Soooo I went ahead and got my hands on an old River Tank, which is basically a system from the days of old using plastic molded pieces to make a series of waterfalls in a small aquarium for really active fish. heres the thread I started about it.
http://fishforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=9354
at any rate im going to improvise and modify it slightly to allow me to have some kind of amphibious creature(s). what? who knows, but I want this baby to MOVE SOME WATAAAHHH. ahem.
first off, heres the tank
and heres a rough idea from the top down of how it works
here is the pump I chose to use, at least for now. Its out of a fountain I have on my front porch that I never got around to wiring up. you can get them just about any home depot, lowes, or similar stores. I will probably need to get a bigger one eventually but this one will work for now.
to extend the tiny length of hose that was already attached to the pump I cannibalized an old washing machine hose that was in my workshop. I had to whittle down the raw end of the washing machine hose to squeeze it in, but for now until I get to home depot for some real stuff, this will work just fine
last step for the pre-trials was to fill her with water and let her rip. this "dry" test turned out to be anything but!! the tank itself was the ONLY part of this mamma jamma that did NOT leak. you can see the even water level in the tank all the way across... its supposed to be about 50% less water in the left hand side of the tank. Off to home depot for some aquarium safe silicone when I get some cash. stupid non-profit job :evil:
ultimately that pump will be hidden BEHIND the plastic molding, I just wanted to see how bad the leaks were and how much junk would wash out of the cracks that I missed when washing it, and to see if the pump I have would work in this application. I think everything will work just fine!
next step will be removing the plastic molding from the tank. and thats only IF it will be possible without cracking it. I might have to get creative with the silicone and do it in place.
STAY TUNED!!! ill be journaling every step of this project through the use of my digital camera
http://fishforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=9354
at any rate im going to improvise and modify it slightly to allow me to have some kind of amphibious creature(s). what? who knows, but I want this baby to MOVE SOME WATAAAHHH. ahem.
first off, heres the tank
and heres a rough idea from the top down of how it works
here is the pump I chose to use, at least for now. Its out of a fountain I have on my front porch that I never got around to wiring up. you can get them just about any home depot, lowes, or similar stores. I will probably need to get a bigger one eventually but this one will work for now.
to extend the tiny length of hose that was already attached to the pump I cannibalized an old washing machine hose that was in my workshop. I had to whittle down the raw end of the washing machine hose to squeeze it in, but for now until I get to home depot for some real stuff, this will work just fine
last step for the pre-trials was to fill her with water and let her rip. this "dry" test turned out to be anything but!! the tank itself was the ONLY part of this mamma jamma that did NOT leak. you can see the even water level in the tank all the way across... its supposed to be about 50% less water in the left hand side of the tank. Off to home depot for some aquarium safe silicone when I get some cash. stupid non-profit job :evil:
ultimately that pump will be hidden BEHIND the plastic molding, I just wanted to see how bad the leaks were and how much junk would wash out of the cracks that I missed when washing it, and to see if the pump I have would work in this application. I think everything will work just fine!
next step will be removing the plastic molding from the tank. and thats only IF it will be possible without cracking it. I might have to get creative with the silicone and do it in place.
STAY TUNED!!! ill be journaling every step of this project through the use of my digital camera