The Puffer Forum

He's hiding!

Camaro95 wrote:Not stalled. Just trying to appropriately juggle relationships, a child, personal life and the project.

The sanding was taking forever but we are finally finished (as of monday). Was supposed to stain today but my daughter was home sick. Looking at Friday to start staining. Going to go with a deep cherry stain.

I didn't lie. It wasn't stalled. Unfortunaltey life got in the way and the aquariano got burnt. Literally. Since the collapse of said relationships and personal life, I've slipped again into my down place and haven't really cared about too much. I don't care to speak too much about it but JP and Flutter know some of the details so they understand. With the collapse of said relationships and personal life resulting in pretty solid recurrance of depression, the remanents of that piano were the final addition to a bonfire over the summer which I was not privvy to attend (or so I'm told. But I'm not sure my former buddy would burn it). Basically since my last post in this thread I've been spending as much time as possible with my daughter to keep her as well as possible given the court situation (if anyone wants my opinion on the Canadian Family Law system, please feel free to ask and I will create a thread in The Lounge with my rants) and to keep myself occupied and away from the distilled sugar and acts of stupidity and immaturity.

I'm sorry I've let you down and I'm sorry I've let myself down but this idea isn't dead, just this specific project for the time being (hey, maybe old friends can work out their differences?).

With that said, I did make some mistakes along the process which I would like to share incase anybody has decided or will decide to tackle this type of project.

1. You need a piano tuning tool to remove the tuning pegs or it becomes a really labour/time consuming process. The pegs aren't exactly a standard fit for a drill so it pretty much has to be hand done.

2. If the piano is older and in dcent shape, DO NOT try to remove the finish. It's a b*tch of a job. The older the finish, the harder it is.

3.Have a plan for the tank. Do you want to insert a standard tank size or create your own? Do you want to buy one off the shelf of your local LFS/classified or do you want to line it with plastic or plexiglass or do you want to use sealant to waterproof the wood?

4. If you decide the use a manufactured tank, make sure you account for lighting, filters, heaters and other accessories.

5. If you decide to line the walls with plastic, you don't really need to do much. Just make sure the cracks are tight.

6. If you decide to waterproof the wood, good luck finding a decent sealant. I tried every hardware/paint store in town and none of the managers could assure me the sealant they suggest would not poison the water or release poisons from the paint... even after they called the manufacturer. It's just not something they study. Each manufacturer and store suggest I try a marine supply shop.. but the costs for their products (at least around here) are extremely prohibitive.

7. Last but certainly not least, make sure you have the space where you're tackling this project on your own terms; either with a contract or your own rented/owned property. Somewhere you can keep the project under your own control.

I'm sorry I let everyone down and just as sorry that I let myself down but unfortunately relationships fall apart and I didn't have the room to move the project to my own place. Maybe it's still there and maybe I can recover the relationship(s) but right now it's not looking good. Hopefully soon I can restart somewhere on my own terms and actually complete it.

Thank you everyone for your interest in this. It's sad I couldn't complete it, but such is life. Maybe one of you will have the inspiration and ability ot actually complete it, if so, feel free to ask me about any problems I ran into or whatever else.

Jared

P.S. This project shouldn't cost you anymore than $200 for material/equipment.

You didn't let anyone down. It's nice to see you back here

That's ok.. you've got dreams and talent. Something will come up and you'll be able to step back and smile and then say "Yep, I built that". What ever "that" may be We're with you!

Awww man! I wish you'd finished it! It was great to see someone else attempting a fish tank piano! I just finished making mine this year, and I also wrote a blog about it. I'd love you to check it out and let me know your thoughts! Cheers

http://robinmurray.wordpress.com/2010/1 ... naquarium/

Wow, how cool is that?! That looks like a lot of work but it turned out great! Wonderfully detailed blog & pics, thanks for sharing.
Great 1st post!

And now mine is for sale!
http://perth.gumtree.com.au/c-Stuff-for ... Z253329021