24 x 18 x 24 Mantella build Journal

[Strider18]

Yay another build! I will definetly be watching!

[DigitalPunk]

Oh I have big plans for this one. Now I just need to be able to put it together the way it looks in my brain lol.

[Strider18]

Pshh thats the easy part! (Though I haven't done it yet so I am probably wrong !) It looks like it will be fun!

[jarteta97]

Alright, uploading my build pics now!

[DigitalPunk]

Baby steps have been taken over the past few day.

Supports cut and put in place. In the past I used PVC Couplers because they were the 2.5 inches tall I wanted the false bottom to be. With this tank I wanted a 4.5" gap in the false bottom so I bought a 10' piece of PVC and cut it up with a hack saw. They aren't pretty at all, but will get the job done.



Got going and forgot to take a pic. I placed the egg crate in the tank and then used a sharpi marker to draw out the pond area



Then I cut that out. Look at it and decide if I want it to be different. Until I am happy.




I didn't get a picture of it, but I ended up rounding out the lower part of the cut more. You can see the final shape in the next pictures.

I then lay out the fiberglass screen and cut it to size.




I decided to try something a little dif to hold the screen around the egg crate. I used duct tape to hold it in place and then put silicon around it in various places to try and use that to hold it in place. It doesn't need to be super secure, just hold it on there while I am mucking with the tank during setup.



I realized after this pic that I had the crate upside down so I flipped it and got everything right and then continued. (Sorry for the crappy pic. I had some silicon on my finger and didn't want to get it on my phone.)



I will let this dry for 24 hours before I do anything else with it.

I use a pair of Side cutters to cut out grooves on the bottom of the PVC Supports to allow water to flow out of them.



This is what they look like once the cutting is done.



A little silicone on the bottom to secure them to the glass.



Now we wait for it all to cure.


I got the shipping notification for the rest of the supplies today so hopefully by mid next week I have it all in hand.

[Strider18]

Looks good so far! Can't wait to see it finished