Finally Upgrading: 600gl Plywood build
- Thread starter cvermeulen
- Start date
cvermeulen i know you probably dont need advice coz uv got plenty of experience fiberglassing but make sure you add at least 2% or above catatlyst to ensure the the gelcoat fully cures, personally i would do 2.5% from my experience
le patron;2852006; said:so you're going with gator's plan i see
lol. 600's are fun and you have lots of stocking options! Save some cash and don't worry about using exterior grade plywood. I used 5'8" ply on my tank still no problems over a year later. Make sure you use deck screws and not drywall screws. Drywall screws aren't meant to hold constant weight like that and the heads may pop off. Drywall screws are ok though when you screw the plywood to the 2x4 supports around the tank just not when putting the frame together. If you look at my sig I have th plans made up for you already and a step by step thats what le patron meant.
You can cut costs even further and forgo the fiberglass mat. I used regular automotive car bondo to fill in all the seams and cover all the screw heads it bonds very well to wood. good luck!Gator;2853777; said:lol. 600's are fun and you have lots of stocking options! Save some cash and don't worry about using exterior grade plywood. I used 5'8" ply on my tank still no problems over a year later. Make sure you use deck screws and not drywall screws. Drywall screws aren't meant to hold constant weight like that and the heads may pop off. Drywall screws are ok though when you screw the plywood to the 2x4 supports around the tank just not when putting the frame together. If you look at my sig I have th plans made up for you already and a step by step thats what le patron meant.
Oh nice tank! I hadn't seen your article before. I came up with 600 all by myself
I was originally going to use all glass to make a 6x4x2 foot 360gl, but I was having a lot of trouble finding another tank to salvage the glass from for cheap, so I started considering using plywood. I already built one plywood tank, a 220gal that fits in an alcove in my computer room. I also considered making a 1000+gal 12 foot long tank, but it would be such a challenge to move that I decided to wait until I'm in a more permanent home. I don't really have any stock that needs that kind of space yet anyway.
Anyways, I meant to scan in my drawings today, so y'all could see what I'm cooking up, but of course I left my f'n design book at home. It's a lot different than Gator's design (designing something unique is half the fun for me). It's actually quite different from anything I've seen on here before. I'm using the G1S plywood for the two sides and front because it will be sanded and stained for a finished look (no extra skin on the outside.) The bracing will be inside the tank. The fiberglass mat is mostly because I have it handy, and I am not using a ton of framing or bracing for this tank, so I want to make the seams nice and beefy. I also will have some large plecos in this tank, one of whom has chewed the epoxy off my fiberglass caves in my 220, so I want to overdo the lining a little bit in case he gets snacky.
Cant wait to see your drawings. And Plecos scare me in anything but glass tanks. I've seen the freakish teeth some of them have I've heard of them really messing up acrylic tanks and didn't want to come home to a hole chewed in the side of my tank with a pleco head stuck in it. Defiantly keep this thread going with lots of updates with pics
Alright, Alright. this is almost as bad as an MS paint drawing, and there is a lot of design detail missing from it, but I wanted to put SOMETHING here to show my general design intent.
Nice should be an interesting build. I like the idea of the built in wet/dry section. I made something up like that a few months ago.
Makes things a lot easier on a return pump. Looks like it would make a great river/stream tank.
Makes things a lot easier on a return pump. Looks like it would make a great river/stream tank.
Yeah a few of you might recall a bit of a controversial thread I started about efficient filtration. Turns out the most efficient filter you can run (read: that you can buy) Is a HOB style, because the water doesn't change elevation. Using a relatively efficient 800gph pump (50-75W or so) with an eductor to get around 2000-2500gph of water movement at a very low head SHOULD help with the power bills. Not having a bunch of exposed plumbing, or an open sump should help with heat loss as well. My goal is to cover the costs of this build by selling my other tanks, and to make this tank efficient enough that it runs on the same amount of juice as the smaller ones used.
