Back to the stand. Now that the paint has dried it is time to move it into the house. Originally I had a sheet of 1/2 inch plywood which I was going to use for the top but decided I wanted something a little nicer. I was at Ikea looking for ideas for skinning the stand when I came across some counter tops. A nice one and a half inch slab of MDF, awesome. I went with one of the Numerar counter tops that happened to be just the right size at 73" by 25". No cutting required. While I was there I also found some cabinet door panels that I will use for the stand as well. More on that later.
This is always a good sign!
Now that the stand is (somewhat) ready let's get that tank in here. Let me just say, damn that thing is heavy! It took 4 of us to get it in and out of my car and onto the stand and it wasn't all that much fun, but my crew and I pulled it off.
A 1/2" sheet of pink styrofoam sits between the tank and the top of the stand for cushioning. The edge of the styrofoam was spray painted silver to match the trim and the top of the stand.
It sure is a lot bigger in person than it is on paper.
To recap, it is 72" long by 24" wide by 20" deep/high. Here's the external overflow box.
Two of the four 1" overflow holes. My plan is to have 1 drain straight into the 'fuge, merge two of them into a 1.5" pipe to drain into the skimmer section with a gate valve, and then the 4th hole will be the emergency drain.
And here are the two 1" returns drilled into the eurobrace at the opposite end from the overflow.
I put in a special request to move these holes far enough away from the glass panel so that I could easily maneuver a magfloat around the glass without interference.