Hi everyone! So I have been out of the hobby since my tank crash back in 08'. I'll leave that story for another day, but with college, then moving several times and life ETC, I just haven't had the time or $$$ for another tank. I never completely dropped the habit though, as I would still drop into my old lfs and check out the old forum every so often. And after some shmoozing and a recent trip to Cancun, my other half was also convinced we needed a fish tank. Little did she know...
So I had to put this together on a tight budget, but with some shopping around and buying stuff lightly used it actually turned out really well i think. It all started with a Clear for Life tank that I came across at a thrift shop. It was in surprisingly good shape for an abandoned acrylic tank, just the usual micro scratches and a couple scuffs. Its about 25-30 gal in volume. I wanted to avoid any pluming and sump since I was extremely limited on space. I decided to build it into an AIO, and built 3 chambers on to the back wall of the tank, and a corner overflow. first chamber has filter floss and several media chambers, followed by the skimmer/heater chamber, then finally the return area. Its basic, but its got more than enough room for what I need. The media rack was just eggcrate that I cut and glued with leftover Weld-on. Did the usual water tests for leaks, and once everything passed I threw together a simple stand out of 2x3's. I still need to add a shelf or at least a floor, but for being my first time building a stand it turned out very sturdy. Everything was checked and checked again for structural integrity, then I polished the display tank to remove the old scratches and scuffs. I used very fine abrasive mesh first, then followed up with the Nuvo acrylic polishing kit. This was a bit time consuming, but very easy to do and the results were a display area that looks like new. Here are some progress shots of the tank, chambers, and stand:
So I had to put this together on a tight budget, but with some shopping around and buying stuff lightly used it actually turned out really well i think. It all started with a Clear for Life tank that I came across at a thrift shop. It was in surprisingly good shape for an abandoned acrylic tank, just the usual micro scratches and a couple scuffs. Its about 25-30 gal in volume. I wanted to avoid any pluming and sump since I was extremely limited on space. I decided to build it into an AIO, and built 3 chambers on to the back wall of the tank, and a corner overflow. first chamber has filter floss and several media chambers, followed by the skimmer/heater chamber, then finally the return area. Its basic, but its got more than enough room for what I need. The media rack was just eggcrate that I cut and glued with leftover Weld-on. Did the usual water tests for leaks, and once everything passed I threw together a simple stand out of 2x3's. I still need to add a shelf or at least a floor, but for being my first time building a stand it turned out very sturdy. Everything was checked and checked again for structural integrity, then I polished the display tank to remove the old scratches and scuffs. I used very fine abrasive mesh first, then followed up with the Nuvo acrylic polishing kit. This was a bit time consuming, but very easy to do and the results were a display area that looks like new. Here are some progress shots of the tank, chambers, and stand:
