Help me out here

[Anonymous]

Sure, you got it. :lol:

You could start a trend here with the sump bucks.... I like it.

so... 80 or lower and you win, 90 or higher I win, 81 - 89 we just go have a brew.

Of course Knucklehead is gonna have to agree to keep it on for at least an hour and let us know the results.

 

[Anonymous]

Agreed

I don't think it will get anywhere past 82 degrees. My house is 72 and very drafty, and its not going to have one of those little computer fans, its going to have one of those fans that have a squeeze clamp on it that put out a bunch O air

This is going to be so freakin fun

Tomorrow I am going to scour my shop for some killer reflector material, I think I have some up in the 3rd floor loft

 

[Anonymous]

More than an hour. Leave it on for a day just to be sure

You'll have to send me a brew through the mail Guy, I don't get out to NY often I like Guiness.

 

[Anonymous]

Tonight as soon as my kids settle down for bed I am heading for the basement to dig out the cabinent. I will post a pic of that when I get it

the fun is starting...

 

[Anonymous]

Well it took some doing, but I moved enough stuff to get to this little cabinet.

It was originally someone's sewing cabinet. Its going to go Far Far beyond that now!!!!

All the drawers work, I will be breaking them apart so that all I am left with is the drawer face. Then I will put a piece of plywood on the inside to fasten them too so it looks the same but leaves the entire inside open.

The top has hinges so you can open up to get to the two yarn holding sections at each end. The top will be remade out of one piece of plywood, no hinges. I will also cut a hole in the top so that the tank sits over it to allow the light to enter.

In order to cool it properly I need to have vent holes, in order to accomplish this I am going to raise the top up about an inch. That will allow air to leave all the way around the cabinet. IN order to hide the actual light I am going to have some cleats on under the top that hang down maybe an inch and a half. Enough to hide the light, but it will still let air leave. I am undecided about where to put a pane of glass. I would like it fastened to those cleats so that heat can not rise up against the bottom of the actual tank, but that may cause more troubles.

That part of it is a work in progress

I think I can also fit a sump in there that would hold enough water to run this thing. I may have to make that myself out of plywood and fiberglass cloth.

For circulation I am thinking I will drill the tank and put small bulkheads either on each end or one on each side of the back, undecided on that.

So, any thoughts on that? Do you think the tank looks too small for that cabinet?

 

[Anonymous]

Its going to take some doing to modify the inside of this thang to get it to work

I think I'm up to the challenge

I just thought of something


What if I raise the actual tank about an inch off of the top, and then put a ring around it to hide the light that would otherwise escape?

Naaaa, that would just make all the heat from the light escape by running out right next to the tank--therefore heating it up even more....

 

[Anonymous]

Is the bottom open? How about just cutting some large holes and let it vent out down there?

That thing looks like it's seen better days. Does it wobble? I thought you were a master carpenter mayn, can't you just build something?

Just another thought...if you have a sump in the cabinet it will soak up a lot of heat too. I'd either do a remote sump or not have one at all. Plumb a closed loop through the bottom, it will look sweet!!! Then you can view the tank from all 4 sides.

 

[Anonymous]

Hey, isn't that a 10 gallon tank? I thought you were using a 2 gallon?

 

[Anonymous]

Hey knucklehead. Why don't you send an e-mail to Len and get in on the Buildoff?

 

[Anonymous]

It can't be a 10 gallon tank, my foot barely fits in it....

the cabinet is a bit wobbly and has seen better days, but I think I can save it...

JDM, thanks for the invitation, but I think that as this is just an experiment, and more likely to start a fire or boil enough water to make tea for all of England rather than make a real reef, I will stay out of the contest for this year

next year though, I am in. I already have that one planned out

 

[Anonymous]

JDM, thanks for the invitation, but I think that as this is just an experiment, and more likely to start a fire or boil enough water to make tea for all of England rather than make a real reef, I will stay out of the contest for this year

:lol: :lol: :lol:

I still think you should throw it in the contest. The more the merrier. I don't plan on winning it either

 

[Anonymous]

Just another thought...if you have a sump in the cabinet it will soak up a lot of heat too. I'd either do a remote sump or not have one at all. Plumb a closed loop through the bottom, it will look sweet!!! Then you can view the tank from all 4 sides.

The problem with plumbing it through the bottom is that it will definetly place a shadow in the tank, and I want it all filled with the light of God!

The back of the cabinet does not look too good so I am probably going to put the bulkheads in the back with 90 degree elbows pointing down and hard plumb it with PVC right through two holes into the cabinet.

I think I figured out the cooling too. The cabinet is divided into 3 parts, on the far right I am going to cut a hole in the bottom of that area and place a big fan in there blowing up. Then I will cut a hole in the divider between the fan section and the center light section.

That will force the air to go up into the cabinet from the bottom of one side and over and down past the light bulb and out the bottom.

that should be ready to go by this weekend -- if I can find a decent reflector material

 

[Anonymous]

OH, and is it all right to place the lightbulb perpendicular to the tank? With a proper reflector I still think all the light will be directed upwards, and it will take a lot less room....

 

[Anonymous]

Well, I have a reflector, or I will as soon as I go buy one

You know the standard clamp on light that you use in a workshop? Has a big aluminum reflector in sort of a cone shape?

That's the ticket. I am going to buy one tomorrow and proceed to hack it up to fit the cabinet!

Woot!

 

[der1311]

any update?

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry, I guess I should of put a link at the bottom of the thread to the next thread dealing with the same subject


http://www.reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.p ... highlight=


There ya go