DIY Custom Acrylic Betta Barracks

[Nibblets]

Hey all, thought i would show off the process of me building my new custom betta barracks i will use to hold my breeders. (Approx 100L)

First of all ill clear some things up about what ive done

 

Acrylic is being used due to the fact of it actually being cheaper than glass for this project (more than $200 cheaper)

Also its easier to make the little slots you will see later

 

Firstly i ordered the acrylic from 'Anything Acrylic' with a cost of $260 (cut)

Here is the bottom panel (1220x400)

I then proceeded by using acrylic sealant to attach the sides into an L shape seen here.

Here i have added the pieces that will soon become the filter

This filter design was chosen for a few reasons:

1: It is a hell of a lot cheaper than a normal filter (and i didn't want to put sponge filters everywhere)

2: It creates the flow to push the water through all sections to keep waste moving and to ensure all water is properly filtered

3: Clear walls so i am able to see when i need to clean (because i am lazy) 

Here are the dividers that i am adding to the tank, in total 8 dividers creating space for 10 betta.

Here is the actual dimensions 

On both the top and bottom they have slots to allow for water flow from section to section.

 

Here i filled the finished tank with water to see if it had any leaks.

There was one small leak on the bottom of the filter section so i patched that up later on.

I added red food colouring to the water to check what the flow was like and i am happy with the results

I am still yet to figure out how i am going get the water from the pump into the first section.

And yes, i know the sections are not the same size but its not a show tank so that is okay  

 

I will continue to update as the project progresses

Fell free to ask questions or give advice.

 

Cheers 

-Nibblets

 

 

Edited November 7, 2016 by Nibblets

[Adrienne]

I am always a little nervous when I see shared filtration.  If one fish develops something then it will spread very quickly.  Fighters get depressed in small spaces so are more susceptible to things like velvet and fin rot so keep a good eye on all the fish.

Try and get an even distribution of flow throughout all the sections or if you have more flow at one end and have a variety of tail types consider putting the plakats in the areas with the higher flow.

I do like your design, I used to have holes drilled in my dividing walls but slots will probably work better than the holes did.

[Nibblets]

On 11/8/2016 at 7:14 PM, Adrienne said:

I am always a little nervous when I see shared filtration.  If one fish develops something then it will spread very quickly.  Fighters get depressed in small spaces so are more susceptible to things like velvet and fin rot so keep a good eye on all the fish.

Try and get an even distribution of flow throughout all the sections or if you have more flow at one end and have a variety of tail types consider putting the plakats in the areas with the higher flow.

I do like your design, I used to have holes drilled in my dividing walls but slots will probably work better than the holes did.

Cheers for the advice, I did think of the flow being a little strong for the first section but i have a plan for that so hears hoping that works.

Also With the shared filtration, it shouldn't be an issue as i would carryout checks minimum 2 times daily as that will be the feeding times. If a fish begins to show signs of illness i have plenty of tanks and plenty of cycled media that can be used as a hospital tank 

 

[Adrienne]

Sounds like you are well prepared.