Geoff Southworth Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 Hello fellow reefers! Recently I had a rough experience with my 34 gallon solana all in one tank. Right before bedtime my wife noticed that the floor was wet in my hallway. We followed it to my aquarium and I instantly went into panic mode. The tank was leaking slowly but steadily so my wife ran to get buckets and towels while I ran to the fish store to pick up a new tank. I grabbed the closest 29 gallon tank and rushed home. I quickly placed the water and corals in the new tank along with all of my apex equipment and I sat and looked at my new mess. After talking it over with my wife, we decided it was time to upgrade to a bigger reef tank compete with overflow and sump. The problem is, no one makes the size tank I need for the dedicated space and I don’t want to spend $1500 for just the tank. So I have decided to make it myself. I ordered and received my 1/2” glass and will be building it this next week. The tank is 32” wide, 20” tall and 18” deep making it about a 50 gallon rimless tank. The frame if the stand is made from 2x4s and will be dressed with stained oak to make it look nice. Here is what I have so far. Hope you enjoy the process! 1 2 Quote Link to comment
Matteo Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 You're gonna build the tank??? Savage. I'll be watching 👀 1 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted June 30, 2019 Author Share Posted June 30, 2019 Sure am, check out the bottom of the tank. I stuck two pieces together to give it a stronger base. Walls go up soon! 1 4 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted June 30, 2019 Author Share Posted June 30, 2019 Half inch Sapphire glass 1 1 Quote Link to comment
Matteo Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 Just now, Geoff Southworth said: Half inch Safire glass Noice Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted July 9, 2019 Author Share Posted July 9, 2019 Wanted to give an update of the new aquarium stand. I framed it with 2x4s and faced it with oak. It’s freshly sanded and ready for stain! The top edge will have a decorative piece as well. I have a Neptune apex and two dosing pumps installed on removable panels. The wiring will be hidden behind them so I should have a clean looking set up. Pending the last glass glass panel delivery I should have the tank built by tomorrow. 3 Quote Link to comment
Matteo Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 So excited to see the actually tank get built 👀😎 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted July 16, 2019 Author Share Posted July 16, 2019 Tank has been placed in the jig! So my wife and I initially attempted to silicone the tank using clamps and failed... miserably. So I had to clean the glass from silicone which took a very long time. For the next next attempt I build a jig to keep the bottom of the glass secured in place. I used corner clamps for the tops of the glass. I then cut and placed zip ties along each edge to act as spacers so I can direct inject the silicone. I then tacked small portions of silicone on the bottom portion of the glass to help keep it in place. Then I can begin to remove the zip ties to place the continuous beads of silicone without it falling down during the process. The final process starts today! 1 4 Quote Link to comment
Matteo Posted July 16, 2019 Share Posted July 16, 2019 🤪 Crazy stuff I'm a diy guy but these seems above my level for sure. Kudos! Was the glass predrilled? 1 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted July 16, 2019 Author Share Posted July 16, 2019 Yes I had it pre drilled. I figured I would let the pros mess it up and replace it vs me cracking the glass and having to buy another sheet. I learned silicone and glass projects are definitely a headache. It’s crazy how slippery things get. When you are on a time crunch to get it done you feel the pressure. I pulled up the bottom tape too late and the silicone had already skinned over. Which left a couple bumps that I will have to smooth out. Thankfully it was the bottom and not the sides. If you ever want to try making your own, be sure to make a jig to hold the bottom in place. If not it becomes quiet the mess. 4 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted July 17, 2019 Author Share Posted July 17, 2019 Tank is built! Direct injection is the way to go! The only issue that I had is that I pulled the tape off of the bottom panel a bit to late. This made the the top layer of silicone skin come up a bit. Thankfully the sides turned out fairly well and the front panel is almost perfect. In retrospect, I should have built the sump tank first for more practice. But what’s done is done. As long as it holds water and doesn’t leak I’m happy with the way it looks. 2 2 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted July 18, 2019 Author Share Posted July 18, 2019 I got the stand painted yesterday. Doors will be ordered this week. I’m going to place the tank on it tonight and see if I can get the plumbing figured out. Slowly but surely it’s all coming together. 3 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted July 21, 2019 Author Share Posted July 21, 2019 Time for the fill test! 3 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted July 21, 2019 Author Share Posted July 21, 2019 So far so good, fingers crossed! 4 2 Quote Link to comment
Wonderboy Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 WOW - great work! Can't wait to see this put together! Quote Link to comment
Arce Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 Following. Did you buy the glass local? How hard was it to silicone together. Tempted to DIY one, costs for custom tanks are so pricey. 2 Quote Link to comment
Christopher Marks Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 How's your reef build coming along @Geoff Southworth? That's a really cool custom tank! Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted September 11, 2019 Author Share Posted September 11, 2019 8 hours ago, Arce said: Following. Did you buy the glass local? How hard was it to silicone together. Tempted to DIY one, costs for custom tanks are so pricey. Hi Arce, I originally bought the glass from my local glass store. It was $850 for all of the panels including the 4 holes. Silicone is the hardest thing I have ever done. It took me 3 attempts and building a jig to get it right. Unfortunately, all of my attempts failed... After 2 days of waiting for the silicone to cure, I noticed bubbles in all of the seams except one. This is where I almost gave up. I reached out to a few different places to ask questions on the strength as well as to ask what I did wrong. Only one person got back to me, Nic Tiemens from Infinity Aquarium Design. They specialize in large acrylic tanks and have very high end clients. He was kind enough to answer my questions as well as offer me a custom tank at a VERY FAIR PRICE. I picked up my new tank from him a couple weeks back and couldn't be happier. I really can't say enough great things about Nic and his company and highly recommend him for all of your tank needs. 2 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted September 11, 2019 Author Share Posted September 11, 2019 Here are some pictures of the build. I added clamps to help hold all of the plumbing in place. I made it so I can turn the threads and won’t have to undo the clamp itself if I ever have to remove anything. I am going to be running a 10g tank as a sump until I am able to get a custom one made for me. It’s a bit tight, but everything fits nicely. The canister is running off of the manifold with one more spot to run a tube for water changes or a skimmer. 3 Quote Link to comment
Christopher Marks Posted September 17, 2019 Share Posted September 17, 2019 That's frustrating the silicone seams didn't work out, but I'm glad to hear you were able to find a solution. That's really tidy plumbing @Geoff Southworth. I like all the clamps to keep the pipes from moving, I don't see that often. Does it all run pretty quiet? 1 Quote Link to comment
FISHnChix Posted September 17, 2019 Share Posted September 17, 2019 I agree with chris the plumbing is outstanding... any updates on this tank?? 1 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted September 17, 2019 Author Share Posted September 17, 2019 40 minutes ago, Christopher Marks said: That's frustrating the silicone seams didn't work out, but I'm glad to hear you were able to find a solution. That's really tidy plumbing @Geoff Southworth. I like all the clamps to keep the pipes from moving, I don't see that often. Does it all run pretty quiet? 25 minutes ago, FISHnChix said: I agree with chris the plumbing is outstanding... any updates on this tank?? Thanks guys, the only thing I wish is that I would have the gray unions instead of the white. I made the decision to use the BRS unions right after I glued them on. No biggie, just preference. I found that the BRS ones are definitely worth it and come apart much easier. I was worried at first the the 1 1/2” overflow pipes would be to big for a 50 gallon. I almost sized them down but decided that the gate valve would do the trick. Thankfully I was right and the tank is silent. The Neptune COR20 is an awesome pump and I love that it ramps down during feed mode. The only time I have issues with sound is if I stop the flow completely and restart. Other than that it’s super quiet. I will I’ll post some more pics of the updated tank with livestock as soon as I get a chance. Work has been killing me and I have been working on this tank 30-40 min a day when I get off. Anything specific you guys want to see? 2 Quote Link to comment
FISHnChix Posted September 17, 2019 Share Posted September 17, 2019 Post up a fts once you get a rock scape going 😊 Quote Link to comment
Geoff Southworth Posted September 26, 2019 Author Share Posted September 26, 2019 Here is the tank with the aquascape and leftover corals from my old tank. I lost my very large chalice unfortunately but saved the mushrooms, brain and candy cane. 3 Quote Link to comment
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