PlanetCatfish.com

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May 22 2014 update: the roof is finished at this point; as mentioned, I will have to play with the side curtains to maximize the comfort / minimize discomfort inside, etc. Hence, the side curtains, both shade cloth and the plastic are fixed temporarily.

I have started on the exhibits.

Backside...

1100 cinder blocks 8"x8"x16" have arrived to build the bases for the two 4500 gal fiberglass tanks (13'x13'x4.5'), which will raise them ~2' off the ground level.

Fantastic project, cant wait to see more updates

Looking good Viktor! Keep up the good work!

Thanks, gents. The blocks are set. Will use either a 1" plywood or 2" rigid pink insulation under the tanks. Need to calculate if the insulation can handle the pressure. Have been working on the wooden stands too and doing some electric work to get rid of ~40 dimmers in 2 houses (!) (prior owner loved them apparently) because they wreck fluorescent bulbs as well as converting the lights into outlets or adding outlets in addition to lights on the exhibit floor.

Plywood is down. The 1/2" strips lying on top are where the seams of the tanks (4 parts each) will come together and will need to be fiber-glassed together (on the bottom of the 4500 gal tanks; the seams will be on the sides too, of course).

The holes in the back are for the 4" drains with bulkheads.

One back section is placed... by a man with no back, his wife, and our 73 year old neighbor...

At a snail's pace, sometimes literally, we are bringing the tanks' components in...

Pretty cool Victor. Thanks for keeping us updated on your progress. I'm sure there are many of us that live vicariously through your posts.

I'm another who finds all this fascinating.

Thanks, everyone. Baby steps every day. One's bolted together and screwed to the plywood and ready for fiberglassing. More pics and details later after the second one's in the same state.

Both are bolted together. Each tank has four parts - front (900 lbs), back (350 lbs), and two sides (250 lbs each). They are simply positioned flush (butt-to-butt) to each other, no overlapping, and bolted together.

They are also screwed to the plywood underneath to make for level and even seams (the "brown strips" on the photos, ~7"-8" wide), which will need to be fiber-glassed as the next step.

I've included myself in pic one for reference. I'm ~6'2", ~186 cm.

This is going to be fantastic! Sorry you're so far from me.

Dolphin Fiberglass makes them pretty strong with a big safety margin. The 8'x4' acrylic is 2.5" thick. The sides and the back are cored (strengthened) with eight 2x6 boards embedded in fiberglass - can make out the boards (running horizontally one of top of another) under fiberglass:

And finally the fish's view (I have not cleaned the windows after the tanks laid around outside for 2 years; will save this job for last). The seal on each side is 3" wide on average (wider on the bottom than on the top), making the viewable area 7.5' x 3.5'.

NCE12940 wrote:This is going to be fantastic! Sorry you're so far from me.

Thanks At the moment, I can only hope. The emotionless voice of reason says it could also be one great fiasco. So-o-o-o many things can go wrong. And they will. I've rigged / built not much but enough to know they absolutely will. I can only pray that the smaller things go wrong. But major ones can too. For instance, I am far from sure our 4" thick slab with 1" thick tiles on top can handle the long-term static stress from the weight of ~37,500 lbs or ~17,000 kg (each tank) spread over an ~13'x13' square.

Here is my hack (first) fiberglassing job done. Next time I'll know a bit better, if there be a next time. Having a level surface and being very careful not to shift well-laid-out fiberglass strands while brushing on the resin (so that significant air pockets and bubbles are avoided) is important and makes all this so-o-o-o much easier and the result more reliable.

7.5" Wide matt and 5" wide matt+biaxle are two types of figerglass strands I was provided with by Dolphin Fiberglass. 7 layers of fiberglass were laid down over the seams: resin | matt| resin | matt+biaxle | resin | matt | resin | matt+biaxle | resin | matt | resin | gel coat (resin plus pigment plus wax).

The main and ~ only critical step is the first one, i.e., laying down the first matt layer (resin|matt|resin), because only a physical bond (adhesion) is formed between the old, fully-cured fiberglass plastic (FRP = fiber reinforced plastic) and the new FRP being laid on. All the rest of the layers, when done timely and right, are bonded together by incomparably stronger chemical bonds and simply form a very strong and hard cap. The chemical bonds are formed by a polymerization reaction, or, rather, a cross-linking reaction of a polyester polymer / oligomer (which is the resin) having unsaturated carbon-carbon double bonds in its monomer unit. The crosslinking free-radical chain reaction initiator is MEKP methyl ethyl ketone peroxide. The old-FRP-to-new-FRP connection is the critical and weakest one in this whole procedure. So I had to sand and rough up the old FRP very, very thoroughly, esp. since it laid outside, unprotected for ~2 years.

The cross-braces (2x6 encased in FRP) are not necessary but add a safety cushion against excessive bowing and the ensuing cracking and leaking.

On to the plumbing and a filter so I can do a water test...

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My first look at this thread. I am very impressed with your tenacity! I am afraid I might have thrown the towel in before now, but alas, you have youth on your side. I look forward to what happens next in this adventure. Thanks for sharing.
Rodger

Thanks, Rodger. On my end, I am impressed with my usually-impatient-wife's patience

I've started on the sump for the two 4500 gal tanks. It will also serve as a water reserve because upon a large water change or a major pump down of a tank(s), it will take 5-10 h to produce enough RO water to replenish it (current RO capacity is ~425 gal/h, ~10,000 gal/day with 6 low pressure (80-100 psi) membranes; starting TDS ~1400 ppm = ~500-600 ppm Ca and Mg + salinity + trace impurities like iron (II) and hydrogen sulfide, ending TDS ~30 ppm; 40' deep well water is steady 74 F year round). While the tanks are being replenished (in this case the sump will be replenished, not the tanks), I must still run the sump and the pumps located in the sump to keep the sump BB's alive and well and to keep water stirred and aerated in the tanks. No pump in the tank - overflow into the sump.

Atm, I am thinking four 5300 GPH AquaForce asynchronous drive mag pumps, 360 W each pump - two per tank. As stated, these are also contemplated to be the only source of stirring and aeration in the tanks. So the sump will see ~21,000 GPH combined flow across a 20'x5' = 100 sq ft cross-section.

So the sump is being made as a ~20'x20'x6' rubber-liner pond filled to ~5' = 2000 cubic feet = 55.6 cubic meters = 55,650 liters = 14,700 US gallons. ~2' in ground, ~4' above ground on average (the grade slopes down away from the fish house).

Each overflow is currently thought to be equipped with a very large DIY aquasock of this kind/concept - http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forum ... ost6084230 - but bigger, perhaps ~35-50 gal.

Two-three days I've been agonizing over choosing the sump media. For now, I decided to stay away from sand pressure filters and moving media filters (expense, noise, efficiency, etc. reasons plus I really need a water reserve and, hence, might as well use it as a sump). I've considered and priced everything (for a stationary media) from this nice link - http://www.russellwatergardens.com/Styl ... diassa.php - and more:

- Live plants
- Hydro FilterSilk
- Poly-Flo
- Savio Springflo
- Bio Bale
- Aqua Ultra
- Lava Rock
- Matala
- Bio-Balls
- Rock and Gravel
- Sand
- Nylon mesh pot scrubbers
- Nylon mesh shower balls
- Nylon cloth
- PVC pellets or shavings
- Nylon leaf netting
- Insect screening
- Shade cloth

Still much torn, I've picked the knitted 50% shade cloth. Farmtek was having a special on 10'x300' rolls at $1.32 per liner foot, so I bought 5 rolls, $1900, $325 to truck it here from Iowa. IDK if I will need all to fill ~2000 cubic feet (looser and denser packing both have their pros and cons) but none should go to waste anyway. Everything else came out to be from-little-to-far-more expensive and all these media types have their pros and cons.

I know. Kind of an unusual stuffing for a bio-filter. I guess, in some way I am gambling. If you feel like I've made a mistake and/or feel like suggesting a good or a better way, speak up. Though too late for this iteration, knowledge is always power.

The shade cloth is knitted nylon. Should be fish safe. May have some trace grease on it from the manufacturing and machining. I think a good rinse with a mild detergent may clean it adequately.

Nice update on the progress Viktor. I haven't had experience on the scale you are building but I've used lava rock in my filtration and several hundred pounds in my 350 gallon tank. There were several things I liked about it. I like that it is porous and has all kinds of surfaces for bacteria to grow on. Lava rock is also inert so it won't affect pH. As far as the material you are using, I have no experience with it but it sounds like it might work.

Thanks much.

Nylon shade cloth (on the surface) should not be too different from nylon mesh/silk, pot scrubbers, shower balls, etc. that are routinely and widely used by DIY-ers.

Lava rock is not cheap in our neck of the woods and that's big rock 1"-2"; the 0.5" is not available. I got a quote at $200 per cubic yard or per 27 cu ft and $340 per ton. Would need ~1800 cu ft = $1300 at 80 SSA (specific surface area in sq ft per cu ft; IDK for which size, 0.5" that's used in potting, say, orchids or the usual 1"-2"; likely the usual)... not counting in a bunch of chum bags, uneven flow / channeling through the cross-section (because of the bags), 20% open volume = easy clogging and poorer aeration, the weight and the brutal hardness of cleaning 4 tons of lava rock... Whilst the nylon mesh gives me around 350 SSA and ~80%-90% open space and rather easy cleaning with a hose.

I like lava rock. I used it many times but 50-100 lbs. It just didn't feel the best choice here. I also think the nooks and crannies in lava rock and even more so lava's pores get quickly stuffed with detritus, dead bacteria, etc. Time will show.

I never really understood this aspect about the much touted ceramic media. Yes, it has the highest SSA because of a myriad of tiny pores but the smaller the pore, the easier it is lost to clogging, gunking up, and the harder it is to deliver aerated, fresh water to its entire surface because of the capillary forces and the overall resistance and friction. Anyhow, if someone understands it or knows of a good description addressing this, please, let me know. Until then, I will be concerned that porous materials may not be all that they are presented or thought to be... at least after a short period of having been in use...

The 50% shade cloth from FarmTek, 10'x300' five rolls, and the cinder blocks for the 15,000 gal filter are here.

Hi Viktor, I've been following this enormous thread somewhat loosely so forgive me if I misunderstand something. But firstly, congrats on this build. I know it takes a lot of focus and determination to accomplish something like this. So much respect.

Concerning your decision about which media for this sump: My main concern would be the ease of cleaning. Most of the media you mentioned will provide plenty of surface area; but of course they will all clog at some point regardless of form. So effort and time to clean/declog becomes the issue for me. If it just takes moderate 'thumping' while in discharge mode, as opposed to lots of lifting and checking, etc. Or maybe cleaning outside the sump; of course the easier, quicker method wins, hands down. My 2¢

Can't wait for you to open. My next trip to florida: you will be on my schedule! much luck!

Much appreciated!

It's been 2 months. I've finished the 15,000 gal sump... well, sort of finished. It is functional and is covered and insect proof but it has no looks and no time or funds to pretty it up.

About 5' deep but can fill another 6"-12" to up the volume to 16,500 or 18,000 gal. The shade cloth for media is in. It floats, so it is weighed down by PVC pipes filled with water and sand and capped off.

Two opposite corners are sectioned off. One for the incoming water, which will be overflowing from the two ~4500 gal tanks into a giant , ~500+ gal "aquasock".

The other for the pumps. I am in the process of selecting pumps, on which I am working with PondUSA http://www.pondusa.com/catalog.htm at the moment. I think I need about 13,000 GPH in each 4500 gal, about 3 turnovers an hour.

Inside the sump house.

BTW, for the first time I decided to try a PE liner. So far I loved it. Much (~3+ times) lighter and stronger at 25 mil than my usual 45 mil EDPM Firestone rubber liner and ~2 times cheaper. A bit less pliable / flexible but it does not matter to my application. I got the RPE liner (reinforced PE liner) from Everything-Ponds http://store.everything-ponds.com/premi ... ond-liner/

At the same time have been working on stands tying the legs to the concrete slab, adding more horizontal braces under the tanks, a leg for each brace in the middle, braces against length-wise rocking / collapse and those against width-wise rocking / collapse, and the outer walls.

The stands will also house a sump lined with RPE, I think. The entire space under the fish tanks will be a sump - one sump for the 6x240 gal tank cluster (same sump for all 6 tanks) and two sumps for the 4x240 gal tank cluster, two tanks a sump (which are prospected to be quarantine and hospital tanks).