Building The Fish Room I Never Wanted

[VickiK]

wow! This is fun to read. I love watching these fish room build threads.....

 

[clifford]

I've been meaning to do something like this for months, and keep managing not to get it done. Your shelves look great, keep up the good work!

Initially I wanted to base my shelves off of the photos on the Geiler's website (http://www.geileraquatics.com/), but I really like the clean look of the tank/beam/tank/beam of the "Pixie Sticks" (I think that's what I heard it called in one of Cory's early shop construction videos?) at the Co-op. I'd be curious to hear from @Cory the pros and cons of the wood vs cinder blocks vs alternate shelving. I'd also be curious to know how well the staining went on the wood (I feel like most folks recommend a variety of conditioners to try to get fir studs to stain properly).

 

[lymitliss]

Thank you! Glad to finally have it in motion. If I was running a breeding facility, or even a larger fish room I'd definitely simplify them but I think these will work nicely for a room in a house. I was thinking about staining the racks but I never ended up doing it. I like the bare wood look.

 

[lymitliss]

Got some more done on my fish room today. Moved my Mbu, Fahaka, and their tank mates down to their new tanks and got everything set up for them. I'll need to build some sort of shelf or cabinet for the FX6 filters to sit in, but for now they are okay where they are. I still plan to do some sort of backing for my tanks, so you don't have to look at all those wires and hoses.

 

[clifford]

Ok, your posts have shamed me into buying 2x4's, bolts, wood conditioner, stain, and polyurethane. I'm hoping to end up with a serviceable rack for 10 gallon tanks, 4-high x 5-wide. I'm on stay-cation through Wednesday, so time will tell if I can get something cranked out by then.

In terms of tank backing, did you see the videos Cory did with the Plasti Dip? You do have to pull the tank out to where you can spray it, but I really like the way it peals off if you want to change it later...no paint scraping. In the past I've preferred painting to "poster" backgrounds because it gives such a nice uniform look. If I already had the tanks in place like you do, I'd buy a few dollars worth of dark fabric at Joanne's and tack it to the stand. A pretty similar effect with no work.

 

[lymitliss]

Glad you've been inspired! As for the plastidip, I've tried it before and found that it's hard to get even coverage, and that it takes a lot of cans so it ends up being costly as well. There are also very few stores that carry it.

Overall I like the idea, but I'm going back to alternative backings. Just haven't decided what yet.

 

[Bob]

I guess your town must hate plasti dip. Home Depot, Lowes, Walmart, Fred Meyers all have it up here.

Room is looking really good, about time for the bbq yes?

 

[FishBeast]

Looks great!! I have used both Plasti-Dip and the Rust-O-Leum version. I think an advantage to these is some measure of improved insulation?

 

[Joel]

That's an awesome fish room plus so much more room for more tanks What is the update how is it coming along ?

 

[Burningfyra]

If you haven't done the backings yet I suggest just buying lots of black cardboard and taping it to the back of the tank. I did it because it meant I didnt have to move my tank.

 

[VickiK]

If you haven't done the backings yet I suggest just buying lots of black cardboard and taping it to the back of the tank. I did it because it meant I didnt have to move my tank.

That's what I did on mine too. I'm lazy!

@lymitliss - Any new action shots on the awesome new fish room? Inquiring minds want to know (and live vicariously through your efforts...lol)

 

[lymitliss]

Thanks for following up guys. I haven't done a whole lot to my fish room lately, but I have some new fish coming in soon so I'll probably show how I'm going to divide some of the tanks.