smcnally Posted July 11, 2007 Author Share Posted July 11, 2007 I started drilling for the pocket screws tonight. Tomorrow night we will start gluing and assembling the pieces. I made a "boo-boo" on the board in the last picture...it was only supposed to have holes on 3 sides. I have 9 holes to fill on that one but at least they will be on the inside and painted over with epoxy. I figured I would post these pictures so people unfamiliar with pocket screws could see how they work. They are very strong and work very well. You'll see in tomorrows pictures how it all goes together. Link to comment
sammy113 Posted July 11, 2007 Share Posted July 11, 2007 Looking good! Tagging along to see the stand/hood and tank stocked! Oh and I love your Linux Penguin there with the sign that says that I'm running on a Mac using firefox lol. Very cool Link to comment
Pickle010 Posted July 11, 2007 Share Posted July 11, 2007 This is awesome... I'm tagging along as well. I have to see the hood in action! The scape work is interesting too. Can't wait to see it in the tank. Link to comment
theimpulsive1 Posted July 11, 2007 Share Posted July 11, 2007 looking pretty good. cheers. Link to comment
moe sizlack Posted July 11, 2007 Share Posted July 11, 2007 Everything looks like it's going great. Check your PM Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 12, 2007 Author Share Posted July 12, 2007 Here's a worthy update! First, we started assembling the stand. We applied a thin layer of "Gorilla" glue to every joint. Not only is this glue water tight, but it is ridiculously strong. And then we started screwing the panels together with the pocket screws. Then we took a short break and filled the tank with water That's right little guy...The rocks do NOT go in Uncle Steve's tank Then I measured the deflection...Not even a 16th of an inch (not bad!) And assembled more of the stand Then a few hours later we checked on the tank again and all is well. No leaks! It was so hard to tell though because it was covered in condensation. But the water level didn't budge in the tank. After awhile we emptied it and test fit it on the stand. Link to comment
Monkeyrobb Posted July 12, 2007 Share Posted July 12, 2007 What size sump are you using? It doesn't look like you have much room in the cabinet for one. I will agree that Gorilla glue is the sh*t. Link to comment
Uhuru Posted July 12, 2007 Share Posted July 12, 2007 did you read the thread or are you being sarcastic? Link to comment
Maeda Posted July 12, 2007 Share Posted July 12, 2007 everyone should really take a picture like this with their tank. Link to comment
Longinus Posted July 12, 2007 Share Posted July 12, 2007 everyone should really take a picture like this with their tank. I agree, thats an awsome pic. When I finally get around to building a full DIY I will have to make sure to take that kinda pic! And the tank looks great so far, tagging along for sure. Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 12, 2007 Author Share Posted July 12, 2007 What size sump are you using? It doesn't look like you have much room in the cabinet for one. I will agree that Gorilla glue is the sh*t. The cabinet itself will be the sump. It will hold around 30 gallons when at the right level. everyone should really take a picture like this with their tank. We were actually joking when we took that shot but it came out pretty good. My buddy said we needed to take a "Cheesy Thumbs-Up" shot We thought maybe a picture of me naked in the tank with a shower cap was going a little far Link to comment
masterbuilder Posted July 12, 2007 Share Posted July 12, 2007 The idea tank less sump is interesting. Ever thought of glassing the part of your stand that holds water? Epoxy by itself is not very strong at all. Add a layer of lightweight fiberglass cloth to the inside where the water is and it will be super tough and 100 times more water proof. It’s easy to do and cost just a few bucks. Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 12, 2007 Author Share Posted July 12, 2007 Epoxy is a lot stronger than people give it credit for. A few people have recommended glassing the inside, but for the most part these people are people that work on boats. This stand isn't going to take 100th the abuse that a boat takes. I would glass it if I was worried about the wood bowing and flexing, but I don't see that happening with all the screws and glue I'm using. After I get a nice thick epoxy coating, I still plan on putting a bead of silicone in each seam just for the added protection. A guy in my local club built his 345 gallon plywood tank without fiberglass and it has been running strong for about 3 years now. Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 13, 2007 Author Share Posted July 13, 2007 Starting the maple facing on the cabinet... Link to comment
tperkins Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Looking great so far. I will have water in my tank next week come hell or high water! Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 13, 2007 Author Share Posted July 13, 2007 Looking great so far. I will have water in my tank next week come hell or high water! I can't wait to see it! I'm hoping to be about a week or two after you. Link to comment
Canadian Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 You may (or may not) want to reconsider the decision to use rigid PVC to plumb that MAG pump into the false wall as pictured: I won't say it's going to be a problem but that pump is likely to send some pretty good vibration through the pipe to the bulkheads (as well as the glass and false wall) the way it's suspended there with the PVC. Noise would be one possible issue with the other, more serious, one being possibly cracking the glass. Link to comment
glennr1978 Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 If James Bond had a tank, this would be it!!! Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 13, 2007 Author Share Posted July 13, 2007 You may (or may not) want to reconsider the decision to use rigid PVC to plumb that MAG pump into the false wall as pictured:I won't say it's going to be a problem but that pump is likely to send some pretty good vibration through the pipe to the bulkheads (as well as the glass and false wall) the way it's suspended there with the PVC. Noise would be one possible issue with the other, more serious, one being possibly cracking the glass. I don't see it being any more noisy than a pump sitting in a sump plumber with rigid PVC. This is how my return pump is now and it isn't loud at all. I'll probably silicone all the areas that it contacts the divider though to dampen any vibrations. Remeber also, that the divider it going to have a thick bead of silicone between it and the glass which will also dampen vibrations. I don't see the vibration of a MAG5 pump ever cracking 3/8" glass. Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 14, 2007 Author Share Posted July 14, 2007 Tonight we built the hood. I'll have to drill out some vents on the top and on Monday the lights should arrive for me to mount inside of it. I also started to fill all the pocket screw holes. I decided to use "Bondo-Glass" which is a water-proof filler. Here's a shot of the hood and stand so far. Link to comment
eddie29 Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 love it!! I wish I had anything as close to that in regards to carpentery skills Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 14, 2007 Author Share Posted July 14, 2007 Today I finished the little cabinet that mounts inside the stand and finished filling all the screw holes. Here's how it looks...just need to build the drawer and false drawers for the shelves. Here's how the small cabinet looks when it is pulled out for maintenance. Tomorrow we'll be doing the epoxy on the inside. Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 16, 2007 Author Share Posted July 16, 2007 Well, today I got 3 coats of epoxy on the inside of the stand and also did 2 coats on the inside of the canopy as well as the outside of my little cubby. I'm tired as hell...Between the painting and working on the linear actuator lift design, I started on this at 9:30am and just got home. Link to comment
avalanche1201 Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 holly crap, that is one bad ass looken tank there....def tagging along for this one Link to comment
smcnally Posted July 16, 2007 Author Share Posted July 16, 2007 Alright...So last night when we worked with the linear actuator we noticed it was going to have a fair amount of stress on the inner rod. After thinking of a few different ways to do this, we finally decided on a way that would not only look good, but work great. The actuator is going to be mounted so the moving rod is actually pointed down. It will be housed in a telescoping box that is connected using ball bearing drawer sliders. This is how it will look from the front and back. I pulled the panels off the back so you could see how it will be mounted. Link to comment
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