August Update
August Update
Bit of a slow month, at least in terms of visible changes. Progress on the 6 new zones of HVAC, electrical, and in the last week crews finally started back on the fish room and aquarium lights.
Fish Room Drywall Completed
Plumbing rough and drywall completed, but that's about it. In the last update I mentioned that I was hoping to have the room completed and start aquarium setup in earnest in about 3 weeks. 4 weeks later I'd say we are still 3 to 4 weeks from being done. Still to go: painting, finish flooring, HVAC, plumbing and electrical finish out.
Finish out of ceiling around pipes
Builder made everything look pretty, but I may ask him to tear out around the pipes or drill extra holes in the ceiling. Don't like the idea of potential leaks running down the pipes and then pooling on the ceiling.
Tank-side Plumbing and Electrical
Originally thought I'd have a nice broom closet of sorts between the tank and wall, good place to store tongs, gloves, snuba setup. Now with 90% of the plumbing, ducting and electrical in place it is obvious I need a new plan. Not much else is going in there.
Fiberglass pan and drain under tank
Leg Extensions for Aquarium Base
This was the most unwelcome surprise of the last month. As you may recall, I designed the stand with the leg cage inset 6.5" from the top to allow for installation of a soundproof wall around the base. I had the engineer review this design; the same engineer who did the structural steel for the main structure. The engineer designed the structural steel under the slab with extra beams running the perimeter of the tank. Well, he installed the perimeter bracing to the dimensions of the tank, not the base of the stand. 8 weeks later, after all framing and drywall is in, he realizes that the tank is now set up to punch a hole through the slab since the floor bracing is set 6.5" outside the stand. This left us with the choice of tearing out the fish room framing to install new support beams, or adding 'wings' to the base of the stand to carry load out to the beams. The wing route is 1/4 the cost, but of course this will now complicate installation of the soundproof surround. Ugh.
Another 2-day Peek at the Tank, another Scale Perspective Moment
Tank was uncovered for 2 days between finishing out the ceiling light framing and the interior buildout crew coming in. As you can seen in the picture, the glass and bottom of the tank were filthy. Cleaning it brought another moment of perspective on the scale of the tank when I climbed in with the shop vac to clean the bottom and quickly realized that it would be much better to use a broom and mop for the job.
Light Rack
The lighting rack made for a fun design challenge. Objectives were: 1) low profile to maximize headroom above tank; 2) easily accommodate adding new lights or repositioning existing; 3) slide front to back for times when I need to crawl around on top of tank.
Sliding Railes
Rather than use rolling tracks I decided to go with aluminum slides. This saved a few inches of clearance at the expense of smooth operation. I don't anticipate moving the lights more than a few times a year if that, so hoping this was the right trade off.
Light Mounts
Wood light mounts are sloped to counter the ceiling slope. Lights are fastened on with spacer washers on the outside mounting holes to make each light in a pair tilt in toward its mate. The entire mount tilts into or out of the frame for light changes. This design also allows the lights to slide left and light on the rails if I decide to insert additional cannons later.
Initial 12 Cannon Array Mounted
Tank Preview with Flooring
