Making things that other people buy in this hobby..

What's the main reason you take on DIY reefing projects?

  • Save Money

    Votes: 141 34.7%
  • You Like To Make Things

    Votes: 152 37.4%
  • Necessity, you want it a certain way

    Votes: 93 22.9%
  • Time, you need it quick

    Votes: 7 1.7%
  • Other (please explain)

    Votes: 13 3.2%

  • Total voters
    406

glb

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I make stuff to save money and because I enjoy it. Here’s some of my DIY tank gear. Details on how I did it are in the tank thread below.
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Here’s my diy stand. I used strong magnets to keep the front on and the curtain hides my stuff but still allows for some air exchange and keeps the humidity from building up too much inside.
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Here’s the inside. On the far left is a TLF gfo reactor I turned into a CO2 scrubber. I did all the plumbing myself and painted it rather than buy the colored pvc.
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Here’s the electrical cabinet. I bought a narrow ikea sink cabinet and put a hinged lid on the top for easy access. The lid overlaps so any splashing saltwater won’t leak in.
 

glb

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I couldn’t add any more pics to the OP so here’s the last thing, my AWC storage
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I built this cabinet to house the used and new saltwater for my DOS AWC setup. I put wheels on the bottom and there’s no wood at the bottom of the back so I can easily roll it out. I left the sides open to keep humidity from building up. Finally I used a hinged top so I can easily check on the water levels and dump out the old saltwater.

I love this thread and seeing what everyone else has done!!
 

mainereefer

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Sump about the only thing in this hobby that is cheaper building than buying
 

linkedsilas

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Sump about the only thing in this hobby that is cheaper building than buying
I believe a really nice stand as well, that's extra sturdy , custom etc. I made one recently where I made it out entirely out of scrap, laminated the tops and built custom shelves inside where I can put an ATO and a half removable shelf.
 

NowGlazeIT

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DIY or Do It Yourself is pretty big in this hobby! Even so much so that we have a forum dedicated to the discussion of it! People build, make, create their own things for many reasons such as saving money, time, necessity, wanting something a certain way and many more reasons. So today let's talk about it!

1. What is something you've made or built that other people in the hobby pay for?

2. What's the main reason you take on DIY reefing projects?



Please feel free to share a link to your DIY threads here on R2R!

image via @Brian Goldstein
diy.png
I was torn by the answers, I make things for all those reasons. But foremost the inspiration comes from saving money. If I’m going to build something I want to use the best material(built to last) but also the most practical(not overdoing it). Building a stand I use thicker wood and good paint. So I don’t always save money if the item I build is better quality. But I enjoy customizing to my needs or vision. I have learned that saving money is not always worth the time or headache to DIY. Algae scrubber is first that comes to mind. Some of them are expensive because the quality or research that went into the build. Example the LEDs that a company has entrusted.
At the end of the day I enjoy building and working with my hands. The aquarium hobby is great for me because the constant upgrading towards convenience, bigger tanks and better filtering equipment, keeps my hands and mind very busy.
 

1ocean

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After building my first stand I’m not sure I’ll ever buy another. It’s so nice being able to build something exactly how you want it plus it’s also a nice activity to keep the mind busy. Here’s the finish project:

6895C64A-9883-4813-AF0C-059E13A67C39.jpeg
what are the doors insert made of
 

Aboynamedsous2

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DIY or Do It Yourself is pretty big in this hobby! Even so much so that we have a forum dedicated to the discussion of it! People build, make, create their own things for many reasons such as saving money, time, necessity, wanting something a certain way and many more reasons. So today let's talk about it!

1. What is something you've made or built that other people in the hobby pay for?

2. What's the main reason you take on DIY reefing projects?



Please feel free to share a link to your DIY threads here on R2R!

image via @Brian Goldstein
diy.png
I made a hanging refugium out of a breeder box and a cheap clip on light. Nothing fancy but it seems like it’s gonna work well. Still working on it I have issues with it overflowing though.
 

Gup

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After building my first stand I’m not sure I’ll ever buy another. It’s so nice being able to build something exactly how you want it plus it’s also a nice activity to keep the mind busy. Here’s the finish project:

6895C64A-9883-4813-AF0C-059E13A67C39.jpeg
A sweet concept you have there. The plastic / glass used leds to a wave appearance
 

Gup

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Oh, I made 6 floating rocks, using ceramic inset magnets. Now that my Aquascape is complete, I'm going to move on to corals.
20210805_133913.jpg
 

nhendrix

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Save money and get the right size and fit for what I want the stand and sump are diy stand saved well over $600 is 8x2x4 and sump is 75 gallon convert that I payed about $250 for tank and glass baffles
 

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Vyper

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I am working on a setup to be able to feed frozen foods while I am on vacations. My fish don’t care for pellets and have been spoiled and I hate having someone come over daily to deal with it. New mini fridge arrived today. Almost a shame to drill a hole in it. lots of great ideas on YouTube and I am kind of taking a little bit from all of them.
 

Anchor

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I have made tanks, stands, skimmers, reactors, overflow boxes.. and most of it out of used materials.. I thik only the overflow was made out of acrylic.. and it leaked.. a lot..
 

38bill

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Been making my own aquarium stands since 9th grade shop class. I will build anything else I can. I have built lights, sumps and even a ATS. I recently downsized and my current tank is a 60 cube. I built the stand, the controller board, the light holder, the screen top and even the feeding port.
 

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jaihutcherson

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All of the above. Mostly though, for utilitarian purposes. If I can’t find it, I’ll make it. Made a diy rock scrubber just last week, works like a charm! Hook it on the end of a drill, very effective F4C9D8BB-34B6-42AF-8624-D321F6CCD57D.jpeg
Been looking for something like that. My 350g is simply too deep to reach anything.
 

TK_KW

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Acclimation box
 

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