journal Jayc's New 3ft tank

[jc12]

@buck, @opqfrt, @Disciple

Well, the update is that I am tearing down the tank for an update and re-scape.

I'm going to go down the Keep It Shrimply Simple (K.I.S.S.) route this time around.

I'm in the process of catching all the shrimp out, and will drain the tank this weekend to give it a good cleaning.

Substrate is going to be replaced with Cal Labs Black Earth premium.

I have also decided to build myself a new modern tank cabinet.

Would be awesome to see the new modern tank cabinet build. I am in a terribly slow process of building a cabinet/rack myself so would be great to exchange notes. :)

[jayc]

you're on JC.

What plans have you got for a cabinet?

 

[jc12]

My idea looks more like a LFS style cabinet with a swinging flap to cover the top of the tanks. Not sure if I can say mine looks modern but I can post some work-in-progress photos up if you do not mind as this is your thread.

My wife... ahem... I mean I have a few 'requirements' as this cabinet will be in the lounge room. It has to look aesthetically pleasing and does not throw out too much light that might 'interfere' with watching TV or be too blinding to look at. All hoses have to be concealed and after a lot of 'convincing', the chiller and canister filter can be placed next to the cabinet. Background would be either white or grey, would prefer black but planning to breed discus in it so lighter background would help the fry attach to the parents.

The cabinet I want has to house both tropical (for fish) and chilled tanks (for shrimps) so I am insulating between tanks with 20mm thick foams so dimensions are more than the typical tank dimensions.

Frame wise I use untreated MGP10 90x45mm structural pine and clad it with 9mm MDF. Planning to plump air and water all hidden within the thickness of the frame. A LP20 air pump would sit at the top of the cabinet at 2.2m high.

Currently doing an undercoat and still trying to figure out how to hold the 'flaps' close as I couldn't find the hinges I was after and the flaps are sitting a bit 'opened'. Thinking going velcro or finding a way to mount magnetic clasps but I haven't thought it through enough hence I was hoping to exchange notes.

If you're wondering, my build started in late June, so it has taken some time. Haha.

[jayc]

Go ahead, feel free to post pics here.

This is going to be my cabinet design.

• Minimalist look yet ultra functional.
• Finished in a modern high gloss grey.
• Those are not doors, instead, they are soft closing drawers.
• Top drawer will store foodstuff, scaping tools, water treatment stuff, nets, misc tools, etc.
• Bottom drawer will hold canister, power points, CO2 kit, tubing, in line heaters, etc the bulky equipment. The advantage of the drawer is so I can pull the canister right out from inside the cabinet to work on it. No more broken backs while maintaining the filter. The cabinet will also allow me to find things stored right at the back, without removing half the contents to get to the things stored at the back.
• Each drawer will have a built in led light that turns on when the drawer is opened.
• The cabinet top is going to be either white or black, but much thicker than what I have drawn in the picture. At least 30-40mm thick.
• I've drawn filter inlet/outlet holes on the side, but since this drawing, I've decided to not ruin the looks and will route the filter piping via the back.
• The back will have an open slit that will allow cables and piping in and out of the cabinet.
• That back hole won't be entirely open, I'm hoping to find a suitable sized self adhesive brush seal. This will allow the cable and piping to slot through but keep dust out.

 

 

Edited July 28, 2015 by jayc

[jc12]

Very nice. What do you plan to build yours from? MDF? Plywood? Would you be building a frame for it? I have seen some builds using thick MDFs and it was sufficient to hold it all up structurally. I love soft close drawers. Just have to make sure you get appropriate weight/load rated rails for the weight of canister, contents, etc.

Great idea to run the inlet/outlet from the back. I agree the holes on the side kinda 'spoil' the look.

What type of LEDs would you be using? Strip ones? 5050? 3825?

Ahhh... now I see what you mean by cabinet. I guess mine is more like a rack. I won't post my photos then since it'll be no where close to what you are building. I don't want to 'pollute' your thread. Haha.

Edited July 28, 2015 by jc12

[jayc]

Very nice. What do you plan to build yours from? MDF? Plywood? Would you be building a frame for it? I have seen some builds using thick MDFs and it was sufficient to hold it all up structurally. I love soft close drawers. Just have to make sure you get appropriate weight/load rated rails for the weight of canister, contents, etc.

Great idea to run the inlet/outlet from the back. I agree the holes on the side kinda 'spoil' the look.

What type of LEDs would you be using? Strip ones? 5050? 3825?

Ahhh... now I see what you mean by cabinet. I guess mine is more like a rack. I won't post my photos then since it'll be no where close to what you are building. I don't want to 'pollute' your thread. Haha.

 

I'm going to build the base frame out of double MDF for all the vertical sections.

Double the thickness of standard MDF, and it should hold the weight.

 

LED lights are going to be 3528. They don't need to be super bright. And I have a spare roll I am planning on using. 

 

 

Edited July 28, 2015 by jayc

[Disciple]

My idea looks more like a LFS style cabinet with a swinging flap to cover the top of the tanks. Not sure if I can say mine looks modern but I can post some work-in-progress photos up if you do not mind as this is your thread.

My wife... ahem... I mean I have a few 'requirements' as this cabinet will be in the lounge room. It has to look aesthetically pleasing and does not throw out too much light that might 'interfere' with watching TV or be too blinding to look at. All hoses have to be concealed and after a lot of 'convincing', the chiller and canister filter can be placed next to the cabinet. Background would be either white or grey, would prefer black but planning to breed discus in it so lighter background would help the fry attach to the parents.

The cabinet I want has to house both tropical (for fish) and chilled tanks (for shrimps) so I am insulating between tanks with 20mm thick foams so dimensions are more than the typical tank dimensions.

Frame wise I use untreated MGP10 90x45mm structural pine and clad it with 9mm MDF. Planning to plump air and water all hidden within the thickness of the frame. A LP20 air pump would sit at the top of the cabinet at 2.2m high.

Currently doing an undercoat and still trying to figure out how to hold the 'flaps' close as I couldn't find the hinges I was after and the flaps are sitting a bit 'opened'. Thinking going velcro or finding a way to mount magnetic clasps but I haven't thought it through enough hence I was hoping to exchange notes.

If you're wondering, my build started in late June, so it has taken some time. Haha.

Hello JC,

I know a bit further down you mention not wanting to put picture in this thread but I would be very interested in seeing your design. Do you mind creating a journal or a post to show your design.

The reason being is "your" requirements for a rack are very similar to the list of requirements "I" have before I can build a rack. I just started thinking about a few ways to build a rack with the above requirements lol. I figure if I design it first with a good plan I will have a better chance for approval.

 

[jc12]

Hello JC,

I know a bit further down you mention not wanting to put picture in this thread but I would be very interested in seeing your design. Do you mind creating a journal or a post to show your design.

The reason being is "your" requirements for a rack are very similar to the list of requirements "I" have before I can build a rack. I just started thinking about a few ways to build a rack with the above requirements lol. I figure if I design it first with a good plan I will have a better chance for approval.

 

Sorry jayc for hogging your thread. Ok. I'll try post something up but it is still work in progress so it is rudimentary.

[jayc]

Dont need to apologise. I'm one of the biggest thread jackers on SKF myself.

[opqfrt]

Niiiice! Best of luck with the builds guys! :D and Jayc nice design! looking forward to seeing the read deal :D

[buck]

sounds like a neat little set up dude! i cant wait to stalk to pics