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magdakuit
03-02-2011, 09:05
Hi everybody,

I would like to share my first home built aquarium.

All the DIY equipment; i.e. the glass, silicone, masking tape and polystyrene; were bought at builderswarehouse. The glass is 6mm thick and the tank 1220x450x450mm in size.

We assemble the tank with two enforcement bars on the top.
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5644-2/IMG_0152.JPG
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5647-2/IMG_0153.JPG

And we started to fill it up with water (outside the house).
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5653-5/IMG_0155.JPG
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5665-1/IMG_0159.JPG

After two days of not leaking/breaking/exploding - we went to buy the stand and lid. We stick to a standard size tank, so that we could easily find a lid and a stand.
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5674-5/IMG_0162.JPG

My boyfriend did the electricity for the lights on the lid, while I installed some extra enforcement on the top and bottom.
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5677-2/IMG_0163.JPG
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5680-5/IMG_0164.JPG

After some heavy lifting we got a beautiful, but still empty, tank.
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5686-5/IMG_0166.JPG

Some more lifting and the old tank make way for the new tank.
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5689-5/IMG_0167.JPG
In the back you can see the snake cages that my boyfriend built for his two burmese pythons and boa constrictors. They're very impressive you can read his story on http://www.sareptiles.co.za/forum/viewtopic.php?f=97&t=24948&p=197832#p197832

We used half the water of the old tank to help fill up the new tank. It was shocking (exciting) to see that all that water barely covered the gravel of the new tank!

All the plants, decor and filtration were in place and it was time to fill up completely.
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5704-2/IMG_0172.JPG
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5701-1/IMG_0171.JPG

We left the tank overnight with some cheap tetras...

And the next morning everything was moved across and all that was left to do was to enjoy our lovely tropical aquarium.
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5710-2/IMG_0174.JPG
http://images.oakfox.net/d/5713-2/IMG_0175.JPG

Hopefully the next tank will have a complete DIY backdrop! (http://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/showthread.php?6157-DIY-Backdrop...-Ideas&goto=newpost)
Vis
03-02-2011, 09:15
Very nice going :)

Some of your plants will however start to die soon as they are not aquarium plants.
Donny
03-02-2011, 09:18
Awesome well done on the build and no leaks.
Linga
03-02-2011, 09:22
looks really nice, but its pretty much a standard 4foot, would it not have been cheaper to just buy a 4 foot tank.
shihr
03-02-2011, 11:06
very cool! u very lucky u didn get any leaks! :)
shihr
03-02-2011, 11:07
but then again, u got lots of braces! :) good start
Donny
03-02-2011, 11:09
Looking at the pics filling it up on the grass to test was good, but lucky the grass was level an no stones. :) :)
mxz
03-02-2011, 11:10
Nice tank. Congrats on the build.
magdakuit
03-02-2011, 11:37
looks really nice, but its pretty much a standard 4foot, would it not have been cheaper to just buy a 4 foot tank.

The glass cost around R450 and to buy one varies between R700-R1000.

It was more of a fun project than an inexpensive tank.
magdakuit
03-02-2011, 11:42
Very nice going :)

Some of your plants will however start to die soon as they are not aquarium plants.

Thanks. We bought all the plants at the pet shop. The rainbow sharks like to nibble them away, so we basically buy a new plant every other wees in any case ;)
shihr
03-02-2011, 11:45
It was more of a fun project than an inexpensive tank.

agreed!
mydummyname
03-02-2011, 12:32
i love what you've done with this tank!

well done!!
varachhia001
03-02-2011, 12:34
magdakuit

There is nothing more satisfying than building your own tank...Hopefully thats my next project

What was your total cost of building the Tank??
magdakuit
03-02-2011, 13:26
It cost roughly R1 668.00

The glass: R450
Masking tape and silicone: R50.00
Polystyrene sheet: R30.00
Lid: R270.00
Stand: R650.00 (You can get a cheaper one for R300.00, we choose one with extra height)
2 Light fittings: R218.00
TroyFish
03-02-2011, 14:58
The DIY tool says 6mm is safe. But is it really? Even with bracing?

Not saying it won't hold just would like to find out for future info
varachhia001
03-02-2011, 15:21
Thanks for the costing info. i realy needed that
Fry
25-07-2011, 16:06
i cannot see any of the images of ur DIY fish tank
Slojo
25-07-2011, 18:45
i cannot see any of the images of ur DIY fish tank
Me neither.
Donovan_21
25-07-2011, 20:01
hi

I'm really interested in building my own tank same size. how did you go about this? i also cannot see the picts.

thank you