Current FTS: 3/5/10







My original plan



And Reality



















And heres the tank that I will be upgrading from.



So let me know what you think. And give me some ideas.

needs water

This. Looks like a cool build!

Thanks guys yeah water soon, I just put a few more beads of silicone on the sump so hopefully I'll be ready to do some leak testing this weekend.

Well I drilled the bottom for the return and started leak testing and right away it was leaking through the bottom into the overflow chamber. So water out and I'm waiting for it to dry so I can fix.

good find

Nice looking build. What's the size of the tank your going from, and what's the size and dimensions of the acrylic build your going to?

im going from a 10gal(10W 20l 12h) to a 20l that measures 14w x 30l x 12h

very nice set up like the wood work and clean build of the stand.


well be following this thread.

Well heres a pic of the return set-up


Unfortunately I probably won't get much done until after the weekend. ( going away for the weekend ) But I do plan on hanging the light fixture before then.

Oh by the way this is my first acrylic tank, any tips on how to keep it clean without scratching it?

This is going to be a sweet set-up. Can't wait to see it in action!

very very nice work.cant wait to see some stuff in it :}

Well 3 months later I finally got around to working on the tank. Unfortunately my 10 gal isn't doing so hot. Hopefully I can get this tank up and running soon.

My homemade skimmer looks to be doing its job.




I added some rock and sand that I've had laying around. I also ordered another 20lb of sand and I will be moving most of the rock from the 10 gal over when I make the switch.

The sump with skimmer and return pump running.






Hung the Light this morning.

Well today I got about 10 lbs of live rock for free =) And my sand should be in tomorrow.
I also build a ATO, its working great.

Pics from the ATO build. I used 2 float switches in series. A 12v power supply and relay. And Aqua Lifter pump.

Cost me about 25$ for the float switches and relay, everything else I had laying around.

ATO - Complete
Electrical - Complete

More sand and LR added.


Pics later

Looking good, actully looking great !!

The tank with some sand, alittle more rock and K1.

And heres the electrical setup Ive been working on.



16 Outlets all together. Everything runs through the gfi.

8 always on - Heaters
- Moon lights
- Chiller and Chiller pump
- Supply power for ATO pump

4 wired to switches - Main return pump
- Powerhead
- Skimmer
- Water change pump

4 wired to timers - Main 150 MH Light
- T5 Attinics
- Fuge Light
- ATO ( runs 4 times a day for 10 mins each, I dont like to leave it on all the time because the relay starts to chatter)

Looking great! I'm curious to see how you end up doing the doors / drawers of your stand.

Looks niiiiice & great placement too!!

Ok sad news, my 150 MH is shorted and the timer is screwed up. I dont know if the timer is screwed up because of the light shorting or if the light shorted because of the timer. Most likely I'll be ordering a new ballast soon.

Details on the Lighting problem
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...p;#entry2372045

Well I'm so pissed off with the cadlights light that I've decided to build my own fixture. Its like 10lbs of sht in a 5 lb bag. So I'm going to use the parts to build a more maintenance friendly fixture. I'll put up some pics when I start the build.

I love the DIY, esp the skimmer!

Any more details on it? Have you thought of trying to make a cone one?

I'm looking forward to seeing your DIY... I've always wanted to do a DIY MH fixture. I just can't see paying the price to buy one, given how well T5HO does for a lower price. However, if you end up with an easy DIY, I think I'll give it a shot for a frag tank!

Adding this one to my subscriptions...

Ok well I got a great deal ona used sealife skimmer so my diy is downstairs cycling some rock. But it was made from acrylic tube that my father had lying around, a venturi I made from epoxy, and a power head that dosent even have a name on it. the top section is held together by plastic screws with a large o-ring between the upper and lower sections. It comes apart easily for cleaning.



Everything for the skimmer is glued together with silicone. A cone skimmer would be great just too much work for me. I'm lazy.

So heres what I salvaged from the old fixture, and the new MH ballast I bought for $65.


And heres the first step toward my own fixture.


I also picked up some rics today.



And heres a shot of my toadstool stretching towards the light.


Oh and If you want to see an easy MH DIY just check out the thread for my 10g its just an old halogen fixture with a 70w mh ballast and some 1/2" stainless tubing bent to hold it in place.

So what do you guys think should the new fixture be painted or stained?

I like the DIY skimmer, and I'll definitely check out the DIY MH! I've got a 29g freshwater tank that has become a PITA, and I'm leaning towards a conversion. Of course, with the height of the tank, I'll need to go MH.

I'd vote to stain the fixture. Stained wood surrounding a tank just looks awesome!

I checked out the DIY MH from your other thread, and I've got a couple of questions.

It's my understanding that some MH use single ends and others use double ends... which one did you have for your original fixture? Did you have to change it?

Also, what kind of ballast did you use?

I forget the brand name of the ballast and its mounted where I can't really get to it to see, but any brand '70 watt electronic metal halide ballast' will be the same. Like this one.

http://cgi.ebay.com/70-Watt-Electronic-Met...p3286.m20.l1116

Im sure if you shop around you can find one cheaper. I bought one used from another member of this site. The bulb is double ended If your going to use a halogen fixture for the housing the bulb type will be double end. A single end bulb or mogul i think its called can be used with the same ballasts but will not fit into a halogen bulb fixture. If your going to build your own housing like I am on this build you can buy the sockets separately like these.

http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp?PageA...mp;Category=675

Again if you shop around I'm sure you can find them cheaper.

If somethings not clear or if you have any more questions just let me know.

Are you going to be building your fish for this build too?!

It seems you can build ANYTHING

Tagging along as it looks great.

That would really save me some money!



Dry Run

That looks great! The color looks great along with your other furniture.

Yeah stain was def. the way to go on this one. Nice choice.

I've done woodworking as a hobby for the last decade or so, and I've always stained. Having wood painted just seems... wrong to me.

I'm working right now on creating the outside skin for my 20L stand that I built. I'm planning on using oak plywood, with some hardwood for the trim. I'm still working on some of the shelving and the hood first though, before finishing the outsides.

I like the way you hung the fixture. It's a very clean look.

Get some pics up on your thread.

I wish I had the space to set up a decent shop. The half a** areas that I work in take its toll on my wood working skills. The hardware that I used to hang the fixture if from the cadlights setup. I dont even know where to buy something like that those clips are great each end is adjustable and can slide on the wire.

Btw another update, I ordered some snails and macro from john maloney today should be here friday.

So what size is the in side of your stand?

Inside is 15" x 48" the sump is big enough to run 2 20L tanks. Hint Hint!

Done!



I know the feeling! I recently got a nice workbench (given to me by my grandfather, and it was made by his grandfather and his grandfather's friend), and that has helped! Most of my tools are hand tools, so I'm limited in what I can do with them, plus a power miter saw and a skilsaw. My next acquisition will probably be a corded dremel (my cordless can only do so much) and build a router table to go along with it.

So thats where I'm at so far, I think the moonlights will have to wait I'll probably order some High Intensity Leds for that.
Also I broke the glass while I was cutting it so tomorrow I'll have to get another piece.



Thats what will be mounted under the stand, I'm going to make an acrylic guard to go around it and a fan.

It took me a while to do the wiring today. I soldered 99% of the connections so there should be any loose connections.
The T5 sockets that I used from the cadlights fixture are junk so I'll be ordering new ones and replacing them in the near future.

Looking good! Can't wait to see some photos of the light produced from the fixture over the tank!

Yeah a router table is great to have I'm just getting into using it to cut acrylic.(I need more practice)
Luckly my father has passed down alot of tools to me and I worked for a few good carpenters while I was in college So they gave me a few tools as well.

But for the most part I use all the same tools you have plus a table saw and belt sander.

Oh and tomorrow my order from john maloney should be here

Oh how a nice a table saw would be! I wouldn't have much use for a belt sander, but I'd also like to snag either a joiner or a planer. I want to get back into building pieces of furniture or frames, and those would make life so much easier!

Hopefully there will be pictures following the deliver.

Impressive - I love acrylic, can't say enough good things about it.

"Acrylic: what glass wishes it could be".

Order from Reefcleaners.org is in! Now let me start off by saying that when I ordered this stuff I was extremely happy with the price, definitely felt like I was getting a good deal. Now that it has come I'm in shock! The amount of snails and size of the macro pieces I received is a steal. It makes me realize what a KILLING the lfs has been making off me. Reefcleaners.org will def. be the only place I will shop for clean up crews and macro. Anyway I just introduced everything to my tank today so I'll be sure to updates as it progresses.

Well it works, only problem is that the wiring threw off the weight (notice the coins on top) so I'll have to add a counterweight to one side. Also I have to find some little vent covers for the fan and vent holes. But thats all finish work, the bulk of the build is complete.

Sweet tank and i love the light you built it looks perfect over that tank.

Very nice!

Thanks guys, hopefully tomorrow I'll be adding some livestock.