of what I do is based on small details. It is amazing how hard it is to simplify a design. "Elegant solutions" weren't something I thought about until I was almost through with college and now it is something I aim for every day. I have a widget on my desk specifically to remind me that there are always better designs out there. Finding them is the trick.
Cookies are always good. :thumbsup:
I never put any finish on the inside of the stand, I am the only one who sees it. It was oiled very lightly and vinyl shelf paper put on bottom and that is it. The exterior finish has a few rough spots from being moved that I haven't touched up but I think I am the only one who knows they are there.
I do much better with the proper tools, I have had sawdust on my hands since 1976 and all of the furniture I built over the years is still in use, by my ex's. :lolspin:RocketEngineer
Space is big.
Cookies are always good. :thumbsup:
I never put any finish on the inside of the stand, I am the only one who sees it. It was oiled very lightly and vinyl shelf paper put on bottom and that is it. The exterior finish has a few rough spots from being moved that I haven't touched up but I think I am the only one who knows they are there.
I use a couple coats of Kilz primer on all the wood work that won't show. Since the oak pieces are built separate from the structure, I just do the polyurethane on all sides at once.
When folks see the tank and person and say "man, that looks perfect", I just sigh knowing where all the blemishes are. I will say that the stand is my first major piece of furniture/cabinetry and the results were beyond what I was hoping to accomplish. With the upgrade, the larger hood is now my second and this time around I had some clue what I was doing.
I have been around tools since I could walk (and therefore fetch them for my dad) but having a house of my own has necessitated expanding the toolbox. Every new project seems to involve buying a new tool. While having the right tool is always nice, sometimes a little improvisation never hurts and costs less. I'm definitely not up to the furniture stage and probably won't be for several more years. For now I will stick with the simple stuff like a dog house.
Just a quick update pic for everyone:
The first coat of polyurethane is on and the house smells really funky. Another evening spent working on the tank. :fun4:
RocketEngineer
Space is big.
Thanks. Doing my best.
RocketEngineer
Space is big.
Actually, I used both. The plywood panel is held in place by biscuits while the oak corners are screwed together. Installing pocket screws into the edge of the plywood doesn't work well. By using both the panel is held in place around its entire perimeter while the screws have something to bite into. Making doors the same way would be fairly straight forward.
RocketEngineer
Space is big.
Two down and one more coat to go. I will be glad when this smelly part of the build is done.
RocketEngineer
Space is big.
The poly is done. Today I attached the end panels to the frame of the hood and mounted the magnets for the front panels.
Progress.
Progress.
PistolShrmp
New member
Looking good!
RocketEngineer
Space is big.
Thanks. Now if only the inside could look as good as the outside, I would be very happy. Its getting there just not there yet.
