Reefs.org Forums

[Louey]

Setback no 1: the current stand- while shiny, is useless. The hot galvanizing process has warped the stand and made it useless. We get to start over with the stand now- (read: a week's delay)

Aint life great!

Why did the galvanizing process warp the steel?

What are you going to do different next time?

BTW, it sure looks like cops is SA make a ton of money.

Louey

[andy37]

Setback no 1: the current stand- while shiny, is useless. The hot galvanizing process has warped the stand and made it useless. We get to start over with the stand now- (read: a week's delay)

Aint life great!

Why did the galvanizing process warp the steel?

What are you going to do different next time?

BTW, it sure looks like cops is SA make a ton of money.

Louey

The frame gets dipped in a extremely hot bath and the heat warped it severely. This time around (the new steel has been delivered already) we are going to fill the lengths of steel with acid etch primer, stoppered at each end, make sure the interior is coated, and pour the surplus into the next length and repeat. When the stand has been welded, it gets 2 coats of the same stuff, and a coat of rustproof paint- same effect, no heat or warping.

I wasn't always a cop, I have mentioned it before here, I sold my stockbroking and asset management firm several years ago and am now able to do what I love. Cops here earn dirt- less than even US cops, but property and labour is still relatively cheap.

[Louey]

Setback no 1: the current stand- while shiny, is useless. The hot galvanizing process has warped the stand and made it useless. We get to start over with the stand now- (read: a week's delay)

Aint life great!

Why did the galvanizing process warp the steel?

What are you going to do different next time?

BTW, it sure looks like cops is SA make a ton of money.

Louey

The frame gets dipped in a extremely hot bath and the heat warped it severely. This time around (the new steel has been delivered already) we are going to fill the lengths of steel with acid etch primer, stoppered at each end, make sure the interior is coated, and pour the surplus into the next length and repeat. When the stand has been welded, it gets 2 coats of the same stuff, and a coat of rustproof paint- same effect, no heat or warping.

I wasn't always a cop, I have mentioned it before here, I sold my stockbroking and asset management firm several years ago and am now able to do what I love. Cops here earn dirt- less than even US cops, but property and labour is still relatively cheap.

Gotcha. I remember now.

Good luck with the redo.

Louey

[Wazzel]

Setback no 1: the current stand- while shiny, is useless. The hot galvanizing process has warped the stand and made it useless. We get to start over with the stand now- (read: a week's delay)

Aint life great!

That sucks. Can you get it powder coated? If not a marine epoxy coating should do the trick.

[andy37]

Setback no 1: the current stand- while shiny, is useless. The hot galvanizing process has warped the stand and made it useless. We get to start over with the stand now- (read: a week's delay)

Aint life great!

That sucks. Can you get it powder coated? If not a marine epoxy coating should do the trick.

This time around (the new steel has been delivered already) we are going to fill the lengths of steel with acid etch primer, stoppered at each end, make sure the interior is coated, and pour the surplus into the next length and repeat. When the stand has been welded, it gets 2 coats of the same stuff, and a coat of rustproof paint- same effect, no heat or warping.

Thanks Mark, but powder coating wont last a year here. The solution above is as close to permanent as we can come up with. (Galvanising is less robust than what we are proposing) The corrosive environment here is pretty frightening, TV's last 3 years........

[ANEMONEBUFF]

They sell outdoor TVs here in the states that are sealed. They would probably last there like a regular TV does here.

Be safe out there.

[Wazzel]

Setback no 1: the current stand- while shiny, is useless. The hot galvanizing process has warped the stand and made it useless. We get to start over with the stand now- (read: a week's delay)

Aint life great!

That sucks. Can you get it powder coated? If not a marine epoxy coating should do the trick.

This time around (the new steel has been delivered already) we are going to fill the lengths of steel with acid etch primer, stoppered at each end, make sure the interior is coated, and pour the surplus into the next length and repeat. When the stand has been welded, it gets 2 coats of the same stuff, and a coat of rustproof paint- same effect, no heat or warping.

Thanks Mark, but powder coating wont last a year here. The solution above is as close to permanent as we can come up with. (Galvanising is less robust than what we are proposing) The corrosive environment here is pretty frightening, TV's last 3 years........

Wound a concrete foundation be better considering the conditions? You could use a self leveling epoxy grout for the top.

[andy37]

Wound a concrete foundation be better considering the conditions? You could use a self leveling epoxy grout for the top.

We considered a concrete slab, but discarded it as if the house was ever sold, it would make that area unuseable as anything other than a tank room- the concrete involved would require sufficient reinforing to make it a helluva job to remove. Everything I have done so far is reversable in the event of the room needing to be 'normalised'....

[andy37]

The glass was delivered today, 2 boxes, the large one weighs in at 880 kg (near 2000lbs) and the bracing in the smaller one (lying next to the wall, a smaller less rectangular box) is only 148kg (just over 330 lbs). The new stand will be done by Monday, and tank construction will begin next week in earnest. the only possible delay is finding the right wall coating for the tank room- something resilient to the type of moisture and salt that the environment there will be subjected to.... but we have some ideas.....

Some glass crate pics.....

[Lawdawg]

The tank going to be open top Andy?

[andy37]

The tank going to be open top Andy?

Yup, with an aluminium lighting hood suspended over it.


(I need to be able to climb into it to work on it.... )

[Lawdawg]

that's gonna evaporate like crazy!

[andy37]

yup.... Hence the 50 GA topoff reservoir....

Actually, its not so bad, I know someone with a 20 ft tank that is open top, and he has a lot less evaporation issues than I would have thought.

[Wazzel]

Cool, when I start my tank it will not be near as interesting.

As far as evaporation, what is the humidity like down there? It is is quite humid you will not have as much evap compaired to a dry climate.

[andy37]

Cool, when I start my tank it will not be near as interesting.

As far as evaporation, what is the humidity like down there? It is is quite humid you will not have as much evap compaired to a dry climate.

Humidity is usually off the charts, its very very humid here.

[Wazzel]

It is quite humid here also. My 150 did not evaporate much even with 5 fans. Two were blowing into the hood and the other three were blowing on to the surface of the sump.

If temp and wind are held constent the evaporation rate is an inverse relationship with humidity.

[andy37]

More progress... the sump and trickle box arrived today. Some pics below. Also, the glass arrived a day or so ago, those pics to follow in a minute. The tankroom has power and is being epoxy coated tommorrow morning in anticipation of the glass being assembled on Monday and Tuesday, with water, sand and LR expected within the week.

[andy37]

The glass arrived in 2 boxes, the large one containing the 5 panes of glass for the tank, and a smaller one containing the bracing. (The large one weighed 880Kg or around 2000 pounds!!)

Some photos of the box and then some of the glass. the 2 panes that are viewing panes are starfire glass and the difference is clearly visible. All glass is laminated 24.38mm glass. Also visible in one of the photos is the cutout for the overflow.

[andy37]

The starfire is amazing! Looking from the top, ie through 1.15meters of glass, I can see the contents of the bottom of that crate clearly!

[The Escaped Ape]

Be careful. You don't want to be dropping any of those pieces. I'm guessing replacing them wouldn't be straightforward.