Large Aquarium Design. Help Tips Etc Req.

[Arachnidzone]

Had an email from an Australian company re produts for sealing this type of aquarium, will look into the price first as although i want a huge aquarium we are on a budget. I do have a knack for making things happen on a budget though by adding more invention and time to the build!

I know i keep changing the plan but im not one to stick with the first good idea, evolve and improve, that the joy in planning early. SO...

20ft long x 3ft deep x 2ft wide. 6x 30"x30" windows along its legnth would make one heck of an aquarium. 747.46 (UK) gallon, 897.66 (US) gallon, 3398.02 litres, 7469.36 lbs (3.4 tonne Big enough to be classed as huge in my books! But small enough to require thinner, cheaper glass. Does everyone agree on 16mm?

also possibly trying a membrane build on this one which allows for flexing etc. Resin/wood aquariums get very hard and quite brittle which is fine if you live where theres no ground movement in a ready-settled building etc etc. I will be in a brand new building in a rainforest so there will definitely be flexing and warping going on. SO, plywood box, loads of 4"x4" or thicker framing, put membrane in, coat with flexible sealent stuff a few times, glue glass in, coat more etc etc, then its basically a well-reinforced pond liner in a box with a window glued in. I will probably raise the whole tank off the floor by digging to the bedrock and building an earthbag wall style floor from there upwards which is basically rice sacks filled with soil, this will give a very solid base which i will render with a clay or cncrete mix.

 

[Edge]

Really enjoyed reading this topic, this is the kind of thing I plan all day every day, definitely a pipe dream at the moment. Me and my wife have been reading a lot of good things about Singapore and are tempted to give up on the UK, but it's such a scary thought to try and get a job overseas and leave your friends and family behind. I'd like to try it for year or something.

I always though that if I had a large setup like this, I'd do something similar to your original idea and have a river scene, with some land and a water fall; the glass would be like cutaway windows into an overall environment. I alway liked the idea of having a tank below the fish tanks for reptiles, and deck it out like an damp cave underneath the river bed. You'd only need one sheet of glass and wouldn't have to worry about the extra weight. Guess the tanks above it would have to be sturdy though.

Also, this may sound insane (feel free to shoot me down), but could you have some kind of tube coming down from the roof lined with reflectors, that sort of channels natural light to above the tanks and then through some kind of diffuser? Then you'd only need LED/Fluorescent lighting in the evening. You'd get a pretty natural light cycle too, but I'm just an office IT monkey, so I know nothing about building I'm afraid. Shame, I would have loved to come and help out.

 

[Arachnidzone]

Really enjoyed reading this topic, this is the kind of thing I plan all day every day, definitely a pipe dream at the moment. Me and my wife have been reading a lot of good things about Singapore and are tempted to give up on the UK, but it's such a scary thought to try and get a job overseas and leave your friends and family behind. I'd like to try it for year or something.

I always though that if I had a large setup like this, I'd do something similar to your original idea and have a river scene, with some land and a water fall; the glass would be like cutaway windows into an overall environment. I alway liked the idea of having a tank below the fish tanks for reptiles, and deck it out like an damp cave underneath the river bed. You'd only need one sheet of glass and wouldn't have to worry about the extra weight. Guess the tanks above it would have to be sturdy though.

Also, this may sound insane (feel free to shoot me down), but could you have some kind of tube coming down from the roof lined with reflectors, that sort of channels natural light to above the tanks and then through some kind of diffuser? Then you'd only need LED/Fluorescent lighting in the evening. You'd get a pretty natural light cycle too, but I'm just an office IT monkey, so I know nothing about building I'm afraid. Shame, I would have loved to come and help out.

Edge, you, like all, would be welcome for a visit, we are next door to an eco-lodge so can get a good deal on long-term holiday makers! If you like nature, the jungle, culture etc etc then 1 month is Malaysia is great, cheap to get around and live once your there. If you really like seclusion then 2-3 months+ with the odd trip to a city or spa. Oh and a nice fish collecting expedition in the jungle with us!

As for the lighting idea its already invented, solar lights etc, a few brands, basically a highly polished stainless steel tube, a domed lens on the roof and a diffuser downstairs. Would be considering this for the aquarium and the rear downstairs rooms which will have very little natural light and be lab/study rooms for hobbyists, students etc. Good idea though! Would love to hear any suggestions on how to do this easily using just the stainess tube and cheap alternatives for the diffuser and dome?

 

[Arachnidzone]

Hi all, been in touch with a company regarding resin products for a wooden tank and had yet another suggestion which is a material like pond liner, then several coats of a flexible sealant which means the end result is durable, wont chip, pierce, crack etc. Sounds good for a wooden build in a wooden house on a newly laid floor, I totally expect 'bedding in' of the cement floor and weathering of the wooden house and tank so i like the idea of 'movement resistant!' said to be easy to add to at a later date too.

I have been thinking and although i do like the idea of regular resin/wood tanks, i need maximum lighting so may go for a double window version with rows of windows front AND back. I have a render to post soon!

 

[Arachnidzone]

heres the render... just an example, need to research into glass/ acrylic thickness's when only half filled?

this renders windows are way too big, 5ft+ lol... oops! Will redo with 4 3-4ft windows

 

[ALW]

Any more new designs Arachnidzone

 

[Arachnidzone]

Andy, rethinking and redesigning the entire house, once thats done i will have a better idea of the fish side of things. Minimum will be a large pond design which could be about 10ft circle. Makes the whole thing so much cheaper jsut being a large pond as pretty much the only cost is the material.

May be going for a 'green wood' build now which means the building can be done on arrival and cost very very little. Thinking this way for eco, time and budget reasons. Dont worry though as i CANT do things by halves so a pond would have an impresive waterfall feature, possibly centrally like a small mountain coming from the centre or a large tree sprouting from the middle, something like that. Will definitely be the centrepiece for a main room or conservatory room depending on the design. Thinking hobit home but a little bigger with slar power, PS3, LCD TV, LED lighting!

 

[ALW]

Andy, rethinking and redesigning the entire house, once thats done i will have a better idea of the fish side of things. Minimum will be a large pond design which could be about 10ft circle. Makes the whole thing so much cheaper jsut being a large pond as pretty much the only cost is the material.

May be going for a 'green wood' build now which means the building can be done on arrival and cost very very little. Thinking this way for eco, time and budget reasons. Dont worry though as i CANT do things by halves so a pond would have an impresive waterfall feature, possibly centrally like a small mountain coming from the centre or a large tree sprouting from the middle, something like that. Will definitely be the centrepiece for a main room or conservatory room depending on the design. Thinking hobit home but a little bigger with slar power, PS3, LCD TV, LED lighting!

I like it

 

[Arachnidzone]

I like it

In a way it would be easier to design if we were in a rush as we have had many designs which we have really liked, but this way we keep developing, evolving, tweaking until the design has changed completely several times getting more practical, more cost effective and more eco-friendly each time.

 

[Arachnidzone]

Hi all, just doing more research into more building methods then will be back on track. Just to deviate off topic slightly heres a render or two to show the possible hybrid, Rammed Earth/Earth-bag/timber building which would demonstrate several new and usefull building methods to the local community. A rammed earth floor

This shows rammed earth sections with earthbag in between and the earthbag being plastered to blend to the rammed earth.

Above view, inside earthbag not plastered yet.

View of the end of the rammed earth sections, note they are made in a way that a large post can be fitted in for the window etc to be assembled up to.

more designs soon, then back to the centrepiece, the aquarium!

At the moment i am trying to think of a way of building (sealing) a glass aquarium around the top lip of a pond as pond liner will be one of our easiest and cheapest materials. I will dig a trench under the house with gravel drainage so if there is ever a leak it will all filter outside, no probs. Hopefully wouldnt be one though!

 

[Arachnidzone]

Hi all, incorporating a few previous ideas and rereading the whole thread i like something Miss Wiggle said about planting a tree in a pond area of a paladarium which reaches out into the room. So, thinking a large pond, waterfall, river, etc certainly plants, possibly bonzie style, otherwise a marshlans plant which would cope with its roots in water and orchids attached to the tree? depends on if i can get skylighting etc as this would need to be well lit. The idea being i would only need a small in pond light or 2, maybe 5-10w worth of LEDs.

 

[Gun]

Love your 'eco style' building ideas

House is going to look awesome.

That is some aquarium your designing aswell

 

[Arachnidzone]

Love your 'eco style' building ideas

House is going to look awesome.

That is some aquarium your designing aswell

Cheers, got some good ideas and loads of positive feedback from members... will be a LOOONG thread but will be thourough from designs to build, to finished product.

 

[Gun]

Look forward to seeing it unravel.

Loads of knowledge/learning to be gained in threads like these

 

[Million]

Epic stuff! One day, one day it will be mine...