Jessica's 110g Malawi Build

[Jess1ca]

Originally Posted by Crawdaddy

On my 55 I just had to get rid of the canopies, the glass tops just look so much cleaner, and with a decent LED light fixture, it really changed the whole look of the tank.

They do look nice! I enjoy the look of em on my peacock tank, I'm just unsure of how they will work with the kind of light I want. Did u see the pic of the one I was looking at?

[Crawdaddy]

Originally Posted by AndrewsPistol

They do look nice! I enjoy the look of em on my peacock tank, I'm just unsure of how they will work with the kind of light I want. Did u see the pic of the one I was looking at?

If the light is long enough, it should rest on the sides of the tank. I placed my LEDs just past the hinge, and have no problem with them.

[Jess1ca]

Originally Posted by Crawdaddy

If the light is long enough, it should rest on the sides of the tank. I placed my LEDs just past the hinge, and have no problem with them.

K, I guess I'm more worried that they are gonna have a lamp effect where as my strip lights are concentrated on the tank... I say this because looking at pictures they sit above the tank. Do the led's "beams" shine down thru the tank or do they light up the room like a lamp? Cuz that's not what I'm looking for.

[Andrew McFadden]

Ok as promised here ya go


This is what I mean by having three nailed together. The top and bottom that they are nailed to is a 2x4



This is the drawing the lines indicate a 2 x 4. Hope this helps some. Wasn't sure how tall you wanted the stand and how wide a 125gallon is so I left them blank. The measurement on the front and back supports are different to keep them away from the doors.





I nailed plywood on top and all the way around it. But I wasn't going for looks because mine is in the wall. So when drywall went up they screwed to it. You may want to figure out how you can re use the finished wood and doors to cut back on some work. So you may need to mage some measurements around for the doors cause I didn't know how wide and tall they are. Best of luck to ya

Edit I forgot I didn't write down the 13 on the other end of the front. I was just going to tell you both ends are the same

[Crawdaddy]

Originally Posted by AndrewsPistol

K, I guess I'm more worried that they are gonna have a lamp effect where as my strip lights are concentrated on the tank... I say this because looking at pictures they sit above the tank. Do the led's "beams" shine down thru the tank or do they light up the room like a lamp? Cuz that's not what I'm looking for.

They are focused on the tank. At night when I go to bed, they haven't turned off yet (I use a timer), you can see a glow from them, but they are focused on the tank. I have the Marineland 36-48, light strip with the blue night lights in them.

[Crawdaddy]

Originally Posted by Crawdaddy

They are focused on the tank. At night when I go to bed, they haven't turned off yet (I use a timer), you can see a glow from them, but they are focused on the tank. I have the Marineland 36-48, light strip with the blue night lights in them.

I'll take a picture tonight after it gets dark so you can see it.

[Jess1ca]

Originally Posted by Andrew McFadden

Ok as promised here ya go

This is what I mean by having three nailed together. The top and bottom that they are nailed to is a 2x4

This is the drawing the lines indicate a 2 x 4. Hope this helps some. Wasn't sure how tall you wanted the stand and how wide a 125gallon is so I left them blank. The measurement on the front and back supports are different to keep them away from the doors.

I nailed plywood on top and all the way around it. But I wasn't going for looks because mine is in the wall. So when drywall went up they screwed to it. You may want to figure out how you can re use the finished wood and doors to cut back on some work. So you may need to mage some measurements around for the doors cause I didn't know how wide and tall they are. Best of luck to ya

Edit I forgot I didn't write down the 13 on the other end of the front. I was just going to tell you both ends are the same

Awesome! Thanks a ton! Would like to use as much of the stand as I can, loving the idea of the cabinets, right now I have my 55 on an old school record player with a plastic drawer deal keeping all my tools and supplies, it's so tacky haha! My biggest pet peace with the stand as it sits is its verrrrry short! You have to bend over to look inside. I'm diggin the idea of building this stand and KNOWING it will bear the weight! If I can't get these scratches out I'm contemplating a DIY cave background and have it wrap the sides of it too. I'm pretty heart broke about the amount of scratches.

[Jess1ca]

Originally Posted by Crawdaddy

I'll take a picture tonight after it gets dark so you can see it.

Perfect! Can't wait to see it! It's the deciding factor if I'm gonna buy that set up or try to make my own. If I can build this stand nicely I might try to make a canopy so that I can go topless (why do I feel dirty every time I say that, lol) I just can't do it without a canopy because my kids will certainly play in it. I caught my youngest rearranging Cichlid stones in the 55 the other day, lil stinker, so now I have to come up with a way to lock the hood lids down!

[Convict2161]

Try this! It's guaranteed to work and keep anyone away from your tanks.







But seriously you can find latch locks at any hardware store or homedepot. You do have those where you are right?

[Crawdaddy]

Originally Posted by AndrewsPistol

Perfect! Can't wait to see it! It's the deciding factor if I'm gonna buy that set up or try to make my own. If I can build this stand nicely I might try to make a canopy so that I can go topless (why do I feel dirty every time I say that, lol) I just can't do it without a canopy because my kids will certainly play in it. I caught my youngest rearranging Cichlid stones in the 55 the other day, lil stinker, so now I have to come up with a way to lock the hood lids down!

Here you go. It's not really dark yet, but the sun has set

[Andrew McFadden]

Originally Posted by AndrewsPistol

Awesome! Thanks a ton! Would like to use as much of the stand as I can, loving the idea of the cabinets, right now I have my 55 on an old school record player with a plastic drawer deal keeping all my tools and supplies, it's so tacky haha! My biggest pet peace with the stand as it sits is its verrrrry short! You have to bend over to look inside. I'm diggin the idea of building this stand and KNOWING it will bear the weight! If I can't get these scratches out I'm contemplating a DIY cave background and have it wrap the sides of it too. I'm pretty heart broke about the amount of scratches.

I think all the store bought ones are short. When I built mine I made it so I can stand straight up and my eyes see threw the middle of the tank. Then I had to go buy a 3 step ladder to get to the top to clean hahaha. Then I had to make long handles and duck tape them to my siphon to reach the top of the substrate.

[Crawdaddy]

Originally Posted by AndrewsPistol

Perfect! Can't wait to see it! It's the deciding factor if I'm gonna buy that set up or try to make my own. If I can build this stand nicely I might try to make a canopy so that I can go topless (why do I feel dirty every time I say that, lol) I just can't do it without a canopy because my kids will certainly play in it. I caught my youngest rearranging Cichlid stones in the 55 the other day, lil stinker, so now I have to come up with a way to lock the hood lids down!

Forgot to attach

[Jess1ca]

Originally Posted by Convict2161

Try this! It's guaranteed to work and keep anyone away from your tanks.

But seriously you can find latch locks at any hardware store or homedepot. You do have those where you are right?

Bahahaaa!!! Nice I got a Menards about 25 min away and a Lowes 45 min away

[Jess1ca]

Originally Posted by Andrew McFadden

I think all the store bought ones are short. When I built mine I made it so I can stand straight up and my eyes see threw the middle of the tank. Then I had to go buy a 3 step ladder to get to the top to clean hahaha. Then I had to make long handles and duck tape them to my siphon to reach the top of the substrate.

Lol I wish u could see my wc setup! A cut up garden hose and duct tape! Lmbo!

[Jess1ca]

Originally Posted by Crawdaddy

Forgot to attach

Very cool! Thanks a ton! I will def be buying that light then! Happy that the light flows thru the tank! That was my bigger concern!

[Jess1ca]

BIG things are happening! Can't wait to post an update!

[Convict2161]

Waiting.....

[Esemerson]

I just went thru something similar. I bought a used 180 and stand of Craigslist with the intention of stocking it with mbuna. Here is a list of what I felt lie I had to do.

-sand and strip stand
-added additional bracing to the stand. A 2x4 cut 3 times did the trick.
-stain and seal stand
-I stripped out all of the silicone and put new silicone in. Let the tank sit for 4 days in my garage full of water.
-there were so many hard water stains I had to scrub the whole thing with vinegar

There was no top so I went to lowes and had some acrylic cut to the size I needed. This was much cheaper than the standard glass tops.

Just got the fx5 now I am waiting on my lots to show up.

Good luck with your project. I would reseal that tank!

[tiger terror]

Originally Posted by Esemerson

I just went thru something similar. I bought a used 180 and stand of Craigslist with the intention of stocking it with mbuna. Here is a list of what I felt lie I had to do.

-sand and strip stand
-added additional bracing to the stand. A 2x4 cut 3 times did the trick.
-stain and seal stand
-I stripped out all of the silicone and put new silicone in. Let the tank sit for 4 days in my garage full of water.
-there were so many hard water stains I had to scrub the whole thing with vinegar

There was no top so I went to lowes and had some acrylic cut to the size I needed. This was much cheaper than the standard glass tops.

Just got the fx5 now I am waiting on my lots to show up.

Good luck with your project. I would reseal that tank!

Awesome setup! What will you be lighting it with?

[Esemerson]

Originally Posted by tiger terror

Awesome setup! What will you be lighting it with?

Thanks! I will be adding two 36" marineland double bright led strips. Plenty of white light and some blue. I got a good deal @100$ each during a labor day sale. Problem is they won't be here until Monday or Tuesday along with my heater and wave makers. I will post pic when it is up and 100%.

This makes for a long weekend. Thank god football is back.