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We placed the two tanks in the pit, but they obviously needed a little
help to remain upright. The goldfish pond is on the left - very close!
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We had a couple of spare concrete blocks - and thought about using them
as a base for the tanks - but that didn't seem satisfactory either.
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Finally, we just built a platform of heavy plywood, braced it up really
well, and decided to concrete it!
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We had extra rebar, so used that to add strength to our platform.
We needed quite a bit of concrete, and mixing it bag by bag was too slow,
so...
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...we ordered a 'short load' of concrete - just a few yards to do the
job. Unfortunately, it all had to be wheelbarrow-ed back to the pit,
as there was no way to get the concrete truck close enough!
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The final smoothing work was done by hand. You can see the staging
just being set up in the background to build the rebar 'cage' for the pond.
The pit dimensions are about 12' x 6' by 6' deep.
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Here we are about to lower the vortex onto the new platform. The
platform would be supported by the concrete from the 'blow' instead of wood.
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'Well, another shopping trip - this time to get some more concrete
block...'
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Luckily, they deliver a palate of blocks using this neat little 3 wheel
vehicle that can lift the palate wherever you need it!
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Here we are building the block bases for the 2 tanks. This allowed
them to be easily plumbed, with large pipes going to the tank bottoms.
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Lenny, who works for Mike at Glidden Landscaping, thought of a new use
for our tank bases! Whirlpool, anyone? We would now build the
wood backstop for the 'blown' concrete that would separate the 'Pit' from
the pond.
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The wood 'wall' is in place, and we have put 6" of rock on the pond
bottom. We now set the bottom drains so they can be built into the
rebar cage, and the bottom drains can be plumbed to the vortex.
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Working in the pit became a bit cramped when the dividing wall was
complete!
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Here's Mike in the pit connecting the pipes. We used 4" flex PVC,
affectionately known as 'Anaconda' pipe to connect the vortex.
Wrestling with that pipe is a workout!
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You can clearly see the 3 grey 'Anaconda' pipes running from the bottom
drains to the vortex. There are also out-flow lines and drain lines
visible. We labeled everything - might be useful if we ever need to
get back in there!
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To clean the vortex, a sump-pump was placed at the bottom of the small
tank to the right. It is connected to the drain on the vortex, and
operates automatically 2-4 times a day to flush the solids.
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Each pipe going into and out of each tank had gate valves installed.
When you can isolate the water, repairs are easy! These valves are
accessible from a man-hole cover installed later.
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When the plumbing was finished, and the pipes and valves were tested,
the pit was filled. Here we used the monster backhoe to fill the
wheelbarrows with stone. It still had to be run to the 'Pit' and
dumped by hand - too bad the backhoe couldn't reach the finished pit!
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The tanks and piping were wrapped in some very special insulation - 2
non-compressing layers of Styrofoam-like material that sandwiched a foil
center. The insulation was designed to be used under radiantly-heated
driveways! It does not compress, and should keep the water in the
tanks insulated from ground temperature.
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We filled the pit with stone, leaving plenty of room at the top to
create small planting areas. The 1500 tank was installed to be 2'
above grade, with a surrounding stone wall used to sit on and watch the
fish. The vortex and sump tanks will be covered and invisible in the
mulch.
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