Another New Aquarium – The 55 Buildout
So…I bought another aquarium. The 30-gallon that I have doesn’t have a skimmer and is a little high maintenance. So, I bought a 55-gallon that’s a little more roomy and also has a little more modern configuration.
Our little puppy had 6 teeth pulled. She’s back up and doing fine, but it took a bit out of her for a few days.
Continue reading Post ID 2090It’s been a busy few weeks with the tank. I’ve been stuck in “ugly tank” mode. My nitrates have been spiking, so I’ve been performing 90-gallon water changes every week to keep things in check! That’s a lot of work, but it’s worked well, and things are finally stable.
I’m FINALLY able to add some “Cleanup Crew” members to make the tank sparkly, clean, and shiny! (background…invertebrates are very sensitive to nitrates, so they cannot be added until the tank has been cycled fully)
The doors are one of the hardest parts to build. They take constant abuse, being slammed, pulled on, and generally abused. It’s taken a long time, but these should be solid!
You should know that my brother was a finish carpenter and is an incredible artist. He helped design the trim for the base of the aquarium in one night. We spent the next day hacking this out. It was sooo much fun.
Trimming out a project is very “delicate” and takes a fair amount of time.
We did our best to make it look awesome. My brother is an artist, engineer, and a carpenter. He works magic. See below:
Click “Continue reading” for details on the build.
Continue reading Post ID 2090I needed a way to strengthen the joints in the frame so that it’s strong enough to handle the weight and stress that will be put on it.
Glue is a lot stronger than wood, and the biscuit will increase the surface area the glue has to hold the joint together. It’s a nice alternative to metal fasteners and doesn’t take up any space outside of the joint.
Here’s a video of the process:
The aquarium is looking good, and the build-out is also going well. Here’s a current pic:
We took some time off and went to Wisconsin to decompress and relax a bit. It was a great time! We took the dog and just hung out for a few days, did some kayaking, and had some camp fires. Much fun was had.
It’s been a while since I made a post. My apologies! I’ve been a little under the weather.
New fish have been added! Pictures are below. You can use your mouse or keyboard or mouse to browse the pics. Mouse over the pics for a description.
If you mouse over the pics, the reel will stop so you can gaze to your hearts content.
You can also click on the dots under the picture frame to select individual pics.
So ya know…
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The fish have settled in and are doing great. They are ALWAYS hungry:) They seem to like the back-left corner of the tank (stage-right). They hang out there most of the time.
We recently made a trip to Clear Lake, Iowa to visit Greg and Donna. Much fun was had! Mini-golf was a hit.
Select Read More below for the pics:
Continue reading Post ID 2090We’ve added a couple of inmates to the tank:) Both are considered “maintenance fish,” because they help keep things clean in the tank. Its important to start with these kinds of fish to keep everything in balance.
Since the tank isn’t fully established, I still need to feed them on occasion, but they mostly eat algae and other “bad stuff” in the aquarium. Eventually, they will keep the tank clean and bright.
Click Read More for details.
Continue reading Post ID 2090OK…the aquarium is finally up and running with all of the live rock and fish:
Click Continue Reading for a video of the fish and more details.
Continue reading Post ID 2090The aquarium is finally fully functional, with some deco. It took a lot to get it this far. It looks great, and I’m super excited. Hoping to get fish in it “soon.”
More info in this article:
Continue reading Post ID 2090
