New house (sorta), new tank!

[apex_seeking]

The bracing isn’t why I can hang it from the ceiling. It’s the location that’s the factor. It’s kind of under some stairs. Sort of.

And I’m not tempering it myself. That takes large equipment. I work in a glass shop and I can get almost whatever. I am going to order the bottom panel tempered for flex. It’s less brittle than annealed. Annealed is just raw glass. Tempering and heat strengthening is a process that increases strength and “safety”.

At this point I think I got enough info to go ahead and order my glass.

I was going to use aluminum for the frame but right now, material costs are through the roof. I will probably switch to steel and just paint the he’ll out if it.

Any suggestions on marine grade paint?


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[apex_seeking]

Tonight I got the refugium drilled for the Fiji overflow. I also drilled a piece of plexiglass to act as a sort of baffle so I have water flow through the entire tank.

I also picked up a couple of 55 gallon barrels for a mixing station. I installed a sight glass and plan on plumbing them together tomorrow.

I picked up a 40b this past weekend and have all my rock curing right now. But it’s going to have to move because I’m relocating my rodi station to where it’s sitting now.

That should all happen this week. Now I just need to get my other two tanks sold to help fund this project. Can’t wait to leave all the buckets behind and automate the water changes!

 

[jda123]

I have an oceanic with a 20-24 glass inch center brace. It is not ideal, but I grow acropora under there plenty fine (read - it works). The light gets through at about a 20-30% decrease, but I do have lots of light. That brace is HUGE and most would be more like 3-6 inches now.

If I ever get another tank, it will have a metal, powder coated top rim with maybe 3/8 rod for braces.

 

[apex_seeking]

Thanks for the info. I feel a lot more comfortable after some research and hearing peoples actual experiences.

I went with an orphek icon so I’m not too worried about par down the center. Plus, I’m going to start with low and some low light sticks.

 

[apex_seeking]

Got the saltwater mixing station and the rodi all setup and running tonight. View attachment 20251 View attachment 20252

I also installed a utility sink. That’s going to be right next to a work bench that will cover the sump and hold my refugium. View attachment 20253

I got family in town so I’m not sure how much I’ll get done this weekend but next week I start the stand. I’ll be teaching my oldest to weld so it’ll probably go slow but that’s fine, as long as he’s learning something.


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[apex_seeking]

I managed to sneak away and get some work done. I had some hose management to take care of after running the RODI so I got all the connections relocated and the drain line tapped into the sink drain. That’s so nice. It ran to a sump before and the line would get kicked out causing a food in the basement. No more!

I got the bench leveled out and bolted into place. It’s a little rough but it was made with left overs from the house remodel so it was essentially free. And the steel post legs are 2x2 1/8 wall so no concerns about weight limits.

I built the bench top out of melamine. One of my favorite top materials for work spaces. Easy clean up and the actual surface can hold up to water without damage. I had to try something I’ve not done before (because, why not?!) and slot the backsplash into the top for added strength. Turned out ok.

View attachment 20256 View attachment 20257 View attachment 20258

I added a bead of white silicone to keep water out of the joint. After it’s all dry I’ll face the edges with melamine trim. I built it bar top height so I can comfortably stand and work or use one of the many bar stools we have. Plus the added height keeps the skimmer that will live in the sump below it accessible.




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[apex_seeking]

I also sistered a couple of joists, because it made the wife feel better about putting over 1000 pounds in her new living room. Fortunately we have an unfinished basement so it only took a twenty minutes or so to span the 7ft or so from the steel I beam to the stair header.

View attachment 20259

Getting all the side work done is boring. Can’t wait to get the stand welded up or finally get some glass in to assemble the tank. I was told the glass should be next week. I got the steel in the workshop waiting to get cut and prepped. This week.

But really. Let’s get it done. This week.


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[apex_seeking]

I started the stand a couple of days ago but didn’t make a ton of progress because I got to teach my 14yo how to TIG weld. That was a very proud moment.
View attachment 20276
Tonight I got some work done. All tacked up and some welds completed. View attachment 20277
The reality of this build is starting to sink in. It’s gonna happen. It doesn’t feel like such a far off goal but something that’ll be done in the next couple of weeks.

I have been curing my display rock with the live rock from my previous tank. I’ve been processing 2ppm of ammonia in 24 hours this week so hopefully I can start the tank out running instead of waiting a few weeks like a normal tank cycle.


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[SynDen]

Nice. Teaching kids new skills always the most rewarding part of being a parent

 

[flagg37]

Wow, started him off with TIG? Throwing him in the fire. I remember my first welding experience. I had to TIG weld some stainless steel handrail in a customer’s house. It took me 8 hours to do one weld and get it all cleaned up.

I’m curious why you chose TIG over MIG or stick for the welds.

 

[apex_seeking]

Wow, started him off with TIG? Throwing him in the fire. I remember my first welding experience. I had to TIG weld some stainless steel handrail in a customer’s house. It took me 8 hours to do one weld and get it all cleaned up.

I’m curious why you chose TIG over MIG or stick for the welds.

That’s brutal. SS is a pia.

I started on tig and hate mig welding. Plus I already had the Tig out and running. If you can get a hold of the concept of tig, I feel like mig welding is a no brainer. Like the difference between a manual vs and automatic.

Either way, he actually did pretty good. View attachment 20278
His first actual weld after playing with the torch a little and getting a feel for the pedal.


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[apex_seeking]

Was welding up the stand when a package arrived.
View attachment 20281
Now I gotta start the process of figuring out how to setup ATO and auto water changes. And organize all those wires! Yikes!


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[flagg37]

Those deliveries are always fun.

 

[SynDen]

And suddenly it was Christmas! lol

 

[apex_seeking]

The stand got welded up. I got a coat of paint on it but I’m not sure how it’s gonna turn out as there was some lint on my roller so I may have to sand it down a little and redo it. Oh well. View attachment 20285
I started the daunting task of setting up the apex. There’s an amazing amount of stuff this thing can do! No wonder they are so expensive. As of now, it maintains my RODI tank, runs the ATO, provides leak detection and cycles my NSW tank. I’ve got a few more things to tie in but that’s enough for today. Besides, I need to clean up the cords before it gets too out of hand.
View attachment 20286 View attachment 20287

I may have to take a day or two off as I think I’ve put in a full day on this build for two straight weeks.


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[flagg37]

You’re going to have to change your screen name now since you are no longer seeking an apex.

 

[apex_seeking]

Ever have moments where you step back and look at yourself and think, “what are you doing?!” I had several of those today.

I was calculating sump levels and my workshop board looked like the ramblings of a serial killer. View attachment 20307
Then I was working on part of the filter portion of the sump and…well…
View attachment 20308
View attachment 20309 View attachment 20310

Anyway, I got some good work done today. I got the stand and light mount all set up along with mounting the light.
View attachment 20311
I still need to clean up the starboard and drill it for the plumbing, but I think I’ll wait until I have the glass in my hands before I cut it up.

I was using my 40b for curing and cycling rocks but it needs to be empty so I can convert it into the sump. I used my old RO trash can and loaded it with rocks so I could get the sump built.

Cut up some leftover polycarbonate from another sump I built to make baffles. View attachment 20312

I m not sure if I want to run filter socks or batting, so I made it possible to run either, or both, if I go with the mesh socks and loose batting. View attachment 20313

Aside from some small things to get finished, I’m pretty much waiting for glass.


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[apex_seeking]

Got a QT setup. Should be getting the first fish tomorrow. Rock is all cycled. Processing 2ppm of ammonia in 24 hours or less. Just need the glass. And it all showed up at our shop today!

Except the bottom piece has a logo right at the end of the peninsula! WTF! View attachment 20314
Quality of work and paying attention to details seems like it’s gone down hill throughout the “trades” over the last decade. Ugh. But that’s a different discussion. Anyway, waiting for that to get resolved.


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[flagg37]

Got a QT setup. Should be getting the first fish tomorrow. Rock is all cycled. Processing 2ppm of ammonia in 24 hours or less. Just need the glass. And it all showed up at our shop today!

Except the bottom piece has a logo right at the end of the peninsula! WTF! View attachment 20314
Quality of work and paying attention to details seems like it’s gone down hill throughout the “trades” over the last decade. Ugh. But that’s a different discussion. Anyway, waiting for that to get resolved.


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Just curious why you chose to go with tempered.

 

[apex_seeking]

Tempered is “stronger”. I say it in quotes because there’s more to it than that, science stuff. I don’t know all the numbers but I know what I’ve seen at work and while glass is pretty fragile, tempered is pretty tough. Going bare bottom, I want the added security that it won’t crack if a rock tips over.

Plus it wasn’t that much more, my cost.


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