David R's 2000L tank build
- Thread starter David R
- Start date
So the build went off without a hitch really, it was the first time I've ever watched a tank being built, and of course I was doing more than just spectate! Despite Greg the tank maker having two stitches in his hand from an altercation with an angle-grinder the previous evening, he made the three hour drive up with the remainder of the glass and we set to it, with my father helping out with the moving and holding while we got the base and sides in place. A little over four hours later it looked like this;
My wife has a few more construction pics on her phone, I'll upload them later when she gets home.
Back panel painted, bulkheads in place, lines masked up for the black silicone.
Sides going on.
Looks great as a rimless open topped tank, maybe I could only fill it half way up...
The overflow ended up being a little bigger than I had anticipated. Originally I had planned for 400x150mm, but the previous day when I was collecting the glass from his shop we were looking for a piece of tinted glass to do the job and found one that was 470 wide, so I said don't bother cutting it down. Then when he arrived yesterday he reminded me with the euro brace and the 150mm wide overflow I'd be struggling to get my hand into it if ever I needed to rescue something. Good point, so we increased the width making the final size 470x200mm. I guess it is a good thing having a larger area for the water to flow across, I had specified the overflow be 50mm below the height of the back panel, but forgot to take into account the 15mm thickness of the euro brace, so there is only a 35mm gap between the top of the weir and the bottom of the brace.
The previous day after getting the ply and poly on the stand we had done a bit of dead reckoning to pre-drill the holes for the overflow drains. The holes are 60mm and the pipe is about 55mm outside diameter so there is a little leeway, however once the back of the tank was on I had a look thru from the other side and was pleasantly surprised with how perfectly it all lined up.
This is the spot in the garage directly behind the tank where the sump will sit, eventually encased in an insulated cupboard. The two holes on the left are for the drains, the one on the right for the return.
The room where the tank is isn't huge, I took this standing on a trestle outside the door to show the couch in relation to the tank.
I'm planning on spending a fair bit of time down here, which is why I wanted the tank at eye level while sitting, here's the view from the couch.
Luckily there is this little nook under the stairs which will allow me to get far enough back from the tank to get the obligatory 'full tank shot'.
And last but not least, the one you've all been waiting for...
Sorry I couldn't convince my wife or someone more photogenic than I to pose in it...
Overall I'm very happy with how it has turned out, really glad I opted for black silicone at the last minute, and very appreciative of the work Greg has done despite the doctor suggesting he has a couple of days off to let his hand heal. The size of the tank fits the room perfectly IMO, there is enough room to squeeze down either side of the tank [just, will be good motivation to reduce my waste line I think!] and the width and height look well proportioned for my tastes.
So now we wait, there's some pretty thick joins there and I want to make sure the silicone cures completely before filling. I also need to finish my plan for the sump and get it to Greg ASAP. Might not be much to update over the next week or two.
My wife has a few more construction pics on her phone, I'll upload them later when she gets home.
Back panel painted, bulkheads in place, lines masked up for the black silicone.
Sides going on.
Looks great as a rimless open topped tank, maybe I could only fill it half way up...
The overflow ended up being a little bigger than I had anticipated. Originally I had planned for 400x150mm, but the previous day when I was collecting the glass from his shop we were looking for a piece of tinted glass to do the job and found one that was 470 wide, so I said don't bother cutting it down. Then when he arrived yesterday he reminded me with the euro brace and the 150mm wide overflow I'd be struggling to get my hand into it if ever I needed to rescue something. Good point, so we increased the width making the final size 470x200mm. I guess it is a good thing having a larger area for the water to flow across, I had specified the overflow be 50mm below the height of the back panel, but forgot to take into account the 15mm thickness of the euro brace, so there is only a 35mm gap between the top of the weir and the bottom of the brace.
The previous day after getting the ply and poly on the stand we had done a bit of dead reckoning to pre-drill the holes for the overflow drains. The holes are 60mm and the pipe is about 55mm outside diameter so there is a little leeway, however once the back of the tank was on I had a look thru from the other side and was pleasantly surprised with how perfectly it all lined up.
This is the spot in the garage directly behind the tank where the sump will sit, eventually encased in an insulated cupboard. The two holes on the left are for the drains, the one on the right for the return.
The room where the tank is isn't huge, I took this standing on a trestle outside the door to show the couch in relation to the tank.
I'm planning on spending a fair bit of time down here, which is why I wanted the tank at eye level while sitting, here's the view from the couch.
Luckily there is this little nook under the stairs which will allow me to get far enough back from the tank to get the obligatory 'full tank shot'.
And last but not least, the one you've all been waiting for...
Sorry I couldn't convince my wife or someone more photogenic than I to pose in it...
Overall I'm very happy with how it has turned out, really glad I opted for black silicone at the last minute, and very appreciative of the work Greg has done despite the doctor suggesting he has a couple of days off to let his hand heal. The size of the tank fits the room perfectly IMO, there is enough room to squeeze down either side of the tank [just, will be good motivation to reduce my waste line I think!] and the width and height look well proportioned for my tastes.
So now we wait, there's some pretty thick joins there and I want to make sure the silicone cures completely before filling. I also need to finish my plan for the sump and get it to Greg ASAP. Might not be much to update over the next week or two.
PM'd. I'm not interested in discussing costs in an open forum, I'll just say that the labour portion of the cost was very reasonable IMO, and the fact that he was able to source me the 15mm glass for a good price made me very happy too...
It's a must-have as far as I'm concerned! If you can sit in comfort while watching the fish you'll spend more time doing it. Originally I wanted the tank in the livingroom but we ended up buying a house instead of building, and the only one of our criteria that it didn't meet was the potential to have a big tank in the lounge...
