This old tank...120 Build

[cutnup]

So here is what I started off with, an old beat up tank I got for 80 bucks from a LFS that was shutting down. I cut all the silicone out of it and re-did that.

I have decided to go with a coast to coast overflow for superb surface skimming. You can read up on it here on reefcentral (thanks beananimal!), I am also using the same standpipes that are in that thread.

Drilling the tank.

More to come...

 

[cutnup]

Sorry I skipped pics of the building of the 2x4 stand here it is skinned. I also sanded the ugly brown trim and repainted it with krylon fusion. We will see how long it holds up after time. The back is also painted with krylon fusion.

Here it is with some molding

Here it is all stained and with it's clear coat. I custom built the doors at my friends cabinet shop. Nothing fancy. I also made a table top with a routered edge. The inside of the stand was painted white. I saw a guy here on reefcentral who was building a bowfront stand and he painted his white. It looks very clean and sterile.

Side view.

 

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More of stand.

 

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This is the refugium/sump I made out of a 40 gallon breeder. I got the idea from melevs reef.

Here is what each compartment will be used for.

this is where my calcium reactor will dump the efluent at. I will have a ph probe in there. it will then overfow into the refugium.

Here is a flow diagram. On the skimmer side is where most of the water flow will go to from the main display. there will be a ball valve on a tee to regulate some water to the 'fuge.

 

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Here's a pic of the overflows and drains, they have since been painted black with krylon fusion. Again thanks beananimal

Here's a pic of the of the back of the sump.

Inside the sump left (refugium area)

Inside the sump right (drain)

Return line and coast to coast overflow.

 

[cutnup]

I painted all the plumbing black. I also hung the lights. What an experience!! I had to go up in the attic because the beams weren't where I needed them to be. It took about an hour of squeezing and squirming and balancing in this tiny crawl space to get the eye hooks in. I also hit my head on a nail in the roof and it was bleeding. Here is a pic of me totally out of breath and ready to pass out after the whole ordeal. What a workout!

Here's a pic of the end result you can kinda see the black pvc

And that is pretty much where I sit at. I just wanted to thank everyone here on reefcentral. A lot of what I have done is because what I have learned here. If anyone has any questions I will be more than happy to help out. Thanks for looking.

 

[~sp0ok~]

good job on your diy

 

[8BALL_99]

Looks great! You will probably end up wishing you left that center brace out of the front like you did on the back. That spacing does make the doors like nice though.

 

[cutnup]

Yeah I already regret it. The only way I can get my sump out is from the back.

 

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Probably will do a fresh water test tonight. How long should I wait for the krylon fusion to dry before I put water in it?

 

[HumbleLobster]

Thats a nice looking stand. Can you offer up any more information on how you made your overflow?

 

[4jlong]

cutnup, that stand looks great! did you use the design from RocketEngineer? how thick was the plywood you skinned it with? Great job!!

 

[jgs107]

looks greatis that a tek light.

 

[FFrankie]

Cool! Another over worked 120 I have one also that is very similar. Good job!

 

[brandon2432]

nice build well worth the work!!

 

[cutnup]

HumbleLobster: the overflow is made of 2 pieces of glass that are roughly 48x4 and 48x6. They were siliconed in a L shape, then siliconed onto the glass. I go the idea from beananimal. Here's the link http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=1310585
Here is some more close up pics of that on my tank.

4jlong: Thanks for the compliments! I am not sure about the rocket engineer thing. The stand was basically made by scratch and a lot of debating between me and my friend on how to do it. I believe the plywood on the sides and front was 1/2" cabinet ply and 3/4" on the table top.
jgs107: Yep it's a 48" 8x54W
FFrankie: That is a nice overflow. Did you DIY that? I almost built a cabinet that was the size of the whole wall as well. I am sooo glad I didn't do that after I realized how much sanding was actually involved.

 

[FFrankie]

Yeah, I built the whole tank. It was like the one you have and the front pane got scratched. I ended up removing all the panes and rebuilding it with a Starphire front pane and using the old ones for the rest.
As for the stand, I tore it all down just last week and am putting it on a steel stand now. It was just to big and a pain to work in.
What is that light fixture you have over yours? And what bulb mix are you using?

 

[AG84]

Looks good. Will the black paint be affected in the tank?

 

[cutnup]

It shouldn't. I know that they krylon fusion is reef safe. As far as it holding up and not flaking off we will have to see. I scuffed the glass with sandpaper for more of a bond. If it flakes off it will eventually be covered in koraline algae anyway..

 

[HumbleLobster]

Thanks for the pics cutnup! Can't say enough good things about your tank.