Cheers Pyke. As one build finished another begins….,

Nice one Mark. I appreciate all your support!

I’m glad you got something out of the video. Thanks for supporting my channel!

Thanks for your support! Don’t fear…..I’m a freshwater guy as well!

Mate, got to say I’m humbled! I don’t think even my wife says I’m a gem! Do me another favour and help me spread on KZfaq?! Share the video to your fish club etc. Cheers Adam

Brilliant, thanks mate. The next stage of the build is going to be FUN!!

I know right! Now I get to have real fun!!

I sort of run the line with my wife. I tell her just enough of my plans , so she knows something is happening, but not enough for her to ask for details!

Sand is in!!

Cheers for your support.. there will be plenty more videos to come!

I’m loving it now that I don’t have to worry about leaks!! Life starts this weekend!

It’ll be heading your way very soon!

Well Greg, I’m hoping that it doesn’t take as long to get life in the tank as it has to build it. Actually it won’t, as I’ll be collecting microbes this weekend!

No stopping me now (….. well, as long as we don’t tell my wife of all my plans!)

@@australianaquarist Hahaaa, I wont tell her

Thanks Kyle. What are you planning on building?

I’m going collecting for bacteria and microfauna this weekend…. Stay tuned!

Hi Nicholas, it’s certainly been a bit of a journey, and it wasn’t until I put the dates on the video, just how long I’ve been going at it. Now I get to have real fun, starting this weekend as I collect microfauna to seed the tank

@australianaquarist I'm a marine aquarist myself. I have just a small ( 1 metre by 0.5 x 0.5 metre tank) but still love finding new and unusual things to put in it. I like, in particular, soft corals as the fish tend to leave them alone. I can't wait to see how your one looks after a year or two!

Soft corals , especially Sarcophytons and Sinularia are favourites of mine. I think the hobby will see a resurgence in popularity of softies, as people look to keep more varied fish species. I like testing out different butterflyfish with softies , and I think the same could be said for angels

​@@australianaquarist I've got angels and bannerfish in my aquarium. They all leave the corals alone. The only iffy fish I had was a dwarf angel, but my anemone scoffed the little bugger! Lol.

@nicholaskemp2246 that’s karma isn’t it!

It looks like you want me to stock 2 trevalley and 3 blue tangs! Yes to the blue tangs, but the trevalley has to stay in my estuary tank for now!

@@australianaquarist 🤣🤣🤣

Yeah it’s not really a popular practice in Australia. If you have a marine/ boat chandlery store near you, they’ll be your best source of epoxy’s. Otherwise check out Botecote online!

I know right! It’s been months getting the tank this far. The next stages should be pretty smooth and quick… stay tuned. Thanks for commenting

Won’t be long Daz. I’m using the existing sump , and along with a couple of tricks for sourcing microfauna and bacteria, the tank will see coral and some fish, within the week

@@australianaquarist sounds amazing , cannot wait , keep up the great work, here’s too a great week 🫡🙏🏼

Hey Gil Just trying to figure that one out. Do I build the cliffs from carved styrofoam coated with epoxy, or lightweight concrete/rock mix? Or expanding foam and epoxy?!?!

@@australianaquarist Styrofoam would probably easier to carve.

Trust me I have thought about it!

I should get a chance to play with some microbial life , this weekend!

I lived just south of Cairns , at Mission Beach, for three years. Used to head out to Eddy Reef and some inshore reefs around Dunk Island . Amazing stuff. Thanks for supporting me!

Go for it ezwaters! I’m glad you’re getting value from my videos. Good luck

Definitely! The build was fun to begin, but must admit became a drag trying to get it finished in between work etc

Will do. I’m getting pretty excited about getting some life into this tank now!

my thoughts too! two epic guys to epic sh*t!

Going to have to check Alex G out! What’s the name of his channel?

@@australianaquarist AlexGs aquarium on YT

@@australianaquaristAlexGs aquariums on YT

@@australianaquarist I believe it’s Alexa aquariums. Just type in Alex G should come up.

Thanks Krish! Got to change that name!!

Thanks Apisto!

Cheers

Ahh brilliant, it’s bloody good pellets. Thanks for your continued support George

You’ve got to go for it Carl!!!

Got to do what makes you happy! Not game… just happy!

Thank you for your support Murphinator

Lots more to come for sure!

Ahh yes lighting…. I’m pulling out the old 400w metal halides until I can figure out an LED option I can afford! Thanks for the support and greetings from the land downunder!

Thank you Steve. I much appreciate you taking time to support me on this KZfaq journey!

Thanks Tony. I’ve got life in there as I watch now!

Thanks for supporting my channel Adam!

What , just one of!?! I’ll give you some more time to come around 100%!

@@australianaquarist awesome mate! Can’t wait!!

Yep, I’m just going to feed it water from the active sump behind, and then transfer the livestock over. I’ve got some unconventional tricks up my sleeve for bacteria and microfauna, which I’ll do a video on next

Life starts this weekend!!

That’s the way. There definitely is a sense of achievement that come from building the display yourself! Have fun

Oi Oi Oi!! Appreciate your support!!

Many thanks for your support!

Don’t hold back, go for it! Do what makes you happy!!!!

Cheers Thanks for your support !

Thanks mate. I’m glad you’re getting value out of the videos

That would be awesome ! I’m a huge fan of freshwater turtles, however the biggest we’ve got down here ( other than pig noses), is Chelodina expansa - the Broadshell River Turtle

@@australianaquarist I’m assuming most North American Turtles are illegal in Australia to keep but one of my favorites is the spiny soft shells. Similar to pig noses.

@houseoffears9234 yeah, we can’t keep exotic reptiles, except where they were declared as part of an amnesty a few years back

Cheers, now that real fun begins… Plants, fish, collecting, and Monster.

Thanks for watching and commenting!!

Wow Thanks Sam. I do like the creative side to video editing and you’re the first viewer to comment on that. Thanks for your support!

Cheers Lorenzo!

Don’t dream… just start building. Contact me if you’re in need of help

I couldn’t believe it took me that long! Putting the dates on there was a real eye opener.

Thanks for supporting my build and the channel!

I sort of combined the glass install into a more educational video on the tempered vs annealed glass debate. Easily missed. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/abyhoqyn3Mq8pmQ.htmlsi=NOU6eCErDcrz1B7E And yes. You’ll be seeing a lot more of this tank shortly!! Thanks

Thank you Domenic

A simple plywood base and four glass sides is the easiest way to go, especially if you don’t need as tall a tank. Just remember to design the tank to common plywood dimensions ( 8 x 4, 12 x 4)

@@australianaquarist if I'm only going 18-20 inches high do I need to use tempered glass or can I just use regular glass at that height.. I was thinking about drilling an overflow and return for a sump just to avoid having anything in the tank to give my stingrays more room, and to avoid burns from heaters and for visual aesthetics. And I was thinking of doing it rimless, as long as I stay short enough and get the proper silicone. Or would you recommend maybe an aluminum frame around the top. I would definitely do Euro bracing if I do rimless. And thank you for any advice...

You can use either glass, really at any height. You just need to consider the thickness of the glass in relation to the depth of the water ( tank height) - the most important - but also I feel tanks with very long sides benefit from thicker glass, as I feel the longer runs have a greater chance of deflection. Traditionally, tanks of 18inches would use 6mm (1/4”) sides with euro and cross braces. Many modern rimless tanks at 18” tall, especially planted ones, use 10mm float/ annealed. However, I wouldn’t use 10mm (3/8”) float glass on a long and wide, stingray tank. I would start to be happier using 10mm if full glass euro bracing was installed. Happier still if it was 1/2” or 12mm float. Just because of the length of the sides. The advantage of tempered over annealed/float glass is its 4 times stronger to deflection. In saying that though, not necessary and you may want to consider edge protection of tempered glass.

@@australianaquarist I'll I'll definitely be using half inch 12 mm these are all definitely things I've considered and yes center bracing for sure. And yeah I know tempered glass if you hit it on the edge it's all done so edge protection is a must . Thank you for the experience and hands on videos

Of course , you can’t drill tempered glass without it exploding!

No stopping now Michael. Thanks for your support!

Thanks Bill I really appreciate you supporting my work!

Getting there John. I think it’ll be a bit more enjoyable from now on!

Your comment came through in a language other than English, but I think you commented that it makes you want to try it , but at a smaller volume tank? If so, I say go for it! Have fun and enjoy this hobby. Thanks for your support

French?? Was never my best subject at school!

Thanks. The end part of this video kzfaq.info/get/bejne/a5qhmKqLsbOoYKM.htmlsi=Qwcgg4O50CMdIx4D describes that construction technique. I simply initially butt join then with silicone, and then bridge the joint internally with a 10mm glass strip, and externally with the aluminium flat bar, siliconed in place. Both pieces of glass are aligned and “ locked” in place by the rebate in the tank floor and the metal bracing at the top

@@australianaquarist thanks!

You are very welcome to come and visit anytime! I put corner clamps on and clamped a straight edge along the top of the two front panes to keep them in line. But to be honest, they stay quite upright and true by sitting in the rebate

Plywood tanks are my way of saving money when I want a large tank. There’s no way I could afford to do this tank in all glass!

Could do with a little bit more heat in Coffs Harbour at the moment! Only reached 16 Celsius yesterday!

Brilliant!! Maybe a home cooked meal when I visit one day! A dream at the moment

THE BEST FEELING!!! Especially when it didn’t leak!!!!! I’m thinking of Asian ShoreCrabs for the island. They are used to climbing up and down the intertidal rocks, grazing on the microalgae

You are very welcome. I very much appreciate your support! All the epoxies and polyurethanes I used are from Boatcraft Pacific in Brisbane QLD. Australian owned and manufactured. The epoxy is called Botecote, which I’ve used pretty extensively in my plywood builds. The polyurethane coloured topcoat is called Aquacote. It’s a water based polyurethane, so pretty easy to use. Both are used widespread in the Aussie boatbuilding industry. Keep asking questions if you need help!

Building a PALAU REEF TANK PALUDARIUM using Plywood and Epoxy! kzfaq.info/get/bejne/a5lllpSZ3dTWkYU.html

MAKING an UGLY PLYWOOD AQUARIUM LOOK PREEETTY! kzfaq.info/get/bejne/nZ19epti0qrIdIk.html

@@australianaquarist I appreciate all the information and the fact you clearly explain what you're doing and are not trying to hide tips or tricks you have learned that can help us all be better reefers. Do you happen to know what the American equivalent to those epoxies would be? I have an old Red Lobster Marine Land tank that would be nice to seal the fiberglass bottom of. I haven't found anything that I know for certain is safe longterm in a corrosive environment such as a reef tank. My buddy wanted to use a Pond coating/paint and I wasn't comfortable with that as it was black and I don't trust whatever is in the ingredients to be inert.

@sgbbco3981 Im sorry, as I’m not familiar with American products. Can I make a suggestion? Send a short email to Edward from Boatcraft Pacific. Edward and Boatcraft are great to talk to, and have been in the industry for decades. I’m sure he’ll be able to answer your questions regard epoxy toxicities, and comparable products. He may even ship product to the states already- afterall, your exchange rate is pretty favourable! Let me know how you go. edwardp@boatcraft.com.au

It all comes down to the height of the pond/ depth of the water. If you’re talking about the same height- go for it. But if you are thinking about a pond of 4 or 5 ft deep, then I’d be going up in thickness. Bracing is king.

The next tank is going to be slightly smaller actually- 10 x 4 x 3. Running out of space!

Yes Jeremy. Just shoot me a text or call 0402522738

To be honest I completely lost track!! You need to do minimum 3 coats of epoxy, wet on wet , or a light sand between coats if they dried.

So I think you’re asking about using one acrylic pane as the front window, and how it would go with the way I lock the bottom in the rebate, and brace the top? There are always problems when mixing building materials… this is the reason I’ve had to use metal bracing, as traditional glass strip braces can’t be structurally siliconed to the plywood rear wall. I feel your issue would be getting a watertight seal at the bottom ( in that rebate I build). I don’t think silicone adheres very well to acrylic, so that seal would be more of a gasket, where the weight of the acrylic pushes the silicone down into the rebate. Bracing up top would be easier though, as you could use acrylic bracing and where it meets the timber wall, just screw the bracing down to the timber. Am I thinking the same as you??

I am pretty fortunate to have my fish room, however just get a bit “ different “ with a smaller tank. Think up an idea that you’ve never seen before before, or focus down on one crazy species

@@australianaquarist I have a large system just not to your level love sone of the first you have to. Just in the proses of building my own custom sump set up should just over 1000ltr sump taking system to 3000ltrs. But yours is on another level and love your vids and the builds.

@one-armed-reefer5184 big sumps are amazing , especially where you’ve got plenty of room around them. They even allow for bigger upgrades down the line…….

@@australianaquarist that’s the planning display getting up graded later in the year. the sump I run now is way to small so needed to be upgraded. Can I ask them siliver and black fish you have they look a bit like an emporia cardinal but with a pointed face what are they?? Think there stunning just never seen them before

@one-armed-reefer5184 if the fish you are seeing are in the big estuary tank, they’d be either silver mono’s (Monodactylus argenteus) or Australian Stripey’s ( which are a brilliant yellow and black striped fish in nature). kzfaq.info/get/bejne/pNeHfceVm6fbY2g.htmlsi=8S2bqFoXtb_cD1FO

Unfortunately yes, and they are cooking away right now. I tend to do a couple of things to reduce my reliance on heaters: - keep local species that tolerate cooler winter temperatures - run the tanks cooler in the winter (22-24c) - shut up the fish room at night time, close the roof vents etc.

@@australianaquarist You have a fantastic set up, one tank keeps me busy.

That makes me very happy John. You are very welcome , checking out my channel. If you’ve got questions on building your own big tank, just reach out to me. I’m happy to help out

Love your work!!