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'The Full Monty' Has Left The Building last photos

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I love it whenever I see that sign. I keep imagining 100ft daffodils stomping across the road :D
 
When I was a kid my parents used to tell me to look out for the trees crossing the road :-\
 
‘The Full Monty’ Eheim Incpiria 400 Litre Aquarium ADA Aquatic Journal
Steve Lancashire

Okay so it has been almost two years since I sold my Juwel Trigon 190 tank. I sold it because I had just about exhausted every possible theme of aquascaping a corner tank.


Trigon Pictures at its best...

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That and of course the fact that my better half wanted a new (bigger) dining room table and chairs.


What she had...

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What I thought she wanted...

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What she actually wanted...

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I also needed to re-evaluate what I wanted to do next. It didn’t take long. I decided my next project would be a planted Discus Tank, going back to what I know and love. Only this time it was going to be a new (bigger) setup than before.


The problem was now that my missus had got her new dining room suite there was not much space for me to work with. Hmmm……how was I going to get around that problem?

I did think about converting my office space upstairs and setting it up there, but to be honest I wasn’t sure the floorboards would take the weight. This tank weighs 195 kilos dry, when full with water, substrate and rocks it is pretty close to 700 kilos.


So I discussed with her that must be obeyed all of the options available to me, from re-arranging the whole layout of the living room and dining room!!

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Needless to say that idea went down like a...

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So I suggested selling the dining room furniture...

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Or building a small extension!!

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Even Moving house...

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And finally knocking the part dividing wall down between the living room and dining room!!

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Needless to say I got knocked back on every suggestion, the discussion was all over in less than it takes to say Myriophyllum Heterophyllum. So I finished up with lots of…..

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That’s the main reason why it has been almost two years since I sold the Trigon 190. So it became an Aquarium-less house for the next two years.

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:( Wot no aquarium...

So I started saving all the money I would normally be spending on my habit obsession hobby and squirreled it away, adding to it with any small amounts I could.


The next thing I did was be extremely nice to my wife, a period of gentle persuasion by buying her chocolates.

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Or maybe some flowers…
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Doing the food shopping…
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Or cooking maybe…
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Surely not housework and cleaning…
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I know how about emptying the dishwasher now and then…

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I can even try decorating…
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God the list goes on….But surely it would all be worthwhile in the end?


But all this time I dropped the odd hint here and there until eventually she came with me to a few places to look at new aquariums.


We went to Oasis in Salford, which is well worth a visit if you get the time, The Green Machine in Wrexham which you all know about by now, Andy’s Aquatics in Rock Ferry near Birkenhead, and several local TFS and Garden centres. We looked at loads of aquariums but they were either too big or too expensive, or both. Especially as we were still faced with the problem of a lack of space.


So as you do I trawled the Internet for hours, days and weeks, and then, I found what was looking for. The Eheim Incpiria 400 litre freshwater Aquarium.

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Yes it was big, and it was expensive but hey ho, I might as well get shot for a sheep as for a lamb.

So off I went to the Abyss Aquatics Warehouse in Stockport and took my darling wife along for her opinion.


Big Mistake!!!!

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“It was a bit on the big side…” she said, “I don’t really like the plain white doors on the front…” “What’s wrong with this one over here with the goldfish in it…”

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Speechless…what could I say...

Never mind I had a cunning plan…I think…

It was time to knock down the offending wall and create some space…

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Figure 1 Work begins more Elf and Safety

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That didn't hurt a bit...

Maybe I was going to need someone with the right equipment to help move the rubble…

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Okay it took me six hours non stop to knock it down, clear up the mess and ferry fifteen massive sacks of building rubble down to the local recycling plant…

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Then there was the slight amount of brick dust to clear away…
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And some dusting…
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And all this before my other half got back from work…gulp…do you think she would she notice…:rolleyes:

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Nah surely not...
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I think she’ll notice…gulp!


Now on to stage 3…What do we/do about the big chunk of carpet missing where the wall had been?


Several of these later…

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This was our final choice…By that I mean my wife’s, but it’s a start…

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Then was the need for ‘The art of not quite so subtle subterfuge…’

Daraaaa…..

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Alright maybe not that subtle...

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A perfect simulation don’t you think…

Needless to say I wasn't getting a 'Blue Peter Badge for it.....:(

But...By Jove I think it did the trick....because now the tank is on its way and I can't wait until Sunday!

There will now be a short Interlude...

And key music...

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Love how you are adding so many pictures, keeps it very interesting haha
 
I'm hooked especially if it continues to be as interesting....
 
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