After reading so many journals on here i thought i'd add my own as i need some support and advice.
The plan is a relatively uncluttered but good looking tank for the kitchen to hold shrimp. I have a 30l tetra tank in there at the moment but wanted more volume to play with.
The current details
Tank = aquanano 40 (backplate remains in place to hide all the gubbins
filter - will be eheim 2211 running on the tetra tank
cabinet - 50*50cm self made using spill50's guides here http://www.ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=22106 and here http://www.richard-mckenna.com/media/Tank-Bench-MkII.pdf
Cabinet build first
B&Q - absolute godsend for cutting the MDF up, just make sure you turn up in a quiet time and get the most experienced guy there, the first said it couldn't be done. the guy with 40yrs as a joiner experience "john" did it in 5mins from 1 sheet.
Mistakes in the cabinet
hinges are a bugger. went for ikea hinges (not an issue in its own right) but getting the holes drilled, getting them in, set and looking reasonable is ALOT of work and i am still not happy.
filling in screw heads - i can still see (roughly) where the screws were, think the paint and MDF soaked up moisture from the filler and they sunk back slightly, but i did leave a few days and spent hrs sanding and filling. will need to perfect for the next cabinet.
bottom section - the bottom piece of wood is the same size as the top meaning the cabinet is an enclosed box, if i had not made the bottom panel the same size it would have been easier with hinges and i think would look better.
pics
in construction
with tank on
so now on to some questions that i could with some support / advice on
Wood
I have acquired the lovely piece of wood you can see in the shot below. it needs holding down as it may potentially never float. best way is to screw into slate i gather, but its a small piece of wood and i don't want it to be too obvious underneath the wood. any suggestions on how to approach?
the cardboard the wood is sitting on is the same size as the tank.
next question
substrate: 2 options
1) cat litter - being used in main tank and liking it, bit too light but once settled its great.- downsides doesn't show off shrimp that well.
2) black inert gravel
I'll stick some osmocote under the gravel but plants will probably be needle java, mosses, anubias and some crypts probably (not got that far to be honest)
I also want to add some of the rocks i have in the garage (looks a bit dragonstone ish)
so question - black gravel or kitty litter to go with the stone and wood and to host CRS/CBS shrimp. i am heavily leaning to black gravel but would prefer a 3rd perspective (after the better halves of course)
i'll be looking to set the tank asap to look at landscape options so any suggestions, thoughts points of note welcome
The plan is a relatively uncluttered but good looking tank for the kitchen to hold shrimp. I have a 30l tetra tank in there at the moment but wanted more volume to play with.
The current details
Tank = aquanano 40 (backplate remains in place to hide all the gubbins
filter - will be eheim 2211 running on the tetra tank
cabinet - 50*50cm self made using spill50's guides here http://www.ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=22106 and here http://www.richard-mckenna.com/media/Tank-Bench-MkII.pdf
Cabinet build first
B&Q - absolute godsend for cutting the MDF up, just make sure you turn up in a quiet time and get the most experienced guy there, the first said it couldn't be done. the guy with 40yrs as a joiner experience "john" did it in 5mins from 1 sheet.
Mistakes in the cabinet
hinges are a bugger. went for ikea hinges (not an issue in its own right) but getting the holes drilled, getting them in, set and looking reasonable is ALOT of work and i am still not happy.
filling in screw heads - i can still see (roughly) where the screws were, think the paint and MDF soaked up moisture from the filler and they sunk back slightly, but i did leave a few days and spent hrs sanding and filling. will need to perfect for the next cabinet.
bottom section - the bottom piece of wood is the same size as the top meaning the cabinet is an enclosed box, if i had not made the bottom panel the same size it would have been easier with hinges and i think would look better.
pics
in construction
with tank on
so now on to some questions that i could with some support / advice on
Wood
I have acquired the lovely piece of wood you can see in the shot below. it needs holding down as it may potentially never float. best way is to screw into slate i gather, but its a small piece of wood and i don't want it to be too obvious underneath the wood. any suggestions on how to approach?
the cardboard the wood is sitting on is the same size as the tank.
next question
substrate: 2 options
1) cat litter - being used in main tank and liking it, bit too light but once settled its great.- downsides doesn't show off shrimp that well.
2) black inert gravel
I'll stick some osmocote under the gravel but plants will probably be needle java, mosses, anubias and some crypts probably (not got that far to be honest)
I also want to add some of the rocks i have in the garage (looks a bit dragonstone ish)
so question - black gravel or kitty litter to go with the stone and wood and to host CRS/CBS shrimp. i am heavily leaning to black gravel but would prefer a 3rd perspective (after the better halves of course)
i'll be looking to set the tank asap to look at landscape options so any suggestions, thoughts points of note welcome