Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Skip the sad tales of woe if you are in a hurry, and just go to the bit that asks if you know suitable tank suppliers, as I am having trouble locating the right size...its in bold down belowOr read on for a laugh!

OK, so there is an old saying that the Gods are fans of slapstick....
I usually try to cheer myself up with that when multiple things go wrong...

So a nicely made gal tank (thanks Dad) was later recommended to be sealed...
(Who was to know that fish breathe out CO2 and raise water acidity and leach metals?)

Consulted the forum, hardware shops and 'other people', chose the 'reliable' option of Sikatite BE. Followed all application specs.
Hmmm, maybe because we applied it as the weather cooled in Autumn, it cured, but as soon as it got wet it would re-emulsify. Supplier had no idea why, neither does anyone else.
I'm sure its an OK product, but we had probs. Even had it inside the loungeroom for a month, still didn't cure (and now there's still black bits on the floor here and there!)

OK, forget the sealer, try a rubber liner.
Butyl v exp, so used 'Clearpond' liner.
Fitted it up nicely (thanks other half) and it held water for at least 3 months or so.
Then water got behind the liner. Took it out, joins are not holding.
Thought we would glue it in place, but realised that because we have this black muck still all over the surface of the tank, there's no guarantee other glues would hold and feeling rather superstitious by now...Murphy's law seems to be in control...
(For anyone's interest - clearpond liner is thinner and cheaper and lovely generally, but it cannot be welded, unike butyl liner...now we know...I'll use it someday, somewhere)

So, new idea, either put a smaller diameter plastic tank inside the gal tank, and fit insulation between the two tanks, that would be a good thing hey?

Or, remove gal tank altogether (use it for growing vegies) and replace it with a plastic tank.
Any suggestions for round tanks that are:

Either 1800 diameter 600H

Or 1700 diameter 600H

We could also do squares of 1800 x 1800, but I haven't seen many square tanks out there that have any height to them...

We could possibly dig the tank into the ground somewhat to take more height out of it, if it is taller - is that an OK thing to do? or does it cause problems accessing pipes later? Or do we put a service pit in to cover these situations?
Does cutting a water tank in half cause stability probs to the tanks? I suppose it depends upon the tank strength. So optimumly we would like a tank that is already essentially a pond rather than a rain tank.
Any suggestions welcomed!!

The 1000L BYAP tank would fit those dimension Vegigirl... perhaps try Dean (LiveBeyond) at ...

http://www.growfresh-aquaponics.com.au/

As above, and putting some expanding foam between the tank layers would give you a bit better stabillity.

Thanks guys will follow that lead up
and expanding foam good idea...

Is rubbermaid really costly there?
http://www.rcpworksmarter.com/rcp/products/searchresults.jsp?search=tank&submitIt.x=0&submitIt.y=0&submitIt=submit
The prices listed on the Rubbermaid site were higher than the prices I got at tractor supply though.
I just replaced one of my lumber beds with two 100 gallon stock tanks price was about $70 per tank so pretty good. They are somewhat ovalish in shape.
about 53 inches long, 31 wide, 25 high (1346 mm long, 787 mm wide, 635 mm high aprox)
They also make different sizes but I suppose it isn't much use if they are really costly over there.
However the 300 gallon stock tank they make is about 69 inches long by 63 inches wide by 25 inches high
(1753 mm by 1600 mm by 635 mm)

I will warn you that their plumbing fitting on the drain plug may be non-standard. I had to drill another hole and use uniseals on mine.

OK, today have installed a nice 1000L tank from growfresh aquaponics - almost plumbed in and ready to get going again with the finned things.
YAY!

Thanks for all suggestions.