+KimP Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 This build has been around 8 months in the making. Started as a 65g build but couldn't get the steel stand skinned, then turned into a 75g build for about a week, and now has turned into a 90gal build with a stand I built myself and I'm definitely sticking with this setup! Even though it took ages to get to this point I'm really happy I decided to go with a larger tank and it fits the space well. My goal for this tank is to put it together right from the beginning. Get the equipment I want to be using way down the road now instead of piecing it together and regretting it and wasting money along the way upgrading. The goal for the contents of the tank is mainly fish for my sons to enjoy. As much as I prefer coral, my 3yr old just isn't too impressed if it's not a fish or critter moving around. I'm setting up lighting and flow for coral too, of course! 90 gal tank purchased new from the Dome wooden diy stand (built with a ton of help & advice from SChrisEV and ckyuv - I couldn't have done it without you guys!!) sump tbd - working with Bio3 on this lighting - 4 kessil a360n flow - Tunze 6055 & 6095, I have a nano wavebox but haven't decided for sure to use or not return - mag 9.5 UV sterilizer - Ultra Life 16w rock - BRS various dry rock, Cerameco pieces, and LR sand - Caribsea Fiji Pink skimmer - Tunze 9006 Plumbing - - need lots of help here Apex Lite with accessories ordered with a ton of advice from victoly - Thank you! I don't have much going on with it as of today, I've just recently collected just about all the stuff I need for the build (minus the sump). So soon comes the fun part of aquascaping, plumbing, and getting it wet! Soon I'll be starting a thread asking for stocking advice. I don't know much about fish other than keeping seahorses. I also need advice on the plumbing after I get the sump figured out. Any comments or advice on the equipment list are appreciated. This is the first tank bigger than a nano that I've set up. Pics of stand build and tank to come... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
victoly Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planeden Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Very exciting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 9, 2013 Author Share Posted April 9, 2013 Here are some pictures from the stand build. I am very limited with the tools I have, basically a miter saw, drill, and jigsaw are really all I have, so I did what I could with those. I did a lot of sanding to make up for the lack of proper tools. For making the doors, all I was able to do is just put some trim around each door. It's simple but should look fine. I also decided not to put any trim on the stand and keep it simple too. I'm already pushing the length of the stand and without any trim is 1" longer than the wall it sits against. Didn't want it sticking out any more. Besides, if someone is looking in that much detail at my stand, then I know I need to work harder on the tank I have 2x6s on the front to eliminate the center brace, the back has 2 sections cut out for air flow, and it's probably way overbuilt which really eats up the space down below but having a solid stand is a higher priority for me. The stand is painted in marine top side in black. *I had a bit of a fail with the bottom. I had put it off until last because it needed a bunch of little cuts. When I went to put it in, it was too big to fit in any of the available openings. I had to cut it in half. So to anyone building a stand in the future, do the bottom piece before the end... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Capt. Obvious Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 looking good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShawnM Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Looking really good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SChrisEV Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Looks great, looking forward to see the continued progress! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrshall1027 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Looks great! We have an AI SOL directly over a glass center brace and its works out perfectly. We had PAR checked, although slightly lower than without the brace, it still provides a great spot for high and moderate light corals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 9, 2013 Author Share Posted April 9, 2013 Looks great! We have an AI SOL directly over a glass center brace and its works out perfectly. We had PAR checked, although slightly lower than without the brace, it still provides a great spot for high and moderate light corals. This one has a plastic center brace. I guess I'll just have to try one out in the middle and see what happens. It's not a very wide brace. Are you using the AI controller or another controller? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+brian.srock Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Congrats on the 90! For plumbing I use a very cheap and effective method. Although not 100% quiet (92%-95% ) it's in my living room and doesn't bother me at all when I am watching a movie or at night when I am sleeping. After having the back drilled by Bio I used a 1" to 1 1/4" PVC elbow then used a 2" piece of 1 1/4" pvc pipe to give it whatever height I wanted my water level at. I then took eggcrate and cut it to fit in the pipe and super glued for fish protection. I toyed with a bunch of ideas and I really like this design since people still complain that fish get into their overflow boxes and I didn't feel like spending $100 on an overflow box which is really only $20 in parts . I also didn't want to go with hard PVC pipe on the outside since it was impossible to perform maintaince on them especially after reading Tim's post (http://www.austinreefclub.com/topic/25998-nothings-permanant-in-a-reef-system/#entry192109) I used pump discharge tubing to connect to the 1" pvc pipe that I had which is also connected to a shutoff valve. http://www.lowes.com/pd_25020-104-RBBO_0__?Ntt=bilge&UserSearch=bilge&productId=3419140&rpp=32 I can snap some pics if you want to see my setup or you can always swing by but it allows me to turn off the return pump at any time, turn the valve off then move, replace, repair any issues easily. Just the elbow Test fitting the 1 1/4" pipe height with the water level Added the egg crate and tested to make sure it wouldn't restrict flow 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanoreefer11 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Kim, do you remember what thickness and type of wood you used to skin the stand? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 9, 2013 Author Share Posted April 9, 2013 Kim, do you remember what thickness and type of wood you used to skin the stand? <br /> It's mostly .5" birch ply and a piece or 2 of .5" pine. It was harder than I thought to find the birch but it sure looks better than the pine! With the paint though it doesn't seem to matter. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesL Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 New baby, new tank... yup, makes sense Can't wait to see it up an running! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SChrisEV Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Kim, do you remember what thickness and type of wood you used to skin the stand? <br /> It's mostly .5" birch ply and a piece or 2 of .5" pine. It was harder than I thought to find the birch but it sure looks better than the pine! With the paint though it doesn't seem to matter. Well, the grain pattern can make a big difference, with stain or paint. Birch, maple or poplar are all great hardwoods to use with paint, they have a tighter grain patterns and take paint very well. Pine has a much wider grain and is more "rustic" looking when finished. Of the listed hardwoods, birch is I think the easiest to find here in Texas. Home Depot caries plywood sheets of it. If you are going to stain the woods, these woods will work as well, but cherry, walnut, mahogany, etc. are more commonly used.... just my 2 cents... if it's even worth that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrshall1027 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Looks great!<br /> <br />We have an AI SOL directly over a glass center brace and its works out perfectly. We had PAR checked, although slightly lower than without the brace, it still provides a great spot for high and moderate light corals. <br /><br /><br />This one has a plastic center brace. I guess I'll just have to try one out in the middle and see what happens. It's not a very wide brace. Are you using the AI controller or another controller?<br /> Oh, then If its not very wide and you raise the lights high enough above the tank, you will be fine. Even with just having two AI SOLs you would be fine. I'd suggest trying that out first and check PAR before making the investment. There are several people on the board that may be able to do it for you. Any thoughts on how you are going to mount the lights? Are you going to build a canopy or anything? Yes, we are using the AI controller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planeden Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 If you are going to stain the woods, these woods will work as well, but cherry, walnut, mahogany, etc. are more commonly used.... just my 2 cents... if it's even worth that. Since the stand seems to have the skin on it already it may not be worth that much to her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mitch Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 just my 2 cents... if it's even worth that. Um, Chris is being VERY humble! ...have you seen the stand that he made for his corner tank? http://www.austinreefclub.com/topic/24393-92-gallon-quarter-circle-with-custom-stand/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SChrisEV Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 If you are going to stain the woods, these woods will work as well, but cherry, walnut, mahogany, etc. are more commonly used.... just my 2 cents... if it's even worth that. Since the stand seems to have the skin on it already it may not be worth that much to her. I'm not going to hijack Kims thread, she has done a phenomenal job on this stand. I was commenting on the birch vs. pine for nanoreefer11. I've already talked to Kim about her stand in length and know she is going to paint hers. P.S. Thanks Mitch! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 9, 2013 Author Share Posted April 9, 2013 <br />Kim, do you remember what thickness and type of wood you used to skin the stand? <br /><br /><br /><br /><br />It's mostly .5" birch ply and a piece or 2 of .5" pine. It was harder than I thought to find the birch but it sure looks better than the pine! With the paint though it doesn't seem to matter.<br />Well, the grain pattern can make a big difference, with stain or paint. Birch, maple or poplar are all great hardwoods to use with paint, they have a tighter grain patterns and take paint very well. Pine has a much wider grain and is more "rustic" looking when finished. Of the listed hardwoods, birch is I think the easiest to find here in Texas. Home Depot caries plywood sheets of it.<br /> <br />If you are going to stain the woods, these woods will work as well, but cherry, walnut, mahogany, etc. are more commonly used.... just my 2 cents... if it's even worth that. <br /><br /><br />I painted the stand, I didn't use stain. And yes, there is a noticeable difference in the grain between the birch and pine. I spent too much time sanding the pine because of this....if it was easier for me to cut the pieces I would've replaced the pine with birch. It's only pine on the sides though. McCoys has birch in huge sheets only and they won't cut for you. Lowe's only carries maple and pine, and I did finally get the birch at HD. Btw..the pine was not what SChrisEV suggested I use He recommended the birch and it is definitely better!<br /> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 9, 2013 Author Share Posted April 9, 2013 Here is a picture of the painted stand minus the doors which I still need to attach.<br /><br /> 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bige Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Looks great Kim. You could park a truck on it! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 11, 2013 Author Share Posted April 11, 2013 Tonight I got the doors hung. Earlier I had also replaced the outlet behind the tank with a gfci outlet and waterproof cover. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesL Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 Nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckyuv Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 Awesome job with the stand, I know who to go to when I need new furniture Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
victoly Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 lookin mighty fine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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