The Holiday Build

A couple of months back I went into a pet shop and looking at the tanks I decided that this is something I wanted to try out. I thought that a large tank to act as a feature room divider between my kitchen and lounge would be quite cool so began planning a stand for a 6ft tank. To cut a long story short, this didn't work out but the same stand was transformed into a cabinet type setup that now houses a 4ft tank. The job was a lot bigger than expected and used up the bulk of my holiday but I think the end result was worth it. Here are some pics of the build.

The supporting frame made from 76 x 50mm pine and bolts:



The idea was initially to have shelving on both sides with a wine rack in the middle. This was scrapped in favour of a dedicated stand which would be slatted with feature lighting on the two sides and the filter and other equipment in the middle. The effect at night is like this:



It was at this point that the stand took more of a cabinet design with the lid resting on matching uprights that would conceal all the pipes and wires:



The basic structure completed:



All the equipment – 4ft tank, Eheim Classic 2215 filter with ceramic rings and bioballs added, 300W Elite heater and lighting:


Added switches for feature lights, blue moon tank light and normal tank light:



Start of the wiring and plumbing:



Filter hooked up:



Tank in and cabinet sealed with an antique white sealant:



Champagne gravel and Pelandaba rocks in place:



Tank filled at day:



The view at night:



All in all I’m quite happy with the outcome. Let me know if there are any glaring problems that I haven’t taken into account. Now for the business of cycling and deciding which Malawian Cichlids to get…

 

Looks pretty good and well done on making the stand yourself. Not so sure I like the cabinet being bigger than the tank but thats just me.

What did you have in mind for Rift Lake Cichlids? Mbuna? Haps? Tropheus?

 

Have no idea on the type just yet. Still have to do some more research.

 

http://www.cichlid-forum.com

They have tonnes of profiles and cookie-cutter suggestions for your tank size

 

Great, thanks a lot.

 

Shell dwellers or something like Yellow Labs could work very well as they are constantly active

 

Very well done dude!

What did it all cost you in total?

 

I'm quite impressed with your DIY skills and I like your setup...but did you treat the wood for water damage?

 

Thanks man.

Pine is a lot more expensive than I anticipated! - the cabinet must have been about R3.5k and the tank plus equipment,substrate and rocks was roughly the same.

Thanks Ruan.

Yeah, the recessed part of the stand where the tank goes as well as the inside of the lid is treated with marine varnish and the rest of the wood is done with a protective sealant. Will still try and avoid too much water contact though.

 

3.5k for a 4ft tank? Are you serious? What did the tank and the Eheim cost?

 

Was I ripped? Tank was R895. Eheim was R995.

 

Thats ~1900, wheres the other 1600? Heater should be +- 300 did the rest cost 1300? Thats some expensive rock and gravel

 

Off the top of my head:

Tank R895
Eheim R995
Lighting R450
Heater R250
Airpump R220
Substrate and rocks R350
Bioballs and ceramic rings R150
Additional piping, airstones R100

Total of roughly R3410

 

Well I think its fairly cheap as I have seen 4fts well over R4000 and they dont even include a decent cabinet and filtration system.

Congrats on all your hard work

 

Well done.

 

Well done!
The stand looks totally different than the "normal" build.

 

Tank and stand look awesome well done

 

Thanks guys.

Started a fishless cycle today with one small bottle of Tetra Safe Start and three raw prawns in a stocking. Will try pick up a test kit next week and see how it's going.