My 3rd Reef Tank - Build Thread - Long Nano w/pics - Page 2

mathias999us · #26 12/18/2007, 09:00 AM

Yay! I can finally have my own avatar.

Alright, that's the latest status. Next steps are to add the additional two coats of varnish and install the GFCI outlet (unfortunately, I think I'll have to make a slight mod to my cabinet so it won't interfere with the new outlet, but shouldn't be too tough).

Getting closer and closer to adding water!

Thanks for looking,
Mathias

calvin415 · #27 12/18/2007, 12:16 PM

Looking great bud! Thanks for the kind words, I can't wait to see it full of water!!!

johno4 · #28 12/18/2007, 12:29 PM

Great idea for the tank, it looks awsome. Keep us updated on the progress.

scottydo · #29 12/18/2007, 02:51 PM

Nice job - looks good.

mathias999us · #30 12/19/2007, 07:43 AM

Calvin -
Thanks a bunch! Glad you're tagging along. I can't wait to fill it with water too! I'll try to do your original concept justice! Gotta give you credit, you're the origin of this whole concept, I'm merely an appreciative imitator

johno4 -
Thanks very much for the compliment. Good to have your interest - I'll try to post regular updates, even if they are minimal.

scottydo -
Thanks man!

mathias999us · #31 12/19/2007, 07:50 AM

My update is fairly lame today. The only thing I got done last night was I lightly sanded down the first coat of varnish, hit it all with a tack cloth, and added the second coat. I really don't see too much of a difference between the first and the second, and I'm thinking a third coat wouldn't make a noticeable difference, so I'm thinking of just stopping at two coats (did I mention I hate painting and staining?)

Here are some pics of the second coat:

If I don't move forward with a third coat, hopefully I'll get the electrical work done this evening.

Thanks for reading everyone!

scottydo · #32 12/19/2007, 10:38 AM

I stopped at the second coat on my stand too - 3rd coat is overkill.

mathias999us · #33 12/19/2007, 02:20 PM

scottydo -
Thanks, I think you've reinforced my decision.

mikellini · #34 12/19/2007, 09:05 PM

I really liked Calvin's tank when I saw it, but this one's poised to grasp my attention for quite a while. Very nice...

I want to do something very similar, except definitely taller and possibly a little wider. I wonder how much shipping would be from Colorado to Fort McMurray, Alberta...

TKByrnes · #35 12/19/2007, 11:10 PM

Ok I cant take it any more!!!!! hurry up with the water!!!!!

mathias999us · #36 12/20/2007, 07:12 AM

mikellini -
Thanks, glad you like it! I've heard other people say they would do it slightly taller too. The thing I like about the dimensions that calvin chose was how deceptively small the water volume is. It "looks" like a really big tank, and people are surprised when you tell them it's under 15 gallons total. I'd bet shipping would run ya close to $100. From CO to MN, it was close to $40, not including the excellent OSB packing job calvin did.

TKByrnes -
HAHA! If there's one thing I've learned in this hobby, it's that the best results come through planning and patience.

That being said, I myself am chompin' at the bit to get 'er up and runnin'! Thanks.

mathias999us · #37 12/20/2007, 07:23 AM

When I got home last night, the second coat of varnish was nice and dry. I left it in my shop with the heater running, and a box fan on medium to provide some gentle circulation throughout the shop - the box fan made a big difference IMO. I found a couple small spots that needed to be touched up with another dab of varnish. Then, I went for the electrical work. After hunting up and down the circuit breaker panel for 10 minutes finding the TWO that I needed to turn off (bottom plug was on a different circuit than top plug, glad I checked!), the job was a piece of cake, and was done in less than 10 minutes:

The only problem here, is that I had been planning to have the plug on the left side of the stud (bracket), instead of the right. I hadn't realized that the lower plug was on the right side instead of the left, so it would have been a major PITA to put the new outlet on the left. This meant I had to cut a little out of the back panel on the cabinet, because there wasn't enough room. So, I whipped out my jigsaw, cut out the rectangle, and hit it with some varnish. Here's how it turned out:

mathias999us · #38 12/20/2007, 07:31 AM

And now, finally some shots of the finished cabinet in place.

From family room:

Walking in my front door:

Tried a couple without the flash too:

You can see the blue reflection from my 6 gallon nano that is on the other side of the family room:

I really wasn't sure how this shelf-cabinet thing would turn out while I was planning it, but I must say, I'm not embarrassed of this.

mathias999us · #39 12/20/2007, 07:35 AM

That's it so far!

Now I get to do the REALLY fun stuff. Install the lights, fans, reefkeeper, and plumbing. Also gotta build/install the ATO kit, and find a good water reservoir that will fit into the bottom cabinet. I was thinking of possibly just using a 2.5G AGA. Maybe even a 5 if it will fit.

Thanks for reading!

mathias999us · #40 12/20/2007, 03:55 PM

OK, this one goes out to any of you who have concerns about the structural integrity of this project.

This afternoon, I mounted the shelf in place. I did this by added seven (7) 3" exterior screws through the back boards into the studs. 3 on the left, 3 on the right, and one in the center of the cross brace. May be a bit tought to see, but here's a pic:

Now, here's a pic that's going to (hopefully) give me peace of mind about this situation for years to come:

I lugged all those darned things upstairs just to prove my point here. What you're looking at 380 pounds of freeweights resting on the shelving, plus we still have the additional 70 pounds of weight from the shelf itself (minus the canopy, which is not connected in the pic). The wall and cabinetry didn't even blink an eye. No cracking, creaking, moaning, nada. Not even a "shift". I can site my eye lengthwise along the top and bottom shelves, and they are still straight as an arrow. The only way this thing will come down will be to take the wall with it (I suppose that's still not out of the question, but I'm not worried a bit).

This is considerably more weight than the 250 pounds I am estimating the full tank and all equipment and cabinetry will weigh.

calvin415 · #41 12/20/2007, 04:11 PM

LOL!!!! Dude, I went through the same nagging when I put mine on the wall... Everyone thought it wouldn't hold, but alas that is why they are not engineers.

LOL!

mathias999us · #42 12/20/2007, 04:14 PM

calvin -
HAHA! I think it's because the tank seriously looks a lot bigger than it really is, even in person. People don't believe it when you tell them its 12-13 gallons total. I mean c'mon, I could probably pick the darn thing up when it was full of water!

Hard to picture unless you see in person I guess.

saltyshoe_nano · #43 12/20/2007, 04:55 PM

I like that you showed how much weight it could hold to prove your point lol and its comeing along, very nice! Im ready to see what it looks like with water,rock,ect.

jdpierce21 · #44 12/20/2007, 07:40 PM

Very neat concept. I really like it. It's very different!

NewWorldWater · #45 12/21/2007, 04:02 AM

Grade A work, very tastefully done. Looking forward to watching this thread.

navyav8tr · #46 12/21/2007, 07:47 AM

Very nice work. I like how you have the bottom skirt of the tank so that you can store stuff in it. Great idea, wish I would have thought about it. The one thing that you will like as well by having the canopy pivoting up like that is the ability to clean it better. It can be a little touch at times getting into the corners.
As far as lighting goes I too am running 4x55W T5s and heat does sometime become an issue especially during the summer. I love these tanks though, Calvin truly does have a great design with this.

Philby · #47 12/21/2007, 01:32 PM

Loving everything about this so far! Great job (calvin on the tank and Mathias on the vision/cabinetry)

What are your thoughts for LR - obviously you need much smaller pieces that normal with a tank like this...are you gonna get nano sized rocks from somewhere online? break up regular sized pieces from your LFS? or maybe even DIY some rocks to have the ultimate control of your aquascape?

alpine · #48 12/21/2007, 03:18 PM

Great looking build you got going.I love the
shelf and canopy work,very nice.You've taken a very cool tank design and taken it a step further.You talked about adding a small sump underneath.Will this be a custom made acrylic sump,or something store bought?Personally I would go with a custom sump,to fit your space requirements and needs.You went this far out the box already,might as well keep going further.

All in all great project and I look forward to seeing it full of water and matured.Showed it to the wife and she loved the look and the design.

NanoReefWanabe · #49 12/21/2007, 03:36 PM

looking very nice...and of course a superbly built tank yet again...
the only thing i dont like is how it kind looks unfinished hanging on the wall...almost like it needs something else on the bottom...like a couple pieces of wood on 45* angles to give it the shelf bracket look or something..

i dont know, something about it sticking out 14" into the hallway that makes it look a little funny...other then that the quality of the work is awesome...i can hardly wait to see it stocked and running..

mathias999us · #50 12/27/2007, 07:13 PM

Sorry for the delay, I had company over for the holidays.

saltyshoe_nano -
Heh, thanks. Sometimes a pic is worth a thousand words I guess! I'm looking forward to gettin' it all up and running too!

jdpierce21 -
Thanks much! I didn't want to do just another cube

NewWorldWater -
Thanks a bunch! Glad to have you along.

navyav8tr -
Hey, glad you were able to see this! You were definitely part of my inspiration for this! Yes, I have my T5s up and running now, and the first thing I had to deal with was the excess heat. I believe I have an effective solution for now, but only time will tell with the warm temps of summer.

Philby -
Thanks very much! Glad you like it. For LR, I was thinking that I'd just order about 20 lbs of "Nano" rock from premium aquatics:
http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merch..._Code=Liverock
I was just going to make a long wall along the entire length of the black divider wall, which wraps around the divider walls at the ends also. I'm certainly open to suggestions on this though...

alpine -
Thanks a bunch alpine! My only plans for a sump are just the built-in sump box in the back of the tank. It's good sized, and very configurable. In the cabinet underneath, I'll just have the pump, ballasts, plumbing, ATO, and other equipment. I suppose the option for a lower sump still exists in the future though, since I have the bulkheads in the floor of the tank.

NanoReefWanabe -
HAHA, well, I guess you can't please 'em all. One guy wants to hide the brackets, someone else wants me to intentionally make it look like there are brackets. I like the clean floating look myself though. The only thing I can tell you about it sticking out 14" into the hall is that, it's a wide hall with a bend, so it's really out of the natural walking path, and fits quite naturally where it is IMO. Here's a pic for you from a different angle to give you a better idea:

Thanks for the support though, and glad to have your interest.