225 reef build

cioutlaw · #1 06/14/2007, 07:42 PM

Tank is a 72x30x24 starfire & will be a room divider along the back of a sectional couch. I have a 48"x24 120gal. that it will replace. At the time I am about finished building the stand & will start the canopy when I get time.

Equipment is as follows:

3) 250w DE MH Phonix 14k bulbs in Reef Optix III pendants & Blue wave ballast.

VHO super actinics

Euroreef CS 180 skimmer for now, will go larger later.

40 gal breeder sump with 2 1200GPH pumps feeding 2 wavysea's(might add a 3rd)

2 chamber MRC calcium reactor

Here are some pictures where Im at now

mflamb · #2 06/14/2007, 08:09 PM

Glass Cages tank??? I like my 390 from them.

cioutlaw · #3 06/14/2007, 08:17 PM

Yep its from GC.

nss9400 · #4 06/15/2007, 10:07 PM

nice stand!

zylumn · #5 06/16/2007, 10:48 AM

Tagging along for ideas for my 225g build. Great start with the stand.

zylumn · #6 06/16/2007, 07:44 PM

cioutlaw

You show welder as occupation and yet you constructed your stand solely out of wood. I would appreciate your reasoning.
Kevin

fefo23 · #7 06/17/2007, 07:50 AM

Looking good what are your plans for it?

orlandobrian · #8 06/17/2007, 08:01 AM

Keep up with the photos!!! what are your plans for the inside?

cioutlaw · #9 06/17/2007, 09:31 PM

zylumn- Could have easily built it out of steel but wanted it finished in wood to match the rest of my house trim ect. Couldnt think of a good way to frame it in steel & cover it with wood. I have built many aquarium stands out of steel including LFS displays holding 20 30gal tanks each

fefo23- Mostly SPS with some LPS. I have a 120gal now that will get the corals/fish transfered.

orlandobrian- from Orlando Fl? I was just there last week, wife had a convention & I tagged along.

Inside of the stand? I have a 40G sump & Euroreef skimmer but both will need to be replaced with larger ones in the future. will also keep the calcium reactor & suppies down there. If you were asking about the tank...Im planning a rock wall against the overflow & a couple islands with lots of open water. SPS dominated & my current fish are Desjardins Sailfin Tang, Bangai Cardinal, Red Hawk, couple perc clowns & Coral Beauty Angel. Im not going to add a lot more fish.

Here is a shot of my current 120G

fefo23 · #10 06/18/2007, 05:49 PM

Its a torch coral the one in the bottom, for how long do you have and is an anemone the big center pice, also how big is your cardinal, I may get one like that.
fefo

cioutlaw · #11 06/18/2007, 08:26 PM

Coral on the bottom I think you are looking at is a Frogspawn, Ive had for over a year & fragged many times. Big annenome looking piece is actually a Toadstool Leather. The Cardinal is about 2.5-3" long, great fish...might get him a mate when the move is all finished.

orlandobrian · #12 06/19/2007, 06:36 AM

Nice tank.

zylumn · #13 06/20/2007, 12:41 AM

Thank you , good job on the stand.

fefo23 · #14 06/20/2007, 07:07 AM

wou toadtool is big, I just got one but is not like that, well mine is only 4", so i may have to get a bigger tank if mine grow that much.

FishyBiz · #15 06/20/2007, 07:06 PM

Awesome work on the stand.
Take your time with the finish.... Ive seen a lot of guys on here build a killer stand and then F it up with their stain/painting skills.

cioutlaw · #16 06/20/2007, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by FishyBiz
Awesome work on the stand.
Take your time with the finish.... Ive seen a lot of guys on here build a killer stand and then F it up with their stain/painting skills.

I hear ya, my last stand I built I wasnt crazy about the finish. Will research a lil better this time.

orlandobrian · #17 06/21/2007, 07:00 PM

I stripped the stain off mine 4 times before I got a finished product I was happy with. I recommend using Minwax from Home Depot. (I used #225) Two light coats should do it. Dont treat the wood first - I had better luck this way. Then follow up with Olympic Interior Water Based Polyurethane - Easy to use!

Brandan · #18 06/21/2007, 08:54 PM

Wow, thats awesome. What wood did you use to cover the stand? I've seen it before, just don't know the name.

cioutlaw · #19 06/22/2007, 08:24 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Brandan
Wow, thats awesome. What wood did you use to cover the stand? I've seen it before, just don't know the name.

Thanks, the wood is birch with Oak trim.

cioutlaw · #20 06/22/2007, 08:26 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by orlandobrian
I stripped the stain off mine 4 times before I got a finished product I was happy with. I recommend using Minwax from Home Depot. (I used #225) Two light coats should do it. Dont treat the wood first - I had better luck this way. Then follow up with Olympic Interior Water Based Polyurethane - Easy to use!

Thanks for the info. I used Minwax last time but a thinking room temp(Illinois winter in the garage) might have affected the outcome last time. I have used the same product on wood trim in the house & it came out nice.

old salty · #21 06/23/2007, 12:21 AM

Thanks a bunch for posting pics of your stand. I am buying a similar sized tank from a guy and no stand. The LFS quoted me at $799 for a nice Oceanic stand; way more than I am willing to pay. I was drawing up plans today and threw them away when I saw your pics. Would you mind giving a quick rundown of the sizes you use; it's hard to tell from the pictures.

cioutlaw · #22 06/23/2007, 11:10 AM

Old salty- the frame is 2x6 with 2x4 cross bracing, 3/4" Oak top & inside floor, skin is 1/4" Birch wood & the trim is 1x3 Oak. All joints are glued & screwed. The design is overkill im sure but most store bought stands are weak in my opinion. Let me know if I can help further.

chrisqueenz · #23 06/23/2007, 07:37 PM

Jumping aboard for this one!

Nice stand

fefo23 · #24 06/24/2007, 12:42 AM

Any pic, and where do you order your tank.

orlandobrian · #25 06/24/2007, 08:18 AM

I cant wait to see your design for a canopy.