New guy with 6ft in progress

Discussion in 'New members' started by eugenevw, Jul 25, 2014.

  1. eugenevw

    eugenevw

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    Hi all,

    Registered almost 2 month back and only posting now... Am I in the dog Box?:)

    By the way.I'm Eugene from Annlin in Pretoria and looking forward to my time here.
    I'm busy with a 6ft Malawi setup from scratch. Currently I don't own any tanks - all sold, the last one was a 3ft with a few Tetras and so on.
    20140720_000255.jpg

    So with this tank I'm going all out with Malawi's (40-60 of them).
    The cabinet (already started with the building) and canopy will be a DIY.

    Chow

    20140720_000255.jpg
     
  2. Guest




  3. HEIHACHI

    HEIHACHI

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    Dude that is an epic tank!
     
  4. Broder

    Broder

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    With a build like that, we'll let you out the dog box pronto. Gotta build build build! Seriously, welcome to TASA. Tank looks brilliant. What kind of filtration you gonna use?
     
  5. Quakeszn

    Quakeszn

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    Nice.Its always fun to start from scratch.Endless possibilities
     
  6. OP
    eugenevw

    eugenevw

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    Thank you Thank you...

    For the start I will be going with a SunSun 304B canister. Maybe later I'll get a sump. I know Malawi's are messy, specially if there's so many of them, so I'll see if the canister will keep up.
     
  7. Reedfish

    Reedfish Moderator

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    Hi,
    And welcome to the Forum
     
  8. dash

    dash

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    Hi and welcome. I had one of those canisters before and they work extremely well. If you decide to go the sump root, I think you should drill the tank now that it is empty as, it is a lot easy.
     
  9. OP
    eugenevw

    eugenevw

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    Hi Dash, thank you.
    I hear you on the drilling part. It's a brand new tank so I don't wanna mess around now.
    Glad to hear you that the canister worked well for you - I only hear good things about this filter.
     
  10. dash

    dash

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    @HEIHACHI got one as well let's see what he thinks. I would get 2 of them for a 6foot.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 2, 2016
  11. Firefly_SA

    Firefly_SA

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    Hi and welcome, your setup looks awesome, have fun
     
  12. neltf

    neltf

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    Very very nice dude!
     
  13. OP
    eugenevw

    eugenevw

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    Thank you all
     
  14. OP
    eugenevw

    eugenevw

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    So last night I started with the canopy (only the frame).
    Hopefully I'll get it finished this coming weekend.20140730_185730.jpg

    20140730_185730.jpg
     
  15. Breado

    Breado

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    Cool setup Eugene .. will be following this one.

    How did you fit the pine on the metal stand ? I need to do the same and have thick tubing on my stand too...
     
  16. SilverMoonDragon

    SilverMoonDragon

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    I have two words for you broe, double sided Velcro, ok three words
     
  17. Breado

    Breado

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    Tx SilverMoonDragon

    But Im not sure if it will work for 2.5m and be strong enough to hand doors. I will be repairing that 2.5m that got cracked
     
  18. SilverMoonDragon

    SilverMoonDragon

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    Ok, it is quite expensive as well around R60 to R100 pm but surprisingly strong. Also joints don't always look "finished", but i think if you pre make the frames etc, it can easily be removed if you have to dismantle for moving etc. As in front panels x two including doors and side panels, back if you really have to, one or two screws to tie joints. Lightweight wood a must!
     
  19. Jack Stone

    Jack Stone Stone Aquaics

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    Howzit @Eugenewv - Welcome aboard. Looks like you're putting in a bit of work on that tank!
    I know the Malawi bug is an easy one to catch but it's my job to inform you that there are better alternatives from the African Rift Lakes, namely, from Lake Tanganyika!

    Hear me out, most Malawi fans think they're much the same, many have never heard of Lake Tanganyika. Lake Tanganyikan cichlids are far more varied in their body shapes, diets, spawning and behavioural patterns than those from Lake Malawi. It is rarely suggested to overcrowd Tanganyika cichlids in order to spread aggression, rather, understanding and providing for the requirements of each species and individual in the tank from the beginning (or as you go along if you prefer) ensures a community in harmony. You've got the number two ingredient for a good Lake Tanganyika community, a large fish tank, number one being the fish themselves.

    Here's one quick example of what you could do in that tank (and one in which "overcrowding" is a good thing)...

    Tropheus Ikola Kaiser
    Tropheus Duboisi Masawa
    (for those that are wondering, these two will not cross-breed provided adequate numbers of each)
    Neolamprologus brevis / multifasciatus

    This will give you lots of activity and color with the various Tropheus variants which the Brevis / Multies will make their homes in the shells you'll provide to give an interesting dynamic to the otherwise very colorful and active Malawi like tank.

    Or you can go for something completely different, for eg.
    Project Tanganyika!!!!!!
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 2, 2016
  20. OP
    eugenevw

    eugenevw

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    I used the normal corner braces (20mmx20mm)
    corner brace.jpg

    corner brace.jpg
     
  21. HvNDhF

    HvNDhF

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    Very cool looking tank @eugenvw,

    Was the pine actually attached to the metal frame or was it only build around the frame without actually being attached to the frame?
    @Breado maybe an idea, is to build the cabinet around the steel frame so both can be moved individually, why I am saying this, but please feel free to correct me, it that the cabinet wont actually carry any weight but the frame will carry the weight. Another benefit of maybe building it to fit around the frame without being attached to the frame is that should something happen and the tank needs to be moved or whatever, the frame and the cabinet can be moved seperately and you don't sit with one heavy stand and cabinet to move together.
    And should it happen and you need to level the tank, you can level the frame and the cabinet will fit around it and still sit on the floor, if it is attached the the frame you might end up with one side of the cabinet also sitting a couple of mm of the ground.

    Obviously the lid's pine will need to be attached to the frame, so maybe to use the same idea and for the stand but just use a couple of screw to attach it to the lid frame from the inside, and should the time come for the tank to be moved you can only undo the couple of screws, remove the pine lid and the the steel frame.

    I don't know, maybe it an or can not work?
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 2, 2016

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