Kevin

thanks...i had to get up at 6:30 this morning, take the sat, and then go to work...which i'm at right now
never know what i'll say after long days like today

COBettaCouple

great job to get so much done today! we'll be looking forward to the pics next week once the dust clears and the fish come in for a landing.

timg

OK, you've waited long enough!

here are the first pics of the fishouse, with all the electrics, insulation and cladding done. i am just starting to waterproof the plasterboard now, so the pics are looking a little patchy.

Tomorrow, as long as I can get the painting done today, the plumbing second-fix will start, and the racking will be going in place as the plumbing progresses, I hope:

Attached Images

	fh1.jpg (114.2 KB, 5 views)
	fh2.jpg (110.7 KB, 2 views)
	fh3.jpg (88.3 KB, 3 views)
	fh4.jpg (53.3 KB, 3 views)

COBettaCouple

where's the fish?!! lol.. looks like it's coming along great and will give you some much needed room.

timg

Here's the room after the second coat of paint:

It looks a little more like it's intended to now!

Attached Images

	fh5.jpg (37.5 KB, 1 views)
	fh6.jpg (45.0 KB, 3 views)
	fh7.jpg (46.2 KB, 2 views)

COBettaCouple

looking good.. that's the room for us to live in, right?

timg

there will be room for two single beds in the isles if you're thinking of visiting!

timg

Just!

MagpieTear

Crown molding in the Fish house? You'll probably be better Finish trimmed than many of the stores you're selling to!

timg

It's surprising what you can hide with a few pieces of trim! The garage isn't anything like square and there is that much deviation in the walls that it was impossible to cut the sheets to fit!

I have managed to straighten the walls out now, but at the cost of valuable inches. Luckily the plans allowed for this so I can still get 1600 gallons in there, and space for the two beds for dave and stacy!

I have a small 500W radiant heater in there tonight, to help dry the paint. within an hour the temperature rocketted to over 70 degrees! I guess the insulation works ok.....lol

MagpieTear

After just spending the better part of seven months gutting and rebuilding a single room in my house, I truly appreciate what you mean. This house has no square corners or plumb lines, drywalling is a nightmare if you don't do it for a living.

Looks great so far tho. Make sure we get steady updates!

timg

Finished for the day now. The decorating is finished! Tomorrow we start with plumbing and racking, and will be installing the heating at the same time. this will be a gas heater, which is the cheapest to run here, especially as it will be propane, so it'll just need the bottle replaced every so often.

One thing I do have to do, is to install an alarm system to let me know if the temperature drops or rises too much. I can wire this in with the video links, which will be running the cameras in there. This will be essential since as the heating is running from a bottle, I might not notice if it runs out! I also need to be able to check the ambiant temperature in the room from the living room, so that I don't have to live out there.

The last two days have gone well, with a lot of the bits and pieces completed. Now we can focus on the fittings and tanks themselves. With luck, 2 weeks and it'll be running! (I seem to remember saying something similar before, let's hope we don't have the same result this time!)

timg

I know what you mean! One of the major issues with using the garage was the total lack of cavities in the walls, so we had to opt for studding it all internally to allow space for insulation and pay extra for the foil backed plasterboard to increase the deduction of cold transition to the inside. The floor is concrete and this will have to be insulated with rubberised insulation that can withstand water!

It's amazing just how involved this project has become and it's a real eye-opener for me in respect of finding effective methods to insulate all the different areas. When it's all done, it should cost next to nothing to run.

Something else that has been added to the original plan is a de-humidifier. It was pointed out to me today that with all this insulation, we may well not have a condensation problem, but will certainly have a humidity issue. 1600 gallons of water will have a lot of surface area to allow evaporation, even with covers, and in such a confined space, there won't be anywhere for it to go! I am not installing any vents on purpose, to conserve heat.

With the room at a constant 80 degrees, humidity will be close to 70% without some way of clearing it. The de-humidifier will empty directly into one of the sumps, saving the need to maintain it regularly.

Kevin

first, the rubber floor you need...you know those rubber mats that they have in public showers/bathrooms? those might work

second, i have been using a dehumidifier to pull water out of my house and just empty it straight into a tank...no chlorine or other chems to woory about

timg

They may do, but the material I have in mind is like sealed wall to wall, in one piece. It's applied like a paste that you level out with a plastering float, then it sets to a completely sealed surface. They use it in horse boxes and such, so it's very hard wearing too!

Thanks for that kevin. You are the first one to mention using such equipment. That's pretty well what I am planning, only not to empty the container, just pipe it directly. Saves having to remember to empty it. (I'll just have to watch the level on that particular sump, as it will be pulling water from all the tanks, not just from that one system!)

COBettaCouple

lol.. well, a bed is good.. but where will the lcd tv & computer go?

quite impressive the planning that you're doing! just so well thought out that i'm sure it will be a very smooth running room!

darkwolf29a

Cool. When you're done there...let me know and I'll move in. LMAO

Trpimp147

you can buy them small grill style propine tanks that are made of fiber glass and they have clear sections in them to see how much you have in the tank.