April 20 2021

Folks,

Back on the 9th of April I wrote about an aquarium

Among some other things

Well, here I am picking up that thread and continuing to share the story with you

^{_{Because I care}}

Yup

?

So here it is

A freebie

I've had it a couple of years

Shortly after moving into my current address, I broke the end piece while moving timber in it's vicinity

Accidentally

Wanting to make the best of an arse-crack situation, I thought:

"Here's a good opportunity to replace the broken glass with plastic and add pipework for a sump, biological filter and aquaponic grow bed in the future. The possibilities really are endless"

Then I thought about it a bit more:

"Doing this will open up incredible new opportunities far beyond the realm of fish-keeping and aquaculture: my fortunes will increase exponentially and I won't need to work in a field where corporate privatisation has totally corrupted the quality of an essential public service. I'll be able to achieve my life-long goal of bench-pressing a nuclear submarine and receiving the Nobel Peace Prize for contributions to meme culture while playing the French national anthem on bassoon live onstage for a crowd of thirty thousand"

Alright

I used that holesaw 👆 to cut that hole in this piece of polycarbonate sheeting: 👇

It can now accommodate this tank fitting: 👇

I found this tube of silicone sealant, purchased specifically for the project ages ago: 👇

Something tweaked in my brain...

A vague, wordless memory, like an itch

I stopped and read the back of the tube:

Not suitable for permanent submergence in water such as an aquarium

...

Okay, hang on...

Searching again

I knew I had some that was suitable for this project. Just had to find where I put it...

Here we go:

Load it into the caulking gun: 👇

A bit of this for cleaning the surfaces to be adhered: 👇

Masking tape for holding it all together while the sealant cures: 👇

For some reason it's blue

Okay

So I spent over an hour working silicone sealant around with rubber-gloved fingers, doing my best to fill the gaps and get a decent seal

Looks a bit scrappy but effective, I hope

...

Speaking in the present now; it's had eleven days to cure

I drag the garden hose over to the aquarium after work and start filling

And you know what?

Didn't work

It leaks

My workmanship seals like a screen door on a submarine

^{_{Lot of submarines in this one...}}

...

Frustrating

So very, very frustrating

*deep breath*

...

But it's okay

I just need to drain the water, dry the aquarium out and try again

...

Could be worse

A line from an interesting video I saw today feels very relevant:

Some days you're the pigeon
Other days you're the statue