How to line a galvanized container?

[bagsmom]

Hey gang! You may remember sometime back, my son did a cool "levitating faucet" fountain in an oval, galvanized container. It looked fantastic and made a great little water garden on the screened-in porch. But when we added a couple of little fish, we learned the hard way that the chemicals in galvanized metal will kill fish.

I'd like to try it again this year but I'm wondering what would be a good way to seal the metal so it will be fish safe. The container is only about two feet deep, two feet wide, and probably 3 feet long. It's small. I'm thinking of just putting in a couple of little bitty goldfish in there from the big pond (like a summer vacation home) then putting them back in the big pond for the winter.

Has anyone used the spray on Flex Seal? If it would work and is safe for fish, it seems like the most efficient way to do it - since I don't need much product for a small project.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

 

[bagsmom]

Any other suggestions would be great, too! I don't want to try to figure out how to line such a small container with pond liner. I think it would look yucky. In this situation, I'm really interested in a coating of some sort!

 

[Lisak1]

I wonder if you could find a fish safe container that would fit inside your galvanized container? We have a beautiful glazed ceramic pot that we use for lotuses, but it leaks like a sieve. We found a heavy plastic pot that fits right inside of it - we had to search for a bit, but did eventually find one and it works great.

Just a thought!

 

[TAHOE]

Pond shield

 

[Panzer13]

Two problems here. One galvanized tubs are smooth, so if you will need to ruff the surface with say an 80 grit sand paper in order for the coating to bond to the surface of the metal.
Second problem is that metal tubs conduct hot and cold very well. Meaning that whatever you spray or paint in the inside of it will lose its bond sooner than later from the hot and cold. Just like the paint on an old car.
Further water is a solvent and will brake down almost anything in time. Add these two factors and I would expect the coating to fail in a year or two at the maximum.
I hate to say it but I would just invest in a plastic stock tank. You could try to find a barrel liner that would fit inside the galvanized container, but honestly that seems redundant.
I would just get the plastic stock tank, it would be the least drama in the end.

 

[bagsmom]

You are probably right. I'm just planning to use it on the sheltered screened in porch April through December - when the weather is good. Jan, Feb, March - I'd empty and store indoors till the next April. It held water fine without a lining -- maybe I could just use it with decorative rock and the fountain - more as a water feature rather than with anything living in it. The main purpose would be decorative, since I have the "real" pond for my plants and fish.

 

[Panzer13]

You are probably right. I'm just planning to use it on the sheltered screened in porch April through December - when the weather is good. Jan, Feb, March - I'd empty and store indoors till the next April. It held water fine without a lining -- maybe I could just use it with decorative rock and the fountain - more as a water feature rather than with anything living in it. The main purpose would be decorative, since I have the "real" pond for my plants and fish.

That sounds really nice. I don't see why you couldn't put same plants in there. Just add a little miracle grow to the water. I use that on all my plants, that are not in the pond with the fish that is. That stuff is a green thumb in a bottle.