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cptbjorn's 32g square cuboid build


cptbjorn

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I'm starting to realize my 13g was a noob mistake with all wrong dimensions and I'm getting tired of taking care of 3 tanks (two of which I don't really even like) so I'm building a new tank to replace my picotope and my 13g. I've had ideas kicking around for several months now and have mostly decided on how I want to do this, here's the plan:

 

24x24x15 display

Open metal frame stand

 

That's all I have so far, the rest will be figured out as I go :)

 

I had a bunch of nice 1.25" square aluminum tubing kicking around so I picked up some 1.25" angle today and intend to make a stand out of it somehow this week:

2.22aluminum.jpg

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Picked up my glass today, 24x24x15, 3/8" float glass, all edges polished with a small bevel :) I also got a tube of Dow Corning 795 in black and I'm doing 1/16" gaps between the glass.

 

Once I figure out how I want the bottom drilled I'll be able to assemble this beast :)

 

2.26glass.jpg

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Drilled for a 3/4" herbie with 1" backup and two 1/2" returns, I was going to drill the bottom but then I'd have to do a much larger overflow box... Decided to do the back because I have room to have it away from the wall a couple inches.

 

Now I just have to work up the cojones to crack open the silicone and build it :unsure:

 

2.26layout.jpg

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Nice one, just be brave, it will be ok. I have made many myself and they all turned out ok. Well, until you drop something on them or the plumbing going into them and crack the glass. :o Just remember to lick your finger while tooling the silicone to get it not to stick to your finger. Good luck. Now back to those boards ;) Mark

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Doo iiiit markuska. Glass and silicone was like 80 bucks and if you do the masking tape you can't mess it up too bad. Saving money on tank = free corals by my calculations.

 

Thanks pismo, hopefully I can turn it into a sweet tank :)

 

Mark I painted houses a couple summers and I've built 3 tanks and I still hate this part, it's all still sitting on the table just like in the pic lol. Maybe tomorrow. Doing boards this weekend :)

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Doo iiiit markuska. Glass and silicone was like 80 bucks and if you do the masking tape you can't mess it up too bad. Saving money on tank = free corals by my calculations.

 

Thanks pismo, hopefully I can turn it into a sweet tank :)

 

Mark I painted houses a couple summers and I've built 3 tanks and I still hate this part, it's all still sitting on the table just like in the pic lol. Maybe tomorrow. Doing boards this weekend :)

 

 

You are the man for the boards ;) Waiting with baited breath. Shhhh, lets keep it our little secret. I know all about the procrastination thing. I have not touched my build thread since I posted the glass sitting there on the table. I still have not made the tank yet. I have actually started down a different road and have not posted that yet either. I may still build the tank I was going to now that I got a good belt sander to finish the glass with. I used to cut glass in a former life and still play sometimes. I am working myself back up to 3/8" plate. Its a little bit harder than just 1/4" or under. Really the problem is I just need to take off like an inch or two. Now that is what makes it hard. Six or eight inches off and its all good. Good luck, keep taking pics and I will do the same. Let me know how you make out on the boards. I sent you a PM about my system and if that affected anything. Let me know if you didn't get it. Thanks again, Mark

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When I redid my 15 high I chipped a corner taking the rim off so I tried to score+snap 2" off the top of each pane and even on 3/16" glass it just wasn't happening. I ended up doing this:

 

10.planb.jpg

 

It worked but... never ever again lol.

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When I redid my 15 high I chipped a corner taking the rim off so I tried to score+snap 2" off the top of each pane and even on 3/16" glass it just wasn't happening. I ended up doing this:

 

10.planb.jpg

 

It worked but... never ever again lol.

Yea, it takes lots of practice, no doubt. It helps when you work at a glass shop and if you screw it up, throw it away and get a new piece. The thicker you go, the harder it is to take smaller amounts off. When you get to 3/8 and 1/2, you can take a chisel and after you score the top, use it underneath to start the "cracking" through the glass. You need to be really careful doing this as the piece you are taking off can all of a sudden fall as you completed the break and your arms are under the raw glass. We used to wear armguards at work to prevent this from becoming a disaster.

 

Now that I have a belt sander, my glass endeavors will start to escalate. I have some 3/8 sitting in the shed that was originally some end tables. Some of the corners are chipped. Kinda why I need to take just an inch or two off. Now I may just be able to sand it out. Need to re-examine the situation and see just what they really need. Would be somewhere in the neighborhood of a 20" cube. Good luck with the build, get siliconing! We want to see progress. Mark

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Now that was an ordeal t(*_*t)

 

Luckily the 795 silicone has a longer setup time than the 732 I've used before, I needed it all. It took well over an hour to work the silicone how I wanted it and I still have a bit of cleaning up to do with a razor once it cures...

 

It turned out ~7/10 though and I'm keeping it if it holds water :)

 

3.1corner.jpg

 

3.1assembled.jpg

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Sweet, that turned out nice. I got my 795 in the mail today. My brother told me it was the shiz_nit when it came to silicones. I will find out tonight. Looking good, let us know how it goes with the water test. I know that is a few days away yet.

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Thanks weetabix :)

 

Yeah I'll probably wait a week to water test, it says full strength in 7-14 days and I still have to flip the whole thing over and silicone around the bottom in a couple days since I couldn't get to those joints to smooth them straight.

 

I found the 795 to be a little tougher to work with than the 732, it is quite a bit "stickier." Also with the 732 I could water test tomorrow... But once the application and curing are done the 795 should be superior for the thin+spaced joints apparently.

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Water is coming soon, I got the stand built and just have to figure out how to finish it now.

 

It is looking like once it is done I'll be giving this setup to my sister with all the rock+corals from my 13g and just keeping my pico though. I thought I had a place to put it but turns out I don't -_-

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Water is coming soon, I got the stand built and just have to figure out how to finish it now.

 

It is looking like once it is done I'll be giving this setup to my sister with all the rock+corals from my 13g and just keeping my pico though. I thought I had a place to put it but turns out I don't -_-

 

I had plans to build a 100 or 200g tank but space a problem for me too. well i'll just put that project on the back burner.

 

Pics would be nice :)

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Work slowly continues...

 

Here it is at my sister's place, I did the stand 36" high and the shelf for the sump is 8" off the floor. I'm loving the height, I end up bent in half just to see in the side of most shallow tanks but this one is much better. I just need to get and paint a piece of plywood for the shelf and take a belt sander to the aluminum.

 

3.13setup.jpg

 

Since I won't be around it all the time I decided to go with a more standard lighting configuration; I'm picking up a 150w halide setup tomorrow and will be bending up a lumenarc style reflector for it and I have a phoenix 14k bulb to put in there. I will add probably 14 royal blue LEDs at the next group buy and probably change the halide for a whiter bulb at that point.

 

I'm doing a 20x20x12 sump with a big display fuge the size of a 10g AGA, probably a Bubble Magus NAC6A skimmer and a chaeto chamber blasted with 3-4 XP-G crees at 1.5a B) The LED lit chaeto works so well in my pico (~20% growth per day) and I'm going to try to do the same thing in this tank to hopefully avoid having to do a phosphate reactor.

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It shouldn't, it is resting on 1.25" angle that is 3/16" thick and the deflection should be under .01" for the top pieces. The legs are 1.25" x .125" thick tube and would likely hold up a car or two :)

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I picked up the halide setup today and it looks awesome. The craigslist ad said $30 and on the phone she said it was a bit messed up from storage but I figured I could at least use the ballast and the bulb socket. I said I'd bring some frags once her new tank was ready for giving me such a great deal etc.

 

When I got there though it was a full icecap 150w pendant setup with just a bit of dust on it and when I tried to pay her she just said bring some good frags and we're even :happydance: Smart move on her part too, I was going to give her 2 or 3 decent frags but now she's getting hooked up with a bunch of the good stuff :)

 

3.14light.jpg

 

edit: I just soldered it to a cord real quick to test it and it fired right up :)

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