ange Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 (edited) I purchased this tank 19 days ago and it's finally "ready" for fish! The silicone finished curing last week and this week I finished testing for leaks. I don't trust the stand that it came with when I purchased it so I'm building one from scratch, which is my next part of this ongoing project. It came with some accessories when I purchased it but the only one worth mention is the 50 foot Python. It was moldy and needed a new T pump and switch but is in good condition now. Total spent for the tank and lid: Silicone - $10 Acetone - $8 Acrylic handle - $9 6" hinges - $10 (pack of 5, I only used 2) Total spent: $87 This number definitely goes up when you account for money spent repairing the Python ($11) and on the stand ($80 in so far, and I've only built the frame). This is mainly a therapy project for myself since this is my first fish tank in almost 5 years. Edited November 16, 2020 by ange Title 5 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADMWNDSR83 Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 Looks like it's going to be great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted September 14, 2020 Author Share Posted September 14, 2020 Thanks! Having the patience for building the stand and getting it right is an absolute trial 😭 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADMWNDSR83 Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 I don't think I'm exact enough... I wanted to build a stand for my 37 but was sure I'd end up making it a little off level and break my tank while I'm out at work or something equally catastrophic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseychef Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 I keep seeing tanks like these listed on facebook marketplace. One of these days I'll bite the bullet and pick one up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alesha Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 Ange, it looks like it's going to be a beautiful tank! And a great project for therapy! I hope you'll feel your soul settle into the beauty of the project & feel accomplished & proud when it's ready to be used. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 This is looking amazing! I can't wait to see a photo with the newly constructed stand! woohoo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted September 14, 2020 Author Share Posted September 14, 2020 This is my stand so far. The frame was just completed today. My main concern right now is that I don't have a table saw that I can use to cut the plywood that I want to use for wrapping the frame. I'm also planning to use some wood epoxy to fill in a few crevasses before wrapping. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 wow! looks super strong! nice work... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted September 14, 2020 Author Share Posted September 14, 2020 (edited) Thanks! Dimensions as of right now are 44x24x24" but the final product will be larger since the plywood that I selected has a 3/4" thickness. It will have space for the hex (which is about 24" at the widest point), HOB (hung from the narrowest point), and plenty of space for me to have my supplies or put in a small footprint tank down the line. I'm hoping to put in some cabinets in the bottom too, but this is my first BIG aquarium furniture project so maybe I'm getting a little too ahead of myself haha. Edited September 14, 2020 by ange words are hard 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drenon88 Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 Any updates Ange? That stand you built could hold a couple tons! 😀 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted October 21, 2020 Author Share Posted October 21, 2020 1 hour ago, David Olszewski said: Any updates Ange? That stand you built could hold a couple tons! 😀 I've been in project purgatory due to other things cropping up but currently the stand only needs to have the sides added + all of it stained. This is what it looks like now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted November 4, 2020 Author Share Posted November 4, 2020 Things are moving pretty quickly again. These last few days I've stained + moved the stand to its final home and started to fill up the storage 🥰 The stain doesn't pop too much in the garage but it looks AWESOME in the display room. This took a long time and I didn't keep that strong of a track on my receipts so prices are estimated based on the Home Depot website. The dimensions are 45" long and 24" wide. If I'd been less conservative with length, I would be able to put a 20H on the other side of the stand! Instead I think I may do a 10G in the future, there's something I've been really wanting to do but I need to wait until the spring to make it possible and I don't like to talk about projects until I've actually made some progress on them 😆 $40 - 2x4x8 (7) $50 - 3/4" plywood $12 - deck screws $15 - stain Approximate total cost: $117 I'd also like to thank my lovely bf and his dad for helping me, neither of them are aquarists but are more handy than I am. I provided them with cut lists and they were able to do 90% of the assembly for me (including the bottom for the cabinet that I hadn't even planned to build). On moving day for the tank, I successfully bumped the rim pretty hard and ended up snapping it in 3 different places. I have repaired it with super glue gel on the joints reinforced by some reef epoxy but I haven't stress tested it at ALL so will talk about it when I next update! My plan as of right now is to put a 1/2" EVA foam mat underneath the rim to help with distributing pressure. We'll see what ends up happening in the future. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted November 5, 2020 Author Share Posted November 5, 2020 Rim survived a 24 hour fill test with everything but the fish! Everyone has been moved in. My angelfish pair are already cleaning the glass like crazy even though they spawned again 4 days ago. One of these days I'm going to have to attempt hatching their eggs, they spawn too frequently to ignore! Confessions of a bad aquarist: since I had to move my 29g and didn't have a place to put it until December (yay estate sales) the fish were actually in an 18 gallon storage container on my bathroom floor for awhile. Luckily I didn't have any casualties but it was nervewracking for me and my angels DEFINITELY have stress induced fin rot. The water is extremely stained with tannins and I'm filtering out some fine particles, hopefully my bloom doesn't last for too long since I'm using the same filter media that was in their previous tanks. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alesha Posted November 5, 2020 Share Posted November 5, 2020 Great job @ange and whew! Getting to this point is so rewarding. Now you get to sit back, dial in those parameters & ENJOY NATURE! 😃👍 Thanks for taking us along on your journey. 😍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted November 5, 2020 Author Share Posted November 5, 2020 Just now, akconklin said: Great job @ange and whew! Getting to this point is so rewarding. Now you get to sit back, dial in those parameters & ENJOY NATURE! 😃👍 Thanks for taking us along on your journey. 😍 I'm glad you've enjoyed reading this! I can't wait to see the plants get established. It's hard to see but I have Christmas moss, Crypt. tropica, mixed Val (jungle + leopard, I have a bunch of very short plants with runners that I'd been growing in 5 gallon buckets for the last few months!), and 3 Amazon sword plantlets. I wanted to keep my plants as low maintenance as possible since trimming in a tank this tall is a chore! It's 31" tall and I'm only 65" tall, when I was putting the plants in initially I had to get up on the stand so that I could reach in the tank 😂 Current stock: 2 Bolivian rams (M) 1 BN pleco (M) 2 adult angelfish (1M1F) 1 juvenile angelfish (unsexed) 2 bettas (F, this is an experiment and there's a pretty good chance they're going to end up in a divided 10 gallon for my own peace of mind) I'm pretty happy with the fish that are in there right now, though once things settle I'm considering quarantining in some albino cories or a fourth angelfish (I think platinum would REALLY pop). It's a 50 gallon tank but the footprint is the same surface area as a 20H so I want to make sure there's enough horizontal space for everyone. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
be28ans Posted November 5, 2020 Share Posted November 5, 2020 Great job 🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alesha Posted November 6, 2020 Share Posted November 6, 2020 6 hours ago, ange said: I'm glad you've enjoyed reading this! I can't wait to see the plants get established. It's hard to see but I have Christmas moss, Crypt. tropica, mixed Val (jungle + leopard, I have a bunch of very short plants with runners that I'd been growing in 5 gallon buckets for the last few months!), and 3 Amazon sword plantlets. I wanted to keep my plants as low maintenance as possible since trimming in a tank this tall is a chore! It's 31" tall and I'm only 65" tall, when I was putting the plants in initially I had to get up on the stand so that I could reach in the tank 😂 Current stock: 2 Bolivian rams (M) 1 BN pleco (M) 2 adult angelfish (1M1F) 1 juvenile angelfish (unsexed) 2 bettas (F, this is an experiment and there's a pretty good chance they're going to end up in a divided 10 gallon for my own peace of mind) I'm pretty happy with the fish that are in there right now, though once things settle I'm considering quarantining in some albino cories or a fourth angelfish (I think platinum would REALLY pop). It's a 50 gallon tank but the footprint is the same surface area as a 20H so I want to make sure there's enough horizontal space for everyone. I was telling my husband (6'3") about your tank & your height disadvantage. 😄 I completely understand it. If it weren't for him, our 55-gallon would never have any scaping changes. I can't reach the bottom of it either. 🙄 You were smart to start growing plants before you needed them. I'm curious what the short plants with the runners are? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted November 6, 2020 Author Share Posted November 6, 2020 2 hours ago, akconklin said: I'm curious what the short plants with the runners are? Those are my Vals! They were grown in a 5 gallon Home Depot bucket which is why they're so short at the moment. I have a mix of jungle Val + a small amount of leopard Val. It looks a bit like a dwarf sag plant but I promise it's not haha. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Streetwise Posted November 6, 2020 Share Posted November 6, 2020 @ange, I love how you used such a tall piece of Mopani wood to match the verticality of your tank! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted November 6, 2020 Author Share Posted November 6, 2020 Thank you! It was hard finding a vertical piece of decor and I'm very happy with what I have now! I had to attach 3 pieces to each other using reef epoxy to get this look and I am in LOVE with it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Streetwise Posted November 6, 2020 Share Posted November 6, 2020 I like a good trilogy. Well done! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruud Posted November 6, 2020 Share Posted November 6, 2020 Hadn't seen this thread before, but was a great build and such a nice tank to enjoy your pair of Angels! Congrats on a job well done! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ange Posted November 6, 2020 Author Share Posted November 6, 2020 (edited) I had to make two changes today. First, my nitrates spiked so I added an entire 5g bucket of frogbit to the tank. Second, the two female bettas weren't getting along. The aggressor is currently free in the tank and the other one is hanging out in a net breeder (she has frogbit for cover but I removed it for photos) so that I can monitor her. The one that was getting picked on is most likely moving into my MTS tank however it's super gross so I'm doing a heavy gravel vac and waiting for the water to clarify before moving her. The nitrate spike is almost certainly caused by the soil that is above the sand layer (I have an inch of soil, ~2 inches of sand, and a small amount of soil above sand). I have pothos and frogbit on nitrate duty and have added charcoal to help with the tannins. I like having them in the water, but it was seriously impacting visibility. The water where I live is extremely buffered so my pH is a miraculous 7.6. I really like the look of some dirt on top of the sand + it helps to draw attention away from fish poop so hopefully I don't have to remove it down the line. Edited November 6, 2020 by ange Forgot to mention the filter changes/Fluval 3.0 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alesha Posted November 6, 2020 Share Posted November 6, 2020 Well, pooh! I'm sorry the girls aren't playing well together! 🙄 Glad you caught it before there was great damage. Ohhhhh...those nitrates in soil and dirt. I think they are what has caused my tank to be soooo touchy. Especially since I was adding Easy Green too, not realizing that I didn't need that for a while. The soil was just put in last October and I had trouble with my parameters all the way through the spring of this year. Now things have leveled out, thankfully. Hoping you see some balance restored soon. Thanks for the update! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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