My Biggest 90 Gallon Tank Build Project Evur!

[asonitez]

Well. I got bit in the tush with the big tank syndrome. I knew I could not do anything over 4 feet and a 100 Gallon was out of the question for me. Instead I chose to shop carefully and choose wisely.

My Requirements for my new tank was 75 Gallon Reef/Ready and it HAD to come with a Stand and Canopy as well as fall within my 300 Dollar Budget. TOUGH I know..

That Quickly changed when a 90 Gallon tank presented itself to me. A man selling a 90 Gallon Custom tank sitting on top of a Oceanic Stand and canopy wanted to get rid of his tank for 375 bucks. I quickly arranged a meeting where I was plesantly surprised to find that it was indeed a Custom Aquarium and it was sitting on a badly mawled oceanic cabinet and canopy. The tank itself was a custom tank modeled after teh 90 Gallon oceanic tanks. It has a Starfire front panel and normal glass sides and back. The man explained to me that his previous oceanic tank broke in transport to his new house and purchasing a custom tank from a glass maker to his specifications was cheaper than buying a replacement oceanic tank. He chose to get the front made of Starfire glass after seeing the Oceanic tech tanks.

In either case the dude badly painted the canopy and the stand to match his furniture and then decided that he didn't want to be into fish anymore.

Further probing uncovered that he failed at the reef because he stocked it immediately after filling with salt water, did no tests, and relied heavily on the general directions on boxes to try his hand at it. Thankfully he never used any medications on the tank and from what I could see he didn't change much of anything other than butchering the stand and canopy.



This project is a lot of work I think. All the work will have to be carried out in my apartment because of my limited space and the weather.


Project Outline.

I Need to sand and prime the stand and canopy after removing the hinges.
I need to then purchase and install reflective material inside of the canopy to minimize light loss.

I need to paint the stand back to black and fix the woodwork that he damaged. The tank needs to be throughly cleaned, scraped of any coraline algae and check the seals.

The oceanic tank is tall as hell so I needed to strap it onto the top of my Jeep to get it home.

Here's a before pic.

As you can see theres considerable damage as well as DIRT and salt water, and mold and mildew covering the entire tank.

I got Everything Listed below for 500$

Costs:

Tank + Stand - 375

2 Kent Marine Tank Scrapers
1 50 Foot Python water changing package
1 Extra Long Fish Net
1 Extra Long Fish Tongs

Reef Ready Overflow kit
Durso Over Flow Kit
Loc Line Reefready overflow kit
Oceanic Reef Ready Sump + Bulkheads
Oceanic Model 2 Sump + Baffles + optional wet/dry kit.
Various Lengths of Eheim Tubing
Various Bulkheads and Pump attachments
Mag 12 Pump
48" 4X96 Watt PC Actinic lighting system with NIP Bulbs
Glass Canopy

 

[asonitez]

Well I started the project 2 days after I got the tank home. That was mainly due to making space for it as well as trying to organize funds to purchase additional equiptment.

A trip to home depot landed me some primer tinted to allow the black satin paint I chose to adhere easier. The black satin paint will feel like the high quality boxes Iphones come in. Basically incredibly smooth and lush.


Step 1 Was Sanding the paint off as much as possible and smoothing out the surface taking it back to almost solid oak. I sanded with 80 Grit Paper.

Step 2 Was sanding with a 200 Grit paper to remove any roughness as well as baby bottom the wood to where it was super duper smooth. I then Primed it using the tinted primer aplied liberally. I ended up putting 2 coats of primer to get rid of any white streaks that were present. I let that cure over night. I then Sanded the primer down with 200 Grit paper slightly to remove any imperfections, and to smooth out all of the edges. The beer Helped immensely for strength.

Power Drink!

I used PVC to enable the stand to move easily and elevate it above the drop cloth. Best Idea EVUR!!!!!!!!!!

Multipurpose Step Ladder!!!!!!!!!

My Girlfriend is NOT thrilled about the mess in the living room and the amount of drop cloth's every where. She is Definately not thrilled about painting there either. Thankfully the paint smell is next to nothing I'm on the 9th floor so my entire flat is windows everywhere. Opening them allows fresh air inside without disrupting the natural temperature inside. Everything is so smooth and satinish..... I can't wait to put the black paint on it tonight!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My girl is extremely understanding of my new obsession. That makes it ok! woot!

 

[asonitez]

I have decided that I would like to try a Refugium with this new setup. Below are the oceanic sump before and after. Its what I will attempt by gluing 3/4inch or 1/2 inch thick plexiglass or acrylic into baffles. I will try to slot the tops to allow water to flow but keep the culpera or micro algae in.

 

[Mthompson]

Lookin' good....I would gently remind your girlfriend that she is just that. Until there are rings involved she can freely give her input and other thoughts, but you do not have to necessarily consider them. :wink: Although, I found it best to get her involved early so that she sees it as 'our' project. This way she is less likely to complain about most aspects.....

Keep us posted.

 

[Mthompson]

The sump looks good, but I would just use 1/4" acrylic. It is much cheaper and easier to cut at home. If you need extra strength, you can just cut a smaller piece the same width and silicone it to one side of the baffle. I did this on the bottom 2-3" of all my baffles, and it helps keep them in place with the weight of 15" of water/sand pushing out on them.

One thing I noticed....the first baffle from the left needs to be raised off the bottom of the tank an inch or two. This forces water to flow from the bottom up. Effectively keeping water in the skimmer compartment just a little bit longer for some recirculation, and allowing for some micro-bubble dispersion.

All else looks good.

 

[Mthompson]

Here is a pic of my sump when I first installed it:

I use one of those blue filter sponges right before the return compartment (far right). You can also see that I cut teeth into the top of the overflow baffles (both in and out because fish and crabs can go upstream). Not sure if it helps, but thought I would share it with you...

 

[asonitez]

Thanks for that tip i never thought about that the skimmer will be in sump because the cabinet is 4 feet long and the sump itself is almsot 3 feet. that leaves me about 1 foot or more to place the Mag 12 Return that I have. I think that he mag 12 is WAY too much flow. I will have to Install a Ball valve and T it off back into the skimmer compartment for another skimming.

Basically after going through my loops and hurdles it will be returned to the tank but T'd off to return SOME to the skimmer compartment for an additional round of skimming. Should make for a good clean water setup.

As for the girlfriend... gah its been like years... i think were married now. just gotta do that whole... ring and wedding, and honeymoon thing when we get the chance.

 

[Mthompson]

If you are set on T'ing the return, I would put a ball valve on the tube going back to the sump and just after that T to the display. This way you can control how much flow goes in either direction (sump or display).

I personally think that the mag12 should be fine (remember you lose more head pressure when pumping vertically). I have a mag7 and wish I had gone bigger. You can also put in more return nozzles to disperse the return flow around the tank, which will help eliminate the need for bulky powerheads in the display. You can also utilize a SCWD if you want, to help create some beneficial wave-action (I want to add one when I upgrade to a larger pump).

 

[asonitez]

Thats a Good idea. I'm trying to limit the In tank things to as few powerheds as possible. As it is right now I plan to put 3 Maxijet 900's modded with the Sureflow mod to circulate water. 2 in the Top Pointing down and 1 In the bottom right hand side pointing behind the rocks focused toward the bottom slits of the overflow box. That should take care of any detrius behind the sand that builds up by putting it into the overflow box.

 

[Anonymous]

Heheh. You move fast. PVC "hold 'em ups", best idea evah! Also! Behold the glory that is a used pair of pantyhose. Looks like you had a fun weekend. We went riding, but couldn't do Malibu because of the fire.

 

[asonitez]

Double Posted OOps

I'm still trying to figure out what I will do for substrate... Hmm.. So many options.

 

[asonitez]

I was able to go ahead and sand out any imperfections on the stand after the primering stage. I'm pretty much giving everything at least 24 hours to dry etc before putting on second coats. After primering the stand and waiting for it to dry I sanded it lightly with very high grit paper 2/300 grit from home depot to really make it smooth. Atm it's so smooth that theres no trace of bumps or anything.

I decided since the time was right and I was home from work early that I would slap on a first thin coat of the paint.

I went with BEHR Satin Semi-Gloss. What it does is give a deep black finish with a feel similiar to satin or velvet boxes. The primer I used is water tight and the paint I'm using is salt water friendly. On the interior where the most WETNESS will occur I caulked and waterproofed it. Should any spillage or overflow occur it won't run onto the hardwood. I used a coating similiar to a polyurethane glaze to make it easy to wipe off on the interior. For maintenence the exterior of the stand will be simple wipe off with a slightly damp cloth and paint safe varnish.

What I love about the oceanic stands is that they are higher than regular stands which makes the optimal viewing level perfect for a 90 gallon tank.

I modded the Stand a little bit as well..

I screwed 2X4 Bracers into the top and along the sides. They are painted black to match. What this does is that should I need to ever remove the SUMP in case of an emergency I could cut out the center brace and not worry at all. When I install the Sump it will not be able to be removed. It must enter from behind the stand.

I mean.. how often do you move your sump ??

Pics

You might notice some Streaks through the Paint. This is actually because the first coat went on fairly thin. The second coat will really bring out the luster and such.

In the last pic you see some of the inhabitants waiting for their new crib.

 

[Mthompson]

Looking good. I also had to remove the center brace in the rear of my stand to get my sump in. You can't see it in my pic above, but I replaced it with a very snug fitting (positioned with hammer taps) 2x4 brace. It would have been a pain to remove it with the tank on top of the stand the way it was originally attached, as I had to do it from on top of the stand. With the new brace, it is not screwed in, it just fits tight enough that it will not fall out. This way if the need arises, all I have to do is give it a few taps and it will be free.

I plan to give my stand a new look by just attaching hardwood plywood to the outside and adding some decorative trim around the edges. I will most likely build a canopy around the same time so that they match. But I need to finish my shop area and clean up the garage before I can jump into that.

Keep us updated, and I hope you plan out the tank setup just as much! It pays off in the end. :wink:

 

[mr_X]

lol...coming along nicely!
MThompson is right, the mag12 is not too much. he's also right about lifting the first baffle to let the water go underneath it instead of over the top.
i'd get rid of the sponge in the sump idea, and use a filter sock instead. buy 2 or 3 and you can change them out real easy. you can just throw them in the washing machine withOUT soap, and they clean up nice.
anyway, tighten up those 2 last baffles and then your return area will be bigger, to allow for evap.

 

[asonitez]

Final Coat Goes on tonight WOOOOO excited Excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

 

[asonitez]

Well last night I went ahead and put on the last and final coat of paint. The stand is looking great and I Can't wait to put the tank back on it.


One thing I was told was that I could use LIMO Tint on the back of my tank glass to make it dark. The nice thing about that is that I can remove it if I don't want it and its easy to apply.It will hide my wall behind it and give the tank a nice custom deep look while making all the corals stand out. I think it will also avoid any salt creep behind the tank detracting from its natural beauty. I hope that it will come out great.

Equip wise the tank is at a stand still while I handle some holiday bills. But I should still be able to finish up most of it and leak test it soon.

As usual Pics

 

[Anonymous]

Way cool work there.

I never thought about car window tint, I just always painted the backs of my tanks with black Rustoleum.

 

[mr_X]

yes, limo tint is what i used on my old 125. someone gave it to me..at first i thought you'd be able to see through it, but you couldn't.
i had dark blue. it looked nearly black.

 

[asonitez]

Oh boy... Lighting Dilemma and a New Skimmer!!!!!!!

Finally I'm ready to build the baffles into my sump!!!!!!!!!! I can't wait for tomorrow!

a Little Update.

I hate not having handles on my Cabinet. Makes it seem so... unfurnitureish. Everything els in the living room as silver chrome handles So I decide to make it happen!

I also picked up my Skimmer and the external Waste Collection Cup! I got a great deal on them. It's a MTC skimmer rated for a tank of 250 Gallons or more. Its Venturi and uses a Vortex to create millions of tiny bubbles. It's also InSUMP!!!!!! I'm powering it using a Mag 7!

Last but not least I got another lighting fixture. Its 4 48" VHO's powered by a icecap660-009 Ballast at 110watts each. These + my actinic fixture should enable me to keep anydamn thing I want in this tank.

 

[qfrisco]

The stand looks great! Coincidentally, I am about to embark on a refinishing project myself. Like you, I got a great deal on a used 90 Gallon Oceanic with oak stand and canopy. But unlike you, mine came already finished in black, and my wife wants it stained to match the rest of our furniture!

Here's a pic of the setup taken before pick-up at my LFS.

I've been experimenting with different grits of sandpaper, and like you, I settled on 80 grit. I'll be starting the sanding job today. I pretty much have to sand down to the bare wood, so I'll be doing this for awhile!

Please let me know if you have any suggestions/hints!