957-gallon DIY acrylic tank?
- Thread starter Omega
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milkman407;695372; said:acrylic 4feet tall would probably have to be around. 2" thick or so. Not exactly sure. Try and make it out of something else though unless its a display tank.
Did you read what you wrote?! Not shining examples of 'doing the math in yur noggin'
or an advertisement for tank building (your sig line) 
lol, shhh . I talked to the local acrylic company today we should be building tanks sometime this week.
. I talked to the local acrylic company today we should be building tanks sometime this week.Cell Cast acrylic also comes in 10 and 12 foot lengths too...
however a 4 x 8 foot sheet 2 inches thick is over 2 grand
however a 4 x 8 foot sheet 2 inches thick is over 2 grand
Hope I can help a little here. Ive done a little reasearch on this subject before I took the plunge. You can get acrylic sheets up to 12 FT long. I recently purchased some Polycast GP in 4X10 sheets 1.25" thick. The top 3 trade namest that acrylic is sold under in the US are Polycast, Acrylite and Plexiglass. I chose Polycast by Spartech because of their consistency and mil spec ratings. After 20 years of repairing military aircraft canopies I developed a strong respect for this companies quality control. Their casting process is very meticulous.
Nobody likes long posts so I will try to keep this one short. There is no stronger method than a molecular bond for acrylic. Dont want to step on any toes here but 2 part polymerizable cement like #40 will never produce a bond as strong as a solvent cemented one. The reason CYRO recommends it for the long and thick panels is for liability purposes and because of how difficult it is to bond these huge panels correctly using solvent cement. Drying time can be modified also with careful use of glacial acetic acid. I use wires to do it and it can be very tricky. You only get one chance. The 2 part cements like
#40 or #42 (if you want to spend $ for an applicator gun) will work and are generally easier to use than the pin/wire method for panels of this size but will not produce as strong of a joint as a molecularly bonded seam. The reason 2 part cements are used is because it is often difficult to create perfect edges when working with panels longer that 10 FT or thicker that 1" unless they are prepared by a CNC router. If you check around you will see that public aquariums are also solvent cemented. If done properly the seam will be nearly invisible and stronger that that of a 2 part cement.
Nobody likes long posts so I will try to keep this one short. There is no stronger method than a molecular bond for acrylic. Dont want to step on any toes here but 2 part polymerizable cement like #40 will never produce a bond as strong as a solvent cemented one. The reason CYRO recommends it for the long and thick panels is for liability purposes and because of how difficult it is to bond these huge panels correctly using solvent cement. Drying time can be modified also with careful use of glacial acetic acid. I use wires to do it and it can be very tricky. You only get one chance. The 2 part cements like
#40 or #42 (if you want to spend $ for an applicator gun) will work and are generally easier to use than the pin/wire method for panels of this size but will not produce as strong of a joint as a molecularly bonded seam. The reason 2 part cements are used is because it is often difficult to create perfect edges when working with panels longer that 10 FT or thicker that 1" unless they are prepared by a CNC router. If you check around you will see that public aquariums are also solvent cemented. If done properly the seam will be nearly invisible and stronger that that of a 2 part cement.
Jovial,
Can you let us know where the best place to aquire Cell Cast Acrylic is?
The best quote I could find so far is:
.375" x 22" x 94" sheet
cut with a +/-.125" tolerance was $165.00
from Professional Plastics.
Can you let us know where the best place to aquire Cell Cast Acrylic is?
The best quote I could find so far is:
.375" x 22" x 94" sheet
cut with a +/-.125" tolerance was $165.00
from Professional Plastics.
The company I bought it from is called Port Plastics. They have several branches througout the US. I shopped for several weeks and found that the prices varied greatly but Port Plastics had the best price at the time, this was a year ago. Because acrylic is a peteroleum product unfortuanely the prices often rise and fall with the cost of oil. Plexiglass is made in Mexico and is often the lowest priced of the 3. Polycast by Spartech is the best IMO.
If your serious about acrylic fabrication I would recommend that you Google Jerry Stachiw and order a copy of his publications from your local library. They have helped me a lot.
If your serious about acrylic fabrication I would recommend that you Google Jerry Stachiw and order a copy of his publications from your local library. They have helped me a lot.
i found the best pricing from GE Polymer Shapes............for 1.5 and 2 inch cell cast material...........i checked a lot of places !!!!
zennzzo;696777; said:
