My tank stresses me out most days I look at it. Probably because it's never the way I want it to be since I am rarely home to work on it. But ya, that first fill...that's a real stresser! ;)

Yeah that stand was insanely overbuilt but you still hear the thing settle with all that weight on it. Dead level etc but still made a few noises.

The following horror in that saga was when I realized I had tiled the wall the tank was in a little too close to the front pane. It did have some bowing and I couldn't slide a piece of paper between the tile ledge in the front and the pane.

I drained it immediately and ripped those tiles off intending to lay new ones further away from the front.

Funny, I never thought about it. When I got my first big tank, I just filled it. Call it inexperience, but I didn't even think about it bursting or leaking. In future with the more experience I have, I wouldn't do that again. So I probably would freak a bit, on any future fills.

I've decided to wait until after I get back from vacation to fill it. Don't want to leave my GF with a 180g of water that may or may not explode. No, that would not be a good thing to come home to :)

How did you manage to work that deal? Go on a vacation without the missus? I need to know this ploy!

I gave her a week in Mexico in January, so I had it coming :)

Aahhhhh! The old trade-off.

So the tank is half full, stress level going up :) Water is still inside tank, so far it's good!!

ok so I have not seen one picture of this "imaginary" tank yet.. whats up with that???

Steve

Once it's rock scaped, I may post a pic....too busy building to take pics