Space.......just never enough of it for fish tanks really. Once they started taking over the house and I realized I was running out of space, we decided to move all the "work" or grow-out tanks to the garage. The biggest hurdle for me is the temps though as it gets really hot in Orlando in the summer. 86-88 on average in the garage and those temps only work for certain species I keep. Most prefer much cooler temps and chillers are expensive and cost a fortune to run.
A drip system was the first thing setup as it made the most sense. Cut into the cold water line off the water heater, added a carbon block, pressure regulator and ran tubing around the room. Each tank has at least (1) 2 gph drip emitter...120 and 210 have a pair. All tanks drains run around the back into a common drip pan which has a single bulkhead/hose that runs out to the garden. Water changes automatically and temps stay around 78-80 currently.... a little warm for the ornatum ideally, but they seem to love the 48 gallons of fresh water each day and been very active and colored up, eating well.
After I built the stand for the 210 and realized how easy and cheaply they could be done, I was inspired to build stands for everything. Standard design....... The 120 is a 5' tank so a 4' 75 could fit perfectly underneath of there was not center support. I was a little concerned about the span, but after getting some help from Pharaoh(thanks brotha!) I decided to just double up everything except for the bottom frame that the 75 actually sits on. Stand ended up being ridiculously overbuilt, but for an extra $20 in lumber it gave me peace of mind. The other 2 stands are built for a 4' tank on top with a 3' footer underneath, same basic design. The one in the corner has a 60 top and a 40B bottom. The other has a 90 that will become my next breeding project and will eventually have a 40B underneath as well. Right now it just parts central.
The 210 has our jag, pearsei, freddy, jd and a few mbuna. This will be last stop for grow outs and hopefully a future home for a pair of ornatum. The 120 has just the 6 ornatum. 75, 60 and 40 all house festae fry of various sizes. The 90 has a few festae keeping the filter functioning till I build the setup, which will be L46 breeding tank. Still have a ways to go on that though....
Its not complete, but it's a definite start. Thanks for looking!
A drip system was the first thing setup as it made the most sense. Cut into the cold water line off the water heater, added a carbon block, pressure regulator and ran tubing around the room. Each tank has at least (1) 2 gph drip emitter...120 and 210 have a pair. All tanks drains run around the back into a common drip pan which has a single bulkhead/hose that runs out to the garden. Water changes automatically and temps stay around 78-80 currently.... a little warm for the ornatum ideally, but they seem to love the 48 gallons of fresh water each day and been very active and colored up, eating well.
After I built the stand for the 210 and realized how easy and cheaply they could be done, I was inspired to build stands for everything. Standard design....... The 120 is a 5' tank so a 4' 75 could fit perfectly underneath of there was not center support. I was a little concerned about the span, but after getting some help from Pharaoh(thanks brotha!) I decided to just double up everything except for the bottom frame that the 75 actually sits on. Stand ended up being ridiculously overbuilt, but for an extra $20 in lumber it gave me peace of mind. The other 2 stands are built for a 4' tank on top with a 3' footer underneath, same basic design. The one in the corner has a 60 top and a 40B bottom. The other has a 90 that will become my next breeding project and will eventually have a 40B underneath as well. Right now it just parts central.
The 210 has our jag, pearsei, freddy, jd and a few mbuna. This will be last stop for grow outs and hopefully a future home for a pair of ornatum. The 120 has just the 6 ornatum. 75, 60 and 40 all house festae fry of various sizes. The 90 has a few festae keeping the filter functioning till I build the setup, which will be L46 breeding tank. Still have a ways to go on that though....
Its not complete, but it's a definite start. Thanks for looking!
