336 Peninsula build

Tub Life · Jun 16, 2023

Join me on my journey to build a 336g peninsula.
It is 108"L x 30"W x 24"H.
Remote sump in basement crawlspace.

First the why...

It's after 9pm and I glance at the tank as I walk by, I see water running through the drywall, NOT COOL.

Welcome to Tublife in the garage.

Almost 3 years later, it's finally time to restart!
Here it is...

Can I tell ya how glorious it is that we can drag and drop photos on this forum!

Tub Life · Jun 16, 2023

They're here...

unloading

in comes the stand

stand didn't quite fit where the old one was, so floors need a trim

tank can't get over the pony wall in the entrance, so around the house it goes

through the house and a few more stairs

and BOOM! done.

IKD · Jun 17, 2023

Tub Life said:
They're here...

unloading

in comes the stand

stand didn't quite fit where the old one was, so floors need a trim

tank can't get over the pony wall in the entrance, so around the house it goes

through the house and a few more stairs

and BOOM! done.

Looks awesome!! Did you have to reinforce your flooring even more with this size upgrade? Love the tank dimensions. What are your stocking plans?

Tub Life · Jun 17, 2023

The floors were reinforced when the original tank went in.
3 x laminated wood beams were added, signed off by a structural engineer. If I recall I think the plans only called for 2.
We were doing renos, so it was a now or never moment for a large main floor display tank!

here you can see the beams in the basement ceiling, along with 4 x 1.5" runs, 3 for drains and 1 for return.

As for stocking, I've always gone mix reef and this will be the same. Sticks are awesome, but so are rics, and zoas, anemones, clams and fish! All are welcome!

Tub Life · Jun 23, 2023

Next step is water test, but before I dare do that, need to address this...

one 9' side has about 2' where I can slide a card underneath effortlessly.
(1 credit card thickness is deemed acceptable by the builder)

the other 9' side has about 2' where I can slide 2 cards through.

Note, the tank sits flush on both ends and on the 2 crossbars of the stand.

Any thoughts?
Is this even a problem? I think yes, I don't believe the plywood would compress that much to even out.
Any ideas on how to safely tackle this problem while keeping the tank in place?
Spray foam?
Just shim it? or fill it and shim later after the plywood compresses a bit?

Ironwill723 · Jun 23, 2023

Is the bottom of the tank rimmed? Did the tank builder provide a foam mat for between tank and plywood? If not maybe a piece of rigid foam between tank and plywood.

Tub Life · Jun 25, 2023

Ironwill723 said:
Is the bottom of the tank rimmed? Did the tank builder provide a foam mat for between tank and plywood? If not maybe a piece of rigid foam between tank and plywood.

Rimmed? As in having a plastic trim? No.
The Bottom pane and edges of the outer panes rest on a piece of plywood that is attached to the bottom some how.

Builder did not provide foam, as they say their tank with plywood bottom should go directly onto their metal stand.

Ironwill723 · Jun 25, 2023

Okay. Usually trimless tanks will have some sort of pad or foam under them to make up for any imperfections in top of stand.

Troylee · Jun 28, 2023

Tub Life said:
Next step is water test, but before I dare do that, need to address this...

one 9' side has about 2' where I can slide a card underneath effortlessly.
(1 credit card thickness is deemed acceptable by the builder)

the other 9' side has about 2' where I can slide 2 cards through.

Note, the tank sits flush on both ends and on the 2 crossbars of the stand.

Any thoughts?
Is this even a problem? I think yes, I don't believe the plywood would compress that much to even out.
Any ideas on how to safely tackle this problem while keeping the tank in place?
Spray foam?
Just shim it? or fill it and shim later after the plywood compresses a bit?

Shim under the stand on the floor and it should cure it… nice set up by the way! Looking forward to this one!

Tub Life · Jun 28, 2023

Troylee said:
Shim under the stand on the floor and it should cure it… nice set up by the way! Looking forward to this one!

Yes, I will definitely shim under the stand to level.

Ironwill723 said:
Okay. Usually trimless tanks will have some sort of pad or foam under them to make up for any imperfections in top of stand.

Hoping for a work around, but might end up having to do this.

Tub Life · Jun 28, 2023

While I figure things out... leak test time.

lubeck · Jul 12, 2023

Sweet setup following. Did you get it level

Janci · Jul 12, 2023

Tub Life said:
While I figure things out... leak test time.

How much was the gap between tank and stand with the tank filled with water?

Gumbies R Us · Jul 12, 2023

Great looking setup!

Illini_Fan · Jul 15, 2023

Thanks for sharing your build. This is pretty similar to what I hope to do when we build our next house in three years. I’ll be especially interested in the remote sump since I plan on doing the same. Good luck.

Tub Life · Jul 17, 2023

lubeck said:
Sweet setup following. Did you get it level

shim city. will add more once adjusted perfectly. time for another fill and drain before last adjustments.

looking down the raceway.

and lenghtwise...

doing the unconventional cycle with ducks!

Tub Life · Jul 17, 2023

Janci said:
How much was the gap between tank and stand with the tank filled with water?

I've just done a second tank fill after first shim adjustments made under the bottom of stand. Gap seems to have lessened a bit. I will let it sit a few days and see where it's at, I think it very well may have reached acceptable deviance.

Tub Life · Jul 17, 2023

Illini_Fan said:
Thanks for sharing your build. This is pretty similar to what I hope to do when we build our next house in three years. I’ll be especially interested in the remote sump since I plan on doing the same. Good luck.

Never mind the "forever home", that's the time to build the forever tank!
For me, I like the idea and convenience of all the tank guts under the stand, but in my forever home we put down hardwood floors, so I knew if I was tinkering under the stand there will be more spillage than ma and my floors would appreciate. Also, having a very open house layout I wanted to keep the noise down to a minimum. Will wait to see your future build (and the house too)!

parclife · Aug 16, 2023

Tub Life · Sep 10, 2023

plumbing plan critique please...

for reference, the existing plumbing I'm working with...
3 x drains and 1 x return. excuse the leftover plumbing bits in the photo, I was just seeing if anything was salvageable.

3 existing 1.5" drains.
- 1 main drain with gate valve. Originally I had the gate valve right below the overflow flow box, but I recall reading on the board that it is best to have the gate valve near the output of the drain, so for me, that would be located 1 floor down in the crawlspace where the remote sump is located. Can someone educate me on this? Is it in fact best to have the gate valve near the output of the drain?
- secondary drain
- third "emergency" drain with 2 unions to facilitate easy modification for drain of a future potential anemone/frag tank below the display in the stand.

1 existing 1.5" return
- reduced below the display to 1" for the dual returns
- valve and cap the center leg of a 4way for return of the potential anemone/frag tank below the display in the stand.

Any thoughts?