phoenix44 Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 make sure you document everything! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted June 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 I will try The following shows where ive put caves and tunnels in blue, red up top right is where water comes from filter and red at bottom is gap under poly that goes to compartment that holds two heaters and filter outlet. the gap underneath poly will have gravel right up over it to prevent fish from getting in there. but water will still flow through gravel. any ideas on this idea or better way i would go about it? not very good job but paint is all i know how to use lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WEKA Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 Hi si_sphinx I used a black oxide with my Cemix Patch to get a charcoal coloured finish. The background is for a cold water marine and is 1500mm x 600mm. I had only reached the stage of doing some FW hydraulics testing in 2007 when I got a job offer overseas so had not got to the stage of doing any water quality testing. I am back again now and have decided to coat the whole thing with epoxy resin and use sand to finish the final coat. The epoxy supplier said the resin would be fish safe but to give it a wash with baking soda when finished to remove any smell. I am currently trying to find a supply of black sand but I am not having much luck. Can anyone help with this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted June 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 11, 2009 Ive cut the spaces for the spray bar, intake pipe and heaters I plan to have the gap under the poly for the intake pipe and heater to be under the level of gravel to keep the fish out. Does anyone have any ideas on this and if it will work well for filtration etc. i Just don't want the fish going in there and getting stuck(will be ok when they are too big to fit in the gap) Ive also gone over the entire thing with a heat gun and it has made it very hard and stable ready to receive a coat of concrete if i get round to it this weekend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoon Posted June 12, 2009 Report Share Posted June 12, 2009 u mite find if the intake section is completely sealed to the glass and is only able to suck from the gravel that the water level in the section mite go down faster than what the gravel allows in but its one of those things you will have to wait and c about. would depend on the size of your gravel also Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted June 12, 2009 Report Share Posted June 12, 2009 What adhesive did you use to glue the pieces together without it all disolving. I heard no more nails is OK. Anybody know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted June 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2009 some people use gorilla glue. but i used good old hot glue gun :lol: Because im too impatient to wait for glue to dry. Although hot glue melts poly, it didn't melt mine as the stuff i used is harder smaller beaded poly. was a lot easier to work with than normal white poly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WEKA Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 There is a special polystyrene glue. I think it is Ados and should be available at Mitre10. No more nails does work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted June 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 Yes ados aerosols work well too. A4 i think its called. Ok so ive got my tank made for this background now and talked to LFS about my background etc. This is what they had to say... -They don't recommend the background as its a breeding ground for bad bacteria. -I will probably end up cooking my heaters in behind it. -There wont be enough water current in there the way ive got the spray bar. -and ill never be able to keep fish in the tank if i use concrete. I agree about not enough water current as i do need a decent filter but ive gotta save up for one yet. And i haven't finished cutting out the gap for the heaters yet. Any advise or thoughts anyone...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WEKA Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 Get a sump and run your heater in there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoon Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 it wont cook ur heaters and lol a breeding grond for bad bacteria!! polystyrene has a huge surface area as the water eventually soaks into between the beads if u cycle your tank this will work to your advantage as for the concrete im sure you know it will rise the ph but if you know this im sure you know how to use a ph test kit! ive always used epoxy glue like 5min araldite to glue poly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diver21 Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 what sort of fish are you planning for this tank? i dont think that waterflow would be too important aslong as the water is sufficently filtered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 -They don't recommend the background as its a breeding ground for bad bacteria. -I will probably end up cooking my heaters in behind it. -There wont be enough water current in there the way ive got the spray bar. -and ill never be able to keep fish in the tank if i use concrete. -Bacteria may breed in the background but if there is water flow past it it should be good bacteria, it may be a place where waste may accumulate and might be hard to get at but shouldn't cause problems. -Heaters should be fine as long as there is enough room around them and water flow past them if you are worried about this I think the new fluvals have an auto cut off if they get too hot? -I can't quite see how the spray bar is working, are you running it into that long chamber and then out a hole in the rockwork? It should work, I probably would have ran it behind the rockwork and used irrigation tubing to run small jets through the wall and straight into the tank if that makes any sense.. -I have seen a few diy threads on the net where people use concrete but also plenty saying it is a problem, goldfish live in concrete ponds and are fine? I think it just raises the ph? lol if we all believed LFS advice we would have all sorts of problems Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VinsonMassif Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 If you are really worried about the concrete. Put some in a container/tub fill it with water and test the water parameters at set intervals and see how long it takes for the water parameters to become stable. + how many water changes.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 yep yep. i too tested the parameters with concrete before I added it to my system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoon Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 and with the heaters they all will cut out when they get too hot not just fluval this is how they all work . they will cut out at the temp that you set them to Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 lol so they will its been a long day.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chilli Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 just seen your post great job i wouldnt worry about heaters over heating coz they do turn off just check temp furthest away from heat(water outlet) maybe might need stronger pump if heat water not getting round tank(thats all i can think of) ps if doesnt work out drain tank and get beardies hahaha cant wait too see it transformed in tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoon Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 why not use a powerhead or a cheap pond pump for more circulation if u need it ? u could have a spare compartment made just in case you need to use it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave+Amy Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 Wow I can't wait to see your finished result!! (with fish etc lol) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WEKA Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 I made my background from two 100mm sheets of poly and carved out the front with a hot wire. I separated the two sheets during this process to help with the cutting out of the caves. I then gave the front several coats of Cemix Patch mixed with a black oxide colour. When this was fully hardened I then cut out as much of the back as I could to reduce the buoyancy. This was then also coated with the Cemix Patch. I then drilled about 15 holes thru the "shell" mainly into the back of the caves. The holes are covered with a nylon mesh to stop critters getting into the rear of the wall. The perimeter of the background was a snug fit to the glass all around. I applies a fat bead of silicon (about 10mm + dia) all around the area of contact with the glass and covered the silicon with strips of glad wrap and pressed the background into place. This gave me a gasket to seal the rear of the background from the rest of the tank. The glad wrap just peeled off when the silicon cured. I installed two squids in the back which are feed off the sump return line and penetrate the wall in discrete positions. The "cork" was replaced with a restrictor which allows a controlled flow to enter the space at the rear and then thru the others holes in the wall mainly in the rear of the caves to stop any water stagnation in those areas. I have run the system for a while with fresh water to check out the hydraulics thru my outdoor plant room. I had to mothball the set up while out of NZ last year but am about to recommission as a cold saltwater. I am planning to give the background a few coats of epoxy with a sand finish before I fill the tank again. I hope you can understand all of this and maybe it will help others with their projects. I have had a lot of fun with this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixon1990 Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 WEKA- That is awesome!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted June 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2009 its going to be a cichlid tank. Yes i was thinking about a power head somewhere behind the poly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted June 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2009 I'm starting to think the background isn't such a good idea. I want a tank where nothing can go wrong and as easy to look after as possible. As awesome as it would look i don't think I'm going to put it in the tank However it may find itself in it one day :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted June 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2009 unless someone wants to come and seal it in my tank for me....? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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