setting up a 20 gal tall

[Katfsh]

Ok I have a 20 gal tall that the bottom is busted out of that I am going to be setting up. Why this tank you may ask? Well me and my wife used to have this tank setup and we really liked it, we took it down when we moved three years ago. I took it out of my shed a week ago and the bottom cracked on it so I am replacing the bottom for several reasons; 1) Just to see if I can, 2)After just spending over $300 dollars on a skimmer and mh lights, I cant justify to my wife that we need to buy a new tank when there is nothing wrong with the one we have, and 3) When I told my wife (she is six months pregnant with our second child) that the tank was broke she cried as if I shot her dog 8O. So I am going to pick up the new glass and some acrylic today, from a place that my farm has an account with so this will be a farm expense. 8) I have ordered a diamond bit yesterday. I am also going to go by and pickup some 2x4's today to make a stand. My wife thinnks that I tossed out the tank, and she will be going out of town to her moms this weekend so If my bit comes in and football doesnt get in the way I am going to try to have a stind built and the tank drilled and fixed when she gets home. The tank used to have two 1/2" bulkheads in the bottom, I am thinking about putting just one 1 1/2" bulkhead in the middle and building a overflow box for it, my thinking is with this narrow of a tank I dont want to take up alot of room with a larger overfow and I will just run the returns over the top. Also can any explain how a durso works? Ok well I have to get to work more questions later and for all the picture junkies i will try i and post pics as I go through this.
oh yeah cant wait the caints (yes I said caints) will be starting off the football season tonight 8)
katfsh

 

[Brian5000]

Durso? You mean this thing?
_________________
Mercedes 280

 

[ChrisRD]

http://www.dursostandpipes.com/

 

[Katfsh]

yes that is what I was talking about
I think I might move this thread to the members tank area

 

[Anonymous]

psst, here's my 20 gallon

www.bad-coffee.com/reef

 

[Katfsh]

Hey bingo how did you cut the back of your tank like that to make your overflow i really like that I may do mine like that if it is not to difficult, right now I am considering drilling a hole in the top middle of the back and making a small internaly overflow. Similar to this but I would have a elbow on it to have the intake under the water Line. http://www.reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.p ... sc&start=0


Well I got started on everything today. Started on the stand, it is framed in 2x4's that i cut half lap joints or dados whatever you want to call them, to make the joints as strong as possible and leaving as much room as possible inside the stand. I made the stand 2 inches deeper than the tank jsut to make it a little more stable. The stand will be finished in pecky cypress.

Also today I siliconed the the new pane of glass on the bottom of my tank.

My wife is out of town this weekend and she kept calling all day asking what i was doing, she has no idea that I am doing all of this. I told her I was building a hat rack, she probably thinks I am on drugs because i dont even wear hats. :lol: Anyways I am going to bust my tail after church tomorrow to try to have most of this knocked out by time she gets home monday evening.

Here are some pics

 

[Katfsh]

more pics

 

[WRASSER]

well put together stand... ... is the jon boat for fishing or hunting?

 

[Katfsh]

Its for fishing and duck hunting

thanks for the comment on the stand, it still has a lot more work left on it

katfsh

 

[Katfsh]

oh yeah thats my duck dog under the boat hahahaha

 

[mr_X]

oh yeah thats my duck dog under the boat hahahaha

lol...i bet he doesn't let too many get away!

 

[WRASSER]

he looks like he enjoys watching you

 

[Katfsh]

he doesnt get excited about much..

Well I am fixing to get back to work on it. got to put the ring on the bottom on the tank and silicon the inside corners today. also today i have to go to lowes to pick up a hand plane, might check on a planer for my dremel. Also got to pull out the router and start on the panels for the sides and the doors, I have never done thes before so I am ready to see how they turn out.

katfsh

 

[Katfsh]

well I did not get as much done today as I would have liked but I did get a good bit done. Well a couple of days ago I bought a skill router and router table combo for a hundred bucks, not bad for a router and router table. Well I put it together this morning then I realized that my router bits would not work in the table, and my hitachi router that handles the 1/2 shank bits wouldnt bolt up to the table, so I took it apart and off to lowes I went. I ended up getting a bosch table much much better table should have bought it the first time. Well I got both side panels on and the door on today, I still have to put some trim around the bottom and some trim that will cover the bottom inch or so of the tank. My new metal halide, pc light should be here tomorrow along with my glass bit. So I can get some measurements and start on the hood. i decided to go with a piano hinge on the door just bc it opens further than any other hinge that I could find at lowes. well here are some more pics. enjoy.
katfsh

 

[Katfsh]

more pics

 

[Anonymous]

Very nice. I like the side panels.

I used a rotozip and a tile cutting bit to cut the overflow slot for my 20. Many people have used a dremel and a diamond cutting bit with success as well.

B

 

[WRASSER]

hey kat,
nice panels and a door. now get the tank to look that good and your in business :wink:

 

[Anonymous]

great work on the stand

 

[Katfsh]

well wrasser I was thinking about jsut putting water in the tank no fish or corals that way it wouldnt take away from the stand! :lol: :lol:
I got a little more done to the stand yesterday but not much. My Lights came in yesterday and the metal halide will not turn on, do you guys have any suggestions on what to check, I mean its either ballast or bulb, i am bringing my volt meter home at lunch to try It out.

later
katfsh

 

[Katfsh]

Well do to a crazy week I havent gotten alot done. Today I started on the canopy. I hope to get it knocked out tomorrow. I still have to decided on wether or not to stain it and what type of sealer to use. I have some questions about my sump. I am going to use a ten gallon tank and put some baffles in it. The first compartment Will have the Inlet with a micro sock and my aquac remora nano in it. Then there will be three baffels an under, a over, then another over. Now the second and third compartments is where I can not make up my mind. Do I put the fuge in the second, the the return pump and heater in the third with the flow going from 1 to 2 to 3. Or Would it be better to make the second the return, and the third the fuge that would be fed from a T in the return line with a valve on it so I could Have a slower flow through the fuge?? I am going to be using a rio 2100 pump...yeah yeah I know peice of junk, but hear me out, we keep them in stock at our aquaculture supply buisness, and I get them at cost and charge them to the farm so no out of pocket expense to me. 8) . So how does this sound any suggestions??? I will try to post some more pictures of the stand with trim and the canopy tomorrow. My glass bits that I ordered are held up in customs so I am waiting on them. I filled the tank yesterday morning as of this evening no leaks . so nine bucks for glass and seven bucks worth of silicon, thats alot better than 50 bucks the lfs quoted me.

katfsh