700 + Aquarium Build

[Derpeder]

Thanks a lot Derpeder for mentioning MFK to me at the other forum!

You are so welcome Arl. This is a great home for a MONSTER fishkeeper like yourself. And we all over your tank, and dream of having one like it someday.

Tank is looking great. Post up some pics of your aro's when you get a chance!!!

 

[arl]

You are so welcome Arl. This is a great home for a MONSTER fishkeeper like yourself. And we all over your tank, and dream of having one like it someday.

Tank is looking great. Post up some pics of your aro's when you get a chance!!!

I posted some pics of my tank at the fish gallery (tittle: Arowana-Discus Tank) taken a few weeks before I decomisioned it for settling tank convertion. here's one.

 

[Bsixxx]

damn very nice

cant wait to see it done

 

[arl]

In between drying the paint/Goop/water sealant (for my outside tank wood) I am also building my filter system.
These are left overs from my ABS sheet. Its a 1"X5" and about 34" high. I also used goop to put them together. I could have gotten away with using a 3" pipe and cut it length wise but I like the idea of making the top opening bigger/wider for a water level adjustment capability of the tank

 

[arl]

I drilled 4 - 3" holes and inserted a 3" ABS coupling on the top of the tank and also 3 - 2" holes with coupling in between the 3" holes. The drain from the all 3" holes are taken from the bottom and the 2" are from the surface.
Those small copper tubings are meant for my 3D styro background but it ended up as one of my learned lesson. I'll explain it latter when I get to the background building part.

 

[arl]

It looks like this standing up. The 3" overflows will take water from the bottom of the tank and the 2" ones will take it from the top. But how do I get all the dirt to be in that bottom tank input of overflow??? My idea is to have a subfloor or raised flooring sort of thing kinda like a undergravel filter. I'll slant the floor using a slanted cut styrofoam with abs sheet on top with the highest point in between 2 inputs from the bottom tank. It will be like a canal running along the width of the tank with the overflow input on the other side and I'll put a return pipe on the other end to push the dirt towards the intake. Then on top this slanted floor/canals I'll put plastic mesh to hold a leyer of rock. It will only be a one layer of rocks so that dirt will fall though it and slide into the 4 canals. I hope that makes sense cause I have a hard time explaining it .

 

[arl]

I wasn't too sure if the slanted flooring/ canal method will work. NOt really sure if dirt will do slide and at what slope or angle???? But anyway I'll be using this the same concept in my settling tank. I'll slant the flooring and hopefully the dirt will slide down and my drain willbe at the bottom of the slanted floors. Here a pic of my settling tank.

 

[arl]

Like I said I wasn't sure how much slope does it have to be so that the dirt will slide down???? I have to try it with my settling tank. The settling tank slant is way more stiffer that what I can ever do on my main tank (unless I want only half high of my tank is viewable) So I get it up into its stand and filled it up with water. What do you guys think happened?????

 

[arl]

Wow, this will be a beauty when it's all together. What are you using for your front window? I like your ABS plastic idea... I used epoxy and I wound up doing lots of coats just to assure myself I'd got every nook, but your way looks pretty tough to screw up!

My front window is 3/4" (19mills) ordinary glass. I did not even consider acrylic sheet because it will probably have to be like 2" thick to have no bowing. Acrylic sheets are a lot clearer than glass (atleast with the ordinary ones) lighter, tougher and easier to work with. But using acrylic on a 8' X 3' high tank if its less than 1.5" you'll probably get dizzy/headache if you look at it because of the bowing. and the price for a 2" acrylic sheet .

 

[cvermeulen]

My front window is 3/4" (19mills) ordinary glass. I did not even consider acrylic sheet because it will probably have to be like 2" thick to have no bowing. Acrylic sheets are a lot clearer than glass (atleast with the ordinary ones) lighter, tougher and easier to work with. But using acrylic on a 8' X 3' high tank if its less than 1.5" you'll probably get dizzy/headache if you look at it because of the bowing. and the price for a 2" acrylic sheet .

well it'd need to be 1.25" probably.... pricey for sure. I have 5/8 glass on my DIY though, and the refraction is something to get used to for sure. Acrylic might bow, but it doesnt' compare to glass for making you dizzy.

That said... I'd use glass again just for the scratch resistance.