Sump and Electrical Cabinet Upgrade Build Thread

AquaLifeStudio

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I've finally gotten to the point where I have to reorganize my electrical devices. This is a first step before redoing my plumbing. Up till this point I've had all my wiring fairly well kept, out of immediate view, but above my sump. It's been a real pain if I have to lay out on my back and contort myself to get around all the plumbing to just do a little bit of maintenance. I've got a lot of stuff in the way...

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I will be building a brand new cabinet to replace the make shift one that has been sitting behind my overflow. The "slide up" door is currently off so you can see what's inside.

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I'll be moving all the electrical outlets, my battery backups, Ecotech MP40 and L1 Drivers, ATO controller, power bricks, etc.

I'm going to have a pair of access doors that actually swing open on the front and back as I want to be kind to myself when wiring everything up.

Stay tuned.
 

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Sounds like you have a great plan
 
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AquaLifeStudio

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I've been designing this cabinet on the fly with a few basic measurements in mind, some aspects taken from the existing makeshift cabinet.

The tank side plate, with cutouts for the vortech pump(s) that can be or already installed on either side of the overflow...

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Close up of the cutouts...

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Building some of the frame work for the shelves...

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Upper half shot, I'll be gluing a veneer to the plywood edges to provide a finished appearance.

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Lower half from the front and back...

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To be continued...

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AquaLifeStudio

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This is what it looks like after the first coat of black. I'll wet sand before the final coat tomorrow morning. The unpainted portions are completely unseen and only butt up against the wall or the rear side of the sump cabinet. I'd rather save the paint.

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AquaLifeStudio

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What size ply is that?
How are you making those curved cuts?

Dremel?
Router?

Sorry. Learning.

Happy to help any way I can, that's why I posted this build.

I've used a cabinet grade 3/4" plywood, it's really something like 0.71" thick.

The cabinet stands 66" tall and is 22 and 9/16" deep, 13 and 1/2" wide. I've got 12" wide in shelf space.

As far as tools to make the various cuts; hole saws of various sizes, a reciprocating saw for the bulk of the (rough) straight lines for the cutouts and then a Dremel Trio router (discontinued) along with a straight edge steel ruler to act as a cutting fence to clean up the edges and to really straighten them out.
 
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AquaLifeStudio

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The clean curved cuts are amazing.
I thought a router table is what would have been a must for those.

Amazing work.

Line up and find the center point for the two circles and cut using a hole saw. From the apex of each you can cut your straight line. I have all this drawn out ahead of time so as the hole saw begins to make contact with the plywood I can be sure it lines up.

 
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AquaLifeStudio

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Using a solid piece of plywood for the doors.
You can see my 8' cutting fence clamped and ready to cut with my circular saw.

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One door hung. I'll eventually cut out the center portion and inlay with smoked acrylic so I can see inside like a media cabinet. Should look pretty sweet.

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AquaLifeStudio

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Rear door hung. I'm done for today.

I'll still need to trim the front door a bit where it meets the wall, iron the veneer on the edges of the doors, prime and then paint.

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I had to notch this area of the door so it can clear the bar top to install or remove.

Hopefully, you enjoy the sign.
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Small update... installed a new pair of ADJ power outlets so I could start moving more equipment into the new cabinet. They lined up perfectly.

You'll see below what the molex connector and wiring looks like that runs into the Vectra L1 driver. I used my pin removal tool so I could thread the bare leads through the hole I had already drilled in the front mounting board. I've just velcro the drivers to the board for easy removal in case I have to move anything around.

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