try to build small aquarium

Any glass shop will sell you what you need. The benefit to going to them rather than a home depot, or something like that, is the glass shop can cut the glass to your specs and all you have to do is assemble. If can also look for companies that build windows if you can not find a glass shop.

You can buy cut glass at most Hobby Lobby's

building question

I was just wondering, I am THINKING of building my own aquarium as well (yes, make all the female jokes you want to guys........I will post pictures when I am done!!!).....but, I have a question. What I am wanting to know, is if you use the aquarium silicone, what could you use around the tank, to brace it (aquariums usually have that black "band" around the top and bottom, to give it more support???). Any input??

No female coments here, I know many females that are excelent craftsmen (not intended to be sexist).


They sell the black plastic but that is usually only for standard sizes. I have used wood myself and incorperated it into the stand and hood. If you are good with working with plastic and a plastic welder you can make the molding yourself. I have tried that but I did not care for the look. You will definatly want to make some sort of suport for the top and bottom so that the preasure of the water does not pull apart the seams. And yes it will I speak from experience.

i dont really see the point in that black frame.. i have a 12inch cube taht i made without the frame. jsut be sure to use enough silicon.
id suggest using acrylic if youre doing DIY, because you can bond them with acrylic cement and seal with silicon rather than iwht glass silicon is the only thing holding.

misopeenut said:

i dont really see the point in that black frame.. i have a 12inch cube taht i made without the frame. jsut be sure to use enough silicon.
id suggest using acrylic if youre doing DIY, because you can bond them with acrylic cement and seal with silicon rather than iwht glass silicon is the only thing holding.

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Maybe if you are just doing a 12 inch cube, you wouldnt need the frame. But, when you are thinking of doing a 135 gallon tank, like I am, I think you would NEED a frame (or something). Water is VERY heavy, as I am sure you already know. (When our 50 gallon tank is full with water, my husband and I cant even lift it by ourselves). 135 gallons, is going to cause ALOT of pressure on the seams of the tank. So, some kind of a brace is going to be needed (either the black banding that is used on regular tanks, or support from the stand and hood, as previously suggested.

I am not the most experienced aquarist, I will be the first to admit that. Hell, just until recently, I didnt realize you needed to change a portion of the water (I always just replaced whatever evaporated each month). So, I need some input from others. I am wondering, what kinds of things do I need to consider when designing this, in terms of the dimensions of it. I mean, should it be taller or longer, etc, or does it matter as long as it holds the 135 gallons of water???

Take a look at http://www.garf.org/ On the left side you will see file folders and open the one named "DIY Pages" . Then open the folder named "Tank Building". It will give you an instructions on how to build a glass, or plexi tank. You can play with the dimentions and it will tell you how many gallons it is. Have fun with it and see what it takes to build a tank.

Another option to support the top edges is to just use thin strips (same thickness as the rest of the tank walls) that are maybe 2" or so wide, and silicone them around entire top of the walls (or maybe 1" below, if you choose). Overlap them in the corners where they run into each other and don't just cut the length to fit between the other two strips. These strips need to be siliconed sideways, not vertically like the walls are. This sideways orientation is what helps keep the tank walls from bowing outwards. Depending on how long the tank will be, will determine how wide the strips must be. The wider they are, the more resistant the walls will be to bowing. But if you go too much on the safe side and get 6" wide glass strips, then you have lost alot of the opening at the top of the tank, so be reasonable. The best thing is to copy what others have done, and adapt from there.