Chris' Nano Journal

[chr15_8]

ok trod just for you i will get a picture or 2 of my woodwork skills once its all done.

Nothing special though just a couple of mini joist hangers and a few lumps of wood to strengthen it abit and to help distribute the weight. Its leaning forward and is about 1/2 inch out at the moment! so might need to trim abit of the bottom to level it up.

I have not been around much lately and have missed the start of this journal, its looking good so far, keep the updates coming

Thanks, will do. You havent missed much yet.

 

[chr15_8]

I ordered perspex the other week and it arrived today.

Once i find out the total size of the skimmer i will glue the perspex into the sump to create the divides. I also orderd some perspex as a background for the tank. however one piece was black the other was blue so am awaiting an email from the perspex company

 

[ben1987]

i used pirspex for my first sump, it did not bond well with the glass. It also bent under pressure of the first fill. So fill each chamber up evenly

 

[chr15_8]

i used pirspex for my first sump, it did not bond well with the glass. It also bent under pressure of the first fill. So fill each chamber up evenly

cheers ben

i got some 5mm perspex for this reason. its quite strong and takes quite abit to bend. The way baffles are would also help to stop it bending at all.

just need to find out the overal skimmer size before i can bond it together.

 

[chr15_8]

The weirs and sections are all in place now. tommorow i will be siliconing the perspex section to the glass. Need to get all the pipwork now and it wont be long

 

[chr15_8]

ive siliconed all the acrylic into the tank now. about to pop out but will get a few pictures later.

never knew it was so hard to silicone a few things in place! its abit of a mess but no one going to see it though.

ive siliconed all the acrylic into the tank now. about to pop out but will get a few pictures later.

never knew it was so hard to silicone a few things in place! its abit of a mess but no one going to see it though.

 

[Trod]

waiting patiently for pictures

Its because I'm so rubbish with the DIY stuff I love to see how everyone else does things

 

[chr15_8]

Ive now just finished (10 mins ago) strengthening the stank and lowering the shelf to fit the sump. might need to adjust it slightly so its completely level but will leave it for a few days to see if the carpet settles.

Few pictures of the stand. (The H on a the side is the top where the tank will sit on)

Stand upside down

Stand in position (with sump shelf in position)

The other day i sealed a few little leaks in the sump divides so its now completely leak free. the silicone seams to be holding the acrylic very well. I can fill up each individual chamber and there no movement.

Close up of the sump (water will drain into the left 2 chambers in the first picture and on the right in the second picture)

Last problem is the person i bought the acrylic off sent one piece the wrong colour and there not responding to emails so the rear of the tank is blue (exact colour of the weir!) and the left hand side is black. imo it don't look to bag because of the black hood and bottom trim. Again i quite like the look of it but whats your honest opinion? I think blue would look just as good but does the black look abit mix and match?

Left hand side with white perspex protective film

Left hand side with the black perspex side

Few finial pictures of the tank

Next thing to do is to drill the holes in the perspex where the holes in the tank are. Hopefully this weekend im going to pick up all the pipework. i was waiting for the fish shop to get the skimmer in but the date of arrival keeps changing and the place is an hour or so away so wont be going back until i start to stock. So will have to order online and save myself some money.

Hopefully i didnd bore anybody. let me know what you think.

Thanks
Chris

 

[seffieuk]

Looking good to me and no it doesn't look like a pick and mix - I think I actually like the black on the end better

and you certanly did not bore us, we more and more ...................

Seffie x

 

[TigerIssey]

I had a good think about this overnight. I think Seffie is right, if you did not have the black top and bottom, yes it may have looked pick and mix, however with the black top and bottom, I think the black on the side is actually giving more illusion of depth.

I may have been more certain straight away, if there had been a blue option photograph, but then you would not be in this dilemma anyway.

Go for it I say.

 

[chr15_8]

cheers. as i said i quite liking it and as you said Tina it gives it more depth.

The guy emailed me yesturday and is sending a new piece straight away, didnt even ask any questions! Might keep the black though.

Does anybody know where i can get some ready made blue weir combs?

I should be picking up my pipework tommorow if they have it in stock

 

[TigerIssey]

I think Aquamedic do them, look on coral culture website, very expensive for what they are though.

 

[chr15_8]

I think Aquamedic do them, look on coral culture website, very expensive for what they are though.

There black. says something like appears blue but are black iirc.

thanks anyway.

i have some acrylic cut perfectly to size but i need to cut every slot which will be a long boring process.

 

[kj23502]

Liking this thread very much Love new tank builds

 

[chr15_8]

Went to STM today. This is where it starts to get dear lol!

Got some bits of pipework. still need another 5 pieces (3x bulkheads + 2x 90 degree bends)
Got 23kg of h2ocean salt
18w solaris Light for ref
and some test kits.

will be making my durso soon