lockrookie's 50g tank build
 

i bought a 50 g tank i was going to use as a qt tank and just have too many other ideas. and i need to keep my mind busy so here it goes.

im going to build this tank like a mini peninsula tank like ive been seeing so many of you doing. it has inspired me i want to set this tank up in our basement for our daycare kids. tax right off? i can try. as well im always tired of looking at a tank from one side i see the kids always fighting for a spot to see whats going on. thus the peninsula or room divider style will be made. besides they love the clown fish and i think i will keep minimal fish and more corals.. maybe. stock list will be decided later

i currently have a 20g fw that sits up against the wall with mollies.. i used to have ciclids but a heater malfunction cooked them. well not all some survived and now reside in a daycare parents home tank. it will eventually become the sump. i will rehome the mollies and already have found a new home for the 7 inch long plecostomus.

so this is what i got so far:
50g tank
20g sump
quiet1 4000 return
3 10g tanks to slice up and drill for overflow
going closed loop with another pump i have instead of powerheads
most plumbing parts still need a few more pieces
heaters

still need:
hole bit
skimmer
lumber for stand i have a cool idea for the stand to make it kid safe....no peeking till its done
timer bar
lights i have some but they wont last long only pc light.
adhesive
and whatever else i cant think of atm

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...tank2plan1.jpg



here is the basic design that is most common there will be changes and even as i look at the drawing i know what i want to change.



hardest and scariest parts will be cutting the glass for overflow... yes i could just cut a chunk out but that would be too easy. if i break the glass well that will make it easier ill just get it pre cut and replace. all in all this build is to see how far i can go with as much do it yourself as i can. i may even build my own skimmer. im also going to keep track of all costs so i know how much it costs me in the end. and how much it should cost a new person to start in the hobby, with a basic tank and a small amount of research.

im also not thinking of doing a sand bed but instead a rock bed. i want to smash live and dry rock and lay the rubble on the bottom of the tank. i have seen bare bottom and various sand bottom but not a live rock bottom. maybe make it a complete zoa or green star polyp bottom after growth. still undecided. time will tell.

Cool :). Peninsulas seem to be very popular these days :)

Hmm that's a very simple and very easy to construct canopy. Will make working in there a breeze. Will it sit over the lip of the tank or will there be some daylight visible through there? According to your drawing little fingers will fit in that gap even with the lid shut.

I'd leave a small gap maybe so you can blow fans across the water and get that cooling to still work for you like an open top tank.

we have ac in the house and my 90 at this time has no cooling on it just vented sucking the ac into the top tank is never over the 80 mark. but i do want to add fans to the 90. as far as this tank goes im thinking led diy setup so heat shouldnt be too much of an issue the whole lid will be wired with led's. with a plastic guard to keep moisture away. i will take note of the heating issue tho to make sure i make room for adjustments thank you

as far as the lid i wish it to overlap the glass to keep fingers out.. theh kids in the daycare know fairly well where thier fingers dont belong we keep our parrot down there and fingers are usually no where near the cage:) i want this to look as clean and simple as possible i will be keeping a list of costs so ppl who are starting can see how much from start to begining what it costs before they jump in.

and well hobby/addictions should have a bit of experimentation. its what makes it fun.. and yes i know they are popular it just seems to be an ideal way to look at a tank. i want an inwall oneday but for now i play with a 50g i paid 50$ for.:)

i have officially come across my first hurdle in this build. the tank has a inset border around three sides my assumption was that it was to hold a lid inside the tank. now i was hoping that the builder only siliconed the edges not the flat to the glass.. my hopes are now crushed.

so now i have to figure out how im going to separate these pieces of glass from the tank or its going to look like crap so far i have tried razor blades thin screw driver but it seems like it was clamped tight and no room to slowly peal the silicone off. i am thinking my only dangerous option it to chip it away untill im able to scrap the rest off. or leave it be and build a trim to cover the ugly. if you have any suggestions or ideas it would be appreciated. i really would like to remove it if possible.
http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/DSCN0418.jpg

id be talking to the builder if i were you

its a used tank built by joe blow whatchamacallit not a pro builder or i would it fairly thick glass

piano wire or guitar string. Get it started on one edge and gently pull/saw through. Tis how you get glass out a car.

i wish there was room to fit between the two for wire. i thought of that.. but they must have clamped it tight. i cant even get a razor blade between the two.

well i used my hammer/locksmith tool with razor blades and pliers, flat screwdriver and slowly chipped separated the two pieces of glass( with alot of sweating and nervousness) so far without damaging the glass i still have the two short sides to do. hopfully it goes the same

also i picked up a diamond bit for notching the one panel for the overflow i am going to test it out on one of the chunks i took off first before i attempt the tank and maybe on a 10g. practice makes perfect. if i can succeed without breaking it i will be a happy camper. the upside is the bit is the perfect size i can make it in one pass and should reduce vibration and breakage.

then i have to plan put the next scary part drilling the holes for the overflow and for the closed loop/flow tree to hide in the rocks.

will let you all know if i get the rest of the glass off with out breakage

so good news i got that crappy glass off and have decided to re silicon the whole tank better safe than sorry


bad news my work netbook fell on the floor and screwed up the display and i have to take it in to get fixed. the month has been bad:(

Sounds like this has been a tough build so far for you Jeff. Don't forget picture's as we are all pic junkie's :lol: And you might have to get your wife to take the picture of you :frusty: or :drinking:. Hope it get's better for ya dude.

lol yes it will be a tough build i knew it would be from the start i dont have a picture of it but... picture in your mind glass box sitting infront of guy holding hammer. razorblades in hand pounding on glass box. pausing to make sure the cracking sound is the glass he wants to break. look of relief repeat

this build will most likely take awhile just on the basis that im in no hurry. i still have to re arrange our daycare to find a spot for it. and i want to try some ideas i have gotten from other reefers with my twist to it. like a flow tree. i want to have a closed loop hidden beneath the rocks flowing out of the rocks and holding up the rocks like a rock rack. its in the thought process. i just dont want any of the plumbing/returns to be showing if i can help it. on an upside so far there has been no blood sacrifices just my laptop which is under warranty...

I built mini sprayer bars for my closed loop and build islands over them so the flow could come out from the front of the rock. So far it seems to be working ok.

ok good then i havent been sniffing too much solvent.. just nervous of drilling the bottom pane of glass i have to plan it well measure 50 time drill once

well..... notching didnt work, i tried, the vibration from the dremel just popped the teeth off but i did successfully get the panel cut out without breaking the glass. go me. so i will have to find, purchase, and make a plastic background with notches in it. i dislike the eggcrate look.



then i took the dremel and smoothed it out with a sanding polishing bit to make sure there where no sharp edges.tonight i will re silicone the tankand then i have to build the overflow box. i took apart one 10g tank last night and cleaned off the glass. all i have to do is cut to size. im undecided if im going to make the overflow go all down the whole side of the tank or shorter but i am going to design it to have eggcrate inside (removable) to use carbon and filter floss. kind of a prefilter sytem before the sump.



one thing im having trouble finding is the piping parts for the overflow. i dont want to drill the holes for it and find that i made them too big to small. i may go to rona tonight and see what i can find but home dumpo has nothing.



will post pics later tonight sorry none of me working on it just end results

here are the pics so far with glass removed from inside tank (see previous picture) and the notch cut out of the panel
http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6466.jpg
http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6467.jpg

here is the overflow box not glued together but i did well in my cuts and will be sealed shortly i still have to cut the over flow holes but im unsure on the hardware for it as of yet.
http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6469.jpg

and in position just to make sure it was wide enough
http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6471.jpg
http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6472.jpg

Its looking good so far. Looking forward to seeing it finished

thank you its been fun so far and i did end up with my first blood sacrifice forgot to sweep the deck after i cut the tank walked out in socks stepped on a shard of glass. so now that thats over with it should be smooth sailing

btw this is the bit i used on my dremel: 36$ but i can use it for work.. locked out of your car?? i will drill a hole in your window easy open fresh air lol. yes i know tempered glass but its would be funny.

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...5_XB-LF1_3.jpg

just a couple more pics.. working on the overflow grill tonight install it tomorrowhttp://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6473.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6474.jpg

so the wife gave me an idea im not sure if i will do it or not. but i may try to make a diy 3d background fro this tank with bilt in frag rack.. but i may not keep it even if i build it. it may be intersting especially if it gets coraline algea build up then again it wont be easy to clean but hopefully the snails will help with that. ive seen ppl do it for fresh water but cant find any sites that have used it for salt. what are your thoughts?

well i picked up some dry rock and some eggcrate to start my 3d aquascape. will most likely not start it untill tomorrow night. i am going to try to build my return outlets into the rock work and vito the closed loop to reduce costs if i have to ill add a powehead once all is running. i will try to take pictures of all the steps i take but im sure i will change things periodicly through this build. hopfully it doesnt look like crap in the end:)

well i have one more coat to put on but i thought id post pictures of what i have been up to for the last week on my diy 3d rock wall part 1 for this build.



egg crate

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6476.jpg



attachiing rock with zip ties

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6477.jpg



filled with great stuff foam

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6479.jpg



epoxy'd and dusted with sand only one more coat left but you get the idea.

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6480.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6481.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/a...e/100_6482.jpg

Tank is looking good! Did u cut out the section for the overflow yourself or did u take it somewhere to get that done? What tool did u use, and was it hard to do? Bachground looks nice

Daniel

this whole project is a diy marathon. i am trying to do absolutely every aspect myself if possible or cost effective. so yes i cut out the over flow myself with a rotozip diamond bit it cost me 36 bucks but i can re use it for my work. it wasnt too hard to do just keep it wet and it cut like butter. then i took a dremel sanding bit and smoothed out the glass edges to reduced the blood sacrifices. i also cut out the overflow holes with it took a bit to penetrate but once a hole is made the rest is easy

and thank you part two will be an island tree/ return line circulation system hopefully if i can figure it out

Where did you pick up the Dremel bit? Is there a specific name/part number I can look for? How did you stabilize the glass to reduce vibration? I'm looking at doing something similar with a 33 gallon but the glass is much thinner so I'm worried about vibrations

Your 3d rock wall is cool. Good job. I've only seen it once before but it was ceramic I think.

i picked up the dremel bit from home depot for 36 bucks. to be honest i drilled the holes in the overflow box which was the glass from a 10g tank very thin very fragile cut like butter didnt even use water.

here is the bit http://www.homedepot.ca/webapp/wcs/s..._PartNumberbut i think i got ripped the website is cheaper

or you can use this bit but definately use water to keep it cool
http://www.homedepot.ca/webapp/wcs/s...k=P_PartNumber

thank you it was a fun project but i will tell you this the epoxy gets you high and the smell take awhile to fade i have to try and soak it in water and hopefully it fades.

or maybe i should just sit in the room for awhile inhale some fumes and think of the next rock tree/return flow formation for the rest of the tank maybe in technicolour.

i know i will have to put some live rock in to seed the dry rock but once seeded ill remove it unless it looks cool with it

Great build thread. And a build thread it is. :D

Good job on the overflow. Love the back wall. Looks like a very good job.

That is an awsome wall! I very well might consider something like that for my next tank. Any worries about the polyurethane foam leaching chemicals in to the water?

from what i read no, the epoxy seals it and protects it from uv that could break down the foam but from all the threads on reef central no one has had any problems whatsoever and some made walls for over 165g tanks. much more involved than my teeny wall in comparison. maybe i should test it with damsels just in case..... hehehe j/k

Well thats awsome then!

Rock walls are siiick
Nice construction on the overflow. Looks like its OEM :biggrin:

Question about the rock wall tho. How heat proof is the great stuff?

looking great so far!

how do you mean heat proof? i dont plan on burning it:) and it will be submersed in water and i would think it should handle the heat of a tank from the threads ive read no one has had any issues that i know of and my heater itself will be in the sump not touching it. i can tell you its hot today and its been baking outside nothing seems to be swelling or shrinking due to it. and its out side right now until i get it soaking in water to help remove the smell hopefully of the fiberglass resin

and thank you for the compliment all of you it was a first try. i really should hjave tested a piece of glass first before i just started in on it. but i got excited. and lucked out

epoxy
 

im bulding a foam wall right now also, what epoxy did u use, will Elmers spray adhesive work? how do i know what kind im aloud to use

Looks like a good build I will be watching.

i actually used fiberglass resin it seemed to work alright i had to do 3 coats to get the effect i wanted. i brushed on the resin and rubbed sand into it with bits of seashells. true test will be when the tank is running:) i wouldnt use a spray myself i dont think it will get thick enough to mix with the sand. the can of resin was only 17 dollars.

thank you its been fun thus far. currently working part 2 diy rock sculpture/return flow. im trying to hide the return lines within the rock pile with a flat rock shelf to use as a frag rack. hopefully i will get enough flow from the return pump i wont need to use any power heads or in the least very little power heads.

and i am following your build as well very cool tank