I've been pondering a lot about how I want to upgrade once I make the move over to Washington State. I'd gotten a quote of 55,000$ from Midwest Custom Aquariums for a 15' x 5' x 5' aquarium and it shot my hopes down real fast lol. After a few days of brainstorming I came up with the idea of using a shipping container. I found a few companies, such as Modpools, that create plug and play portable pools with a viewing window. Here's some examples.
These were still expensive (~35000$) but not nearly as bad with more water volume. I kept this idea in the back of my mind for a few weeks and recently re-read through A arapaimag 's 50,000 gallon build and had an idea. I could use his metal bracing idea with viewing windows on the shipping container for a cheaper, DIY friendly build. I would probably use 2" acrylic over 1" glass like he did but the concept would be the same. I'd also only fill the container with 6ft of water instead of the entire way to reduce pressure and create a beautiful paludarium/vivarium effect. The advantage to this instead of just cementing a build is that I'm not committed to a location. The tank would be portable just like the swimming pools were. here's a pic of A arapaimag 's build and a quick sketch of my idea.
I incorporated the same ideas from his build and added the steel beams across the top for structural support. The panels would be standard 4x8 plexi sheets. I'm extremely curious to know exactly how the glass panels were siliconed ie behind the frame, inside the frame, etc. Just to help me plan out what I'd do for the shipping container. Let me know what you guys think though! I feel this is a much cheaper alternative to a portable "Monster" aquarium than ordering something from a company.
These were still expensive (~35000$) but not nearly as bad with more water volume. I kept this idea in the back of my mind for a few weeks and recently re-read through A arapaimag 's 50,000 gallon build and had an idea. I could use his metal bracing idea with viewing windows on the shipping container for a cheaper, DIY friendly build. I would probably use 2" acrylic over 1" glass like he did but the concept would be the same. I'd also only fill the container with 6ft of water instead of the entire way to reduce pressure and create a beautiful paludarium/vivarium effect. The advantage to this instead of just cementing a build is that I'm not committed to a location. The tank would be portable just like the swimming pools were. here's a pic of A arapaimag 's build and a quick sketch of my idea.
I incorporated the same ideas from his build and added the steel beams across the top for structural support. The panels would be standard 4x8 plexi sheets. I'm extremely curious to know exactly how the glass panels were siliconed ie behind the frame, inside the frame, etc. Just to help me plan out what I'd do for the shipping container. Let me know what you guys think though! I feel this is a much cheaper alternative to a portable "Monster" aquarium than ordering something from a company.
