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RollaJase's Trip Off the Deep End - Custom Rimless 55G


RollaJase

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Thanks Gena :D. The tank will be almost twice as big, 5G shy of double display volume. The sump will be at least double my current one also. Hopefully my parameters will be much easier to keep in line with this upgrade :).

Nice! I bet they will :).
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Nice! I bet they will :).

Lets just hope that bigger is always better ;).

 

Great work with the stand so far. Can't wait to see more!

Thanks Felicia, managed to spend some extra time this weekend on it.

 

 

Firstly, happy 4th of July to my American friends :naughtydance:.

 

This weekend was somewhat productive. Sanded all the filler smooth using an orbit sander and a high grit disk (80 grit). Now that the majority of the bigger gaps and holes are filled I will apply more filler and sand it flat using a 120grit disk and then hand sand with 200 grit for a nice smooth finish. I am focusing mainly on the bottom frame of the stand as it will be partially visible as the cladding wont run all the way to the floor (wouldn't fit correctly on a carpeted floor. I also purchased all the MDF I need to do the cladding, the top, the internal base of the stand and a really thin sheet to clad the rear of the stand. Unfortunately the hardware store was unable to cut the MDF to size for me so I had to purchase smaller, pre-cut pieces that will require me to spend time trimming them to fit the sizes I require. This ultimately ended up costing me close to 4 times in terms of material costs plus time wasted on cutting, I'm not happy about it but what can you do. So the first attempt at cutting was a fail using a jigsaw, the blade wanders too much when cutting with a guide. Second attempt with a circular saw worked much better. This is definitely a 2 man job so I have roped dad in to help me finish cutting the pieces to size. Hopefully I can finish cutting this coming weekend.

 

But the really big news is that the tank has officially been ordered and deposit paid!!! :haha: :haha: :haha:

The girlfriend came for the drive today to the LFS who will be building the tank for me and was astounded by the size of some of the tanks they were building. They had a 7x4x2 starfire ready for collection and were in the process of fitting the last side panel to a 10foot tank. I'm glad she has taken a keen interest in things, should allow me to get away with a few things later down the track ;). She has a good eye for fish too, immediately selecting a Purple Tang, Yellow Tang, Koran Angel, a Flasher Wrasse and a Mystery Wrasse (she was not a fan of 'Dory'). The disappointment on her face when I told her the first 3 choices were just way too oversized for a tank my size was crushing. I will gladly oblige with the flasher wrasse and potentially the mystery wrasse though (mystery wrasses typically go for upwards of $150AUD here). She insisted that one day we will have a tank big enough to house all 3! Can't complain with that ;).

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  • 2 weeks later...

any stand updates?

Unfortunately no updates on the stand. I didn't get any time last week or on the weekend to work on the cladding. My friend who moved to London with his girlfriend moved back home after 2 years so there was lots of catching up on top of his mum's 50th birthday. I will be getting the cladding cut this weekend, as I need someone to help me cut it I have to wait until later Saturday afternoon when Dad is free. In the mean time I will apply more filler and continue to sand the stand in preparation for painting.

 

One thing I have made progress on is the light hanging system that will mount to the stand. I ordered everything last week that I need to make the tree and it arrived yesterday morning, I mocked it all up last night and I must say it does look pretty awesome ;). More on this later, this will be its own update once I get the stand to the stage where it is pretty much finished.

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Congrats on the tank order........and an enabling girl!

Looking forward to some pictures!

Thanks buddy :). I can't wait for it to arrive. I just hope hope I have the stand ready for it as I cant really store it anywhere at home and I don't think the builder wants to hang onto it longer then they have to. The enabling girl is a relief, she sees the beauty in the hobby as much as I do and to be honest, she is probably more excited about seeing the new reef then I am lol.

 

I should have a picture update towards the end of the weekend. So probably really early Saturday morning for you guys if I can fit it in.

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Time for a long overdue update :). After waking up early this morning with the intention of spending the entire day in the shed I did get roped into spending the morning helping dad in the vineyard. I did manage to spend the entire afternoon in the shed however and got quite a bit done. Last night I spend roughly 2 hours with dad in the freezing shed cutting all the MDF sheeting to size. We were able to get everything cut pretty accurately, within 1-2mm of the sizes I needed.

 

Stand Build - Base and Cladding:

Please excuse these pictures, I couldn't find my DSLR and my phone was having difficulty dealing with the sun.

 

I started off the day by installing the flat base into the stand, I also installed what will become the sides drip tray (once it has been waterproofed), I didn't buy enough wood to do the rear of the stand <_< .

f2IeEZ.jpg
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The top is cut and ready to go on. As soon as I find out the final dimensions of the overflow I will cut the opening for the plumbing and attach the top to the stand. Picture of the dry fit to make sure it all lines up.

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A quick mockup with the sides:

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Now onto the cladding. The cladding will be elevated from the ground and will extend up past the top of the stand. The reasoning behind this because the stand will be installed on soft carpet for the foreseeable future. If the cladding went right down to the floor there would be issues with it fitting correctly as the stand sinks into the carpet. The cladding will extend up past the top of the stand to hide the foam layer between tank and stand and to also hide the bottom pane of tank glass. This is purely for visual appeal on my behalf.

 

I considered a few options to keep the cladding suspended from the floor. I very nearly went with extruded 'L' or 'U' aluminium bar but decided on 3/4" square pine:

viHsAq.jpg

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This pine will be screwed directly to the cladding and when the cladding is installed it will sit on top of the drip tray lip in the base of the stand. The top of the cladding will be held in place with standard cabinet magnet clasps.

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After some careful measuring the front went on perfectly.

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The right hand side on the other hand didn't go on so easily but after some fiddling around it fits well enough for me, I just need to do a little more sanding and it will fit flush. I was going to mount the third side but it was getting so cold in the shed come sunset that I couldn't feel my fingers and the alluring scent of steak on the grill was calling.

 

I called it quits for the weekend at this point but not before snapping this shot.
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I'm sitting here at work, on my lunch break, bored out of my mind so lets talk about stocking!

 

I plan on moving my Clown fish, Mandarin and Bicolour Blenny from my 30G cube to this new build. I'm unsure if I will keep the two Threadfin/Split Fin Cardinals at this stage. I'm also undecided if I will keep the clown at all or try my hand at introducing him to another juvenile in the hopes of them becoming a pair.

 

I'd like to have one or two 'show' fish, the big dogs of the aquarium, the one everyone who hasn't seen the tank before will go 'wow, that's cool' instead of trying to press their face against the glass to see 'Nemo'. I have been considering a Kole Tang, a leopard Wrasse or a One Spot Foxface. To be honest, I am pretty much set on the Leopard wrasse, no compromise here. The Kole Tang is my all time favorite Tang and would love to get one (price permitting). The FoxFace adds a nice splash of colour and will help with algae growth. I'd like to say that I will get all 3 but think the tank is too small to house all 3 of them comfortable with the rest of my choices and existing fish.

 

I'd also love to get a few nice wrasses due to their amazing coloration and active swimming. I have been looking at the McCosker's Flasher, Linespot Flasher, Blue Flasher, Longfin Fairy, Lubbock's Fairy and the Mystery Wrasse. I'd probably select 1 or 2 of these wrasses in total.

 

I considered a pair of Anthias in substitution of the wrasses and looked at the Dispar, Randall's and Bartlett's. Again, I think the tank will be too small for any more than 1 Anthias.

 

For something quirky I have also taken a look at the Flame and Longnose Hawkfish. I would like to get a cleaner shrimp so these guys are strictly a maybe unless I am convinced against the shrimp idea. Cleaner shrimps are ridiculously expensive over here so I could be easily swayed.

 

Lastly I have also considered my options in terms of Angelfish. I know it is hit and miss with these guys in terms of nipping SPS so I'm unsure. I have looked at the Pygmy (Cherub), Coral Beauty and the Lemon Peal (?) Angelfish. I would only select one if any.

 

I would love to hear your feedback, advice and recommendations. I will probably look at having no more than 7, maybe 8 fish in total (including the mandarin, blenny and clown). I really do want this tank to be about the SPS but hey, I love the fish too ;).

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Leopard Wrasse's are definitely a huge WOW fish for sure!

It most definitely is :). I have had my eye on one fore a very long time and will deliberately design the scape with as much open sand as I can to accommodate one.

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Sk8n Reefer

Gonna be a sweet tank- have you considered a Potter's angel- I've only seen one in person and it was a knockout- as you say it's hit or miss with the Pygmy Angels and sps- someone on here has one in their tank with SPS and its doing fine........so far. Cleaners are expensive over there- weird how prices change with location. Vineyard looks sweet!

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Gonna be a sweet tank- have you considered a Potter's angel- I've only seen one in person and it was a knockout- as you say it's hit or miss with the Pygmy Angels and sps- someone on here has one in their tank with SPS and its doing fine........so far. Cleaners are expensive over there- weird how prices change with location. Vineyard looks sweet!

Thanks man :). No I haven't considered a Potter's Angel, taking a quick look it does look pretty awesome. I may have skipped past it on LiveAquaria due to the cost (if it is expensive in the States it is typically more so here). Yeah, a red line cleaner will set you back $120 minimum over here, pretty crazy. I cringe knowing you get them for like $10-$20 a piece over there. The benefit of living where I am is definitely the views and we have pretty mild weather, bloody cold at this time of the year though ;). The display will be 55G on this new build, unsure of the sump volume just yet.

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Nice progress on the stand.....love those outside shots.

-When you say "cold"......how cold is cold?

Thanks Jack, it's getting there :). Well, leading into winter we have been getting overnight temps of 0C at home, so 32F for you guys. Not super cold but a lot colder than we are used to. To be honest, it feels a lot colder then what I experienced in NYC in January this year.

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Thanks Jack, it's getting there :). Well, leading into winter we have been getting overnight temps of 0C at home, so 32F for you guys. Not super cold but a lot colder than we are used to. To be honest, it feels a lot colder then what I experienced in NYC in January this year.

 

32........if it'll turn water into ice, I'd call it cold :D .......and 0c sounds even colder.

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32........if it'll turn water into ice, I'd call it cold :D .......and 0c sounds even colder.

Well my back can definitely testify to there being ice as it experienced it coming out of the shower head first thing Monday morning haha. At this time of the year the temp isn't a real issue but as it gets closer to our spring a frost can do serious damage to the vineyard. All it takes is a single frost to burn off all the new buds on the effected vines, we can lost at least 30-40% of our crop in a matter of hours.

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Well my back can definitely testify to there being ice as it experienced it coming out of the shower head first thing Monday morning haha. At this time of the year the temp isn't a real issue but as it gets closer to our spring a frost can do serious damage to the vineyard. All it takes is a single frost to burn off all the new buds on the effected vines, we can lost at least 30-40% of our crop in a matter of hours.

Damn. Are the vineyards more than a "hobby"?

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Damn. Are the vineyards more than a "hobby"?

Well, for Dad it has always been a hobby, he has been working on vineyards since he was 12 or so, he is 57 this year. It supplements his salary as we sell to a winery but financially he would be fine without the vineyard at all. You do get a lot of tax benefits running your own business though and that is definitely a bonus when you get paid a full time salary. He is getting older and my brother and I have no interest in running a vineyard so I can see him selling up within the next 10 years. My uncle is a fairly accomplished wine maker and we do grow some italian varieties specifically for him and to be honest I think that is one of the reasons dad still does it.

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Well, for Dad it has always been a hobby, he has been working on vineyards since he was 12 or so, he is 57 this year. It supplements his salary as we sell to a winery but financially he would be fine without the vineyard at all. You do get a lot of tax benefits running your own business though and that is definitely a bonus when you get paid a full time salary. He is getting older and my brother and I have no interest in running a vineyard so I can see him selling up within the next 10 years. My uncle is a fairly accomplished wine maker and we do grow some italian varieties specifically for him and to be honest I think that is one of the reasons dad still does it.

Glad you're not getting trapped in something you have no interest in.......pretty cool pops can enjoy it for awhile more!

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Glad you're not getting trapped in something you have no interest in.......pretty cool pops can enjoy it for awhile more!

I definitely enjoy the wine making side more than the grape growing side but after doing it for most of my life I have no interest in pursuing it as a career. As long as Dad still enjoys it I will continue to help him out where I can. The fresh air and the exorcise isn't half bad either haha.

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I just got a coral beauty. Unless they chow down on a coral I don't really mind the occasional nipping. I have a theory some of the nipping might be getting rid of bad things. I know when I had my Flame Angel in my old 40 I didn't notice AEFW until I removed him for nipping at the acros, at which point the AEFW population exploded. Could have been a coincidence, but Angels are omnivores.

 

I thought about the Flame vs Coral Beauty ... the Flame is gorgeous and I was set on getting another one until I saw a Coral Beauty in a big SPS cube tank up here. Spectacular looking fish.

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