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Post by speedyron on Apr 30, 2016 8:14:09 GMT -5
So was thinking about a bigger home for for my giant tangs and lionfish. Possibly a 300 gallon tank. I also have another tank of groupers and some other big growing fish. well my knees are getting pretty bad and my bedroom is on the second floor so i decided to build an addition off the back of the house. While pondering the addition, I realized the four by five foot window of the kitchen was going to be lost and I would have to patch up the wall there. An idea to put a fish tank in that wall formed. Well if i did that, I'd like to have a small room on the other side of the wall to mix water in and sumps and you know the drill. Next was what size tank to get. The easiest size to fit into the existing window opening would be five foot wide and four foot tall, without tearing out that wall and making a bigger header. It's a three story house, so that option would be quite an undertaking. So I opted to stick with the existing opening. shopping for a tank with the proper dimensions wasn't easy. I could have one built but was very expensive. I wanted the tank to be open on top for ease of maintenance and as to not block the light, so acrylic was not a good choice. I also worry about acrylic scratching. I really couldn't find a tank with the right dimensions without having it custom built. I'm a supervisor for a contractor and we do specialty coatings. While on a job for a waste water treatment plant, I considered building a tank out of concrete steel rebar reinforced with a fiberglass epoxy liner similar to what we were working on. I talked to the owner of the company I work for, and he is going to donate the epoxy for the build (a huge savings). That was the clincher. I'm building a concrete tank with 4' thick walls. The inner dimensions of the tank will be 7' wide by 4' deep by 5' high with a viewing glass sitting in place of the old window of 5' wide by 4' tall. It might take quite a while to build but I'm going to try to take lots of pictures so people can follow. I just sent in the paperwork for the building permit.
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Post by speedyron on Apr 30, 2016 8:49:21 GMT -5
The first big task will be to find a 5' by 4' by 3/4" thick piece of glass for the viewing pane (without breaking the bank) that will be observable through the old window opening. This will be set into a fiberglass epoxy frame formed in the concrete wall of the tank abutting the old window opening. If anyone has any ideas where to get such a piece it will be welcomed
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Post by ryansweatt2004 on Apr 30, 2016 15:41:02 GMT -5
Portland glass or any other reputable glass dealers would be my first place to call.
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Post by jasonandsarah on May 1, 2016 8:39:31 GMT -5
For a 5'X4'X3/4" low iron glass sheet at glasscages.com is $640 before shipping. Lord only knows how much shipping would be though? I only mention this because when I looked around for glass in similar sizes the prices were $1500+ if I remember correctly.
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Post by spotfin on May 1, 2016 12:38:08 GMT -5
Is 3/4" going to be thick enough?
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Post by speedyron on May 7, 2016 12:35:16 GMT -5
Is 3/4" going to be thick enough? ive seen similar tanks and thats what they used i going in a concrete frame in the side of one wall the rest will bee all concrete
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Post by speedyron on May 30, 2016 5:18:20 GMT -5
Got ground work all done the tank gonna be where the big window is to the left of the door and viewed from the otherside there will be a room for it on this side complete with floor drain to house all equipment Attachments:
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Post by speedyron on May 30, 2016 7:00:39 GMT -5
Gotta have amplified music to build Attachments:
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Post by spotfin on May 31, 2016 16:38:15 GMT -5
Keep the updates coming. This is going to be cool.
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Post by scoobnoob on May 31, 2016 21:35:54 GMT -5
Your nuts and I absolutely love it!
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Post by speedyron on Jun 4, 2016 18:57:28 GMT -5
Radiant barrier and remesh
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Post by speedyron on Jun 4, 2016 19:02:21 GMT -5
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Post by speedyron on Jun 4, 2016 19:07:38 GMT -5
And dont forget the musak Attachments:
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Post by speedyron on Jun 4, 2016 19:10:04 GMT -5
My neighbors would hate me if i had some close enoughn
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Post by speedyron on Jun 4, 2016 19:13:22 GMT -5
Sorry would go much quicker but im gone outta town all week
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