Octoman February 13, 2015 Share February 13, 2015 Been working on the plans for a while and now things are starting to move along so here begins the chronicle! I love the look of the Fluval edge, a little solid cube of water sitting out there with windows all over. I also happen to need a place to put my liquor bottles, so why not throw the two together? I like the standard fluval edge stand, but feel like the rear window is wasted. I knocked around a few designs and settled in on one that lets me have all four sides open (with one facing in to the liquor). The plan is to use a sump in the bottom of the cabinet with a skimmer and refugium. I'm anxiously waiting for the AI Prime to be released as this will be a perfect fit on top. I was hoping to get started on the cabinet this week, but unfortunately left an integral part of my saw at the old house - it will have to wait until next week. Here is the rough design, the front door will swing down... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 13, 2015 Author Share February 13, 2015 I installed the overflows and tested them out today. I only plan on running about half the flow I used during the test, so they should be plenty for the job... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuffyGeos February 13, 2015 Share February 13, 2015 Looks like a cool project! I am following along to see how this turns out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 19, 2015 Author Share February 19, 2015 Got some work done today on the cabinet. As it came together, the shape kind of morphed into something a bit different from the plan. Still have to finish building a door for the bottom and not sure what I'm going to do on either side of the tank yet. I was originally planning to put doors with windows or something there, but I kind of like the open look too. Just need something to keep the cat from knocking bottles out of there. I've got a dark stain and poly ready to go, a little cold for that today. Threw the fuge light up there to have a little something, and of course a few bottles... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 19, 2015 Author Share February 19, 2015 (edited) Still have to put baffles in the 15g sump. I was originally going to put drawers in the stand, but I don't really need them for anything. Plenty of space down there for sump, ATO, and whatever else. I was going to hide the PVC behind a wall, but I'm just going to paint it flat black, should blend pretty well with the dark stain. Edited February 19, 2015 by Octoman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkiboy February 19, 2015 Share February 19, 2015 neat - following along. was original design in sketchup or rhino? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 19, 2015 Author Share February 19, 2015 I used 123D Design It's feature limited freeware for mac, worked fine for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WilRams February 20, 2015 Share February 20, 2015 Whoa very cool. I really like unique builds like this. Good job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime February 20, 2015 Share February 20, 2015 This is going to be interesting. maintenance seems like it will be no fun though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 20, 2015 Author Share February 20, 2015 I do love a good challenge! I can't have a big tank right now, so I might as well have a complicated small one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuffyGeos February 20, 2015 Share February 20, 2015 I love the cantilever........personally it is a very nice choice. Your cabinet work looks awesome! A couple questions- Looks like a glass tank since the edge of the tank look greenish. I believe the strength of the glass tanks is when they are supported on the edge not on the middle of a pane of glass. Any worried about cracking it with the weight? What is the tank volume and the thickness of glass so some of the engineers on here can give you the OK. IMO Artistically you get a 100%!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k February 20, 2015 Share February 20, 2015 nice build. once complete, you'll need a better liquor to celebrate...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 20, 2015 Author Share February 20, 2015 (edited) I love the cantilever........personally it is a very nice choice. Your cabinet work looks awesome! A couple questions- Looks like a glass tank since the edge of the tank look greenish. I believe the strength of the glass tanks is when they are supported on the edge not on the middle of a pane of glass. Any worried about cracking it with the weight? What is the tank volume and the thickness of glass so some of the engineers on here can give you the OK. IMO Artistically you get a 100%!!!!! Thanks for the compliments! The fluval edge tank stock stand does not come all the way to the edge of the tank. It stops about 2.5 in short in the front and on the sides. I'm not going past that and will be supporting it more than the stock stand since I only have two sides hanging off rather than three. That's one of the things I love about this little tank! Edited February 20, 2015 by Octoman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 20, 2015 Author Share February 20, 2015 nice build. once complete, you'll need a better liquor to celebrate...... I had to throw the fireball in there for the photo op, lol. I've got some Amantes Mezcal and some agave worm salt for celebration time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuffyGeos February 20, 2015 Share February 20, 2015 That stock stand is scary!!!! I have never seen one, it looks like it wants to tip over, or one bump and you are done! Based on those facts, your stand looks tons better, structurally and aesthetically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 20, 2015 Author Share February 20, 2015 That stock stand is scary!!!! I have never seen one, it looks like it wants to tip over, or one bump and you are done! Based on those facts, your stand looks tons better, structurally and aesthetically. It does look a bit wobbly, don't think it's suitable for earthquake zones with that stand... I just started down the rabbit hole with your tank thread, 3 posts in and I'm hooked! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuffyGeos February 20, 2015 Share February 20, 2015 It does look a bit wobbly, don't think it's suitable for earthquake zones with that stand... I just started down the rabbit hole with your tank thread, 3 posts in and I'm hooked! Yea, there is a little bit of everything there. I look at it as a diary of tank adventure. I go back and look thing up all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PK3 February 21, 2015 Share February 21, 2015 Nice meeting you and talking to you today. This looks like a really interesting and unique build. Following along to see the progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 21, 2015 Author Share February 21, 2015 Hi Peter, it was great meeting you today too! Just checked out your tank thread and you did some great work on that setup!! That stand is beautiful and the tank looks great too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime February 21, 2015 Share February 21, 2015 That stock stand is scary!!!! I have never seen one, it looks like it wants to tip over, or one bump and you are done! Based on those facts, your stand looks tons better, structurally and aesthetically. Didn't get the name "edge" bc it sounded cool Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcreefer February 21, 2015 Share February 21, 2015 What a cool Build! Nice design, I am going to check out the software that you used to build your drawing. Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k February 21, 2015 Share February 21, 2015 Are both of the bulkheads on top used for drain? Why not make one a drain and one a return? Easy enough to do at this stage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 21, 2015 Author Share February 21, 2015 They are both drains. I was concerned about having enough drain area since the 3/4 in bulkheads protrude up above the lip of the tank. Only the lip is acrylic so I won't cut them down any further into the glass. However, I am playing around with a larger bulkhead and if I can switch one out and get as much or more drainage than both, I will use the other one for the return. The final option is to cut the back part of the lip out all together and build an external overflow box onto the back, but I'd rather not do that if I can make the bulkheads work to my satisfaction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octoman February 26, 2015 Author Share February 26, 2015 I had a notion to try turning the tank diagonal to the stand and loved the way it looked. I was a bit more nervous about the cantilever with corners hanging off, seemed like the stresses may be different than it was designed to tolerate. So, I opted to support the entire bottom and it looks much more stable now. I still need to finish the top, but will wait until I get my lighting figured out. I've got water and rock in now, just tossed it in for now to get it out of the bucket. I'll put it together properly when my acrylic rods come in the mail and the sand will go in afterwards. I'm also waiting on black acrylic sheeting for baffles in the sump, so for now my sump is a 5g bucket. So far so good, no leaks! I also decided to move it out of the corner and add a door that folds down to make a shelf... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuffyGeos February 26, 2015 Share February 26, 2015 Very cool That door might help a lot when it comes to maintaining the tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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