Budget ISO container aquarium concept with scetches 12,000 liter (2,600gal)

Griller

Gambusia
MFK Member
Hi Monster Fish Keepers,

I'm a very experienced fish keeper. I used to manage a marine aquaculture farm and have been fish keeping all my adult life. But I have never attempted a project like this.

I'm toying with the idea of building a monster aquarium for my house and I would like your input:

Here is my rough plan, not including lids, heating and filtration concept.

I get a 20' ISO container for around $1,500 AUD, put it on it's end and cut it down to 7' high. It will hold approx 12,000 liter (2,600gal). Then I cut holes for the windows between the corrugations:



Then I seal the interior of the container and add the windows which will be narrow 50cm or so strips to improve strength. I'm not sure what I will seal and insulate the container with at this stage and would like some low-cost suggestions:


View of the interior:


I then remove one of my lounge room windows to become the viewing space for the aquarium:



And place the aquarium almost flush aginst the external wall:



View from kitchen:




View of window from back yard:



And with the tank added. I intend to put a veneer over the exterior of the container to make it look nice (got to keep the misses happy).



It looks like I can register it as a rainwater tank if it takes runoff from the roof. The federal government may help subsidise costs.

I'm ready for your input (especially on how to seal the interior).
 

Ken69

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 22, 2006
65
0
0
57
Wollongong, AUSTRALIA
Mate, Is that like a steel shipping container?? If you have a mate you can go halves and get a tank each! There must be some rubber paint material you can use to water proof it and make it fish safe, but I dont know for sure. Maybe you need to line it with thin ply and then apply the rubber? Or fibreglass? Good luck, I'm subscribed!
 

cvermeulen

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Jun 4, 2007
1,876
3
36
Los Osos, CA
You won't be the first to use an ISO container as a fish tank. There is a ray breeding facility someone constructed from 3 of them side by side.

I'm not certain what would be the best way to seal it though - there may be some substantial gaps in the corners that are not sealed. Fiberglass may work, but polyester and steel do not have the same thermal expansion rates, so one may break away from the other. Unless you made a complete fiberglass liner inside the tank, I am not certain how well that would work. Do you have a welder? you could go over all the corners and make sure they are 99% sealed, then go with a flexible lining material like Blue Max or Zavlar, or an Australian equivalent.

Looks like a great project - and well thought out at that! My only concern with rain water running off the roof would be potential contamination of your tank, predatory birds if the top is left open, etc.
 

wolfsburgfanatic

Fire Eel
MFK Member
May 17, 2008
1,121
5
68
Frederick, MD
rhino lining has been used to coat steel tanks for shrimp hatcheries- I'd look into that.

http://www.rhinolinings.com/applications/spray_what/shrimp_tanks

CASE STUDY: Shrimp Tanks
These tanks are used for the farming of shrimp. Manufacturing these tanks in stainless steel to eliminate corrosion is very expensive. Lining the tanks with Rhino Linings® means that they can be manufactured at a much lower cost, not only providing the farming industry with a cost effective product, but also providing ideal environmental conditions for healthy shrimp stocks.
looks like a very cool & unique project! Best of luck :thumbsup:
 

Thalan

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Sep 30, 2008
1,098
3
68
jacksonville
I would go for the rhino liner or equivalent, or maybe pond liner. Looks like it could be pretty sweet especially if as mentioned above you could turn into two tanks.
 

raymondk

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Oct 7, 2009
420
1
0
27
southern california
yewah cool project but the roofing will contaminate your water i would definetly look into that so u dont fill it up and then have to drain it again
 

Griller

Gambusia
MFK Member
Hahaha - why make one huse tank when you can make two! True MFK attitude - I love it :)

Thanks wolfsburgfanatic, I have sent an inquiry to a local rhinolinings dealer in Adelaide. I'll post the results.

cvermeulen - I had a look at that ISO megatank used for rays. At least it shows how strong those containers really are! Cool tank! Wish I had the space for it!!! My tank will be fully covered and filtered etc... I'm just considering the tank itself first - the rest once I've settled on the tank.

Ken69 - Yes it is a steel shipping container. I haven't fully settled on using it yet - still open to other options. I'm also making enquiries with swimming pool makers and considering Ply (don't think it will be up to the job). I started initially considering rainwater tanks but couldn't find a way to attach windows.

raymondk - I think you are right about the rainwater. All the subsidies in the world are useless if the fish are dead!

Thanks for your input guys - you have given me plenty of useful info and some extra motivation!

Here's a pic of one of the potential occupants, currently in my 1000liter tank:

 

brianhellno

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Nov 30, 2008
264
4
0
USA
Dude you've already impressed me with the designs alone, I can't wait to see what happens when you start doing it.
 

greenterra

Blue Tier VIP
MFK Member
Looks like an awesome project. A spray on Polyurethane would be perfect to line it. If you coated it inside and out it would help to insulate it considerably saving you $$$ on heating cost.
I would be looking at a product like this. http://www.polyguard.com.au/ Maybe you can find an equivalent in your state.
 
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