Well, I disagree VERY SLIGHTLY with Abhorred.
For heroics (where the bosses are generally level 80, not 83) the def cap is 536. Also, the def cap is totally 100% mandatory in raids, since a crit from a boss is basically a wipe. Heroics. . . .meh.
Tanks of any class need to balance out a few things; threat generation, avoidance and health.
These days most tanks just pile on the +stam. Since many of the stam numbers can get you to 40k health in T8 level gear, that's what's popular now. Still . . . I'd rather lose 1k health (from 40k to 39k) for 1% avoidance. There is a lot of math involved, and there is no clear answer to which is better.
Nevertheless, skill > gear. But with tanking, skill is not enough. Having about 28k health unbuffed, D at least 536 and about 50% avoidance for a DK should be enough for every heroic (perhaps not ToC). I encourage you to find a healer willing to train you (hopefully somebody with an alt that tanks) and do UK and Nexus on heroic. They are easy. You can almost certainly survive with a good healer, regardless of your gear, and it will teach you to use your cooldowns, your rotation etc.
I love tanking, it is so much more involved than dps-ing. It really makes WoW seem like a different game!