lockrookie's 50g tank build

[lockrookie]

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

[lockrookie]

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

[The Grizz]

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 And you might have to get your wife to take the picture of you or . Hope it get's better for ya dude.

[lockrookie]

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...

[The Grizz]

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.

[lockrookie]

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

[lockrookie]

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

[lockrookie]

here are the pics so far with glass removed from inside tank (see previous picture) and the notch cut out of the panel



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.


and in position just to make sure it was wide enough

[DCDN]

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

[lockrookie]

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.