I've been out of the aquarium world since I gave away my 55 gallon aquarium and began digging my pond about 13 years ago. Now my pond is empty due to a leak cause by a critter chewing a hole in my 45 mil EPDM liner. I WILL get my pond going again but I'm a poor man and need to wait until we can afford to buy a new liner, and in the meantime, find the critters that caused the demise of my pond.
In the meantime, I bought a 230 gallon aquarium for $75 because it leaks; otherwise it would have cost hundreds. I know I can find and repair the leak; I have done so before. I can also build a wooden stand for it.
WIth the leak fixed and the stand built, I'll need to think about set-up and filtration. It was easy with a 55 gallon aquarium, but I've never had an aquarium as large as 230 gallons before and as I peruse the internet, I see some very intricate, expensive set-ups that include filtration, sump, automatic water change, aeration, and so forth and such like. Youtube.com is filled with videos to help with set-upp and filtration but I'd like to get some input from the members here before I get to that point so I can begin to collect what I'll need now, and know what I'll be doing when I get there.
My aquarium has 2 hole in the bottom for filtration, I believe they are at least 2" or slightly larger. The dimensions of my leaky aquarium are 72"X24"X31". Figuring the weight of the tank, and the water, if my calculations are accurate, it will weigh more than 2,200 pounds. Since it will go in our basement, this won't be a problem.
The location of the tank will be on the wall opposite the stairs going down (split level) so there is ample room under the stairs for filtration there. Just a few feet away, and against the front wall, is a sink with hot and cold running water so I could access those lines behind the wall or under the sink, as well as the drain.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. As for what fish I want to put in my new tank, they will be fresh water, but I want to go large this time if possible. Discus, cichlids, etc. something like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPybKZkH1CQ would be nice, but perhaps not the same set-up with all the rocks. I've always been a big fan of making the aquarium look appealing and a bit funny too. Maybe a human skull, a few pieces of my G scale railroad car that are no longer in service, and some plants; real or fake. And maybe these cichlids wouldn't leave any of that alone, but that's why I need to hear from you. Take me through from where I am now to completion. THANKS, hitman962
In the meantime, I bought a 230 gallon aquarium for $75 because it leaks; otherwise it would have cost hundreds. I know I can find and repair the leak; I have done so before. I can also build a wooden stand for it.
WIth the leak fixed and the stand built, I'll need to think about set-up and filtration. It was easy with a 55 gallon aquarium, but I've never had an aquarium as large as 230 gallons before and as I peruse the internet, I see some very intricate, expensive set-ups that include filtration, sump, automatic water change, aeration, and so forth and such like. Youtube.com is filled with videos to help with set-upp and filtration but I'd like to get some input from the members here before I get to that point so I can begin to collect what I'll need now, and know what I'll be doing when I get there.
My aquarium has 2 hole in the bottom for filtration, I believe they are at least 2" or slightly larger. The dimensions of my leaky aquarium are 72"X24"X31". Figuring the weight of the tank, and the water, if my calculations are accurate, it will weigh more than 2,200 pounds. Since it will go in our basement, this won't be a problem.
The location of the tank will be on the wall opposite the stairs going down (split level) so there is ample room under the stairs for filtration there. Just a few feet away, and against the front wall, is a sink with hot and cold running water so I could access those lines behind the wall or under the sink, as well as the drain.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. As for what fish I want to put in my new tank, they will be fresh water, but I want to go large this time if possible. Discus, cichlids, etc. something like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPybKZkH1CQ would be nice, but perhaps not the same set-up with all the rocks. I've always been a big fan of making the aquarium look appealing and a bit funny too. Maybe a human skull, a few pieces of my G scale railroad car that are no longer in service, and some plants; real or fake. And maybe these cichlids wouldn't leave any of that alone, but that's why I need to hear from you. Take me through from where I am now to completion. THANKS, hitman962
). My brother and I did the plumbing since he had done it first to his reef tank, and I liked the professional and clean look of the pipes. We also put in appropriate gate valves and ball valves for water control and maintenance. I hope this triggers some ideas so that you can see how little or how far you want to go.
