Build for my 90 Reef

[chrismhaase]

I bought 2"x4"x8's - 10 of them, and 2- 2"x6"8"

I have some plywood if anyone wants some. just give me a call 813.267.2968

[chrismhaase]

A few people have asked what and how much of the stuff I used so here is a quick list.

(10) 2x4x8
(2) 2x6x8
(1) 4'x8' 1/2" sheet of plywood
(5) 8' sections of 2 3/8" Egg & Dart chair rail molding
(2) " " 1 3/8" " " " molding
(1) 8' section of scalloped molding 2 3/8"
then select pine sections
(2) 1x2x8'
(1) 1x8x8'
(1) 1x3x8'
(2) 1x4x8'
(2) 1x12x8'

I am sure I bought more but who knows.

Other items I bought
- water resistant wood glue
-clamps
-square
- 2" galvanized wood screws- 1 box
- 3" " " " - 2 boxes
-wood putty
-pre treat wood condition- used before staining on pine
-stain
Tools
- air gun
- miter, jig, skil saws
-coordless drill
-beer and rum drinks

[marino420td]

Chris,

Nice job on the stand so far. That is going to look great in your home.

Everyone that comes over wants to see my tank, even if they are not into reefs. Makes the hard work worth it.

[CichlidMan@<3]

Chris- Its not finished yet. I just have it sitting on the base and when I move into my new place in a month I am going to drywall the outside and put crown moulding on to match the walls. I will post pictures when I am done

[chrismhaase]

good luck. I look forward to seeing the finished product.

[bholland]

Hi everyone,

Hey Mike hope your up and around soon.

Yes, we are new to reefcentral and looking forward to building our first reef system. We have a tank to start but not sure if I want a 75 gal or wait till I can afford something bigger. I would like to have some Tangs but they seem to need a big tank for best living conditions. We will be building a stand in the meantime for my 75 gal. I have a small 20 gal. with a few cichlids. They need to move to a bigger home. I am actively looking for a great buy on either a 55 (cichlids) or larger system(reef).

I am reading everyday to learn as much as possible before we get started. I know I will have lots of questions real soon for ya all. I believe we will start the stand in the next few days. Thank you all for all the great threads I've been reading.

Brenda

[CichlidMan@<3]

If you have peacock cichlids and plan on changing over to saltwater, I might want to buy them from you. Or if the cichlids get too big, I will buy them from you.

[BlitzK]

looks good!

[chrismhaase]

Here is a picture of my finished stand and it is finally in my living room.

And here is the view I will have while sitting in my living room. Notice It is viewable from all 3 couches. And behind me where I took the picture is the kitchen. So I have maximized all viewing directions.


Hopefully I get the stuff from Dr Foster and Smith to decorate the back of my tank and then Mike will have some free time this weekend to help me do it. Then eventually water this upcoming week.

Then back to FAIOS to go buy the Euro Reef 185. Yes Sir!!

Until then enjoy the pictures... Chris

[adam82]

very nice!!!!!

[mflamb]

SWEET!!!

[chrismhaase]

Thanks man. I just can wait to get some water in there. Hopefully on Sunday I can do all the plumbing and then adding water. I guess I should probably start to make some now so I don't have to wait for the slow RODI unit.

[cjgalante]

how much were the doors?

[chrismhaase]

I went to Lowes and bought them. They have a company that they sub out all their customer door orders. The company's name is Quality Doors. I ordered (2) 15"wide x 30" tall doors for the stand and (2) 8" tall x 15" wide doors for the canopy. They are maple and unfinished for $255. If you ask people on here there are a few door makers. Good luck. PS it takes about 3 weeks for them to come in.

[mflamb]

Also check here for the doors:
https://securewsch01.websitecomplete...p/showDept.asp

[chrismhaase]

WOW what a deal, I should have asked. O well, its done and it looks good.

[mflamb]

I'm a crazy shopper. I always want the best deal. But hey, yours looks great. What stain is that?

[chrismhaase]

I used the Miniwax Dark Mahogany gel stain. As I was staining, I didn't really like the way the stain looked, so I stained it about 3 or 4 times and it is a really dark color. It actually worked out perfect, because the coffee table and the trim on the TV stand are also really dark stained. It all just came together.

[chrismhaase]

Alright, after a long 2 days of tank building, the tank finally has water!! I know how much everyone likes pictures, so I took a bunch through the process. So here ya go,

Here is the RO DI water mixing station right outside my door. I had so many different buckets.


I chose to paint the backside of the tank black. I was also thinking of using that pond foam, but after doing some research and seeing people with that stuff breaking off I got scared so I went with the traditional tank.


Then we started to fill the tank. We used a big bucket with a pump and hose to ease the water into the tank.


Filling up....


Almost full. Thanks to my buddy David, who was passing through to Boca Grande for a wedding. He is also a reefer with a 110 tall. He has a really nice reef.


Then after we completely filled the tank, we realized that they guy who had the tank prior to me had put the overflow bulkhead in upside down and because of that it had a slow leak. And not to mention it was completely locked and wouldn't budge. So we had to take a Dremel tool and cut away at the bottom side to relieve the pressure. It eventually came undone with very slow and careful work. Here is the end product of the bulkhead Vs. the Dremel. The Dremel won.


Then we finally got water flowing and here is the arrangement of the loc line.


And here is the final product. I have 2x250 14k Hamilton MH lights fired by 2 Ice Cap ballasts. I still have to add supplemental lights, which will be fired by a Ice Cap 660 and 2 or 4 46.5" VHOs. I still have to install these, moonlights, and canopy fans(4 of them).

[CMcNeil]

man that stand and hood look awesome.great job so far.on a side note when i make my 160g cube i will need a stand made maybe you can lead me down a good path for the stands design and overall look.and once again great looking stand and hood

[chrismhaase]

I would be more than happy to help you. Also, I have a bunch of tools- air guns, miter saws, and so on.

Thanks for the compliment though.

[mflamb]

I agree...that's a great looking stand/hood. I saved some of the pics for when I start my woodwork.

[CMcNeil]

that would be great.i really like the furnature quality stands and hoods and if im going to make one i want it to look awesome like yours.all the fancy trim molding really makes the difference.once again great job and outcome on your stand.

[chrismhaase]

Thanks. I put about 40 hours of blood and lots of sweat into it. However, it was all worth it. I did not want a stand that was pre-fabbed and plain looking. Plus all together I probably spent a total of $600-700 which included $255 for just the doors. That might be a lot you say, but compare that to $1000 to $1500 for a stand and canopy that is store bought and run of the mill. Not that there is anything wrong with those stands, I had one on my previous 55 reef tank.

On another note, Mike, I will no longer need your assistance on the handi foam application. I decided not to do it.

Checkinhawk, isnt your name Chris also? And didn't you head up the DIY Calc Reactor build? If so, I will be more than glad to help you build a stand if you help me build a reactor. Deal?

An for anyone who wants to come over you are more than welcome and I will be more than happy to walk you through my stand build and give suggestions/changes I would do if I had to do it all over again from the start.

Thanks again for everyone's compliments. Chris

[CMcNeil]

yes my name is chris and i think we may be able to work something out.