Instead of converting a 40 ft container... why not just have a steel frame built to the specs that you really want? I, too have looked into something like this.
15,000 gallon shipping container aquarium idea
- Thread starter Abyssalisk
- Start date
Stop rubbing it in! hahaha working on it
.. maybe no lazy river but certainly a very large tank in the woodwork
I looked for the site but no avail. The site was about a stingrays breeder that put two back to back and welded them. Wish I could find the site againPricey but sooooo worth it
Abyssalisk, Vincent knows his stuff. I don't think he's ever satisfied, he just gets rid of the smallest tank in his lineup and replaces it with one that becomes his new biggest
VLDesign's 2,700 gallon tank came out to cost around $7,500, which is insanely low. I don't recall off the top of my head who started building an even bigger plywood tank - maybe it was Necocranis? That tank was 18x9x4 I believe, which would've made it over 4,800 gallons - but it was never finished. I don't know how much it costed but it was relatively cheap, probably under $15K if it had been finished.
Drew
VLDesign's 2,700 gallon tank came out to cost around $7,500, which is insanely low. I don't recall off the top of my head who started building an even bigger plywood tank - maybe it was Necocranis? That tank was 18x9x4 I believe, which would've made it over 4,800 gallons - but it was never finished. I don't know how much it costed but it was relatively cheap, probably under $15K if it had been finished.
Drew
This bothers me. From watching my tanks, friends' tanks, and Youtube, I can say that fish behave more naturally and seem happier in deeper tanks. Maybe as far as managing aggression and preventing spinal deformities depth doesn't matter, but even 'bottom dwellers' and 'top dwellers' will benefit from, and sometimes use, the extra depth, and this X10 for anything that uses the full tank. Yes, this tank is big enough that it probably won't matter, but I just had to say that.
Definitely true that extra depth to a tank isn't a bad thing (usually). Although I would agree - the footprint is more important than the depth of the tank.
Interesting read and ideas.
IDK how practical it is to build a 15,000 gal tank that can be moved. I mean picking it up with a crane, perhaps driving too, could pop all of them window-to-wall seals, hence, one would need to way overbuild the tank to be able to withstand crazy sheer and deformation stresses, likely having an extremely fortified platform. It won't be "just a shipping container" anymore. Windows would need to be encased in metal frame and sealant front and back, not just front or front and sides, etc.
Anyhow... my 45'x14'x5' rubber liner pond with a 45' window took me about a year to build and very roughly
~$1000 in wood and plywood, screws, etc.
~$2000 in acrylic sheets
~$2000 in acrylic glue
~$1000 rubber liner
~$500 in misc. expenses, Dow 795 sealant, stainless steel bolts, etc.
In sum ~$6500.
Caveats - my aesthetic standards are low and long-term performance of the build is yet to be revealed.
IDK how practical it is to build a 15,000 gal tank that can be moved. I mean picking it up with a crane, perhaps driving too, could pop all of them window-to-wall seals, hence, one would need to way overbuild the tank to be able to withstand crazy sheer and deformation stresses, likely having an extremely fortified platform. It won't be "just a shipping container" anymore. Windows would need to be encased in metal frame and sealant front and back, not just front or front and sides, etc.
Anyhow... my 45'x14'x5' rubber liner pond with a 45' window took me about a year to build and very roughly
~$1000 in wood and plywood, screws, etc.
~$2000 in acrylic sheets
~$2000 in acrylic glue
~$1000 rubber liner
~$500 in misc. expenses, Dow 795 sealant, stainless steel bolts, etc.
In sum ~$6500.
Caveats - my aesthetic standards are low and long-term performance of the build is yet to be revealed.
