Algae Posted March 9, 2009 Share Posted March 9, 2009 Well this is the start of the build. With my own business and another job I know that I will be limited on time so this build will be a little slow. I’ve been accused of being slow before. It will also let me shame myself. I prefer shunning to shame. Then again, I am old fashioned. My current tank is a 72 bowfront and the things I like are: Pretty wide in the “bow”. A lot of room for fish. Fairly shallow at 21” deep. Good ratio of L X W. What I don’t like : Skimming overflow will break suction if Aqualifter shuts down . Really needed to be drilled. Well, I was in the learning stage.Tank was purchased used with a few “light scratches” Well, the light scratches that you think will not be visible; will be! They will right in the way of that tiny frag that you want to photograph. The stand only accommodates a 20g sump. The stand needed to be reinforced substantially. AGA/ Aqueon really marketed a dangerous product and obviously had no intent on consumer safety. After a LOT of router and tablesaw work, it is now safe, but it cut down on what was an already small sump area. I want to build an expandable system of maybe two tanks and plumb out to my garage for a large sump/refugium. The first tank will be a 40 with an emphasis in LPS. It will be built into the wall, in peninsula form. Just bought the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miniwhinny Posted March 9, 2009 Share Posted March 9, 2009 Really looking forward to your build. I LOVE 40's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algae Posted March 30, 2009 Author Share Posted March 30, 2009 A late thanks! Photos coming soon. So here we go. Got the 40B. Maybe I should get two? Was thinking of getting a 58 Oceanic Ultimate, but I really like the shallow depth of the 40's to punch the PAR rating up. The ugly part of the 40's is the large utilitarian frame. It is all out of proportion to the rest of the tank. On examination, the majority of the 1 1/2" ABS frame is non-functional. The corners seem to be the most structurally reinforced area. Even though the rim is wide, it only limits a minimal amount of plate glass flexing. The inside rim that supports a glass top does add quite a bit to the rigidity. I'd like to go rimless, at least on the top, but I am unwilling to take a chance on the integrity of the tank after such a modification. if it was a 10 or 20, I would not be as concerned. I decided to take of 5/8" off the top frame. Removing the frame is time consuming and so I opted to trim the frame in place with a rotary tool (aka Dremel). The problem of melting the ABS via the high RPM can be minimized by a heat sink/"sandwich" (in theory) that has the metal guide (ruler) on the outside and a piece of high density cardboard or sheet metal flush to the glass. This I held in place with clamps. Coming up are photos of the cutting itself and maybe a minor rant on Dremel. (A really wimpy, unmanly tool, but so am I) :eek: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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