2 Disclaimers:
1) lots of photos, load warning
2) this is a work in progress so there are obviously things not done yet
Here are a few photos to better explain some of our stand/canopy build.
This is what I sketched up after my son and I looked at what we wanted to accomplish. Our goals were to make the stand tall and wide enough to house equipment, make that equipment easy to access, and to provide a canopy tall enough for MHs.:
This is where we are on it today. Until this last weekend it was only the skeleton. We were able to get some of the external trim on it the stand portion and you'll see that closer in another photo. As you can see I have a lot of evaporation each day so I need to top off. Blah, I hate seeing those Maxijets back in the tank but the Koralia replacements will be here soon. And yes, my dogs are complete hams.:
This is a close up of the shims used in the front at the bottom. As discussed in another thread the stand itself was made level. However, with it being against the wall and the back on a carpet strip AND the weight of the tank sitting towards the front of the stand it was throwing it off. So we had to shim it up. We actually had to use double shims in each place we had them. These will not be visible when the stand is done because a finishing piece of lumber will be placed across the bottom.
And because we wanted to be doubly safe we screwed a 1x4 into the wall and then braced the stand to that in 4 different places. This thing isn't going anywhere. In fact, I could probably park my SUV on it.
A better view of the stand. If you have been following along since the log was started you know we had a sump in here. Then the Tunze we bought wouldn't fit. So we're making our own sump now using a modified version of Marc @ Melev's Sump #F plan. The ballast you see on the right will be put on a shelf up above and there will be a vent near it although it surprisingly doesn't run hot. As mentioned about there will also be a finishing piece of hardwood at the bottom that hides the skeleton and shims.
In this shot you can see a bit better how we are covering the framing lumber (which my son is still griping about making cabinetry out of), with nice finished hardwood that we'll stain. I had planned on using a maple or pecan stain since my house is in maple woods but I might change that to a darker java stain with nickle hardware. In any event you can see that we still have sanding and a bit of nail punching to do here.
A shot of the inside that shows how the finished lumber is on top of the skeleton/frame as well as the double braces we used at each joint not so visible in this photo is that each 2x4 is doubled up to be more like a 4x4. As I said..park a truck on the thing. And ack, ignore the dust created from this project.
A shot of the outside of the canopy. The canopy uses a frame made of 1x4s. The inside sides (and eventually front lid) are covered in the inside with a piece of bathroom paneling. It is super smooth, white, not too think and holds up to moisture rather well. The bottom of the stand is also lined with this. The outside will all be covered with the cabinet grade lumber and the bottom of the canopy will cover the rim of the tank. You can see a little bit how the lid (front) swings up.
This shot shows how the lid swings up front another angle. As you can see it is just the frame now. Hence me pestering my son to at least get the lining up on the front so fish stadium doesn't light up my house as much. Although this photo looks dark it is an illusion created by the overdriven MHs. The room is actually very sunny and the photo was taken this afternoon with not a cloud in the sky. The brightness of the lights just makes everything else seem dark in comparison. A bit difficult to see here but the lid is on 3 hinges. It holds itself up by it's own weight although surprisingly not that hard for me to lift and I'm only 5'2". You'll notice that the back of the canopy is open. There will be netting used at the back when it is done. The canopy itself can be taken off without much work but you do need a screwdriver. Then the brace you seen running down the back can be removed from the stand. It would have worked without it but my son insisted he wanted it ultra stable so there it is.
This shot shows a closer view of the inside of the canopy. The lights hang from a 1x4 that spans the top but the rest of the top will be left open except for some netting. The computer fans are hardwired to a 12v adapter and are set to come on when the MHs come on. I'm planning on switching the 10,000K bulbs out for 14,000k when I need to replace them. However, after talking to the electrician that made the lights I might actually go with a 20,000K bulbs. Here is why...the lights are overdriven. They run in a way that make the (2)250watt bulbs units run as if they were 400 watts. Which means it is bright and white. Soooo although I was planning on getting actinic supplements for greens and oranges to pop my lights are so bright that you might not even notice the t5 actinics. He showed me with a similiar unit and I couldn't tell one bit. Since my tank is so shallow the consensus seems to be to change to 20,000K but I'm still taking opinions.
Oh, and behind the fans, there will be a shelf built so I can put my dry foods and what not up there.
And as a bonus shot my tank this afternoon looking down the front from the left side. I am NOT happy. I like the new change to rock and I'll get more on the rightside but my bali green slimer is still looking brown although it has polyps still. My hammers don't appear to be coming back from the tank mini crash this last weekend. And worst of all the flow sucks with the Koralias gone right now. And with the tear down and re-set up this past weekend the sandbed got all disturbed and I'm dealing with diatoms on the sand again. Blah Butters the Tang doesn't care, he is in heaven swimming in and out of the openings of the cave on the right and thankful he and his best friend George the Goby are no longer sharing a bunk in fishie prison.
and now i know when the lights go on tomorrow to check my koralia...
