iroll253
Well-known member
This is an awesome build. Great craftsmanship.
60 gallon frag system build
- Thread starter Frankie
- Start date
Help Support Reef Aquarium & Tank Building Forum:
Sorry for the late update. Work has been busy restoring wood flooring and I have not had much time to work on the stand. Or "workbench" as Don pointed out after some private discussion with him today.
I read a reply from him today in another thread and it really made me understand what one of my "stuck" issues is. And that is building a stand as if I was building a work bench, instead of a piece of furniture.
I always was bothered by something about this I just could not put my head on what it was. I have seen so many furniture grade aquariums over the years but never put the two together before.
I considered stopping this build and starting over but after talking with my wife about it I am going to finish it.
She's correct in the fact that, "times are to darn hard right now to go dumping more money into this build!!" (exclamation point was pretty clear
) and I need to stick to the budget.
But it has been a learning curve for future builds. (like the one this frag tank will supply one day but don't tell my wife yet)
Thanks Don for helping me see the light. I am sure you will come to regret it in the near future when I start picking your brain
Tomorrow I will be building the wetdraw and will try and get new pictures up.
The draw will be 3' long, 6"x6". The draw will roll in and out and have bulkheads, one in each corner. One in, one out, to and from the sump. This will allow me to work on frags in water with no parameter changes. The draw will be made of white starboard. Lighting will be under and on the back to illuminate the box and make for better vision with no shadows.
The chiller I had to tear into unfortunately. After a test run it made some noises that upset me so I striped it down and rebuilt the motor axle. There was to much play in it and the fan would tap in and out while spinning. I have a feeling this model always had issues from all I have read on them.
So I rebuilt it and installed it in the opening without all the casing it came with. Works great now! 1/4 HP will be more then enough for my purposes.
That's it for now.
Frank
I read a reply from him today in another thread and it really made me understand what one of my "stuck" issues is. And that is building a stand as if I was building a work bench, instead of a piece of furniture.
I always was bothered by something about this I just could not put my head on what it was. I have seen so many furniture grade aquariums over the years but never put the two together before.
I considered stopping this build and starting over but after talking with my wife about it I am going to finish it.
She's correct in the fact that, "times are to darn hard right now to go dumping more money into this build!!" (exclamation point was pretty clear
) and I need to stick to the budget. But it has been a learning curve for future builds. (like the one this frag tank will supply one day but don't tell my wife yet
)Thanks Don for helping me see the light. I am sure you will come to regret it in the near future when I start picking your brain
Tomorrow I will be building the wetdraw and will try and get new pictures up.
The draw will be 3' long, 6"x6". The draw will roll in and out and have bulkheads, one in each corner. One in, one out, to and from the sump. This will allow me to work on frags in water with no parameter changes. The draw will be made of white starboard. Lighting will be under and on the back to illuminate the box and make for better vision with no shadows.
The chiller I had to tear into unfortunately. After a test run it made some noises that upset me so I striped it down and rebuilt the motor axle. There was to much play in it and the fan would tap in and out while spinning. I have a feeling this model always had issues from all I have read on them.
So I rebuilt it and installed it in the opening without all the casing it came with. Works great now! 1/4 HP will be more then enough for my purposes.
That's it for now.
Frank
Krish
RF STAFF
Good stuff!! Looking forward to the progress and pics
Scooterman
Well-known member
How's the weight on the free standing hood?
Hello Scott and Krish, thanks for checking out my build
The weight is pretty light. There are only 2 2x4's running across the top That are interlocked into the framing, and the rest of the build is 1x3 kiln dried pine. It is very light but will hold my body weight hanging off the very end. So it is pretty strong. I am only having two reflectors and a few fans inside of it. Here is a shot of the inside after skinning it for better air flow:
I can use the hollow wall space to run all the wiring so It will all be hidden:
Here is the chillers housing all done and rebuilt:
And the back side all closed in so the heat will not enter the cabinet space:
I will post more pictures later as I move forward.
Unfortunately I need to go install 8 flush framed floor vents in one of my jobs They came in yesterday so I need to get them done today.
This is what I do for a living:
White oak stained with an alcohol based black stain (sable black) then buffed off and clear coated:
200+ year old heart pine restored downtown Charleston
Sample of the floor vents I will be installing today:
The weight is pretty light. There are only 2 2x4's running across the top That are interlocked into the framing, and the rest of the build is 1x3 kiln dried pine. It is very light but will hold my body weight hanging off the very end. So it is pretty strong. I am only having two reflectors and a few fans inside of it. Here is a shot of the inside after skinning it for better air flow:
I can use the hollow wall space to run all the wiring so It will all be hidden:
Here is the chillers housing all done and rebuilt:
Unfortunately I need to go install 8 flush framed floor vents in one of my jobs They came in yesterday so I need to get them done today.
This is what I do for a living:
White oak stained with an alcohol based black stain (sable black) then buffed off and clear coated:
200+ year old heart pine restored downtown Charleston
Sample of the floor vents I will be installing today:
Myteemouse
NOTHING
wow I cant wait till this thing has water..
I have a peninsula with 2x lumenbright reflectors also
I love them..
I have a peninsula with 2x lumenbright reflectors also
I love them..
Scooterman
Well-known member
Wow I can't wait until you come do my floors!
dieden
Exocoetidae
Wow, that old heart pine is spectacular!!
Krish
RF STAFF
Nice work man!! Scooty...What floor?? I thought you had indoor outdoor carpet :lol:
Scooty...What floor?? I thought you had indoor outdoor carpet :lol:
flatteringchild
Well-known member
Please keep us updated with pictures! You do a beautiful job with the floors. I wish you lived in Washington State!
TY flatteringchild,
Sometimes i wish that also
I bet there is more work there for me then here.
Here are some pictures of the electrical. I had some help by our in house electrical designer Scooterman. Thanks buddy! I knew what to do but it sure does feel better confirming it all and getting ideas from those that are pro's
This line runs to the front and will control the chiller and return pump. One switch controls two receptacles giving me four outlets.
I used a 12/3 wire for this run. Black/white/ground to one receptacle, Then jump white/ground/red to the other. all on one wire then routed back to the cabinet:
and hard wired into the switch:
One down!
Five more to go:
I also started to run the wires for the fans. Two up in the canopy:
The rest will be going throughout the cabinet.
More to come this week. Have a blessed week eveveryone
This line runs to the front and will control the chiller and return pump. One switch controls two receptacles giving me four outlets.
I used a 12/3 wire for this run. Black/white/ground to one receptacle, Then jump white/ground/red to the other. all on one wire then routed back to the cabinet:
and hard wired into the switch:
One down!
Five more to go:
I also started to run the wires for the fans. Two up in the canopy:
The rest will be going throughout the cabinet.
More to come this week. Have a blessed week eveveryone
Krish
RF STAFF
Sweet!! Nice wiring!
Thanks Krish
I am thinking about speed control on all the fans I will be running on this system. I will have 4 so far.
Fans for the most part are pretty quiet. All this tech into the designs these days for quieter fans is a bit over rated IMO. The real noise comes from the air flow. So to deal with this problem I am thinking about using a few of these:
Zalman Fan Mate 2 Variable Fan Speed Controller
So I can dial back the speed of the 120mm fans I will be using.
Feedback welcome on this idea!
I am thinking about speed control on all the fans I will be running on this system. I will have 4 so far.
Fans for the most part are pretty quiet. All this tech into the designs these days for quieter fans is a bit over rated IMO. The real noise comes from the air flow. So to deal with this problem I am thinking about using a few of these:
Zalman Fan Mate 2 Variable Fan Speed Controller
So I can dial back the speed of the 120mm fans I will be using.
Feedback welcome on this idea!
Rhodes19
Well-known member
Wow Frank, you have really put a lot of work into that stand since the last time I saw it. Its looking good. I like how you did the electrical, I'll have to do something like that for my 180. I'll have to swing by to sneak a peek some time.
Hey Chris! Good to see you here on RF
Rhodes19
Well-known member
BackwerdsMan
Well-known member
Wow, looking good man!
Thanks Backwerdsman,
No updates yet. Still working out the electrical. Any comments on the fan controller?
Hopefully next week I will have time to start skinning this puppy so I can get it painted before the cold sets in here in Charleston. Once that is done I will move this into the house and start building the filtration.
No updates yet. Still working out the electrical. Any comments on the fan controller?
Hopefully next week I will have time to start skinning this puppy so I can get it painted before the cold sets in here in Charleston. Once that is done I will move this into the house and start building the filtration.
Krish
RF STAFF
Shucks...I saw the thread bumped and thought you had water in this thing
On the fan controller, not sure what to say on that one. I ran a total of 6 fans on my 75gal setup and all I did to make things simple was to just use a few ac/dc converters with basic timers. 
