The old water tank near the canal, receiving water from an under ground pipe, was in really bad conditions when we arrived at the Raw-jah house... it was leaking from various cracks, especially from the bottom cap and it didn't have a precise output to control the water level: so it needed a good substantial restoration...
(The water tank in 2018)So the first thing to do was to fix the cracks and prevent the metal rods to be exposed to the weather. A structural cement did the job, as I did this I also selected one of the two holes to create a manageable output of the overflow in the direction of the garden.
It looks like I didn't take pictures of this first stage, in which I also created a precisely round hole for a new bottom cap: the previous hole was really poorly done and impossible to make it water tight.
The second stage was to use a special bi-component cement (A + B sold in a quite pricy set) specific for waterproofing tanks: it needs to be mixed and spread quickly otherwise it starts to clog up... A mesh needs to be laid in between two layers of this gluey mix.
I figured out the way to prop up the edged of the mesh around the corners of the tank (very tricky to handle while laying the cement): I used stones and wire hooks to keep it tightly in shape and it worked quite well...
It looks like I didn't take pictures of this first stage, in which I also created a precisely round hole for a new bottom cap: the previous hole was really poorly done and impossible to make it water tight.
The second stage was to use a special bi-component cement (A + B sold in a quite pricy set) specific for waterproofing tanks: it needs to be mixed and spread quickly otherwise it starts to clog up... A mesh needs to be laid in between two layers of this gluey mix.
I figured out the way to prop up the edged of the mesh around the corners of the tank (very tricky to handle while laying the cement): I used stones and wire hooks to keep it tightly in shape and it worked quite well...
Since I wanted to use a standard sink cap at the bottom, there was no specific gasket when I bought it... After a few trials and errors, the hand-made gasket that worked is this one from some sort of high-density white foam packaging.
The handmade gasket (white ring )
Connected to the output pipe and passing the test for being perfectly water tight...
On the other side of the tank, the output hole setting the maximum level needed some sort of a funnel mouth in order to collect the water for gardening, eventually creating a continuous flow from the tank. The bi-component cement revealed itself to be very playable and somehow easy to mold in shape: the inner layer of mesh works as a protection for the fish that I am planning to put in the tank.
For the time being, I have shaped and inserted an old gutter pipe that sends the overflow water back to the canal. Later on will come the time to design a complete path for the water through the garden...
Some river stones and creepy plants (it's full of edible strawberries all around) will complete the new look of the tank. I'm pretty happy for now.
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