2Quills, 120G Re-build thread. - Page 10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gill again68 

Here is a picture of what I plan to use. They have a square one as well. I did find plastic louvers that go over air conditioner vents but they were brown. FYI they do have wooden vents. 

 Cool...yeah I'd looked into those wood grills a while back, they have some that have some nifty designs on them.  If you wanted to go with the louvered style then a little krylon fusion spray paint could easily solve the color issue since it's formulated to bond with plastics.

Not a ton to report on this weekend. I called around to a few places saturday and found this plastics shop that had some black 1/4" ABS on hand.  Met this crazy old guy that owns the shop...he actually used to build tanks for quite a few years but said that he got out because of the liability involved.  I was origionally looking for acrylic but he actually suggested that the ABS should work fine since he didn't have any 1/4" black cell cast or extrude, and that he's made many overflows in the past and used it...so, I figured I'd give it a shot. 

I only managed to get one made so far.  I think I've got the process down a little bit though and the next one should go a little bit faster. 

Made a couple of supports for some egg crate as well as a cover to help keep out large livestock as well as excess light in the overflow to help cut down on algae build up inside of the overflow.  If I don't like them I can always take them off.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Posiden 

That looks really good. Have you tested the strength of the ABS? I haven't ever glued any sheet stock together before, so I'm interested. With a lid on there, do you think the egg crate is needed?

 

I wouldn't worry about using ABS. I looked into it when I was torn by the many folks that say not to use ABS in a reef tank. Even one of the LFS. ABS is used in high purity water systems, not to mention the various parts in this very industry that use ABS. Floats, pump cases, over flows.........

Thanks!

Exactly, there's lots of abs material in our tanks already just like you mentioned.  I know that I've been seeing alot of new reef read aquariums around in the LFS's that have the curved abs overflows.  And many of our power heads, pump cases...etc, are build with the stuff.

I did one test piece yesterday where I glued a joint together...when I checked on it this morning I couldn't pull the pieces apart.  I'm sure that I could break it if I really wanted to but IMO it's more than strong enough for the purpose that I intend on using it for.

If I use the lid than nah I really don't see any need for the crate.  I just kind of wanted them to be a little bit flexible.  I've tossed around the idea of making some holes or slots on the cover to help ventilate any nitrogen gas that builds up in there.  Or I could just run the crate...but, honestly there are so many different way's to cover an overflow it's crazy.  I could put some filter media in there I suppose if I wanted to but I doubt that I ever will.  

Quote:

Originally Posted by Posiden 

 

That's pretty cool. What are you using for glue? It looks like reg ABS cement.

Yeah I just used the all purpose cement for pvc, cpvc and abs.  The box seems pretty solid.  I also went around around the joints on the inside with some industrial strength cement that's also good for plastics.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by acrylic51 

Really nice router work Corey!!!! Is that a lid I saw on the overflow box in 1 of the pics?

Yes, Shawn...I made a lid for it.  I don't know if I'm going to use the lid or not, but I have it incase I want to.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Al&Burke 

Another question Corey, I notice you have a back on your overflow, so when you install it you put a gasket on the inside of the overflow and then another between the overflow and the tank wall.

Actually, what I was thinking was probably run a bead of silicone around the hole on the back of the box when I get ready to install it for good.  It should seal it just fine and then if for some reason I decide to removed it, I should be able to just give it a little twist and pull to take it off.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Al&Burke 

Hey Corey, where do you get the loc line stuff for your returns?

I like to order from loc-lines site itself.  Only downfall is sometimes you have to order a minimum of two or four nozzles depending on the nozzles.  But still comes out cheaper or break even when ordering the stuff from other sites.  More of a selection as well...http://www.modularhose.com/              I    

HaHa...that would be pretty sick.  The neighbors would be like, what are they building in the back yard...is that a swimming pool?  Ummm no, Marge!  Frieda said JoAnn said that those guys are making an orca tank!...You know...like moby dick?

I wasn't to sure about the lid, myself.  I really didn't want to cut off any oxygen/gas exchange by having them on there, though not really sure how much of a difference it would make if I did.  I really hadn't thought about them warping over time though either.  I'll probably start by running the system without them and see how it goes from there.  Modifications coule always be made at a later date if need be.

It does ok, Shawn!  Nothing like a high end table with fancy jigs and all that but it gets the job done.  I forget what it cost, the wife got it for me a couple years ago.  The router came with 2 bases, once is a plunge base and the other is fixed.  It attaches to the table with the fixed base.  But for the last couple of years it's served me pretty well.

I did find out that Weld-On 773 I believe it is, is ABS specific.  The all purpose stuff seemed to work fine...perhaps next time I'll order some weld-on and try it out.