Hey everyone ... got some updates to share, but they might not be the ones you guys are looking forward to...
So I realized there are a few things I needed to do before I got this bad boy up and fully running, and unable to move...including (a) Paint the back, and (b) install a GFCI in an outlet behind the stand.
So, here are some pictures of the painting process (you'll see I taped the ends and used some plastic wrap on the water-touching aspects of the tank to ensure nothing chemically bad gets into the tank):
For anyone curious, I used this:
99 cents at Lowes, and it was marked as Krylon Flat Black. I used 3 total coats - in the Atlanta sun it took 20 minutes to dry, so overall about an hour total.
As you'll see in the last picture, I was also trying to clean off some sand I had purchased from someone on Craigslist. This is the sand:
Unfortunately, the sand is...not as white as I want. So I'm not going to be able to use it. This comes to my first question (and one I'll be sure to research), but what is the best white sand out there that isn't going to cost me an arm and a leg??
I found this at Lowes:
Premium Play Sand - is that the whitest I'll get?? It's still not all that white, unfortunately....
Anyways, the second part of my project today, being an electrician!
This is the outlet that I used:
...drumroll...
And the finished result!
And...it actually works
haha. Which was somewhat surprising. And the fact that I'm typing this means I didn't die in the process.
Anyways, the next step is sand, then water, then we're on to fish!
So please help with the sand!! (Also, recommendations on sand bed depth / overall amount of sand would be helpful. The tank is about 48 x 18, unsure of what depth I should use (not looking for plants, at least not many plants)...2-3 inches? So about 100 lbs? Thoughts?)
Thats all for now. Once I get sand I'll have some better pictures to display...
(also - I realize you guys are recommending the Pool Filter Sand. I checked that out this weekend and the only PFS I found resembled the color of brown sugar crystals. Not white at all, and the employee said they've never seen any PFS that wasn't a brown-ish color. Should I look around more, or is that the best I can expect to find? Anyone wanna share their brand / purchase location? Thanks in advance...really wanna get sand in there so I can get FISH in there!!! )
So I realized there are a few things I needed to do before I got this bad boy up and fully running, and unable to move...including (a) Paint the back, and (b) install a GFCI in an outlet behind the stand.
So, here are some pictures of the painting process (you'll see I taped the ends and used some plastic wrap on the water-touching aspects of the tank to ensure nothing chemically bad gets into the tank):
For anyone curious, I used this:
99 cents at Lowes, and it was marked as Krylon Flat Black. I used 3 total coats - in the Atlanta sun it took 20 minutes to dry, so overall about an hour total.
As you'll see in the last picture, I was also trying to clean off some sand I had purchased from someone on Craigslist. This is the sand:
Unfortunately, the sand is...not as white as I want. So I'm not going to be able to use it. This comes to my first question (and one I'll be sure to research), but what is the best white sand out there that isn't going to cost me an arm and a leg??
I found this at Lowes:
Premium Play Sand - is that the whitest I'll get?? It's still not all that white, unfortunately....
Anyways, the second part of my project today, being an electrician!
This is the outlet that I used:
...drumroll...
And the finished result!
And...it actually works
haha. Which was somewhat surprising. And the fact that I'm typing this means I didn't die in the process. Anyways, the next step is sand, then water, then we're on to fish!
So please help with the sand!! (Also, recommendations on sand bed depth / overall amount of sand would be helpful. The tank is about 48 x 18, unsure of what depth I should use (not looking for plants, at least not many plants)...2-3 inches? So about 100 lbs? Thoughts?)
Thats all for now. Once I get sand I'll have some better pictures to display...
(also - I realize you guys are recommending the Pool Filter Sand. I checked that out this weekend and the only PFS I found resembled the color of brown sugar crystals. Not white at all, and the employee said they've never seen any PFS that wasn't a brown-ish color. Should I look around more, or is that the best I can expect to find? Anyone wanna share their brand / purchase location? Thanks in advance...really wanna get sand in there so I can get FISH in there!!!
)