Fitting out my shed to be my fish room.

[mattrox]

This really follows on from this old thread, but it is more suited to here now.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f100/my-fish-room-for-malawis-128841-18.htmlSo I have got stuck into the shed again.

The stud wall was secured to the support beam and was solid. Then I sealed up all the spaces with weather-sealing foam.

I ordered 75mm thick polystyrene foam panels with the silver foil insulation pre-glued onto the back. These are being trimmed to fit and glued in place with liquid nails.

I have some progress pictures.

Foam sheets ready to be installed.

The back of the stud wall, foam panels in place.

More photos to follow.

 

[mattrox]

here are a couple more pics.


Foam on the stud wall.

Foam being put on the actual shed wall.

 

[mattrox]

Got all the walls done and working on the ceiling now!

 

[Borderlesscott]

Jealous, would love a spot like that to have a fish house, going to be pretty cool when finished.

 

[Kirky88]

That looks fantastic mate. Excited to see the finished product as no doubt you are too

 

[mattrox]

Getting some paint on the walls. This is not the final colour, it was seconds paint to be used as a first coat. Hope to get the painting done soon.

 

[HUKIT]

Your last room was great, I can't wait to see pictures of the finished product.

 

[FishyBusiness]

I'm excited to see the end results as well!

 

[mattrox]

And this is where I got to tonight. 2nd coat, sealed all gaps. Ready to paint ceiling now.

and the door is fitted too.

 

[mattrox]

I got to put the door hardware on today. Hope to finish up all painting tomorrow.

 

[Mouth-Brooder-Fanatic]

this looks so cool! im so following!! xx

 

[mattrox]

Painting almost done. Rack in place, will put in some tanks tonight to get water up to temperature. Hopefully more pics too.

 

[meegosh]

So you got the boot to the shed, huh? You moving everything from inside out here?

Looks like you've made some nice progress so far. I would love to do something like this but it would not be practical with our winters.

Looking forward to seeing those racks filled up!

 

[mattrox]

So you got the boot to the shed, huh? You moving everything from inside out here?

Looks like you've made some nice progress so far. I would love to do something like this but it would not be practical with our winters.

Looking forward to seeing those racks filled up!

Yep everything outside. Our summers are long and hot, I guess like the dry South West in the USA. The insulation is as much about keeping the shed cool in summer as warm in winter.

 

[HUKIT]

Yep everything outside. Our summers are long and hot, I guess like the dry South West in the USA. The insulation is as much about keeping the shed cool in summer as warm in winter.

What temps does the cooler months reach down there? Will the room require a heater?

 

[mattrox]

The coldest minimums almost never get to freezing point. Day time temperatures in winter rarely drop below 14 deg C which is about 57 F.

Heating the water directly will be the most efficient. With the amount of water in the room the temperature should be very stable. If I use a dehumidifier, that will help heat the room in winter to with the waste heat it produces.

 

[mattrox]

Some tanks in with heaters so I can move fish in soon. Have to work out the logistics of it now.

 

[HUKIT]

I was curious if you were going with in tank heaters, my fish room consist of around a 1000g and I tried to heat just the room but eventually went to heaters in the tanks.

 

[mattrox]

I was curious if you were going with in tank heaters, my fish room consist of around a 1000g and I tried to heat just the room but eventually went to heaters in the tanks.

Heating the water directly with heaters in the tanks has to be more efficient than heating the room.

Water easily absorbs heat from the heater in it. If you heat air, air takes more energy to heat and is a better insulator than conductor of heat. On top of that, glass is an insulator too. So it takes a lot of energy to get the heat through the glass from the air in the room.

If you heat the water, you know the water is the right temperature. The task then is to trap the heat in the tank. Lids are very helpful. But eventually the room is heated by the water in the tanks. If insulated, the room then becomes very stable in temperature. If a heater is in the room, it just makes sure that the room temperature doesn't drop (on very cold days) enough for significant heat transfer from the tanks to the air in the room.

 

[mattrox]

The juggling of tanks, stands and fish has begun.

I am taking the opportunity to lightly sand and rust protect the stands while the tanks are not on them. I'll be getting a dehumidifier or heat recapture ventilation system in the shed to help reduce this problem. But I'll slowly start replacing racks with wooden ones over the next couple years. I am slowly accumulating tools and skills that I need to do this properly.

Moving/tearing down the tanks gives me the chance to have a second look at the species I keep and hopefully be adding a couple of species to the list.