Building a custom tank, what do I need?

[carterx]

I came across this site when googleing around about filters and such so I figured I'd layout what I'm doing and see what I might need.

I'll be building a fish tank from scratch with custom cut glass which will be built inside of a dead iMac computer (after I take the guts out ). I'll be making the design out of card board first to know how to cut the glass. Right now I'm looking to design it around what I need.

So far what I know I need a filter & I was thinking of an internal filter. The top of the tank will be somewhat covered/enclosed so what would be a great small filter that can go inside the tank?

Do I need a pump to blow air into the rocks/tank? I know some have the tubes that stick into the tank that blow air bubbles. Is this needed?

Thanks for the feedback!

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[allis64]

Hi! I like your idea. I just threw out my beloved imac snow and I wish I would have thought of that myself!

First, what are you trying to keep in this little tank. A betta, maybe? It's too small for much else, and if you make weekly water changes, a betta doesn't need a filter (but it will need a heater). If you want a little internal filter I suggest the duetto. I have a duetto 100 in my turtle tank and it's great. They sell a smaller duetto 50, which is also overkill for a tank as small as yours, but they are great filters. As for bubbles, you don't need them. No one needs them. They are just for looks. What you want is circulation, which your filter provides anyway. So what do you want to keep in this tank? This sounds like a fun project!

 

[carterx]

Thanks for the feedback, I'll look into "Duetto Filters".

As for the iMac it's probably not the kind you are thinking... many people run with the old style seen here http://i.imgur.com/X3YcV.jpg but I'm going to take a 17" iMac G5 like this http://i.imgur.com/4pfZJ.png

I've already removed the screen and everything else inside of it so it's just a shell. It will be thicker than seen here as I'm going to have the back stick out about 6"-7". I already have a price on custom glass cut for this as a shop here is going to help me out with that.

Probably this weekend I'll be taking the gutted iMac and some card board to build the design of the fish tank so I have something to give to the shop for cutting the glass.

If this works out I will be doing a 2nd one with a 20" Intel dead iMac or Maybe an old Mac monitor or tower. I have of it so hard to chose from but this will be my first to see how it goes

As for fish I'm not sure yet. The size of the tank will roughly be about 16" wide, 12" high and 6"-7" deep. It's been a long time since I've had a fish tank so not sure on the type of fish. it will be fresh water I know what. I'll have gravel, a couple leds for lighting, a background and a few items inside the tank.

I'm sure it will take me a bit to work on but I really hope to make it

Thanks!

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