Yet Another Start From Scratch Documented Build

[littleimp]

Been busy today & have now constructed my hood. Going to stain tommorrow to match but am happy with how it's gone. The section on top will house the ballasts. The hood & the top are open-backed to allow some ventilation. Can't see the back so though this would be the easisect way. The top part is actually an old shelf which I have utlised.

RO right arrived today, enough to treat 5000 litres so will last a while.
Tubes are on their way so will have light very shortly!!

 

[littleimp]

Reflectors have arrived so have now installed the wiring & ballasts as well as some moonlights.

Here they are, 6 x 42inch reflectors to take the 6 x 54w T5 plant lamps.

 

[littleimp]

Now started to add RO water to the tank. At a rate of approx 8litres/40minutes so it's gonna take a while!!

Doing it like this so I know how much water is going in exactly to the nearest litre so I know my true volume for the addition on RO right. Once filled & equipment tested/running will be ordering the big plant pack from greenline to add some life!!yayyy

 

[jimbooo]

looking good mate. thats one awesome hood. if only i had so much space to play with.

thanks for the update.

 

[Dangerousdan]

fb

 

[fish4fish]

Yes it does & that's the idea.

Evaporation means it's being (automatically) topped up by cooler fresh (ro) water which in tun lowers the temperature. In the summer this is increased by the use of cooling fans blowing on the waters surface which allows even more cooler water to be topped up.

Evaporation on a tank this size can be 8-10galls/day in the summer.

Unfortunately high power lighting means high heat until you purchase a very expensive cooling system.

On another note, this is what I'm aiming for with more planting added.

Wow, Love the tank & your work!, keep up the great work!

 

[jimbooo]

LOL, thats not his tank thats his inspiration.

his will be even better when it's done. no pressure littleimp B)

 

[littleimp]

Cheers for the comments, I'm enjoying it but it's a bit annoying waiting for the bits to arrive so I can get on with it, still saves a fortune in the dodgy lfs I have round here. Mention CO2 & 'more than 1 tube lighting' & they all look puzzled, yet they will quite happily sell you £50 worth of plants

What dodgy LFS do you use
Dan

Ahh just noticed another clactonian!!

None of the shops round here are any good for advanced aquarium products. What ones do you use??
Kaywoods have got some nice fish I noticed the other day, but I will be using swallows mainly as they have a bigger range. Have you noticed round here that more & more pet shops don't actually sell pets??

 

[Dangerousdan]

plop

 

[littleimp]

Plants have now arrived so the tank now looks like an aquarium!!! Their a bit cloudy at the moment as everythings been disturbed.

The big picture so far. A bit messy but I'm gonna let the plants sit like this to see how they grow & thin out & aquascape a bit when ready & seeing good growth.

 

[Paul_MTS]

Looking very nice.

should look great once it fills out a bit

 

[Unphased]

this is amazing. i love the stand. could you post plans for it?

 

[littleimp]

this is amazing. i love the stand. could you post plans for it?

I didn't have any plans, just built it up from some basic drawings & the measuring as I went along.

Most people fit the uprights inside the frame on the main stand. Unfortunately I didn't have the room to play with due to a sump tank that had to fit in but If I hadn't had the sump the uprights would be inside. To support I used 5mm steel brackets instead. These are designed to hold massive light rigs onto trusses so I assumed they would be OK.

They're some good info on this here.

http/www.reef-eden.com/DIY1.htm

One of the most important parts as on any stand is fixing a solid back & sides as this provides lateral support to stop the frame collapsing sideways. 5mm ply is good for this.

 

[prankster705]

Looks nice, can't wait to see how it's gonna look when it grows...

 

[Krib Crazy]

Kool tank!! What is that plant that you put on the wood? Cant wait to see what it looks like when it is grown out.