My Fly Guy Acrylic Rock Lifts Adventure

[aquawolf]

This all started a couple of weeks ago when I finally decided that I needed to stop procrastinating and do something about replacing my sand bed. I placed the order for a half sheet of 1/2" acrylic and 6 feet of 3/4" rod. I thought this would be plenty. I had bothered Fly Guy quite a bit via PM's earlier in the year and thought I had a good handle on everything.

I actually had enough acrylic on the half sheet to make a set for my wife's 29 gallon seahorse tank and my 75. I decided to make hers first, which turned out to be a great idea as 6 feet of rod was nowhere near enough. You can see the results of hers in this thread: http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/f6...ed-116520.html

I had to order 2 more 6 foot long rods and wait for them to come in to finish my set of lifts. They came in this past week and I was able to cut and grind them yesterday, May 10.

Here is a picture of the tank before the project began:


More to follow.....

[aquawolf]

I used the dining room table as the display for my newest piece of art work:


Here you can see the teeth that Fly Guy said were extremely important to have for holding the rock in place:


Here is a shot showing the various lengths that I cut the rods to:


With all of that done it was time to start the real work of tearing down the 75 gallon reef tank.

More to follow.....

[aquawolf]

Of course, the first step was to remove the water and live rock. I did my best trying not to disturb the old sandbed during this process.

I placed the rock, corals, and fish into 2 30 gallon Rubbermaid tubs using Maxijet 1200's for circulation:


Once everything was out I got busy shoveling the sand and finally the tank was empty:


Then it was time to place the lift system into the tank:



More to follow.....

[aquawolf]

Here is another shot of the lifts at a different angle:


Then it was time to cover my beautiful new creation with sand:


Then it was time to add a little water, stack some rock, add some water, stack some rock, and the story goes on.

More to follow.....

[chrischris]

that looks great i will be doing the saem thing in a while ps i really like that table lol

[aquawolf]

The whole process took about 6 hours today, but I finally got everything and everyone settled back into the tank.

Here is when it was still pretty cloudy:


Then it was time to put the canopy and lights back on:


And here is my female GSM checking out her new digs:


It is really pretty cool to watch the fish swim completely under the rocks now. You can see a little bit of the rock lift frame in some areas, but that doesn't bother me at all.

I am just glad that I was actually able to do this and have it turn out halfway like what it was supposed to. That is saying a lot for me.

I hope you all enjoyed seeing my little adventure unfold and like how it turned out as well.

I definitely want to say thank you to Fly Guy once again as this was built from his ideas and he was very helpful in explaining what was required to make them.

[Fat Tony]

ok... that's wayyyy too much work for a couple of weeks... you need to slow down! Otherwise you are going to overexert yourself and not be rested for the BBQ!

[aquawolf]

Originally Posted by chrischris

that looks great i will be doing the saem thing in a while ps i really like that table lol

Thanks Chris!

That table was actually bought by my wife's mom at a yard sale over 30 years ago for $20.

[chrischris]

thats an old table but the tank looks great with the rock back in is the kracken ok because usually when i move my anemone aroung it gets all weird and doesnt open for a while

[aquawolf]

Originally Posted by Fat Tony

ok... that's wayyyy too much work for a couple of weeks... you need to slow down! Otherwise you are going to overexert yourself and not be rested for the BBQ!

Don't worry, I should be able to get plenty of rest when I go back to work tomorrow.

I really wanted to get it done as quickly as possible for 2 reasons. One being the BBQ and the "gifts" I am hoping to get there and the other being the big sale I have waiting all year for at Tideline Aquatics. I have money that has been burning a whole in my pocket since April 2 that is meant just for their Customer Appreciation Day sale. They do not announce it until the week of the event and that is why I am hoping it will not fall on the same day as the BBQ.

[aquawolf]

Originally Posted by chrischris

thats an old table but the tank looks great with the rock back in is the kracken ok because usually when i move my anemone aroung it gets all weird and doesnt open for a while

The Kracken seems to be fine, he is opened up already although nowhere near his normal size but only the moonlights are on now as well. I believe he will be happy in his new spot. Thanks for asking.

I am still contemplating moving some of the rock to my 40 gallon FOWLR tank. I am going to give it a little bit of time though, the whole change thing may just take a little getting used to.

[Fat Tony]

LOL.. i hear ya! I wish i was able to go to their sale, but it is just out of the question with my new job and shift (weekends... i'm taking the weekend off for the BBQ though)

[aquawolf]

Originally Posted by Fat Tony

LOL.. i hear ya! I wish i was able to go to their sale, but it is just out of the question with my new job and shift (weekends... i'm taking the weekend off for the BBQ though)

Man, working weekends has got to be rough. Hopefully I will be able to see you and a bunch of others at Tom's old pig pickin party.

[Fat Tony]

oh i'll be there... like i said i had to take vacation, but i wouldn't miss it for the world!

also working weekends does suck... but while you suckers are working 20-25 days a month.. i'm only working 12-15..LOL and only 36 hours per week (paid for 40 )and the $$$ is GOOD

[aquawolf]

I know you'll be there, I am the one who might be a little iffy on it. LOL. I hear you on the job thing though, and hey if you are happy that is all that really matters.