180 gallon acrylic - build by sixpackgarage
 

Warning - this build will move slowly. For more action, check out my other build.

So the story goes - a friend has a friend who is moving to a cabin off the grid where a tank isn't an option needed to get rid of this monstrosity, and that's where I come in.

I got the tank for free, so I figure I have nothing to lose (knock on wood).

I picked up the tank a couple of months ago, and it was really rough.

On to the build:

Dimensions:
96"x18"x24"

Cons
1.) mystery brand and age. My guess is 6+ years old
2.) had 4 bulkheads on the bottom of the tank (will plug those)
3.) lots of fine scratches and some odd clear crap on the front pane
4.) no stand

Pros
1.) it was free!!
2.) see number 1
3.) the back is black acrylic
4.) hugeness

Here's when I brought it home. Lucky I own a mini van
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This is after about 8 hours of sanding, buffing and polishing. Coming along nicely
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Here you can see the mystery spatter.. Almost looked like someone spilled clear polyurethane on it..
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So I'm all in.. Used a razor blade to scrape off the mystery spatter knowing that would make scratches that I would have to deal with
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Stupid bulkheads on the bottom of the tank.. Who does this stuff?
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Decided to dig through the garage and find my old orbital buffer.. Screw doing any more by hand!!
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Making more progress
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Best work light ever
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I've been thinking about plumbing lately and was thinking about an overflow. The Synergy unit looked really nice and would blend perfectly with the black back panel..but $199 just for an overflow... So that remained a dream until today. A local reefer was selling a brand new in-box unopened Synergy unit, so I jumped on it
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Now I need to make some holes. The synergy kit requires 60mm holes. I ordered a set of diamond hole saws from Amazon. They should be here later this week. That's it for now...


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Looking forward to this Sixpack, loved what you did with your other build!

Thanks!


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180 gallon acrylic - build by sixpackgarage
 

Got my diamond tip hole saws only to realize I don't need them after reading the instructions.. Doh! Anyways, a quick trip to the hardware store for a regular 2-3/8" hole saw (same as 60mm)
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Measure
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Install provided template, just a hair below where the back pane meets the top pane
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Top tip = cut counter clockwise for a cleaner, less choppy cut. I tried clockwise, but the hole saw was jumping all over the place since the hole saw does not have a pilot drill (and I was too dumb to realize that I could have put in a pilot drill bit [emoji16])

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I used to work in a machine shop many moons ago and still had my Vargas tool in my tool box. It's used for deburring
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Fits perfectly
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I'll take it back apart to polish the back panel, plus I still have a lot of work to do.


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180 gallon acrylic - build by sixpackgarage
 

Made my regular Friday stop at my #lfs and decided to to take advantage of the fact that they stock all the fittings I need. Picked up the bulkheads, locklines, etc and decided to install tonight
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Oops a little beer spill lol
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You might say things are getting serious. Making a hard core commitment to Neptune WAV. To be honest, I bought these for my 65g, but they are WAY too powerful. Glad I didn't sell them off since this 180g project came along.
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Only thing is they are wired so I simply have to drill holes for the cords for a clean look
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Moving along [emoji16][emoji482]


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180 gallon acrylic - build by sixpackgarage
 

Into storage you go for now. I'll be moving into some temporary quarters while we look for a new house. My baby will sit in a uhaul storage unit for the next few months. Stay tuned...


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Looking forward to seeing how this turns out!

Hurry up and find a house!

You tease…

What'cha gonna put in it?

[emoji106]


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Buying, not renting this time... Need to find one that suits all the needs plus need 8 feet of wall space[emoji16]


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Haha[emoji106]going to put all my current livestock in it, but spread it out to allow for growth


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Still househunting. Got a quote for a steel fabricated stand for 650, but it would still need powdercoat.. probably another couple of hundred. I also have been thinking about doing an 80-20 stand. I saw one online and sent the photo to 80-20. One of their dealers came up with a quote of 675 plus tax and shipping. That includes all the machining and hardware. I'm tempered to go with the 80-20. I like the idea of being able to add things as I see fit. Here's the design

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So good news. I
Should be closing on my house in a couple of weeks. Knowing this, I went with the 80-20 stand. It was scheduled for delivery yesterday, but at the last minute there was a notification that it was not on the truck [emoji35] so I went down to the UPS hub to pick it up. I decided to do a dry assembly just to make sure everything is as expected. Good thing I did because a few pieces of hardware were missing. This gives me a chance to get that sent to me before I move. Ok onto pics.

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Pretty well packaged and only 49lbs. Hard to believe it will be holding up almost 1800lbs

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It will have one more set of upright supports once the hardware comes in. Then later on, I will figure out some paneling


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Looks good, how does stand feel assembled? Good luck with build

It's solid. Weird that it's so light though. Thanks


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Looking good!

Did they design or are you responsible for it? Thinking of doing a small stand 36x24x40 and wondering on stress, Gus setting...

I showed them what I wanted and the weight it needed to hold. Ultimately I can only blame myself if there's an issue, but I don't see why there would be after seeing all the European setups using hollow aluminum tube with plastic connectors. Also homes in Arizona sit on concrete with no basement, so there will be no opportunity for flex unless there's an earthquake.. which are rare


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Also I can always add gussets later.. that's why 80-20 is nice


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Fully inspired, do they tell you what connections to buy ( to bolt together) or is that included?

Done!!
Closed on my house last week[emoji851]
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Emptied one of my uhaul storage units today and finally moved my tank to the house. Starting to feel like this is actually going to happen.

Need to order some schedule 80 bulkheads and some ball valves so I can see if this bad boy actually holds water
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Nice house and nice tank!

One of the beauties of acrylic tanks is they're so easy to mod. The first thing I did to mine was to make the top openings a lot bigger. Those tiny openings make it very difficult to clean the sides. Also now is a good time to get the kit to polish out every last scratch, before you set it up. Once you've got it up and running, it may be years before you get another chance. Have you considered a closed loop or two?

Good luck! It's going to be amazing!