$50 craiglist 225 tank/cabinet/canopy DIY refurbish

All this slightly bent over work took a toll on my middle and lower back so I hit the bed early last with medication only to wake up at 3:30am LOL.

I want to thank all of you for your kind comments and recommendations, all appreciated, thought provoking and inspirational.

There is a self centered part of me that would like to take all the credit for all the work completed so far but truth be told providence has played a center role in my personal ability to get this far. In hindsight there wasn't one AC member's comment I wasn't able to use in forming a decision but of course all of your encouragement has been motivating to say the least.

I know this sound a little overblown for those with the experience to do this blindfolded, but in my case with the exception of the wood work and refinishing, all of the glass work and tank repair is completely new and uncharted territory and with a tank so large it has been my personal Goliath almost subdued LOL.

From where we started it's a little hard to imagine actually having this tank sitting on its stand looking great holding water and fish. But God willing I believe its going to happen soon.;)
 
:clap::popcorn:
 
iap said:
beautiful work!! i finally got around to messin with my 240 and to my surprise, i removed the bottom trim and was pleasntly surprised that there were 2 bottom panels, one inset and the original capped ( the cracked one). so it appears that the tank was already repaired. im goin to just go ahead and reseal everything and pray that there are no leaks!
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My 180g was like that, a lot of larger tanks are double based.
 
You did good, Gunner! ***(even for a Coastie)***

;)
 
Kaint wait to see the pics of it all set up :)
 
Well I called my neighbor Harold this morning to help me move the stand outside to a level spot on the back yard driveway then slide the tank off the truck and onto the stand.

After that we had to tilt the tank on it's side to slide 3 interlocking play mats between the tank and stand. These playmates come in an 8 pack of interlocking 1/2 inch thick foam pads that are 25"x25" squares for only $20 at Sam's Club, I still have 5 left over. At first I was concerned about the colors but turns out they are all black on the opposite side so I placed them face down.
Tanktest004.jpg

The sad new is that we had high winds last night and becasue my canopy doors were locked open acted like big sails the wind turned over and off the work table with a might crash. So it sustained some minor damage on the upper corners where trim cracks will have to be glued and scraps refinished but structurally nothing broke not even the hinges or door stay hardware which too allot of stress.

As soon as we started putting water in the tank we noticed the level was off by 1/6 inch due to the crown on the driveway so we had to use about 10 wood shims between the stand and concrete to get things perfectly level. The good thing about not having a floor inside a stand is you can easily place your shims on the inside and becasue the frame is visible pinpoint the correct location to place shims under load bearing studs.

It was now time to fill the tank and making sure the water temp matched the glass temp we fill the tank first to 1/4 and decided to forgo the 24 hours and continued to 50 %. Then becasue thinks appeared to look OK continued on to 75%. Then I said "what do you think Harold?" To which Harold relied "I know it going to hold even at 100%" So I let the water run until the water was touching the center brace and then placed the canopy on top (doors closed) to stop the 15-20 MPH winds from disturbing the surface water.

That is when I noticed water on the bottom back side of the aquarium rim and my hart sank! But Harold came over and said "that's probubly water left over from when you pulled the hose out with the water still running" ?????!!!! :nilly::hypnotized::perv::shocked::chillpill:
 
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You do need to take well-deserved credit for this. Suggestions were offered, but you had to decide which ones would work and which wouldn't. It wasn't easy for you and "Harold" but you managed, took your time, and out came a masterpiece of craftsmanship.

Good job, Wobbly!
 
The water trail on the bottom side did scare me good but I noticed that it wasn't wet under the stand at all. So I got some napkins and dried the area where it appeared like water was leaking past the bottom seal totally a table spoon of water at most from what the napkin soaked up. It has now been 3.5 hours and Im going out now to get photo's check if there is any sign of any moisture, dribbles, or drips. Pleas excuse the smudged glass and dust as I diden't have a chance to clean it after last nights high winds.

The next post will bee great news, or a learning experience.
 
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