Indoor Tank

[Peg]

If I build a 4x4x3 indoor tank. What thickness of plywood would I need. Would I use 1x6's or 2x6's for the side braces. Plan would be to go around the tank on the top, middle and bottom with 2x4's then the 1x6's or 2x6's and overlap them and bolt them together. This way I can take it apart. I need to be sure it will hold the water pressure as this will be inside. I'm sure the insurance company would not be thrilled if it let go.
Thanks for any help you can offer
Peg

[Terri]

Peg, when we moved to Newcastle Ian built this...
http://www.backyardpuddle.com/diy/images/diytank-2003_010_jpg.jpg
Designed for easy assembly and tear-down if needed. More on the site on what materials were used and how it was put together - http://www.backyardpuddle.com/diy/index.htm

[Jackie Ramo]

What I liked when visiting there was the braces made handy shelves for holding fish food, test equipment etc.

[Koidaddy]

What I liked when visiting there was the braces made handy shelves for holding fish food, test equipment etc.

... only a woman would say that! :phfft:

[Peg]

Thanks Terri. I knew I had seen info and pics somewere on one of the sites. That's exactly what I was looking for. Will check out material cost on Monday.Would be easy to store under the deck as well. Liner may be the hardest thing to find here. When you put the liner in, what did you do in the corners with the extra liner ?
Peg

[flywheel]

Peg, I like to beef up anything I build so there is no danger it breaking apart. I think 1/2" plywood would be plenty thick for the size you're wanting with 2x4's or 2x6's for framing lumber. I built my setup in the corner of the basement so 2 of the sides are concrete and I lagged everything into the concrete but I wanted mine to be permanent. Make sure you screw a bottom on it or lag it down so the sides don't lift up and everthing comes out the bottom.

Terri, I really like the tank/pond Ian built. Awesome!

Here's mine, still needs some painting and I want to go through the wall to get my 55 gallon settlement chamber and 5 gallon lava rock trickle tower out of the pond.

[flywheel]

Thanks Terri. I knew I had seen info and pics somewere on one of the sites. That's exactly what I was looking for. Will check out material cost on Monday.Would be easy to store under the deck as well. Liner may be the hardest thing to find here. When you put the liner in, what did you do in the corners with the extra liner ?
Peg

Hospital corners, like doing sheets on a bed or wrapping a present from the inside. Sorry I can't explain it better than that.

[Peg]

Thanks Ron. In our casr the tank has to go in our bedroom in the basement. It's the only room big enough for this set up. The floor is finished in laminant wood. I was thinking some cross braces on the inside under the liner might do the trick. I can't believe Peter & I are talking about selling the house to find something that would be suited for the fish, inside and out :jaw: I must be nuts :HAHA:

[Terri]

Majority of the water weight will be evenly distributed on the floor, it's a box after all. Using 2"x6" framing as Ian did will help minimize this effect - the boards are stronger 'on end'. For over-kill adding 2"x4" vertical bracing screwed to the 2"x6" framing along the side panels (outside) will also increase the span-width strength. Really tho Peg, for such a small tank I don't think that is necessary, especially if you go with 4 rungs of frame instead of 3.
As the water level increases some of that weight will "want" to push out along the lower half of the tank - the weakest points being the corners, so using 2"x4" vertical bracing would be a nice touch.., using 2"x6" would be even better, just use screws to attach to the framing.
http://www.backyardpuddle.com/diy/tank2/images/tank2_26a_jpg.jpg

For the base/floor inside the tank frame, you can use 1/2" or 3/4" rigid styrofoam sheeting to help insulate and act as a cushion between liner and floor. No cross bracing is needed IMO if you go with 2"x6" framing, 1/2" ply sheeting, and use the lag bolts to secure the corners... regular screws just won't cut it and the likely hood the framing will bust apart is pretty good.

[Louise Laurent]

Hi:

Here is my indoor setup that we installed three years ago. I purchased a demo pool and put a liner inside. It works perfect for us. A couple of hours to set up and one hour to take down.

At the time we had no reference on how to build it with wood, we went with a pool. Did not know Terri and Ian then! ;-)

We used tanks from Nursery Pro for the young ones and added our filtration.

We are just as nuts as you are because we are moving this spring, the koi have outgrown their home... :lol:

louise

[Louise Laurent]

ok:
Files too large, resized them and crossing my fingers...

[Koidaddy]

Louise,
Very clean set -up! :yup:

KD

[Peg]

Thanks everyone. It sure helps to see what others do when they need to bring fish indoors. It gives me some good examples and some good ideas for what will work. Also need to think about a DIY filter as well. If I go with 4x4x3.5 that gives me about 420 US gallons and that will work. I have a pump & pre filter and was thinking of a 50 gal barrel with the bio balls on the bottom, the return just above them and matting above that, then the pump. This way the water would fiter down rather then up. Would this work ok ? I already know that a 950 gal pump with 40 gal and a 3" return will work. Just not sure witch would work better. Up flow or down.

[Jackie Ramo]

Not sure either Peg, but I do know that the bioballs need clean water flowing over them.