i have an idea

[Morledzep]

ok.. i know you've all seen the big aquariums with the center overflow thingies so there is no back of the tank and it's viewable from all sides.

i want to use one of these type of tanks in my dining area and make a dining table/breakfast bar type of thing that goes around the outside of the tank. With one or two sections that fold up so you can access the tank to feed the fish and do maintenance.. of course.

like maybe a 4'x6'x4' tank, the stand would be the main support for the eating area also, but would come off with minor fuss to be moved if necessary. Maybe out of a nice hardwood? with either golden or very dark stain.

make the dining bar about 30" wide, and where the table top flips up there could be a stair step type of thing allowing access to the top of the tank for maintenance on either side.

i want it to be bar height because i believe it would make access to the filters in the stand under the tank easier than if it was at regular dining table height.

ok.. i'm looking for input, suggestions, ideas and some talented and helpful someone to help me make the building plans.

 

[Dr Joe]

Is this going to be similar to setting a tank in the middle of the dining table (simplistically put)?

 

[Morledzep]

Dr.

yep, pretty much.. but less like an aquarium on a dining table and more like sitting at a bar and eating while watching fish.

any suggestions or ideas?

 

[chesterthehero]

so a fishtank with a center overflow and a table on all sides?

 

[Morledzep]

so a fishtank with a center overflow and a table on all sides?

right, bar height, with sections on two sides that flip up and have a step stool to get into the tank for set up and maintenance.

i'm still working on how to hide the airlines for the foam filters and how many i'll need, i think i have an idea though. and i'm thinking of using a pond filter rather than my usual FX5's.

 

[zennzzo]

Sounds cool, and very doable...just don't stock it with large Plecos...

 

[Morledzep]

Sounds cool, and very doable...just don't stock it with large Plecos...

lol, nope.. my big peacock bass, my silver aro and my 2 smaller catfish are going in there. only one pleco, my cave dweller, he's been in the same tank with these guys forever. actually my smaller set of peacock bass might go in there too.. there will be more than enough room for everybody and they are probably big enough that they won't be eaten.

i still haven't decided how to deal with this RTC.. she's an only fish right now and she needs a bigger tank. I would much prefer if the man that claims she is his would come and get her.

 

[Pharaoh]

you could put the table leafs on piano hinges allowing for you to tilt them upwards.

I would just build a sump for the tank and forget about using sponge filters. you could run air lines to the sump to aerate.

 

[Morledzep]

you could put the table leafs on piano hinges allowing for you to tilt them upwards.

I would just build a sump for the tank and forget about using sponge filters. you could run air lines to the sump to aerate.

while aeration is a good and worthy cause, it is not my main motivation for putting foam filters in my tanks. Foam filters are WONDERFUL bio-filtration, and with a battery powered air pump they can keep a tank from crashing in an electrical outage.

for this tank i would probably go with an Uninterupted power supply and with at least 2 MA 600 airpumps. and 4 - 8 foam filters. and i don't remember if i said this before but i'll probably go with a pond filter instead of multiple FX5's for the mechanical filtration.

i like your piano hinges idea. that might just work. and i think i want the step stools in the bottom to be pull out like drawers, if that's possible. i guess i'm going to have to pay someone to help me with the plans. or take a crash course in cabinette making..

 

[chesterthehero]

cabinets are just boxes with doors.. a flipdown step stool is a good idea till you need to move it over a few inches to reach something... so might be more work than its worth as far as the stool goes.. but a bunch of cubbyholes to keep stuff in.. one of them being big enough to hold a stool sounds like a good idea..