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Unread 11/25/2004, 10:19 PM   #3
Zephrant
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Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Spokane, WA
Posts: 3,234


Locate where you want them, and find the studs in the wall. Mark them, and get out the 4' level.



Make sure you have room for all of them, and that you space them far enough apart so you have room for lights and plumbing. Here I have the lower one set just far enough above my skimmer (SK5200) so there is plenty of room to clean it.
Install the first bracket, then the other end bracket, using the level. Carefully install the middle bracket, so it is just snug up against the center of the level. You can use shims later if needed, but it is better to get it right here.




Here is what they look like on the wall- Sleek, and the fasteners are invisible.




Here are both tanks sitting on their shelves. No plumbing or lights yet.



Next up was the overflows overflows. I wanted to have lots of room for water to flow between units, as I will run a pump from the bottom on to the top one to recirculate water. I will also pull water from the main system and drop it in to the top, and have an overflow to the sump on the bottom unit.
Here I'm cutting slots in to a piece of 1" pipe to make the return to the sump. I cut teeth in to it all the way around, to approximate an overflow box. I did the same thing on the 1.5" pipe at the other end. I did not know how much water flow I would have, so wanted to make something that was easily changeable when the water was in the system. This way if I decided on a higher water flow, I can make a box, or larger tube overflow as needed.



And here is a finished shot, two weeks later. I've moved all of my Ricordia in to it, as well as some frags. I added a mass of algae to the right bottom end, to help stop the bubbles coming from the right side flow. I'll be working on some kind of a bubble trap for that later.

I did lose a few Ricordia- Too much light for them. I've added some shade cloth (screen material) to knock the light down some, and will work on acclimating them. The SPS frags are doing great however.


Things to change next time:
I'll use black material for the back, and maybe the bottom to help with picture taking.
I might go wider and taller- 8" maybe. 6" is fine, but does not leave much room for a cleaning magnet.

Zeph

(removed bad link)



Last edited by Zephrant; 11/26/2004 at 11:28 PM.
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