very much so, but wasn't thinking almost like 6 months worth. but still a very big project so its still fine.
My new 2600 gallon plywood tank project
- Thread starter VLDesign
- Start date
Hey it's only been 4 months.. 
An trust me I am shocked it wasn't done last month as well.
Got the inside silicone scraped off, masking tape and brown paper put in place on both sides, and will attempt to cut out the windows tonight.
Will post pictures after that is done as well.
An trust me I am shocked it wasn't done last month as well.
Got the inside silicone scraped off, masking tape and brown paper put in place on both sides, and will attempt to cut out the windows tonight.
Will post pictures after that is done as well.
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?119752-1000-gallon-build/page22 nice test of silicone to acrylic.
Just a quick note for those of us who have it set to 40 posts per page the results of the test are on page 6.
awwww so jelous!!!!!!!!wish i could do that! i have a 2 1/2 foot pacu needs a good home u interested?
Ok windows are out. Too some work but it's done.
The Dow 795 is a lot softer than regular GE Silicone and I am not sure how I feel about that. I am able to pull it off with my fingers and roll it into a ball and the stuff still stick to its self.
I assume it's supposed to be this pliable even after it's cured but will still e-mail DOW and ask them to see what they say.
Here are the pictured detailing out what I did.
The windshield removal kit was $20 (Will be selling it if anyone needs one. Came with 75' of wire. Only used about 10 feet of it)
Was able to use this to cut the top and sides with the help of a hammer and pry bar. The bottom was sitting on the tank and there was no way to get the wire under it so I had to pry the bottom loose using the leverage from the window being folded down and cut was materials came with it.
Inserted the wire in the upper corner of the vertical cut and pulled the wire down as far as we could go. Then did the same with the top cut, using a pry bar to keep the acrylic away from the wood so the wire wouldn't cut into them. Then cut the area where the 2 sheets of acrylic were butted together by feeding the wire parallel to the window behind the 4x4 supports and cut the silicone down that way.
The rest was pry and pull to windows down.
Tomorrow I will scrape all the silicone down and see what damage to the plywood that needs to be repaired and work on getting that area ready for pond armor. Will also clean the silicone off the acrylic and get those surfaces ready to the primer and new silicone.
Finally I used the denatured alcohol and removed the spots on the windows that were caused by the chemical burns talked about earlier. This worked well.
The Dow 795 is a lot softer than regular GE Silicone and I am not sure how I feel about that. I am able to pull it off with my fingers and roll it into a ball and the stuff still stick to its self.
I assume it's supposed to be this pliable even after it's cured but will still e-mail DOW and ask them to see what they say.
Here are the pictured detailing out what I did.
The windshield removal kit was $20 (Will be selling it if anyone needs one. Came with 75' of wire. Only used about 10 feet of it)
Was able to use this to cut the top and sides with the help of a hammer and pry bar. The bottom was sitting on the tank and there was no way to get the wire under it so I had to pry the bottom loose using the leverage from the window being folded down and cut was materials came with it.
Inserted the wire in the upper corner of the vertical cut and pulled the wire down as far as we could go. Then did the same with the top cut, using a pry bar to keep the acrylic away from the wood so the wire wouldn't cut into them. Then cut the area where the 2 sheets of acrylic were butted together by feeding the wire parallel to the window behind the 4x4 supports and cut the silicone down that way.
The rest was pry and pull to windows down.
Tomorrow I will scrape all the silicone down and see what damage to the plywood that needs to be repaired and work on getting that area ready for pond armor. Will also clean the silicone off the acrylic and get those surfaces ready to the primer and new silicone.
Finally I used the denatured alcohol and removed the spots on the windows that were caused by the chemical burns talked about earlier. This worked well.
Hey VL,
Im not sure, but from the pictures it looks like you made another mistake that I also did when installing my acrylic windows: I pushed the windows up tight against the tank and squeezed alot of the silicone out. I ended up with only about 1/16" of sealant between the tank and the wood. After I installed my windows I found a detailed write up by Anythingfish about how he did his windows. Evidently, one should use some spacers between the acrylic and tank frame to ensure that the windows are not pushed up too tight against the tank. I think it is supposed to be like 3/16" or 1/4" gap (filled with sealant, of course) between the acrylic and the tank. When it is dry, you have a nice, thick, gasket between the windows and tank. I think the function is that as the tank is filled, the water pressure compresses the sealant gasket that you have made and improves the seal.
How much do you want for the windshield removal kit?
Thanks for the pics. Keep up the good work.
Im not sure, but from the pictures it looks like you made another mistake that I also did when installing my acrylic windows: I pushed the windows up tight against the tank and squeezed alot of the silicone out. I ended up with only about 1/16" of sealant between the tank and the wood. After I installed my windows I found a detailed write up by Anythingfish about how he did his windows. Evidently, one should use some spacers between the acrylic and tank frame to ensure that the windows are not pushed up too tight against the tank. I think it is supposed to be like 3/16" or 1/4" gap (filled with sealant, of course) between the acrylic and the tank. When it is dry, you have a nice, thick, gasket between the windows and tank. I think the function is that as the tank is filled, the water pressure compresses the sealant gasket that you have made and improves the seal.
How much do you want for the windshield removal kit?
Thanks for the pics. Keep up the good work.
