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220 gal. build

96K views 115 replies 48 participants last post by  gsubioguy 
#1 ·
It all started when a friend of mine knowing I'm an aquarium GEEK called me and asked if I wanted another tank so of course I asked how big and he said huge, BE RIGHT OVER I told him.
Well anyway it was this tank that some guy had stored in his moms garage for the past 10yrs because it sprung a leak and she finally got fed up and wanted it outta there. Being so old my expectations were not very high but to my surprise it was a 8ft 220 gal. reef ready Oceanic. Very pleased that I had made the trip I asked how much? I was floored when I heard $150.00 sooooo about 2 minutes later I was loading it in my truck with a very big grin!!! Well it took me a little longer do to the fact that it weighs about 600lbs or so, I needed reinforcements quick!!! go-go cell phone and here comes my brother-in-law and we were outta there.

200 gal Oceanic reef ready tank

Time for some serious scrubbing, 10 yr old salt residue n yuk...Actually came off pretty easily, it was so dried out after 10yrs it fell right off in alot of places/ vinegar solution took care of the rest

I couldn't believe this monster the largest I've had has been 55 gal. even though I've had tanks set up for 11 or 12 yrs.
Now my wife, well, we'll just say she wasn't quite as thrilled as I was
 
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#3 ·
So the build begins. Luckily my brother-in-law Casey is pretty darn handy a more than just a little help. **** I think he was as excited as I was. He caught the cichlid bug from me about a yr or so ago and now has 150 gal. of his own, so I was a little green to say the least. Can't wait to see what he comes up with next to one up me. HAHAHA
Anyways a very good buddy of mine is a contractor and donated almost all the wood we would need for the build, Kendrick you the SH_T!!! saved me some serious dough but it was all left overs from different jobs, We had Oak,Maple Poplar,Pine and all the 2x4's we needed.


Upper and Lower frames are 8ft+ with 24" 2x4's every 12 inchs apart for support



Casey my kickass brother-in-law squaring up the frame before we tack it together



Cabinet frame squared and secured ready for some reinforcment



For the center supports we notched out our 2x4's so top frame and center cross support would rest on top of the legs for added support. I'm starting to think it's a little overkill



cabinet corner supports, each leg actually consists of 3 2x4's notched to allow upper frame to rest on top for support and the legs run all the way to the floor



Time for the cabinet front



Solid 1 peice Oak front, not too bad!



My brother-in-law sanding the cabinet. Git-R-Dun Casey



cabinet finished. ah time for some trim!

Will post more later
 
#4 ·
thank u for showing me that because I'm about to buy me another tank a 180 or a 200 don't know and I'm going to build me a stand and a canopy like on aquariumdesign.com check those tanks out :popcorn:
 
#5 ·
OK so time for some doors

Door step 1 we ripped boards on the tablesaw and routed grooves to hold door inserts



Door Panels I decided to make my own doors because I'm just a little thrifty or if you ask my wife just plain cheap. Anyways decided to router horizontal grooves every 3" in the front of the panels for some style



Door panels I ran a plunge router over the panels in order to create horizontal grooves every 3 inches



Finished 1st door panel,Cut to size and routed



1st door complete ready for sanding



Canopy frame



Canopy doors



Finished stand and canopy, Finally got the stand inside and put tank in place.



More to come
 
#11 ·
Thank you all for the positive feedback.
The leak was at the front right corner, so I stripped all the old silicone from the tank and resealed it with GE silicone 1. First attempt was a failure (still leaked) I figured out the problem was that I didn't remove the famed Oceanic black background and tried to silicone in front of it to the glass. I just got lazy because the background was held on by a bunch of old silicone and I didn't want to mess with it, Big mistake!! So I started over stripping out all new silicon and removed background, it actually came out pretty easy after I broke it, woops, notice first picture has background still attached. I wasn't too concerned about breaking it seeing how I have already started a DIY styrofoam background. Round two very successful water tested for 3 days to be sure but no problems sh is now watertight. Sorry I should of taken some pictures of this step to share with everyone. Pretty simple, just strip out old silicone with a razorblade making sure you first cut against the glass as to not dig into the silicon between the glass at the joint. Clean,clean,clean the glass, silicone will not adhere to itself. Then tape it off and apply silicon, when you run your finger along to smooth out the joint dont press too hard as to remove any of the silicone. Have a shot glass full of alcohol handy to dip your finger in it really helps to keep it from sticking to your skin.
 
#14 ·
o yeah if u look at the stands u buy it's light as a feather you know,sooo the stands we build is much better and stronger I think.
 
#15 ·
Light as a feather it is not.....cabinet is around 250lbs, canopy is around 40lbs. I think we built this thing to with stand an F-5. Overkill is just my nature. it's not like I plan on moving this beast around very often. I took some pictures of the canopy doors since we forgot to take them as we were building






They open up nice and wide, they actually work better than I had hoped, makes for easy access.
 
#17 ·
I swear you guys are genius, I've been keeping cichlids for 12+ yrs and have learned more here than anywhere else. I have been reading and posting to these threads for only a couple of months and I am very impressed with everyones knowledge and creativity. It's like I've caught the bug all over again. anyways on to my actual topic

After some research here on Cichlid-Forum I decided on some DIY Durso standpipes. Went to a local supply store and spent abount $14 and here is what I came up with. I have 1" bulkheads so I used 1 1/4" pvc parts (2 caps, 2 90 degree m/f elbows, 2 couplings, 2 reducers 1 10ft stick of 1 1/4" pvc, I know I didn't need 10ft but I wanted extra for future projects) Any ways very simple to assemble using PVC primer and cement. can't wait to see how well these work but first I have to finish my DIY background and some lighting. I need not explain the Durso seeing how many of you already have. If you have questions just ask, but all the info you need is on this site.




Driiled a very tight hole for the airline so couldn't it get sucked through. used a drill bit slighly smaller than airline and then just worked it around in the hole till it would fit very snug but could be adjusted up or down to raise or lower water level in overflows as needed.




Dry fit in overflow still need to cut to height. I plan to leave 1" at bottom unglued so that I can remove them from the bulkhead and flush overflows every so often. I also plan painting them black using Krylon fusion spraypaint, I've read of several people using it here on CF
These were very easy to build, I hope that they dramatically cut out the noise level of the intakes as I have read.
 
#18 ·
Some pics of my 55gal. sump


Bio media chamber and baffles
planning on filling with bio balls about 5 gallons should due + 2 sponge filters in between baffles.
I got that basket and sponges not sure yet if I can incorporate them or not. 1st idea for them didn't work

drip plate above bio ball chamber it will be covered with filter floss


intake hoses


return lines, still waiting for my pump (Danner Mag-12) to arrive before running hoses. I was going to get the Mag-18 but I got a really good deal ( :) $100) on the Mag-12 from Big Al's on Black Friday special (saved $45 vs getting the 18 ) w/ free shipping. Now I just need to find a really good deal on some bio-balls I've been watching E-bay. If anyone knows where I can get some real cheap let me know!!!

will post more pics once pump arrives and media is in place
 
#19 ·
Go for pot scrubbies instead of bio balls. They have much more surface area. I found them at a dollar store in my area 6 for $1. I've seen people get them sometimes in packages of 10 for a buck at their local dollar stores.
 
#21 ·
Nice work Junkie,

That stand does look like you goild put a car on it. Funny how we do that out of fear of coming some to a disaster.

I agree with the Pot Scrubbers, however I am playing with the idea of ditching the Bio Media for Live plants. Some in the AQ for the fish to snack on, as well as a heavily planted refugium in my sump. Just think nothing beats nature. Will see.

Look forward to seeing it up and running.

Bear :popcorn: :thumb:
 
#22 ·
o yeah I like that,good idea for me for as the door open up from the top. :thumb:
 
#24 ·
Think the design is nice, I would just add a little more color to it. You'll get the green naturally :lol: I would add some browns or reds to it to give it some depth.

Just my 2 cents
 
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