dream tanks

[J. H.]

Tank:
roughly 10"w x 12"h x 40"l, cast starfire.
Stocking:
Betta 1M 3F (elephant ear or simillar) or maybe a small gourami or killie, preferably something with that 'mini aro' look & attitude.
8 khuli loach
10-12 rasbora (maybe lambchop)
5 of one of the smaller hatchetfish sp.

OR

Checkerboard/Microgeophagus/apsito pair or trio.
7 abramites headstanders
10-20 of one of the smaller pencilfish
5 of one of the smaller hatchetfish sp.
Maybe some pygmy cories.
Setup:
overhead aquaponic sump. Silent submersible pump, hidden by driftwood. Heater in sump. Lit by a window, but with LEDs for viewing. CO2 injection. Auto top off and drip.

Plants:
mangrove, wandering jew & pothos in sump, microsword, java fern, water lettuce, coontails, and anubias. Maybe some others.

Substrate: A dark, large particle red-brown sand.

Scape: Driftwood mostly, heavily planted, no background except a window. A 'jungle' scape.

Heavy stocking, but a lot of plants, WC & drip.

This guy stocks like that, and his fish look nice.

 

[Backfromthedead]

I didnt think of it before but i would really enjoy one of those zeroedge tanks in something manageable like 60x24 footprint. Those tanks have always amazed me.

 

[J. H.]

I didnt think of it before but i would really enjoy one of those zeroedge tanks in something manageable like 60x24 footprint. Those tanks have always amazed me.

It's a dream tank. Why do acrylic zeroedge when you can do cast low iron glass? The tank I spec'd could be thousands of dollars, and would need to be made with a custom mold in a high quality glass shop.

 

[Jexnell]

Dream:

10x10x50 massive S.A. community tank.

Reality:

3x3x10 Festae harem tank.

 

[Backfromthedead]

It's a dream tank. Why do acrylic zeroedge when you can do cast low iron glass? The tank I spec'd could be thousands of dollars, and would need to be made with a custom mold in a high quality glass shop.

Not sure what cast low iron glass is but i prefer acrylic to glass. I would take either or though. I just like the zeroedge overflow.

Pretty sure a 60"x24" zeroedge tank setup would cost tens of thousands. The 40 gallon baseline tank they offer is like 5k itself. Thats far far off into dreamland in the world i live in bro.

 

[J. H.]

Not sure what cast low iron glass is but i prefer acrylic to glass. I would take either or though. I just like the zeroedge overflow.

Pretty sure a 60"x24" zeroedge tank setup would cost tens of thousands. The 40 gallon baseline tank they offer is like 5k itself. Thats far far off into dreamland in the world i live in bro.

Low iron glass is what they call Starfire - even clearer than acrylic and effectively unscratchable. Cast means that instead of siliconing or welding sheets together, it is made in a mold in one piece, and done right, there are no seams at all. I've never seen anything bigger than a vase made this way, and from what I understand there would be 3 major problems.
1) It is nearly impossible to make large, smooth pieces of glass. Modern sheet glass that is used for windows and aquariums is made by floating it on a pond of molten metal. Impossible to make a tank like that.
2) Most glass molding/stamping machines (all the ones I've seen, anyway) can't handle items bigger than about 2 ft. in diameter. You might need a custom machine, not just a mold.
3) The glass, being so large, would need to be cooled for a looooong time, and even then, may warp and/or shatter during cooling. In other words, it would need a dedicated cooling oven.

I used the term 'thousands of dollars', but for all I know it could be more than that or impossible.

In theory, acrylic is clearer then even low iron glass. However, this is only true if the acrylic is completely clear of scratches, and is ignoring the distortion acrylic often causes. I also like the look of glass.

The real reason in a dream I would prefer a cast tank is because it wouldn't just a beautiful display of craftsmanship - it would be a technological marvel as well. Yes, I know welded glass tanks have been built that would have all the benefits of a cast tank, but it wouldn't be as impossible it has already been done.

 

[Backfromthedead]

Low iron glass is what they call Starfire - even clearer than acrylic and effectively unscratchable. Cast means that instead of siliconing or welding sheets together, it is made in a mold in one piece, and done right, there are no seams at all. I've never seen anything bigger than a vase made this way, and from what I understand there would be 3 major problems.
1) It is nearly impossible to make large, smooth pieces of glass. Modern sheet glass that is used for windows and aquariums is made by floating it on a pond of molten metal. Impossible to make a tank like that.
2) Most glass molding/stamping machines (all the ones I've seen, anyway) can't handle items bigger than about 2 ft. in diameter. You might need a custom machine, not just a mold.
3) The glass, being so large, would need to be cooled for a looooong time, and even then, may warp and/or shatter during cooling. In other words, it would need a dedicated cooling oven.

I used the term 'thousands of dollars', but for all I know it could be more than that or impossible.

In theory, acrylic is clearer then even low iron glass. However, this is only true if the acrylic is completely clear of scratches, and is ignoring the distortion acrylic often causes. I also like the look of glass.

The real reason in a dream I would prefer a cast tank is because it wouldn't just a beautiful display of craftsmanship - it would be a technological marvel as well. Yes, I know welded glass tanks have been built that would have all the benefits of a cast tank, but it wouldn't be as impossible it has already been done.

I know theres some special centrifuge technique that that one guy uses to make those huge 8m lenses for telescopes. I would have to look it up again to get all the details, but maybe he could make it lol.

Are you familiar with the zeroedge aquariums? With proper lighting they just look like a cube of water sitting there defying physics. I imagine they could make one with low iron glass but i think the acrylic is much easier to engineer and work with. Id love to hear from someone who actually has one to hear how well they work.

 

[Jexnell]

That thing is the f@@@ing bomb!

How to do maintence tho....

Soo cool looking, imagine a 125 stuffed full of African Peacocks....

 

[Backfromthedead]

That thing is the f@@@ing bomb!

How to do maintence tho....

Soo cool looking, imagine a 125 stuffed full of African Peacocks....

Lol if i had the money for one of those it would undoubtably be a top of the line reef setup. I imagine maintenance is pretty easy. I don't see that overflow "moat" getting clogged or anything. I'd say most of them are outfitted with the fancy multi compartmented fuge sumps and computerized lights and wavemakers and such. Probably maintain themselves lol.

 

[Jexnell]

Ok I had to go look at them, it's overflowing....i thought it was a sealed cube....still cool.