New 140ish tank

M

mitchb

Member
Picked up a tank from bcaquaria.
It measures 5 feet by 29 wide by 24 high
Here is what I saw before I got it:


So I went to Vancouver to get it and realized that the stand wouldn't fit into van and just took the tank. So first thing first I built the stand:



Then painted it :


The next thing I wanted to tackle was the paint on the side.... Now this , and the weight is the biggest difference I have found compared to glass tanks. Turns out you can't use a heavy duty scraper or any chemicals so I used a plastic razorblade:


I got bored of scraping so ended up just working on the plumbing:


Drilled two 1 inch drains with strainers and ran a 1 inch return with locline back into the tank:


Going to be running my same sump as here:


With maybe a k1 section this time but that will depend on a couple things.

Just have to finish off the scraping, and then bracing the tank as I want to have added bracing and a nicer place to put the lids.
 
Hey Mitch, The stand looks great. Would like to see pictures of when its done! What are you planning to stock it with?
 
Looking at a hb most likely but not sure yet. Got some read head tapajo's and bigger clown loaches to put in as well.

Just finished up the scraping... probably the sissiest thing to say that my thumb is bruised from the pressure on the plastic blades haha.

I think I will try to get the bracing done tomorrow but still catching up from a work trip so pretty tired.

Did you sell your other big tank yet?
 
No i didnt. Still have it, Some were intrested but no shows. So now im keeping it.. Im going to get a highback and maybe a stingray pair. still a lot of thinking of what im going to stock it with.
 
Just got around to the bracing last night as I need to get this thing out of the kitchen...

Got the top braced now with 1/2 inch around the 3 sides, as the front already had a 1/4 brace, so just added 1/4 there to make it all flush


Then put the cross braces in just as I wanted to have dividers for the pieces of glass and for some insurance:


Right now it is just resting for another day then going to transfer it over.
 
Here it is as it stands right now.

As you can see still have the 304 going on the side, and that is because I didn't bring a powerhead with me and a bit of a deadspot in the corners. Also helps with establishing the new tank. Plan is to take all that media and put it into the sump but was too lazy right now.


Water level is a bit low in the display as I am still trying to even out the sump return and the two drains, which is proving to be more work than expected.

Sand is looking great and brightens up the tank but I notice already the fish aren't as colorful, but could chalk that up to the transfer and new tank. Next up is to get my arowana in the tank when I am home for more than a couple days. But before that I have to get pieces of glass cut to fit in line with the braces.
 
Thanks, still not sure how I feel about acrylic vs glass other than it is a lot easier to move.

Yeah around that about 175 with the outside dimensions , but if taking the size of the 1/2 acrylic of side and the 1 inch for the front view it turns into 58 inches long 26.5 wide and 24 tall so 159 gallons if filled full.
 
Still nice foot print and tank. i always wondered what and acrylic tank would be like. What else other than the weight difference would you say makes it better ?
 
So far the weight was the biggest things I've noticed, which I would say was similar to a 75 glass tank. Actually, working on the tank seems a bit easier. When I made my sump I needed to use silicone, keep it in place for hours let it set etc. With acrylic adding the top bracing was so easy. Literally spray stuff like water under where you want it, hold it for 10 seconds, let it set and let it chill for 3-4 hours and you are good to go. It also appears to be clearer than glass when compared to the normal glass. I would say the acrylic I have is close to my old starphire tank as it is just clear with no greenish tinge.

A drawback that I found out right away is the lack of chemicals you can use with acrylic. When I got the tank it was painted blue on both the sides, with glass you can use lots of stuff to break down paint, and then a long metal scraper.

With acrylic, chemicals will haze the acrylic so it becomes foggy and can actually weaken the sheets. So I in turn had to use a hand held palstic razor blade, in a holder, for hours and hours with nothing more than water to try to loosen the paint. Not fun.

Another drawback is the inability that acrylic lends to changes. With say a sump you can slice the silicone and yank it out, but once acrylic is welded together it is one piece and you literally have to cut it out, which is probably a lot harder than cutting silicone.

Last thing, that I can see but not experience, is that acrylic scratches like hell. After I removed the paint I found a lot of scratches, but on the plus side you can sand them out once you feel like it... which I do not yet haha.
 
Probably a really silly question hehe but do you know if with time the acrylic will age? Like the look of it, will it not be as clear let's say with light hitting it and so on. You were saying the acrylic is very sensitive to chemicals and scratches. Sorry haven't had any experience with acrylic as it's new to me.
 
Great project Mitch, I am sure you will be happy with your tank longer term. I have had an 150 gallon acrylic tank going since 2005 and it still looks great. Acrylic can bulge over time, though I think it depends on the thickness of the tank walls. I love how portable acrylic tanks are. My wife and I have moved 150 and 180 gallon tanks around the house on many occasions. So much harder with glass.
 
Yeah, the bulging was what the previous owner had said he noticed so I added the euro bracing as it is 1/2 inch all around with a full 1 inch up front. I then added the cross bracing as well to try to really reduce the top from bowing out. It was a more economical option as a 1/2 piece that I could route the middles out of would've run me around 250+ and this was about $125

I know acrylic will bow out I just wanted to do everything I could to avoid seeing it, even though it is a smaller tank I don't want to clean up all that water.

The weight is just amazing though I agree, my previous 180 glass was just a pain and I moved this with just one other guy. Not sure if I would go with acrylic if I was buying new as the pricing appears to be a bit more, but depending on the price difference I might. Only bad thing is that is is probably only going to keep going up with the oil prices :(
 
I have heard all acrylic will bow unless really overbuilt. This is why I added the bracing so I wouldn't have to risk seeing it. From reading acrylic is going to bow a lot more than glass as it is more flexible.

Reis said:
Have you guys ever heard of it bowing and breaking?
Click to expand...
 
Nismo22 said:
Wow, great job close to home too :p
Click to expand...

Yeah a bit of a lie as I am in sidney now, but we should meet up sometime. My tank right now is not looking so great for a new baby aro as my red head tapajos are doing the mating dance. a 5 inch tapajo is fighting off my 7 inch clown loaches at the moment so might have restart my 75 up again ... good and bad thing I guess.
 
So today was the day, I updated my tank and added another fish... I guess re added is the correct term. I bought back my arowana from a pet store. Turned out the guy who bought it traded it in a while ago and just tried to make money off of the sale. Sorry for the ugly mess and pictures, lights are off just to get re acclimated to a new place.
 
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