New Tank!!!

[cometguy]

I just found an awesome deal on a 65G tank for a whopping 50 bucks.

It's 3 feet by 2 feet by 18 inches in LxHxW

Just need to clean it up and build a stand for it or some sort. I was thinking of going to furniture stores like Ikea or something and buy couple of cheap cabinet to support the tank but it's hella expensive...

Does anyone have suggestions for a easy DYI stand with door? and What sort of equipment should I put in this? (Filter, Heater, powerhead?,etc..?)

Super excited and will be working on the cleaning tomorrow

WHOOHOO

[TheOldSalt]

2X6's and plywood work mighty fine.

[ilovemyplaties]

heater, filter (or two), gravel, decorations, i would get ammonia, ph, nitrate etc testers to make sure things are normal. i would get some aquarium salt just in case any of your fish get hurt or sick/stressed, a little aquatic salt helps them a lot. freshwater or salt. good job finding such a good deal!!!

[bmlbytes]

Build your own aquarium stand. There are literally thousands of plans on the internet for them. A quick Google search brought me to this page. Looks like a nice stand to me.

http://www.aquariumlife.net/projects...m-stand/56.asp

[cometguy]

Originally Posted by TheOldSalt 2X6's and plywood work mighty fine.

Hmm. Lots of people recommended 2x4 and plywood. how would you go about and build with 2x6. Would it be simple enough or complicated?

[cometguy]

Originally Posted by bmlbytes Build your own aquarium stand. There are literally thousands of plans on the internet for them. A quick Google search brought me to this page. Looks like a nice stand to me. http://www.aquariumlife.net/projects...m-stand/56.asp

That stand looks awesome. Better than the one I find on youtube from uarajoey. But his looks very simple enough for dummy like me lol

[cometguy]

Originally Posted by ilovemyplaties heater, filter (or two), gravel, decorations, i would get ammonia, ph, nitrate etc testers to make sure things are normal. i would get some aquarium salt just in case any of your fish get hurt or sick/stressed, a little aquatic salt helps them a lot. freshwater or salt. good job finding such a good deal!!!

For sure ill need gravel lol. Since its a 65gallon how many watts heater do I need? And would this be recommended if I have a green texas cichlid? (Itll be in my tiny living room so room temperature of 22c or 72f.) And should I go with a HOB filter or a canister like eheim 2028? Or fluval 305- fx5?

[cometguy]

Picked up a green texas and a small convict today from my local hobbyists. Im in love with the green texas its handicapped (arch bump growing side of back body)

So their name are Archie and Scar. GT is 7" and convict is 2"


Still working on the set up of the tank and these fish are not suppose to be in there yet but I had no choice but to adopt them right away.

pcitures

[TheOldSalt]

I wouldn't use much gravel with those fish. Hard to clean and they're messy. A thin layer for looks.

[cometguy]

Originally Posted by TheOldSalt I wouldn't use much gravel with those fish. Hard to clean and they're messy. A thin layer for looks.

I was thinking of using sand and local lake rocks, thus building caves for territorial issues. Never have cichlids before but I heard theyre territorial and like digging right?

[cometguy]

Ok.. so can I be able to use sand and rocks that I find at the lake?

[austinroberts23]

I'd use the rock after a scrub. Just go buy some silica sand at lowe/any hardware store. 3 bucks a bag and one should do. Just clean it well before you add it

[lohachata]

the most beautiful rock gravel and sand that i have ever seen or used came from the shores of lake erie.....

[adamxatomic]

I'd stick with 2x4 and MDF or some type of paneling to cover the sides and make the doors out of. Plywood warps pretty easy and can be a pain to nail down. Maybe for the top it's ok, but to cover anything, I wouldn't use it (again.) It has a rough surface that doesn't look that great when painted.

For the door hinges, you will want to use something else besides your basic hinges. Cabinet hinges like this one are a little easier to work with and look a lot better. Plus they cost about the same.

One thing you don't want to do is over engineer your stand and have it weigh a lot more than it needs to. Here's my first stand that was WAY over engineered for just 2x20gal tanks. This one cost >$25 with paint.

[cometguy]

Originally Posted by austinroberts23 I'd use the rock after a scrub. Just go buy some silica sand at lowe/any hardware store. 3 bucks a bag and one should do. Just clean it well before you add it

Either silica or im thinking of beach sand which rona.ca has