Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

im just trying to start a new set up with fish and a growing bed

i wana know how you guys made a water tank like out of galvinised iron

i wana make one in a square but with curved edges
how can you seal the bottom and what would you use on the bottom?

and is there a kind of concrete that wouldnt kill fishies?

me and my friend are thinking we could bend a strip on galvinised iron around then rivit it together. then have maybe another piece of iron on the bottom and concreat it in. if the concreat isnt possible use a layer of plastic or pond liner on the iron but not sure how to hold it in.
does this sound doable? if not please give some ideas im a little lost.

thanking you in advance Alex.

Hello and welcome A1,
would it be easier for you to visit/call a manufacturer of gal tanks, explain what you want and get pricing ?

Hi there Alex.. Corrugated iron can be very difficult, but there's other roofing iron that you can use...

Check out the following pics
http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/vie ... ht=lattice

You can se in some pics the guy has used roofing iron with ridges, he has cut the ridges, then bent it into shape and lined it with plastic... Couple of supports and your away.....

the water will hold the plastic in place , you just need to hold it while you put the water in

Cheers and Welcome

I don't know why you will have a problem with using a poured concrete tank. Here in the US many of the commercial fish hatcheries use only concrete raceways for spawning thier fish, and many others use them all the way through grow out. You might want to line them with pond liner or an epoxy paint to insure water tightness, particularly if you pour it in two or more parts. The biggest problem you will have with concrete is the ph levels due to the amount of lime leaching out of the fresh concrete, this can be corrected by watching and correcting it as necessary.

The biggest downside to concrete is it is hard to do anything with after you have decided to quit or modify your operation. Of course it is something you can't do if you are working on a leased property.

If you are a renter or not sure about whether or not you want to stay in AP for a long time I think you might want to look at readily available galvanized steel or plastic livestock watering tanks. I am sure that you should be able to find some at businesses that supply farms and ranches. Of course you can always check out local shops that build them as well, but here in the US you can get a 6 foot in diameter by 2 foot deep livestock tank (plastic) for under $200 US at most farm/ranch supply stores.