Man, I don't know, but I would guess its gonna depend on if you're going glass or acrylic and how thick a piece you're using... Hope you get some serious DIY expert advice on it, so we can see more BUILD!
My Plywood Build 250 Gallon
- Thread starter john73738
- Start date
Well, Decided on 2.5" around the windows thanks to Muni's build.
Hope to be cut and assembled tommorrow. (Tired of saying that want to get it done)
Bear
Hope to be cut and assembled tommorrow. (Tired of saying that want to get it done)
Bear
Yea me too. I am getting tired of looking at that stack of plywood in my garage. Time to do something with it.
Well Finally after a lot of talk I got started....
First Cut !
Test assembly...
Hopfully more pics later tonight. Gotta go to HD and get a box of screws, a counter sink bit, and glue. Want to be assembled tonight.
First Cut !
Test assembly...
Hopfully more pics later tonight. Gotta go to HD and get a box of screws, a counter sink bit, and glue. Want to be assembled tonight.
Personally I would use pond armor. After speaking extensively with the rep for the liquid rubber I found it to be more expensive than pond armor. And this is what pond armor was made for. When I spoke with the liquid rubber people I was told SIX coats then I'd have to come up with a way to seal the glass without silicone... No thanks, I'll stick with the pond armor. I've gotten to be very good at working with it and have figured out the secrete of using it. I'm going to be building a small tank here in the near future, something like a 40 breeder and plan to use pond armor once again.
Just remember one thing, movement kills tanks.
Make sure when you glue and screw your tank together to pre-drill every hole. Take your time and draw a line 3/8" from the edge and follow it. I'd put a screw every two inches.
Good luck on the build... and try not to over think the filter. Use the K.I.S.S. method, it's not rocket science filtering tanks... All you really need is big sponge. If you want to incorperate a sump somehow then so be it, more water volume is good.
Just remember one thing, movement kills tanks.
Make sure when you glue and screw your tank together to pre-drill every hole. Take your time and draw a line 3/8" from the edge and follow it. I'd put a screw every two inches.
Good luck on the build... and try not to over think the filter. Use the K.I.S.S. method, it's not rocket science filtering tanks... All you really need is big sponge. If you want to incorperate a sump somehow then so be it, more water volume is good.
Thanks for the input. I had not decided on what I was going to use. I am tossing around three sealants;
Pond Armor, Liquid Rubber, Insul-x Epoxy Pool Paint.
The filter I am going to use is uniquely simple, but gotta hold something back to keep people reading.
Thanks Again.
Bear
Pond Armor, Liquid Rubber, Insul-x Epoxy Pool Paint.
The filter I am going to use is uniquely simple, but gotta hold something back to keep people reading.
Thanks Again.
Bear
Well, I don't woork for pond armor, but I will push the product for a few reasons. 1, The customer service is incredible. Butch is very knowledgeable and very good at customer service. I spent literally hours on the phone with him before even ordering a drop of the product. Then after working with it on my 1500 build and various other projects the stuff is bar none the best product out there. I've tried them all.... unfortunately... I have a gallon of the liquid rubber here and while the idea seems very simple and too good to be true... I find that it is too good to be true. It does NOT adhear to glass. I've tried. When it's dry it seems great, submerse it and the liquid rubber just falls off.
A couple of simple pieces of advice for pond armor users:
Get quart kits and split them down to mix very small batches. I'm talking a cup or two.
Soak or float the product in straight hot water in a bucket or tub for atleast an hour before using it. It thins the product doen to a thin paint consistency. When it's room temperature it's like working with peanut butter.
For your project all you need to do is mix a very thinned out mixture of pond armor using denatured alcohol. Two parts color, one part hardener then two parts alcohol (the same amount as the color) Brush it on right over the wood and it will soak into it. THis will create a tooth for the "real coat" to stick to.
Then four hours later mix two parts color, one part hardener and one part alcohol and fiberglass tape all the inside corners...
Then four hours later do the same mixture and coat the whole tank inside.
12 hours after that inspect it to see if you've got an spots that are thin and touch it up.
24 hours later set your glass by sanding the pond armor to rough it up, lay down your silicone bead, lay your glass in. (At this point the tank should be laying on it's face) Put some prop sticks in to hold the glass or use buckets of water for weight... (put the buckets in first then fill them with a hose)
24 hours after that fill it up!
Done! LOL
A couple of simple pieces of advice for pond armor users:
Get quart kits and split them down to mix very small batches. I'm talking a cup or two.
Soak or float the product in straight hot water in a bucket or tub for atleast an hour before using it. It thins the product doen to a thin paint consistency. When it's room temperature it's like working with peanut butter.
For your project all you need to do is mix a very thinned out mixture of pond armor using denatured alcohol. Two parts color, one part hardener then two parts alcohol (the same amount as the color) Brush it on right over the wood and it will soak into it. THis will create a tooth for the "real coat" to stick to.
Then four hours later mix two parts color, one part hardener and one part alcohol and fiberglass tape all the inside corners...
Then four hours later do the same mixture and coat the whole tank inside.
12 hours after that inspect it to see if you've got an spots that are thin and touch it up.
24 hours later set your glass by sanding the pond armor to rough it up, lay down your silicone bead, lay your glass in. (At this point the tank should be laying on it's face) Put some prop sticks in to hold the glass or use buckets of water for weight... (put the buckets in first then fill them with a hose)
24 hours after that fill it up!
Done! LOL
Last pic of the day;
Slow going due to the fact that I am working alone.
Will cut the front tommorrow, decide then if 2 windows or 1...
Time to grill some meat and drink beer
More to come
Slow going due to the fact that I am working alone.
Will cut the front tommorrow, decide then if 2 windows or 1...
Time to grill some meat and drink beer
More to come
