Has anyone here actually built a tank from scratch?

[Carcharodon]

So my girlfriend and I are going to be looking for houses in earnest starting in January, and naturally one of my primary thoughts is 'How much tank can I afford and fit into a house that I own?"

I mostly do morays and sharks, so this will be no exception. For the first time I'll be able to do a basement sump, giving me plenty of room for a massive display tank. This brings me to my primary question at this point - has anyone here ordered sheets of glass and built their own tank? While I'm sure it would be easier to buy a new or used one, I'd really like to get exactly what I want, and commissioning a custom tank seems very expensive, and the one time I've done that in the past I wound up getting screwed (which brings me to this point - please do not suggest glasscages.com. I know you're just trying to help, but I hate them so very very very very much.)

The dimensions I'm considering range from reasonable (350-450 gallons) to ridiculous (1200 gallons, I can't find the drooly emoticon)... this depends largely upon the house we end up with and, of course, my budget.

I've read around pretty extensively and I know it's been done, but I was wondering if anyone around here has done it... are there any companies/individuals/contractors that anyone knows of that could help/consult? Of course, if anyone knows of a aquarium builder other than those braindead backwoods swindlers I mentioned above, I'm all ears.

Needless to say, I'll start a thread when I start the build. Tanks in advance!

 

[FOXYB]

Check out Dave mcreeferson thread he built a large tank in his basement

 

[s_kelley]

Matt Doherty build a sweet shallow rimless out of an old tank he had. Think it was in the diy forum. Can't post links from my phone. Maybe someone else can for me.

 

[mnavick]

Check out Dave mcreeferson thread he built a large tank in his basement

Awesome read with tons of pics:
http://www.bostonreefers.org/forums...nightmare...&highlight=Dave+mcreeferson+build

 

[Carcharodon]

This is awesome guys... I actually remember reading the for sale ad but never read through the entire build thread. Looks like Dave is a better craftsman than I am, so I'll likely still need some help.

Looks like he and Gina had a helluva cute kid

 

[Bao]

Have you think about building a plywood tank, reinforced it with many layer of fiberglass and pour few layers of proxy on top?? If you are interested in building a plywood tank, there are alot of information on ReefCentral and another place called fingerlakesreef.