AlexAbel197
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This is my dream tank!
Our 400 Gallon In Wall Natural Sun-Lit Reef
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- Thread starter jdpiii3
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OP
OP
Hey everyone checking in had a new roof put on my house a few weeks ago and finally found time to make it up on the roof to polish out the Sun Domes for the reef tank. I can't seem to get both Sun Domes as clear as the other.
Are any of my friends acrylic experts and can possibly shed some light on why I can't get them as clear what other steps could I do to fix the one that still has a bit of haze and blemishes
Are any of my friends acrylic experts and can possibly shed some light on why I can't get them as clear what other steps could I do to fix the one that still has a bit of haze and blemishes
New Jersey REEF
Active Member
Have you tested par levels to compare before and now?Hey everyone checking in had a new roof put on my house a few weeks ago and finally found time to make it up on the roof to polish out the Sun Domes for the reef tank. I can't seem to get both Sun Domes as clear as the other.
Are any of my friends acrylic experts and can possibly shed some light on why I can't get them as clear what other steps could I do to fix the one that still has a bit of haze and blemishes
From what I’ve seen acrylic polishing does create that type of haze-glare affect.
Not sure if there is a fix for that other than replacing entire acrylic cylinder.
Anyone else can chime in on this?
BTW love this thread, read it many time. Glad you are doing well and still at it!
Looks great! Although it looks like it may be time to polish the acrylic.
OP
OP
Thanks, yeah its time I'm not looking forward to it.
OP
OP
Made some progress on the acrylic refinishing today. It isn't hard just very time consuming. Each of the grits takes about 45 min to an hour. Using the orbital sander helps quite a bit, still need to go over areas by hand. Here are a few pictures from todays progress. I made it to 10000 grit today, I need a break and some food and wine.
800 Grit
1000 Grit
1500 Grit
2000 Grit
2500 Grit
3000 Grit
5000 Grit
8000 Grit
10000 Grit
800 Grit
1000 Grit
1500 Grit
2000 Grit
2500 Grit
3000 Grit
5000 Grit
8000 Grit
10000 Grit
How many grits are there between 10k and 14k. Also, how are you using the palm sander inside the tank? I see it’s a pneumatic one but does that actually work?
OP
OP
Hey there, the sandpaper grits are 10,000, 12,000 & 14,000 I also have lapping micro-finishing polishing film that goes up to 500,000 grit if needed. As for the orbital sander, I was shocked at how well it is working under water, thankfully I have an oil free air compressor and the orbital is oil free as well. I bought this one on Amazon for $39, getting one that has a connection for the exhaust really help with keeping the air bubbles down. I just run the air line into a bucket to catch any waste. If you do by chance have an air compressor that uses oil you can clean it out and replace with vegetable oil I would also run an inline air filter to help scrub the air entering the tank then it will be safe to use in the reef. Just run some carbon to remove any oil that might be left behind
After I run the orbital I hit the acrylic panel with the hand sanding getting all the corners and edges. I’m making some good progress, I finished one of the 6’x3’ panels this morning and about half the way done on the second. The 2nd panel I started with a deeper cut 400 grit I can see already that I’m not needed to work nearly as hard with the lighter grits.
I’ll post more pictures.
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What do you think? Will you go further? Do you have a before shot from that same angle?14000 grit
OP
OP
I am happy with the outcome; I will wait to go higher after I finish the other sides. need to see how the complete tank looks like.
OP
OP
first time removing the sun domes clear inside cover to inspect the tubes, after 11 years they are still looking great. I have new domes for the outside arriving soon.
Wow, very reflective. I may have missed it but what kind of PAR do you get on a sunny summer day? How much does it drop if it’s cloudy?first time removing the sun domes clear inside cover to inspect the tubes, after 11 years they are still looking great. I have new domes for the outside arriving soon.
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