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and today arrived my "gently used" Icecap 250 ballast...... got a decent deal from a fellow member here in our member's only section!

Here's the first stain coat (before rubbing with cheesecloth) After rubbing (definitely needs another application or two): By the way, notice the sloppy wood filler? I got lazy sanding, I'm hoping the black stain would cover it- we'll see after I'm done!

after sanding thoroughly yesterday, I got a bit impatient (weather was warm) and I decided to pre-treat the wood so that the stain would distribute more evenly. (By the way, make sure if you're using OIL based stain to use OIL based pre-stain as well- I ended up going back to the local hardware...

Hole patching- use a little bit at a time, sanding in between and then filling again after dried- Prior to the first set of sanding Here's the stand outside again ready for a thorough sanding with 80 grit sandpaper, then 100 The stand after the 1st hit with sandpaper-

It was still tacky as of this morning....I hope the afternoon sun and slightly warmer weather today dried it up a bit more. I'll be home at 4pm to check it out and add more stain- I guess I could bring the stand down to the basement next to the boiler, the roomies are gonna kill me, lol...

I stained the stand today but didn't get it as dark as I wanted. I will have to try and hit it again probably tomorrow but with the cold weather outside, it's preventing the oil from going in the grain of wood effectively. I may have to resort to painting the stand much to my dismay, I really...

Hey jose, I have a place that I'm renting out in Galloway (I have my reef tank tank there), but I'm staying right now in Philly for work. Nice to see more reefers in our area. There are a few guys around us (2 in galloway, 1 in mays landing and 2 in northfield) that I know but unfortunately they...

hey Taz, are the pics coming out too blue? white balancing will help. If it's blurry, try the tripod and slow shutter speed (or long exposures)

+1 I shoot with a 60mm macro lens for EXTREME closeup shots, but for general tank shots, the 18-200mm is what I use. Key thing is the White Balance. You'll need to set your white balance otherwise, your pictures will have a tendency of being bluer than normal especially if your tank's lighting...

To sand or not to sand..... hmmmmm I came across some videos we took 2 years ago in Grand Cayman for vacation; I had a small Olympus point and shoot that was waterproof up to 10 feet or so and I was checking out the reef outcrops and "mini atolls" in the shallow reef. I think I may try and...

I just got off the phone with Will at AqOb and he's placed an order for the tank for me. I am hoping for a back glass overflow rather than a corner, so he shot an email to his rep if it's possible. So, I'm kinda glad that I was able to speak with him in person and know that he checks the forums...

excess kalk dosages due to top off malfunction (ph) Major invert spawning events (clams, urchins etc)

Make lots and lots of saltwater before hand, it actually wouldn't hurt if you condition your new saltwater with some of the old tank water (about 10-20%). Add a powerhead and heater as needed to stabilize temps. Remove all your corals/fish and some rock carefully from the old tank and setup in...

Just bought a solenoid valve on ebay....$35 shipped to my door! More on that later.... I'm lookin to join this group buy...

And finally, a shot with the top placed just on top of the stand. It will be attached later after I get the tank. It's probably gonna be two to three weeks before I order the tank, I still have to worry about a sump, an RO system, and a return pump... Can anyone direct me to the money tree? My...

and now, cutting the door opening :D then I did some minor sanding to get rid of the jagged splinters and placed it in the proposed resting place.... UGH, good thing these couches are leaving soon, my girl's old room mate is finally taking them out! Sucks we now have to buy a new couch but...

More bracing... All done Looking from the front and drawing the cutout for the door:

Test fitting the bottom piece (base) to the 3 sides of the stand I installed the bottom piece next, but this is how I managed to "fit" the base without getting glue all over the board. I nailed a nail (uh..redundant?) on one corner, used a piece of wood to chock up one end, slathered some...

thanks Phil- I hope the DIY'ers get some build inspiration from this... I miss seeing fish and coral and hearing the gurgling noises a tank makes, lol. It's soothing IMO

This is how much I had to trim off to make the two 30 x 24's even. It ended up being 30 x 23.5. No biggie... I cut one of the thinner ply down to size from 24 inches x 48 inches to 24 x 30 and used that as the "front" Using a good amount of glue, I glued that piece to the newly trimmed...