Just made small version upsidedown tank!

Subject: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Tue Mar 25, 2008 11:13 pm

I have a 3/4 gallon tank that I suspended upside down with the open end going below the surface of a 35 gallon tank about an inch. I took the air line going to the venturi on my powerhead and ran it up to the top inside of the smaller upside down tank and it sucked all the air out of it. Now fish are swimming from the lower tank up into the upside down tank and it's pretty cool. I have the USD tank kind of jury rigged, so when I build nice metal suspending brackets and get my GF's camera I'll take some pics of it. I didn't think until I saw it on youtube that a venturi was powerful enough to lift water this high but it is! Suspect

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Wed Mar 26, 2008 2:11 pm

Pretty cool! Saw that video, really neat!
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Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Wed Mar 26, 2008 2:35 pm

I think when I find like a 10 gallon cube or something I'll make a bigger one and have plants growing up into the upper tank and use a screw in type compact fluorescent SHO light. That should fit on top nicely.

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Wed Mar 26, 2008 8:35 pm

That sounds cool do you have pics, I'd love to see it. Is there a site that I can go to to see a tank like that?

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Wed Mar 26, 2008 9:18 pm

Someone on ratemyfishtank put up a link to one on YOUTUBE. Fish-Genius saw it somewhere. Maybe he can make the link, or you could look on YOUTUBE. Sorry I'm not good at making links.

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Thu Mar 27, 2008 2:29 pm

Can't remember where I saw it, but I googled it. Ill look again for ya cyclops

_________________
I have been keeping aquariums most of my life. I have kept both fresh and salt water, cichlids, catfish, loaches, clownfish, wrasses, and everything in between. Feel free to ask me any questions!

Visit my blog at http://fgaquarium.blogspot.com/

Rank2 Member Age : 33 Joined : 20 Jan 2008 Posts : 63

I just googled upside down tank and found some video, those are great looking tanks, but I'm not sure how it's done. They talk about it a bit on a couple sites, but I'm just not getting it. Is it the vacuum pump that is holding the water up in the tank or are you just drawing the air out so that the water gets drawn up into the tank? It's probably simple and I'm going to want to kick my self in the ass for not getting it.

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Fri Mar 28, 2008 11:38 pm

Imagine having a milk glass in a sink full of water. The glass is under the water and no air's in it. Keeping the glass upside down lift all but the last inch out of the sink. The glass remains full of water. That's it!

To get water out of the upside down tank you use an air tube and your mouth, and with one end of the tube up inside the USD tank you use your mouth and suck the water up. You can also use a venturi on a powerhead. When the water is at the top it'll stay there unless you're letting air in somehow.

The way you can have bubbles going up into the tank is by using a strong powerhead's venturi air entrainment tube and running it up to the top inside of the upside down tank. It'll suck all the air out and pull water up with it.

I have a bunch of powerheads to play with, but it might not be the biggest powerhead that pulls water up the highest. It's probably dependant on the design of the particular venturi and how much suction it creates.

I'm going to use a 10 gallon over a 20 gallon tomorrow and by then I should ve bought the metal for the brackets to hold the USD tank up. I'll post what I use (brass rod, steel rod, maybe flat steel about 1/2 inch wide and 2-3 mm thick). I'll have to see what they have at the hardware store.

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Sat Mar 29, 2008 8:54 pm

jeez peter... i'm still waiting for pics... lol...

i saw a 150g saltwater upside down tank at a LFS the other day... pretty cool... they also had one where the water over flows out of the tank top into a small gutter in the bottom... then goes to the filtration system... awesome...

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Sun Mar 30, 2008 7:16 am

How does it effect filtration and water changes if at all? I may try this, but really small with a 1.5 gallon in a 10 gallon. I have never heard of this before, is it new or have people been doing it for a long time.
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Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Sun Mar 30, 2008 10:43 am

Filtration is the same. Changing water may be a bit harder, as the USD tank will drain when water levels go below the edge. I used a very small tank and your 1.5 gallon should be perfect. maybe you could let it drain as you do water changes and then just let the powerhead fill it, or it wouldn't be much trouble to use your lungs with only 1.5 gallons. There shouldn't be any freakyness as you take water out of the lower tank. air will just enter the USD tank until enough water comes out to bring the level of the lower tank to the level of the USD tank until all the water is gone from it, and then the level can drop below the USD tank level. Suspect

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Fri May 23, 2008 4:57 am

After reading about the upside down tank then seeing the tank on utube i figured it was easy to do, so i set one up. i can't figure out how to post pics other than in the gallery so go there to see it maybe it will be on there. THANX FOR THE COOL IDEA. Maybe check out my personal photo album, its there.

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Fri May 23, 2008 6:25 pm

I-got-bored-with-the-idea-as-I-didn't-have-2-tanks-with-the-right-configuration-to-allow-much-surface-area-for-oxygenation,-and-the-little-one-I-have-only-looks-so-so.....I'll-check-out-your-next....Garman

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Fri May 23, 2008 8:58 pm

mine is only a start and i'm using one of my 30 raising tanks that has no fish in right now if it dosn't work out there is no loss but i'm making my own all glass aquarium that will fitt as if the tank was all one peice top and bottom. I have already started to cut the glass and make a jig to hold it all in place to cilicone it together i hope it works. I know what would be really cool if anyone has seen the movie Duce Biggaloe he has a tank that has tube going from one tank to the othe now that i would like to have.

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Fri May 23, 2008 11:28 pm

Just-make-sure-you-have-enough-water-surface-open-to-the-atmosphere-as-I-lost-some-fish-by-not-providing-enough.......I-was-using-a-10-gallon-over-a-20-galon,-and-that-wasn't-enough-to-oxygenate-the-water,-even-when-I-had-a-powerhead-agitating-the-area.

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Sat May 24, 2008 12:25 am

i have a 5gal over a 30gal and attempting to make what will be a 10gal over a 40-50gal one peice tank. i am just trying to figure out how much outward pressure the bottom tank will have and how much pulling pressure the top tank will have so i use the right cilicone.

Subject: suspention Mon May 26, 2008 12:34 pm

The only upside down tank I ever saw was supported by lucite pillars, probably a frame of some sort so the fish don't knock them out, and hold the wieght.

I would cut 1-2 diam. inch tubes that went to the bottom (up)and still supported the top edge (down) and glue it together with the tank and mabey something square under the subsratate.

Might even use the tubes for some sort of circulation as well. They could at least draw water out (avoiding bubbles in).

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Mon May 26, 2008 12:52 pm

i am in the prcess of making a probally will be an 8-10gallon tank that will fit perfect on the top of my 30 also leaving plenty of open space for air , i have a venturie line from my protein skimmer that i turnnd into a filter. after i get some cilicone and seal the new tank and then sercure it to the 30gal it will look as if it was made for the tank. but can i have that tank with water in it and not have the black plastic peice that the hood fits in around tha top? i don't need more water issuse??
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Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Mon May 26, 2008 3:58 pm

Could-you-refrase-what-you're-talking-about-at-the-end-there?

Subject: Re: Just made small version upsidedown tank! Mon May 26, 2008 4:14 pm

Ok the black plastic rim, they're is one one top and one on the bottom will the tank come apart if i do not have the top rim on? And if i had two sides of the upside down tank go into the water so they go under that surface about 3-4" widthwiss, and the sides lengthwiss resting flush with the top of the bottom tank . I know the sides that go into the water are going to be fine after i seal them. Will the sides that are resting flush on top of the glass Will it hold if i seal them together (they are the same thickness and meet with no gaps ___bottom of upside down tank___
top of bottom tank
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Starting new is hard, and finding the right KilliFish is harder..