Well I figured I have been lurking around in here for a while, and after attending my first meeting I figured I would post a quick journal of my tank at home...
I have always wanted a large room divider tank, and I decided that I should stop wishing, and start doing, even if it was going to take a while, so I bit the bullet, and after quite a bit of shopping around, I ordered a 2050*930*760mm aquarium, paid my money and instantly thought "what the hell have I done?!". That gave me approximately 6 weeks to make the stand. (it ended up being delayed, as the supplier gave them standard, not opti-white glass, as I had asked for, which was good as the stand took a lot longer than I thought).
I made the stand myself, with some help from a mate of mine, out of 750rhs for the main frame, and 500rhs for the little supports. From memory it was around 4mm thick steel, which was a pain in the ass to cut and weld, and bloody heavy, but well worth it. Even the guys delivering the tank said it was way over-engineered, but I figured do it once, and do it right.
It then sat in my dining room for about a year before I could pluck up the courage (and the cash) to plumb the thing up. I was again shocked at just how much money goes into the plumbing. Because one of the smaller sides to the tank sits flush with the wall, or rather, it will, I needed all the plumbing to run from the base up, which meant holes, non return valves and some expensive bulkhead fittings to stop the bloody thing leaking. I drew the plumbing out, as one does, and set about screwing and gluing the thing together, after about 4 beers and too much pvc cement fumes, I realized that my drawing wouldn't work in the real world, so I scrambled to make it work, and pulled it off.
After waiting 24 hours, it was time for the fill.
I only had a couple of minor leaks, and they were only because I had not tightened the fittings enough. (It was late and my hands were tired). So all in all, I think it was a success.
The first inhabitant was my Siamese fighter that had been living in a 6L vodka bottle fir 2 years, and he seemed to enjoy the space. That was until I hooked up the main pump, which is a moderate 15,000L/h, and then It was a mad scramble to get him his own tank, I settled on an aqua one 510, which he seems happy in.
I then aquired a tankload of plants and fish, as well as an eheim canister filter which went on there. I decided to plant the plants in trays so I could put them in easier and it meant I didn't need a whole pile of gravel urgently. It is unfortunate that nothing has happened to the trays, although I have gotten used to them.
My sump is pretty boring, I made a cage for 5L of substraat pro out of aluminium fly mesh toi act as a biological filter, and I bought in filter socks from the US which work a treat, I run 3 in series, 200, 100 and 25 micron, and the water is always reasonably clear, I also run a 0.5micron filtersock with my DIY chiller occasionally to clear things up, but it clogs pretty quick... The water is then pumped through a 36w UV sterilizer by a 15,000L/h pump, and back up through 2 returns.
At this stage I am just waiting on the money to plant the bloody thing out, I am daunted with a footprint as it has, and I want to go for mainly crypts, swords and other non-stem plants, as I want to avoid pruning, with lots of driftwood with moss and narrow leaf java fern and bolbitus. I am plucking up the courage to get a rough estimate to do it in one hit, but I think its another few months of saving away yet...
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60 downloadsI don't know what else to say really, I hope you guys like it as much as I do, and be kind...
It is a work in progress.
