If I was going to cover it to try to make it less evaporation prone I would probably go with pvc jacket (I can get it for free) and then paint with truck bed liner paint.
Glass covers for 210 tank being cut at Lowes for $15
- Thread starter CWO4GUNNER
- Start date
Well I used the remnant pieces of PVC angle-iron I had left over from my 244 project when I had replaced the decorative trim with PVC which is way stronger and way cheaper then decorative trim they sell at stores & online aquarium shops. PVC comes in different angle sizes and thicknesses and coat about $0.50 a foot. To do a whole 200 gallon tank cost about $20 compared to $120 for the same flimsy aquarium trim.
Anyway I diden't need to re-trim this CL 210 tank, only make guides for the custom glass covers. Only thing is now that they are glued in place and working great as guides for the overlapping sliding glass covers, I realize I need to trim them down if I expect to slide a heavy wood canopy on top with piano hinge door. I will wait until I know what type canopy Im going to designe (one or two piece) and then take my hot knife and trim off the excess. Maybe I wont have to trim it if its a two piece canopy.
Dining room/kitchen side
Front-room side
Glass covers with PVC guide untrimmed.
Forgot to mention that I swapped out FX5 filters placing the established FX5 from my 80 tank on this 210 and the new one intended for this tank on the 80. I figure that since the 80 is already a year established with an HOB nitrate & Mag 250 polisher, the shock of a new FX5 will not hurt and the established FX5 will insta-cycle the new 210 complete with my very large 12 cent feeder fish I have used to cycle 3 prior tanks, still huge and healthy.
Anyway I diden't need to re-trim this CL 210 tank, only make guides for the custom glass covers. Only thing is now that they are glued in place and working great as guides for the overlapping sliding glass covers, I realize I need to trim them down if I expect to slide a heavy wood canopy on top with piano hinge door. I will wait until I know what type canopy Im going to designe (one or two piece) and then take my hot knife and trim off the excess. Maybe I wont have to trim it if its a two piece canopy.
Dining room/kitchen side
Front-room side
Glass covers with PVC guide untrimmed.
Forgot to mention that I swapped out FX5 filters placing the established FX5 from my 80 tank on this 210 and the new one intended for this tank on the 80. I figure that since the 80 is already a year established with an HOB nitrate & Mag 250 polisher, the shock of a new FX5 will not hurt and the established FX5 will insta-cycle the new 210 complete with my very large 12 cent feeder fish I have used to cycle 3 prior tanks, still huge and healthy.
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Not glass related, but where will all your wires/hoses go for the tank equipment in this type of a setup? Obviously as a room divider you don't want them taking away from the fish view.
Same as any other tank only the one-end faces the wall rather then one-side facing the wall. This means most plumbing and wires must come in from the end. For now I'm using one glass cover and two short covers to control the opening with a piece of neoprene floor mat cut to size to minimize evaporation. Later when I build the box canopy some components will move to the sump laying on their sides at the bottom of the sump like heater, UV, thermometer, aerator, and Pothos Nitrate filter. Sump and FX5 lines will run inside the canopy across the tank if needed but hidden along with light fixtures and power heads on timers. The pic below just shows the preliminary access point located at the end that faces the wall/curtain and why you were not able to see it in the original photos unless you look carefully, and neither will most people, especially once I install the rods and curtains that will hide the stand openings underneath.
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Im afraid that for the first time I have tank vacancy syndrome. Ill have to buy another 100Lbs of washed construction sand for $7 at HD. Also need to find a good reasonable Tilapia breeder to get me started. Time switching at least one large tank over to recession mode, appropriately swimming with the kitchen and dining area in the background dividing the hobby from the farm. As a disclaimer at this point I'm supposed to say I'm just kidding.
:rofl:
:rofl:
"SUPPOSED to say... " :Angel:
got a table to cut that glass, gunner? looks like a tough cut (long and thin). curious to see how you go about that one.
got a table to cut that glass, gunner? looks like a tough cut (long and thin). curious to see how you go about that one.
No need to cut since the width is perfect and the shorter then normal length made possible by my custom dual center glass cover guides, made of PVC angle if you read this thread. Certainly not to long since stock glass covers for these jumbo tanks usually run all the way to the center (2x long) on 1 central guide which overlapping the entire center brace which is a big waste. Since my covers are half that length only 30" they only require the thickness of glass covers usually used on smaller tanks ranging from 10G to 60G up to 36" in length. Salvaging cutting the panels from a $20 twenty gallon long tank not only saved money and fit perfectly with custom guides but also make for much lighter covers then normally used on a tank this size since they normally would be unnecessarily much longer and therefore much thicker. So quite the contrary, I have myself the best of all worlds, strong, light and affordable new glass covers. But your right once again I have come up with something different and outside the marketing and cost rules. I think Shaw summed it up quite nicely "Some men see things as they are and say why - I dream things that never were and say why not."
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