- Hey, Thomas here, and today we're going to assemble
and mount some stuff to this here
Adaptive Reef Controller Cabinet.
So by the end of this video,
you should have it all assembled with whatever
optional faceplates you decided to pick up with it
and have a few things stuck on there and hopefully pick up
some tips and tricks along the way.
In the box, you'll find the flat packed Controller Cabinet
consisting of the front two side panels,
as well as the top and bottom panel,
a pack of color matching stainless steel screws,
and the assembly instructions.
You'll also want to make sure you have a Phillips
number two screwdriver on hand,
as well as some sort of soft surface.
It could be cardboard or a carpet or a rug to work on.
A few other things you might want to have on hand,
which you don't necessarily need right away,
are double-sided tape or adhesive Velcro, reusable zip ties,
twist ties, or Velcro wraps, and whatever optional,
Adaptive Reef faceplates you want to install.
Once it's unpacked, lay out all five panels in front of you.
You'll have the front panel, two side panels with stickers
marked A and B, as well as a top panel marked A,
and a bottom panel marked B, as well as
a pack of 20 stainless steel screws.
First lay down your soft surface,
whether it's cardboard or carpet, or in this case,
I just used the foam packing material from inside the boxes.
Next, place the top and bottom panels on their edges
across from one another so that the smaller sides
of the L shaped panels are pointed directly at each other.
Then place the corresponding side panel over top
so the A and B stickers match up with the top
and bottom panels, then align the top and bottom
so that the screw holes match up
and start screwing them together using a screwdriver.
As per the instructions,
make sure not to over tighten the screws.
They should be snug and flush, but no more than that.
Once all 10 of those screws are screwed down on that side,
carefully flip the assembled panels over
so that the side panel is now face down
and then place the remaining side panel onto the top
and bottom panels with the A and B stickers matching.
Align the screw holes again,
and install the remaining 10 screws.
Then you can flip the cabinet upright
and either place it in the location
you'd like it to stay, like inside your aquarium stand
or beside it, or you can just work with it
on whatever surface you'd like to.
Once you found the spot and you'd like it to stay,
or if you'd just rather work with it in an open space,
like on a tabletop,
you can go ahead and install the front panel.
The larger end of the tapered front panel sits on the floor,
then match up the four pegs on the inner lip
of the front panel.
With the larger end of the tapered front panel
sitting on the floor,
you can match up the four pegs on the inner lip
of the front panel to the four slots on the cabinet
and slide it into place.
The neodymium magnets will help hold the front panel
onto the cabinet and keep it secure.
If you picked up any optional accessories or faceplates,
now is a great time to get them installed.
They'll come with instructions in the box
on where they should be placed
and how to assemble them properly.
For example, the recessed faceplate I have here
takes up two of the eight slots and comes with
a set of screws and can be placed anywhere
on the front of the cabinet,
but only to remove enough of the standard faceplates
to free up the two slots it'll need.
Whenever you're arranging multiple optional faceplates
it's a great idea just to unscrew
all of the faceplates first,
and that way you can mix and match them
until you have the layout you like,
and then screw them all back into place.
Basically it just saves you from unscrewing them
and screwing them back in and unscrewing them again,
and then screwing them in trying to mix and match them
to figure out what's going to work best.
You know, play with it first.
Once you've gotten it the way you'd like it,
screw it all down.
Once you've got that all sorted out,
you can begin installing your various controllers,
power bricks and other gear into and onto the cabinet
using screws, double-sided tape, or adhesive Velcro,
and then rope cords and cables using zip ties,
twist ties, or Velcro straps.
The PVC material the cabinet is made out of
is super easy to work with.
And it's gonna feel very similar to a soft wood,
like pine, when you're drilling or screwing into it.
I personally really like to use screws whenever possible.
They just give you the firmest feel
and the most secure feeling mount really,
plus most of the aquarium controllers or accessories
that we get, usually have some sort of bracket
or mounting screw holes on the back of them.
So it just works out really well.
However, adhesive tape, a good quality one
like a 3M Velcro tape, works extremely well
on this PVC material.
If you're not quite sure or feeling really indecisive
about where you'd like things to go
or how to best organize your Controller Cabinet,
you can always download or make stencils for the gear
that you need to organize on the cabinet
and use those stencils to plan the layout
and even pre-mount brackets or screws
or Velcro to streamline the whole process.
Adaptive Reef also makes some super short
three-prong extension cords, accessory boxes,
and a bunch of other great accessories.
So if you want to check out all of the add-ons
you can work into your Adaptive Reef cabinet
that might just match your reefing mantra,
you can go ahead and click right here.
(upbeat music)