I'm an estimated 2 weeks away from getting my new Trigon 350 and I'm considering planned water changes. I'm working on a cost effective way of mechanising my changes. It's just is not feasible to bucket the ammount of water needed for even for my normal 25% weekly change in a 350 litre tank.

I've done a lengthy Google for a large volume, food grade plastic drum without any degree of success. Yes I can find them but at very high prices. However in the garden I have a well matured blue plastic drum of about 120 litres that I have been using for a water butt for years. Could I use this?

I know there is a danger of toxins leaking from the plastic so to avoid any contamination would it be feasible for me to give it a couple of coats of pond paint? I intend to store this container in the garage, insulated inside a wooden crate packed with polystyrene insulation foam or some other type of heat retention material. Inside the container will be a heater and possibly an internal filter possibly filled with carbon. Will this work?

BTW to transfer the water I should receive today one of these devices that you attach to a drill. It's self priming and will deliver 3000 litres per hour with up to a 40 metre head. A bit cumbersome but should work at a fraction of the cost of an aquatic pump. Testing to begin soon.

Ian

Ian,
I'm going to be looking for more used containers that have been through the restaurant trade to store pickles, etc. They come in 20gallon and 30gallon
sizes possibly larger.Sometimes they give them away, but the most I should expect to pay is $5 each. These are the hard milky-white plastic containers that won't leach any plasticizers into the water. In Maine, I stored rainwater in
Rubbermaid 18 gallon-totes that had peat pellets thrown in. These were stored
on an enclosed front porch (windows on 3 sides) and got a good amount of
sunshine hitting these containers. Short story: heat+acidity from the peat
pellets caused leaching of plasticizers. I was getting bent spines in some of
my killifish hatches from using this water I have just one of these containers given to me by a friend, but would like to get 2 more. Good hunting,
I wouldn't pay what they want for a new one: just wash it out thoroughly,
then use baking soda, and rinse thoroughly--works great.

Bill

Thanks Bill. You've given me an idea, my daughters partner is a chef so he may have a lead. I don't think he will be able to get his hands on one the size I need but you never know.

Ian

Hi,

My brother found me these plastic barrels from the hospital where he works. These particular ones used to hold a mild soap (not anti-bacterial, or anything like that). They are identical to the ones that are used for the food service (I have some also).

It wasn't the cheapest setup (everything cost about 160.00), because I wanted a pump capable of pumping a decent vertical distance for when I do my water changes.

I can't post photos, but here's a link to my website, where I took some quick photos to show you my setup for water exchange. Forgive the mess, I just wanted to get this posted quickly! Later this spring when my garage is cleaned out, I will be moving the setup into a new cabinet I have been working on. The barrels and pump will then be concealed under my 75g aquarium.

Meantime, checkout the setup at http://www.santink.ca/watersetup.html

I appreciate any comments you have!

Richard

That's pretty cool, Rich, thanks for sharing! I'm not really clear on how easy
it is to empty old and refill with new, for these containers....

Bill

Thanks Richard. A neat way of doing it. I think the potential volume would be too small for me doing it this way though.

I agree about the cost of an adequate pump, that's why I am trying the drill attachment type. I'll report back on this if and when it's delivered.

The water butt has been rescued from the garden and is being cleaned out. I'm still inclined to go with this and use the pond paint to seal it. I had no joy on the chef leads at all.

Ian

I forgot to mention, as far as volume goes, that I also have larger containers made from the same plastic... roughly the size of an oil drum (probably like your blue one?). I only use the two, since I don't do water changes often enough to warrant more than the two. With the quick-connectors, I can quickly disconnect when I empty the first container, and connect on to the second (the pump is self-priming anyway).

Cleaning them, is quite easy, since I only use fresh, clean water in them. When I reverse the connections to drain off water, I connect to a regular garden hose, and put the hose out the door into the garden Everybody wins!

I am revamping my website this spring, and will clean up the pictures to make the setup a little more clear. I will also post my biotope pics!



Richard

Neat and tidy and decent volumes..................I like it.

Ian

Testing is nearing completion on the drill/pump. It works a treat, nice flow rate on my cheap battery powered drill. Battery life testing to begin shortly.

This solution is not as elegant as your's Richard but at well under £20, I'll make do.

Ian