DIY Concrete Aquarium 5,000 gallon - Anderson Family Reef

[dca22anderson]

I also saw where you are going back to AE for another skimmer. I ordered a CX come July will be one year ago, and I still have not received all the parts I ordered. Now that Bill's mom is having medical problems I worried about how long it will take for you to get your new skimmer. Your current skimmer must be great.

I ordered a 4'x4'x8' PVC Sump, 24" skimmer, Custom large UV, and Heat exchanger... we will see how long it takes... fingers crossed!!

 

[dca22anderson]

Window forms removed!! Super stoked!!

 

[dca22anderson]

 

[sealife4life]

I bet you can’t hear it enough! Truly amazing my man! You definitely know a thing or two about a thing or two! If ever in life I’m in a position to do something like this IM ALL IN!! You’re my married mans reef **** and life goals!! Good luck on the rest of the build!!

 

[McPuff]

If you ever have to sell the house, you could market this tank as a panic room. :0)

 

[dca22anderson]

I bet you can’t hear it enough! Truly amazing my man! You definitely know a thing or two about a thing or two! If ever in life I’m in a position to do something like this IM ALL IN!! You’re my married mans reef **** and life goals!! Good luck on the rest of the build!!

Thanks for checking it out and thanks for the encouragement! It’s a ton of work and super rewarding! My favorite DIY project so far!

 

[dca22anderson]

If you ever have to sell the house, you could market this tank as a panic room. :0)

For sure!! I thought I could just cut the walls and fold them into the pit but 12 cubic yards of concrete later I don’t think it would be that easy… so panic room it is!!

 

[McPuff]

For sure!! I thought I could just cut the walls and fold them into the pit but 12 cubic yards of concrete later I don’t think it would be that easy… so panic room it is!!

Jokes aside, I am excited to see what you stock into this! Tangs are for sure, but what about large angels, triggers, puffers, parrotfish(??)? Possibilities are so vast. Wow!

 

[Bo.]

Jokes aside, I am excited to see what you stock into this! Tangs are for sure, but what about large angels, triggers, puffers, parrotfish(??)? Possibilities are so vast. Wow!

400 anthias

 

[Dave_1972]

200 Damsels vs. 200 Maroon Clowns. Etch "Thunderdome" into the glass.

 

[jandlms]

Lurking here for a while
Love the project, but am confused by this pic. Why put a door or wall right in line with one of your tank windows?

 

[dca22anderson]

Lurking here for a while
Love the project, but am confused by this pic. Why put a door or wall right in line with one of your tank windows?

I will be putting in a header and a beam to open that space up! That wall will be coming down in the next few weeks!

 

[revhtree]

Ridiculous!

 

[Jerry Barnes]

Read through your build. Amazing. Having done some concrete projects over the years I'm curious about one thing. How did you ensure there were no voids under the windows when you were pouring the concrete. I notice the forms have no vent holes in the window frames. Doing similar projects I have found the voids due to trapped air caused issues. Thanks, Jerry.

 

[MartinM]

Interesting build!

 

[dca22anderson]

Ridiculous!

I love this stuff!!

 

[dca22anderson]

Read through your build. Amazing. Having done some concrete projects over the years I'm curious about one thing. How did you ensure there were no voids under the windows when you were pouring the concrete. I notice the forms have no vent holes in the window frames. Doing similar projects I have found the voids due to trapped air caused issues. Thanks, Jerry.

We ended up drilling holes mid pour! There are some air bubbles but nothing on the interior that I can’t fill with some extra epoxy.

 

[dca22anderson]

Current view, next up - grind, fill, drill, epoxy, silicone in the viewing panels then… water test!!

 

[Cunning_plan]

Probably a stupid question. But how do you plan to get inside once the viewing panels are in?

 

[sealife4life]

Probably a stupid question. But how do you plan to get inside once the viewing panels are in?

Going commando! Scuba gear and I think from the top