Tony's fish room beginnings

[tonymaccs]

I always enjoy checking out other peoples bits and pieces so here is something of my current project- the first installment on the way to a dedicated fishroom.
I've currently got around ten tanks in the garage which has plenty of room and is very well insulated but isn't plumbed or drained so water changing is a real PITA (around one hour). The tanks are also a variety of sizes and filters which adds to the time consumption.
I decided to set-up in a corner of the large shed I have rather than build a new structure mainly because I've got too many other things happening and I'm too impatient.
The biggest concern with the shed is insulation for the winter months. So I will have to complete that part by next March/April.

[Tropical Haven]

Looking good so far, keep up with the pics.

[tonymaccs]

I went with the timber frame rather than welded galv steel as it timber is a little more user friendly in the long run even though it may not be as long lasting.
I wanted to fit the unit as compact as practical so I have tried a three tier and also installed the tanks lengthways out from the wall. The top row is 2ft x 18in x 18in. Second row is 2ft6in x 18in x 18in. Bottom row is 3ft x 18in x 18in. In order to minimise overall height, I only allowed 6in in total between rows. I thought this might give access problems but have been happily surprised how much access has resulted in the lower rows due to the terracing effect- it is much better access than I currently have with the traditional arrangement and 10in between rows.
The upper row is quite high but still at eye height for me and I can feed from the floor. To clean the upper row I need to be up one step so I designed the stand with a walkway along the front (too lazy to shift a stool around).

[tonymaccs]

PLUMBING
For the tank fittings I wanted to try something that has no intrusion into the inside of the tank like the screw-in bulkheads have. I came across these pvc flanges used for sealing pipes where they go through walls. They are very strong because of their curved shape and thickness, and provide a large surface area for silicone to bond. The result after the silicone has cured is incredibly secure, much more than a threaded fitting.
I also wanted a bottom drain and with the flush fitting the tanks can be 100% drained by gravity. I also installed a two/thirds height inlet in the front wall so I can do a one third water change at the turn of a valve.
Each of the inlets/outlets has a valve for full control and isolation of each tank. These are a little obstructive of viesw on the front wall, but are very handy to operate which is most important.

[tonymaccs]

I've finally got the upper two rows operational after a lot of fine tuning which became necessary because at this stage I chose to make the end tank on each row the recirculating wet/dry filter for that row. One advantage of this will be low pumping costs due to the low height to return the water.
There is a disadvantage that may mean I will have to rethink this design but I will trial it first. The flow from each of the tanks to the filter tank is by gravity via the undertank plumbing. I plumbed this into the bottom of the first compartment of the filter which will primarily be mechanical. The water flows upward and over a weir into the wet/dry compartment and then into the pump compartment for return to the tanks. The water head between the tanks and filter weir is such that I have lost about one third of the volume for filter media. I can only push a maximum volume of 1400 litres/hour in the return before the main tanks will overflow. Capacity of the five mid-row tanks is 675 litres which is a turnover of just over twice per hour. If this is too limiting, it wont be a major job to alter- I had thoughts of having a remote filtration room sometime in the future anyway.

Here are the guinea-pig first settlers after their first night in the new territorries.

[Darren's Discus]

Mate,
looking awesome.look forward to the updates.


cheers

[fredox]

Looking good. Is there going to be more than one rack of tanks or are you sticking with the one for now? Keep us updated on how the access is as you have chance to work on the lower levels.

[Jhill]

Really nice beginning Tony. How hard will it be to clean the upper middle tanks? I only dream of having a fish room (some day)
I will be watching its progression for sure. Thanks for sharing.

A Friend in discus
John

[novice breeder]

Awesome Setup! I want one.:D:D:D Do the beautiful lady come as an additional accessory? LOL!!

[tonymaccs]

Access for construction and installation is a bit of a bother, I'm not looking forward to plumbing the underside of the bottom row of tanks so I am going to delay that and see how useful it is having a flush drain as on the upper rows for a few weeks.
As for future expansion, I dont even have enough fish to fill the two new rows already running, but I'm sure that will be sorted after I pay a few people a visit over the next few weeks.
My existing tanks will also be reconfigured and properly plumbed over the next few months which will give me a total capacity of around 5000 litres or 1300 US gallons and 24 useable tanks.
I'm hoping that might satisfy me for awhile.

[tonymaccs]

Hi John,
The middle and lower tanks have great access (surprisingly) and very easy to wipe down. In a couple of pics you can see the scrubbing device I use- swivel head, extendable handle, gets right into corners.
The top row are a little more difficult only because of their height, but on the walkway I am tall enough to work over the top of the tanks.

Hi Novice B,
The lady in question is my very patient and reasonably supportive wife. I put that pic up for a reaction because even though she is supportive, I think I caught a look in her eye that might reflect what a lot of partners of discus keepers are thinking (or saying!). Might make a good thought caption contest photo.:D

[Kindredspirit]

IMO I think she is thinking...."hmm....what shopping I could have done!"


Great picture!

[fredox]

Your 'scrubbing device' looks like a paint pad or wood floor sweeper from what I can see and your description. I'm a long way from setting up my own fish house (need my own place first) but I'm gathering info until I'm in the situation I can.

[tonymaccs]

Hehe Marie- I never thought of that angle (being a guy) but you would be spot on!
I was thinking something like "mmm maybe if I put some fish in the bathtub he'll renovate the bathroom"

Fredox- it's sold as a bathroom tile cleaner but it's the best tank cleaner I've had.

Thanks all for you compliments.

[GrillMaster]

IMO I think she is thinking...."hmm....what shopping I could have done!

Probably thinking in terms of all the shoppin she is fixin to do! :D ;)

Looks good Tony, but man thats a lot of weight on them 2x4's...:shocked2:

tc
Mark

[Kenny's Discus]

Wow Tony great new setup you got there!:thumbsup: It looks so neat and orderly. I really like your idea to place the grow-out tanks like that(the short end out) so that you can fit more of them into the racks. Good luck to your beautiful new fishroom and keep us updated as you go along!

Kenny

[tonymaccs]

Thanks Kenny, I got the idea of one of the forum threads- forget which Member it was. Time will tell how good it is in practice, but I'm finding lots of advantages so far.

[stevebris]

Fredox- it's sold as a bathroom tile cleaner but it's the best tank cleaner I've had.

Hi Tony :D

What is the brand name and where is it sold?

Great work with the set-up too!

Are you aiming at hobby breeder, or comercial?

Where in Brizzy are you? (I'm at Albany Creek) :D

[tonymaccs]

Hi Steve,
I bought it at the Aspley Hypermarket awhile ago- there were still plenty there when I was there a week ago. Not sure what brand it is but you'll find it around the middle ailses down the deli end of the grocery section (crazy place).
I'm at Bridgeman Downs. Pure hobbyist- if I had to make money out of it Im sure the family would starve.
Tony

[stevebris]

Small world :D

I work on Zillmere RD, near Pineapple st.

I will check it out tomorrow.

I would love to see your set-up, and I might be able to help you out with stocking it. :D

PM me

[brewmaster15]

Hey Tony,
Looking great there!:)

-al

ps.. sent you a Pm.:):)

[Elite Aquaria]

Tony,

Great looking setup...I know it took a lot of hard work. Good luck finding quality stock to fill those tanks...

[tonymaccs]

Thanks, I seriously underestimated the time to get it running properly. The plumbing took much more time than making the frame and installing the tanks, then I seemed to burn up just as much time again getting it operational and fine tuning it. Yet I think I will make all that time up in about two weeks in time saved with water changing and cleaning.

Tony

[FischAutoTechGarten]

It really is allot of fun building these little fish factories isn't it?
I really like some of the things you've done, especially the custom sized tanks for each shelf. Do you have any plans to fit lighting above each tank?

[tonymaccs]

Hi Peter, Yes the lighting is something I am working on now-just want to choose the right one.
Tony

[tonymaccs]

Here are some up to date pics with the lower row in place. They are not yet interconnected as I want to see how the upper two rows perform and whether I need to make any changes.

[Tropical Haven]

Looking great, keep up the good work.

[Darren's Discus]

Tony,
coming along real nice,look forward to the update's.



cheers

[fredox]

Silly question time. I've been thinking it through and can't figure it out. What's with the sponge filters in the tanks if your running a central filtration system. I can understand having a few cycled for emergencies/breeding but will they be in there all the time?

[tonymaccs]

A number of reasons. The immediate one is to avoid having to cycle the new filter- I pre-established enough sponges and it's worked with no ammonia or nitrite spikes.
The other reason is that I will soon be relocating my old tanks to the "room" and want enough to seed those.
The other reason is that even though it is not essential, I want to run air in the system and I might as well have a sponge filter rather than an airstone.
I will move them around and take them out where necessary.
Tony

[fredox]

Makes sense now. Belt and braces I guess. I've gone that way on my tank. 2 Eheim canisters on a tank when one is enough to do the job.

Another comment on you setup if I may. I looks very compact. It's great for people with limited space.

[Jhill]

Tony,
Have been following this thread and all I can say is awesome!!

A Friend in discus
John

[tonymaccs]

Thanks for the comments guys. I didn't actually set out with space or compactness in mind but I am surprised how it has turned out. Three vertical rows has a couple of drawbacks I guess- a little bit of streching for some tasks on the top row, and some discus would be intimidated in the bottom row but it should be fine for grow outs in big numbers and is high enough off the floor to be comfortable to work with.
No regrets about the orientation and tiered arrangement- it is great to work with.
Tony

[FischAutoTechGarten]

Tony, that is a cool rack setup.

Top row, tanks are ~ 33 US gallons * 6 for 200 US gallons
Mid row, tanks are ~ 42 US gallons * 6 for 250 US gallons
Btm row, tanks are ~ 50 US gallons * 6 for 300 US gallons

750 US gallons is a single rack that's less than 10' long.

Assuming an ambient air temp of 68degF,with a desired water temp of 84degF, your wattage requirements might be:
33 gallon tanks: 100W ea * 6 for 600W
42 gallon tanks: 120W ea * 6 for 720W
50 gallon tanks: 135W ea * 6 for 810W

This could be considered worst case scenario...you will have the tanks insulated and together, so you will not get the heat loss through the glass these calculations allow for. However, this also assumes your ambient temp in the shed is 68degF, which it will not be in the Winter months. So, lets just stay with the 2130W or 2kW of power consumed for the heating. Figure heaters kick off as often as they kick on (for 12 hours of use in a 24 hour day)..Upstate New York prices this would set you back about $60 a month USD.

This is before lighting, filtration, air pumps, etc...

I would love to see what you end up employing for heat in the end. Share it with us?

[tonymaccs]

Hi Peter,
Thanks for the heater calcs. I try not to think of the actual dollar coast too much. I've got a lot of insulating work to do by autumn and will be sealing the room up pretty tight. I will probably heat the room to a base temp of around 24-25 degC (sorry I can't work in F anymore) then use water heaters to top up. We dont get very severe winters here but the less money I give to the electric company the better.
thanks
Tony

[fredox]

I didn't realize there was quite so much water in the whole system. Looks easily extend able to. If you've got 12 foot to fill just add a couple more tanks.

[tonymaccs]

After much work I finally got the bottom row operational. Ran the central filter system last night- no leaks. I've had to set up a temporary remote filter until I get the permanent one established early next year. More fishes!!

[Darren's Discus]

Tony,
looking good mate,it's always good when it all comes together.



cheers

[tonymaccs]

Thanks Darren, I'll probably spend another day fitting the lids and seeding the filter etc, then I can relax and enjoy for awhile.
Tony

[FischAutoTechGarten]

I must confess Tony. Seeing that rack makes me long a bit for a little hobby hatchery again. Just not practical for me with the winter/summer mexico/newyork switch bit.

Eventually, I will spend most of my time here in Mexico. When I do, I will build something very similar to what you've done. And my discharge water will water my dwarf fruit trees. For now, I'm content with my cactus garden.

What I find really fascinating is the fact that you've chosen different sizes for each level. I quite imagine, that it makes for very similar turnover rates in each of your tanks. Obviously, the bottom tanks get more water pumped to them....which is good because they are bigger, requiring more flow to get the same turnover rate (as a percentage of tank size) as the smaller tanks on the topmost shelf.

Again. Really cool. Looking forward to feedback on ease of maintenance, especially with the 4'+ reach to the back bottom of the lowest tanks.

[two utes]

Very impressive Tony. Hope you get lots of enjoyment out of it mate.;) And not to mention all the little discus coming through.:)

[fredox]

How's the honeymoon period going with the setup?

[ozarowana]

Looking good Tony.

[FischAutoTechGarten]

Tony,
Bringing this thread back from the dead. Really interested in how you are making out with this compact rack design.
Peter