Boom

Hey all. Next weekend I will be going down to Calgary Zoo with my family and some friends. My friend and I would like to check out a fish store in Calgary that carries a good selection of African Cichlids. Which store would be best for me to go to? Preferably not on the complete other side of the city as the zoo is. The week after I'll be visiting my grandparents in Lethbridge. Which store should I visit there that carry's A.C's? Thanks. I won't have time for multiple stores in either city.

My old man's tank is 481 gallons. (93"x40"x30") Isn't up and running right now though..... It will be once I take it apart and rebuild it my house tho!!! Sorry I don't have a pic.

I picked up some bricks from the brick yard just south of Argyll Rd on 86 st the other day. The bricks are stanped with "Canada" right on them, so I assume they are made here. Not sure about the other ones you get at Home Depot and such though....

Thanks guys. I still want to go ahead and do this. I just need to find some at a decent price. I was hoping there wopuld be some at the auction, but no such luck. Oh well, I'll keep looking. That tank is super filtered, I have a Fluval 404 and an AC70 on there (33 gallon) so I think I like African-Fever's idea best. Thanks

Well i grabbed some worms today and soaked them for a while, scrubbed the dirt off and threw them in my tank. The first one went in whole and I don't think it even broke the surface before my 5" electric blue iceburg grabbed it and slurped it back like a spaghetti string. WOW! The next worm was chopped up into quarters and my ruby red peacock, red top Lwanda, red empress, and someone else (it happened so fast so I'm not sure who) each got a share of that one. That was cool to see. I gotta make sure I don't do that too often and keep it as a rare treat though. They still like they're NLS too.

They love them and it's very entertaining to watch them play tug-a-war with them lol Thanks Patrick.

I'd also like to know how to that "waterfall". And where to get a banzai tree?

Well I'm pretty sure that the 9th picture is the Psuedotropheus Sp. that I bought in the auction for $50. What an awesome fish he is! I think this is the actual name... Pseudo sp. elongatus yellowtail What do you think?

Well I decided to scrap this idea and I trashed the glass. Thanks anyway guys and gals.

Would worms be O.K. for African cichlids? Malawi Haps and Peacocks?

So I checked and the glass is actually 1/4 inch thick. It is definitely plate glass because it has some holes drilled in places. I will cut those parts off. Do you think it's a good idea to try? Anyone have walkthrough plans to build a tank. I'm thinking it will be in the 50 to 60 gallon range. Not sure on exact dimensions yet but likely won't be any taller than 16". Thanks.

I recently aqcuired some free glass. Several sheets about 18" by 36" or so that I'm gonna guess is 3/16" thick. And I also have an old mirror that i think is the same thickness. (I'll take exact measurements of thickness with digital calipers later today). I was thinking of using the mirror for the back and bottom of the tank, and the other glass for the front, sides and lid. I have never built my own tank before. How hard is it? I have a very solid knowledge of building things out of wood. Also, the clear glass is beveled on the edges, I assume I will need to cut the bevels off with a glass cutter? Does anyone have a link of a walkthrough on how to build a tank? Any idea how large the tank can be with 3/16" glass? Would 36"x18"x18" be ok? Thanks.

No thoughts on this?

Well your tank sure looks nice Leon. I don't have the formal training in engineering that some people would be concerned about. But I do have a VERY solid understanding of what makes wood strong. And argueably more importantly, wood joints. It's kinda like building a bridge, you can use the strongest steel in the world, but if it's not put together properly, it won't hold the weight. Aligning the wood and using strong joints is the real key. Vertical compression strength of wood can be very strong, but only on the vertical axis. If your vertical supports are not perfectly square to the base and top, say out by even a degree or too, you are now adding diagonal pressure on that wood, not as strong. The joints are just as important. Strong construction depends on knowing when to use pocket hole joints, mortise and tennons, tongue and groove, rabbet and dado's, biscuit joints, doweling, etc etc.... Anyway, I'll take some pics of the stand I'll be building for my buddy, and if anyone wants to use my services. I'll be here. I will charge a fair price for good quality work. I do wood working for fun. I make plenty of money at my real job.

Yup. Put a cross brace across the back of the stand. Horizontally from back corner to back corner, secured well to the stand (bolts if metal, #8 or#10 screws for wood). Then all you have to do is secure that cross brace to wherever there is a stud in the wall. Studs in most homes are 16" on center (from center of one stud to the next) but sometimes 24" on center for outside walls or basements. That way you can place the stand anywhere on a wall and the corners don't have to match up with the stud locations. Use a stud finder if you have one or can borrow one, takes the guesswork out. Hope that makes sense.

I figured you had some money invested in that stand Leon, and I knew there were people out there that appreciate the price of quality. Looks like you got a real nice red empress there as well(?) Out of curiousity, what do you guys define as"engineered"? Without starting an arguement on the topic, I don't think that mass produced necessarily equals engineered. I think alot of commercial available stands are designed with as cheap of materials and quality as possible, to generate as much profit as possible. Throw in the fact that people are often expected to assemble them theirselves, and it actually surprises me that we don't here more horror stories of stands failing.

Sorry guys. I should have worded that more carefully. I didn't mean to imply that all DIY stands are fugly, or that joe homeowner can't build a good one. I certainly didn't mean to offend anyone. Corvette, at $200, your stnd probably cost more than most DIY projects. And if you have a tablesaw, your already ahead of most average homeowners. Leon, your stand looks great! What'd it cost you out of curiosity?

Thanks for the replys guys. All points taken. A friend of mine just bought a 150 gallon that I will be building a stand for. I'm not sure how simple or fancy he wants it yet, but I will post some pics when i'm done. I guess what I'll do is just offer and build for people who request it. Word of mouth is prety powerful. I guess I should have some type of "liability waiver" but I could build a stand far stronger than 95% of the P.O.S's sold in stores today and it would never fail. I would be very up front about the cost, once the customer decides what they want. Because the idea is "custom stands" posting a price list would be impossible. Price would be dependant on types and quality of materials requested, finish, and how much of a rush your in to get it. The customer would sign a "work order" once they decide what they want and we'd stick to that with the agreement that it can change if you don't like it, but so may the price. Just to be clear, I'm not talking about fugly DIY stands that joe homeowner with a hammer and a saw would throw together. I'm talking about high quality custom work. Hopefully the people that appreciate quality work, and want it in their homes, realize that they have to pay for it. I'm certinly not saying I'll offer stands for cheap, but my price will be considerably less than what it would cost to hire a "proffesional" to build a custom stand. This won't be my main source of income, so I don't have to charge an arm and a leg. I also don't charge by the hour. I charge per project. Maybe this will fly, maybe not. But if you know anybody who wants to try me out, pass my name to them. Thnx Boom

Wow. No thoughts on this?? Would ANYONE be interested?

I could build you a real nice custom stand, either simple or very fancy schmancy...... I'll even find your studs and bolt it to the wall for ya!

So in my bigger tank right now at work (33 gal) I have a Firemouth, a Jack dempsey, 2 synodontis petricolas, a pleco and 5 giant danios. Well I want to get rid of all but the synodontis, and restock the tank with a group of Ps. Saulosi's, both male and females for maximum color. Is this a good idea? How many should I have in there? Where in Edmonton can I get them? Anybody want the other fish? I guess I'll try sell them on the for sale area.

O.K. Thanks. We're gonna go with a group od Cardinal tetra's, some rummy-nose tetra's, and a few Blue rams in that tank. Thanks guys.

Which Aquagiant had albino peacocks?? I have been in both stores the last few days, and they don't have any albino peacocks and havn't had for quite a while. ?

That is alot of fish. You know what would have looked really nice in there? That Red Eureka I was selling! Oh well.

Hey all. I am wanting your opinions on something I am contemplating. I have noticed there seems to be some demand for custom built aquarium stands around here. Maybe I'm mistaken. But I have both the tools and know-how to build custom cabinets, furniture, shelving units etc. And have built alot. I also have kept aquariums for several years and have a very solid knowledge of what kind of support the require. I'll be honest, I haven't built an aquarium stand yet, but would like to start. I would like to know if people would buy custom stands and how much people would be willing to pay. I could build the very simple, to the very elaborate (although there are some things I can't do). I would build them out of wood in my wood shop. I know this probably isn't the right place to advertise my services, and that's not my intention here. I just want to get a feel for if there is a demand for this or not, and if it would be worth my while. I would need to cover the costs of materials and still cover my time spent on the project. I would also love to do some in wall, and / or custom setup's including but not limited to stacked aquariums and side to side setups. Maybe you've had an idea for a real neat custom stand but have no idea how to build it? I could probably figure it out and build it for you! I love working with wood and making things for other people who will really appreciate it is my goal. Maybe there is someone already doing this? Let me know what you think. Thanks. BOOM