Sunroom Build

[CenlaReefer]

Because of my wife's health problems I need to cut-down on humidity in the house. I will also need some more living room in our small home. Here is the structure I built using a technique I learned from a builder-friend in NJ. It is called "cordwood construction." This little addition used concrete and split pecan wood. I used the old windows from my home when I replaced them with some new ones. Otherwise they would have gone into a dump. The building has a thick concrete foundation in the ground under the main walls. The small wooden cut-out is for a combination A/C - dehumidifier unit. I am thankful that I was able to do all the work myself yet I will need an electrician soon. Does anyone know a good one that serves the Pineville / Alexandria area?

My plan is to put a 90 gallon in there. It will be a bit tight, yet I may also put a small desk and computer in there so I can write my sermons for our church. I am doing that full tiime now and no longer working as a home health occupational therapist. I plan to do lots of the plumbing and electrical in the garage to the right of the new addition.

 

[clsanchez77]

This is awesome. Since it's a small space and you have a lot of windows on that room, look into the solar reflective window film as this will help with radiant heat through the glass.

 

[Cigmin]

Great building . Sorry to hear about the wife. Prayers for your family


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[Humblefish]

Kevin, you're getting a man cave!

 

[CenlaReefer]

Kevin, you're getting a man cave!

Oh yea! A longterm plan may be to use a small portion of the garage to the right as a "fish room."

 

[CenlaReefer]

This is awesome. Since it's a small space and you have a lot of windows on that room, look into the solar reflective window film as this will help with radiant heat through the glass.

Thanks! I am going for frosted windows. The view on two of the 3 sides is horrible. This is part of the reason. The other is to block the heat. The single window to the right of the door will remain clear and unfrosted so I can watch the kids play in the backyard.

Great building . Sorry to hear about the wife. Prayers for your family


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Thank you! Thanks especially for the prayers!

 

[clsanchez77]

Thank you! Thanks especially for the prayers!

Sorry, I completely glossed over the health issues. I saw you needed to deal with humidity and we are struggling with that as well so I related to that part and missed the first part. Will definitely keep her in mind.

My older middle child (older of twins by 2 minutes) suffers from asthma and we have made tremendous progress over the years managing it with just indoor air quality issues. My big need is to replace the AC and all ductwork and also add in a dehumidifier. For the past few years, when humidity gets high, I drop the AC really low and then we use space heaters. Talk about throwing money at a problem and not solving it :(. But my house is 1-1/2 story and does not have accessible attic space in most of the house, so this AC project is going to be a massive undertaking with walls and ceilings coming out. I expect code enforcement to be a major issue as "properly sized" duct work will not fit in some of the spaces. Our biggest find was that after Hurricane Isaac, we discovered mold was growing under the wood floors. The previous home owner pulled up carpet, but left the carpet padding under the wood floors. The wood floors had a urethan sealant that locked the moisture between the floor and slab. During Isaac, the floor buckled (as they left no expansion gaps) and the smell of mold came through. That was when my son's health bottomed out and we determined the cause. The other change was converting our fireplace from wood burning to gas. Not only better for our son, but actually heats the home nicely compared to the wood burning. I will sometimes burn logs in the backyard, just because I like that.

 

[Stoned]

My big need is to replace the AC and all ductwork and also add in a dehumidifier. For the past few years, when humidity gets high, I drop the AC really low and then we use space heaters. Talk about throwing money at a problem and not solving it

I use a dehumidifier from a big box store. I don't have double pane windows, so the windows sweat on the inside. If not attended to, mold grows on them. I let the dehumidifier run 24/7 when A/C is not used. Set it at 50 percent, windows stay dry and it doesn't run all the time.

 

[CenlaReefer]

Thanks for the input about dealing with humidity. Chris, I am sorry you and your family are having health trouble from mold. My wife has scarring on her lungs from her prior radiation treatments. Humidity in the 70s or above bothers her. I tell my wife that when the A/C or heat are not running much, the dehumidifier needs to run. I need to get a small dehumidifier for the new sunroom as well. I have the tank stand in there now. I plan to get the aquarium in there later this week. I plan to post pics with questions to get y'all advice about outlet placements.

 

[CenlaReefer]

I have been painting lately. I should have done that before putting the tank in. Oh well. The hood will have to go. I will likely build one with 3 removable panels.

I have this entire wall to work with on placing electrical and plumbing behind the tank on the other side. I may do a very small cabinet with electrical in it just to the left of the tank. It will not have much depth yet a small working surface for standing tasks. I am thinking I should have outlets on both sides of the wall. I would appreciate some input about placement.

I plan to put reservoirs on the garage side for dosing kalkwasswer and magnesium. With the low, slow dosing amounts coming into the system from each, it will not mater if those containers get hot in the summer or very cold in the winter... except when temps get below freezing. I can always put one of those oil-filled heaters in the garage set as low as it goes. I have been using one from Honeywell that can be set to 45 degrees. I can also let our outdoor cat sleep in the garage with a litter box overnight.

The tank has not been pushed all the way back yet. I plan to make an insulated door on hinges to enclose the entire large cut-out made behind the system. I got this idea from seeing folks make plumbing access panels behind a bathroom shower or tub. This one will be super-accessible. I also plan to have a means of very low air flow to vent-out vapors from the top of this access panel. I plan to use a refurbished PC fan for that. The air will vent out of the side of the garage just under an overhang.

 

[CenlaReefer]

Wow! What a crazy turn of events! I will not be able to use this 90 gallon tank after all. The bottom corner of the tank split. I guess it happened after I moved it in my garage addition. My brother told me to use some foam underneath it just in case I needed to correct any imperfections of the surface not being perfectly level. I thought new plywood on top of the old stand should be fine. I guess it was not. Well, I am glad this did not happen after I filled it with water and livestock.

The new plan is to move my 34 gallon deep blue system in here along with another 20 gallon tied into it. With various bills rolling-in, perhaps this is for the best. This way I will not have to get even one additional piece of equipment. I plan to attach some cabinets on the wall above the aquariums. I guess I can run lights just under the cabinets.

 

[Cigmin]

Man sorry to hear but yes so much better happen now then when it’s full




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[CenlaReefer]

This was a rather beat-up tank with 2 prior owners that I got in exchange for corals. It must have been an Aqueon that was resealed some time ago. I have learned my lesson not to agree to trade for a tank and stand unless I can put my eyes on them both first.

I will put some insulation padding under the 34 gallon tank that will go in its place. Does anyone have a recommendation for a brand, thickness, or other details about the insulation padding that I should use? I would rather not have something too ugly.

 

[BluewaterLa]

man that stinks !
Bright side is like you said, didnt happen with a full tank.
Normally when something like this fails its not due to having / not having foam under the tank. Rather its due to the sealing seam being weak from age, weak from manufacturing it, OR got racked hard while moving causing the glass to shift enough to pop that seal.
Trimmed tanks only need to have support under the trim edges, not glass.
On rimless ( no trim at all ) its better to have a thin layer of foam, neoprene or the like under the glass only to keep any small imperfection in the wood from placing a stress point on the bottom glass which possibly could cause a crack under full water load.

 

[Humblefish]

Kevin, check with your local Petco because I think even the 75 & 90 gallon tanks are 1/2 price when they are running their sale.

 

[Humblefish]

I also saw here that someone is selling a 120 gallon acrylic: https://lareefclub.com/community/threads/tanks-sumps-full-setups-for-sale.53291/

 

[CenlaReefer]

We had some financial downturns that happened after my getting the larger tank. I am sort of relieved that this recent mishap has helped me to decide that I should just stick to 2 smaller tanks plumbed together.

It is not just the cost of the tank that is an issue. With the larger tank, I would need to get a larger return pump and some new powerheads. Larger water changes require more work as well.

 

[CenlaReefer]

Here are the plans for my 40 gallon breeder sump. There will be a platform to help get the skimmer at an optimal height. The reason I want to use the skimmer before the refugium is to help clean the water and reduce fouling-up the chaeto.

I plan to go to the glass shop to get some glass cut. I only need 4 pieces of glass that are the exact same measurements. What height do you all recommend for these baffles?

 

[BryanJr]

Here are the plans for my 40 gallon breeder sump. There will be a platform to help get the skimmer at an optimal height. The reason I want to use the skimmer before the refugium is to help clean the water and reduce fouling-up the chaeto.

I plan to go to the glass shop to get some glass cut. I only need 4 pieces of glass that are the exact same measurements. What height do you all recommend for these baffles?

I would see what your skimmer recommended water height is and set your baffles to that. If you wanted more water volume just add what you wanted to that height and that would be your stand height. I’d think most sumps would run between 6-9”

 

[CenlaReefer]

Thanks! I will use 9.5 inches. That level seems to have worked well for my 30 gallon sump for years. There will only need to be one baffle and no filter basket before the return. Melev called me back about his baffles for sale. Even though I was going with the glass shop instead, he was very kind to give me some advice. So cool! He pointed-out that I should not use any foam mechanical filtration that would keep pods from going into the return to feed the display.