Hey guys, just joined the forum, i have been working with gathering parts for my big screen tv build, i have run into some issues. You see, im a mechanic by trade and a desk jockey by day so i dont know a whole lot about fish tanks or aquariums in general so let me give you the low down.

The tank will be housing a medium sized Red Eared Slider Turtle, a 16" Pleco, and a small Tree frog (doesnt attempt to escape) as well as feeder fish and snails on occasion.

The Basis i starting with is a 27x48 big screen tv, (i already have all the dimensions down so that isnt what im worried about).

The idea, I want to have a TV that i can 'watch' but instead of cable being on it, its my turtle, my fish, my frog and a nice looking waterfall background

To make this happen i am aware that i will need an awesome filtration system as i will not be able to fully drain the tank to clean it very often, This is where the majority of my problem lies... I havent got a clue what kind of filtration system i will need. Algae isnt a big deal due to the pleco doing his job but waste is a big deal, i.e. extra food, dead crickets for the frog, waste in the form of doo doo :D and well just general dust and dirt from the land portion of the tank as the turtle will be able to go directly from grass and dirt to the water. I have heard that a sump system or a filter below the tank would work wonders! I am also considering playing the idea of a 750G (max) pond filter with a sump/vacuum setup. However i do NOT know how i would go about this or how i would even start it.

Next is i need to mount UV heat lamps in the tank for the turtle to bask in as well as help the plants grow. Since the TV has a fixed top i cant just take the top off to replace bulbs... So i need some sort of a removable lamp system.

Any help is appreciated :D And please if you have any more questions that i have not covered please ask me! I want to get this knocked out within the next two weeks...

I can see a few problems with this, The tank won't be big enough for the pleco. It's going to be hard to clean as it will need vac'ed at least once a week. The only type of filtration I can see using is either a canister or one that sits in the tank.

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220 Tank build
http://www.aquariumforum.com/f15/sta...late-3253.html

I would have to agree with Susan. As far as using an old TV enclosure I am sure it can be done, but you will obviously have to mod it to accommodate the weight of the tank, water and filtration, as well as make the tank accessible to do maintenance on. As for the filtration part of your set up goes, I would say to set up a sump and go from there. As for the lamps and maintenance, cut a panel into the top of the enclosure that you can remove to access the tank from above and set up the lights there.
I hope I am understanding what your plans are, because this is about the only way I know of that this could be possible.

Edit: Also, I would be interested in how you go about building a sump, if that is what you end up doing. I am considering building a sump for my 75 gallon.

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75 Gallon Planted

The pleco isnt an issue, i will have roughly 75-100 gallons of water in the tank, the tv will house a home built tank to the dimensions of the shell of the tv, thus making it pretty large, then the outside area where the grass and such will be will be slightly smaller than half the are of the open space left. If that makes sense... i dont think it makes sense to me just yet until i get my hands on it but i guess we will find out.


I just went to Home Depot and got a killer score on an 850 Gallon filter and a 210GPH sump system for $130! So i will be rigging up some sort of a way to make the pump not pick up the rocks and such in the tank like a pre screen of some sort... But As of now i think things are starting to come together! I have to go pick up some valves tonight and check the pump and filters for leaks then im getting my acrylic sheets for the front face of the tank to get started on that then its going to be on with the actual construction. We are taking the back side of the tv itself off where its all hexagonal shaped and what not and boxing all of that in to add about 4 cubic feet of space for more water. Then its game time! :D