DoubleA
Aquarium Advice Regular
I found a pretty sweet deal on Craigslist the other day. An old O'dell 55 gallon aquarium along with a ton of nice equipment/accessories for FREE. I took it upon myself to rescue the tank inhabitants, and make this tank my first project restoration. This will be my thread for progress pictures and questions I may have as it all comes together.
So to start, I'm now kicking myself for not taking pictures of the tanks initial condition when I got it for comparison. Let's just say it was NASTY.
Here's the best representation I have... the tank's lids. Yes, the entire tank looked like this. It smelled godawful!
And here's some of the nifty stuff that came along with it:
Also came with a really nice metal gang valve (not the crappy plastic kind)
Another Tetra 60 Filter that I'm currently working on getting clean
A complete undergravel filter set-up (That went straight into the garbage/recycle bin)
To start, I removed and discarded the garish blue gravel and proceeded to scrubbing. Using vinegar (2 1/2 gallons total was used cleaning this tank), various toothbrushes, scrubbing pads, a lot of elbow grease, and about 3-4 hours out of my day off work, the tank is now clean and algae, water deposit free. (During this process I managed to break the cross support trim on the top of the tank. More on this later!)
Next up, I painted the trim and back of the tank using Krylon Fusion Satin Black spray paint.
(You can see Kenbob in the reflection painting the stand for his 40 Gallon )
Also I painted the stand that came with it black to match. It's pretty crappy and leaves no place for storage, so I'm debating either doing some woodworking, or replacing the stand entirely.
So this is where it sits now. I'm currently trying to figure out how to either repair the trim crossbar, or replace the entire top trim piece. I'm having trouble finding the part for it though! It's an O'dell 55 standard aquarium (Glass measures 47.5" Long x 12.5" Deep). Also trying to find a glass top for it, and suitable lighting as it will be a live-planted tank. Here is where I need your guy's help so I can continue on this project!
So to start, I'm now kicking myself for not taking pictures of the tanks initial condition when I got it for comparison. Let's just say it was NASTY.
Here's the best representation I have... the tank's lids. Yes, the entire tank looked like this. It smelled godawful!
And here's some of the nifty stuff that came along with it:
Also came with a really nice metal gang valve (not the crappy plastic kind)
Another Tetra 60 Filter that I'm currently working on getting clean
A complete undergravel filter set-up (That went straight into the garbage/recycle bin)
To start, I removed and discarded the garish blue gravel and proceeded to scrubbing. Using vinegar (2 1/2 gallons total was used cleaning this tank), various toothbrushes, scrubbing pads, a lot of elbow grease, and about 3-4 hours out of my day off work, the tank is now clean and algae, water deposit free. (During this process I managed to break the cross support trim on the top of the tank. More on this later!)
Next up, I painted the trim and back of the tank using Krylon Fusion Satin Black spray paint.
(You can see Kenbob in the reflection painting the stand for his 40 Gallon )
Also I painted the stand that came with it black to match. It's pretty crappy and leaves no place for storage, so I'm debating either doing some woodworking, or replacing the stand entirely.
So this is where it sits now. I'm currently trying to figure out how to either repair the trim crossbar, or replace the entire top trim piece. I'm having trouble finding the part for it though! It's an O'dell 55 standard aquarium (Glass measures 47.5" Long x 12.5" Deep). Also trying to find a glass top for it, and suitable lighting as it will be a live-planted tank. Here is where I need your guy's help so I can continue on this project!