Plywood tank build
- Thread starter USMC2171
- Start date
Filtration suggestion - untried
I am goin to try using a rusco spin down filter for mechanical, and fluidised sand bed for bio filter. those two are the most compact possibilities for a monster this size.
see my thread http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=219168
That should work in theory
I am goin to try using a rusco spin down filter for mechanical, and fluidised sand bed for bio filter. those two are the most compact possibilities for a monster this size.
see my thread http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=219168
That should work in theory
Contacted pond coat company, he said,
"
Thank you for your interest in Pond Coat. Due to the elongation properties of our product (850%) I do not feel it will add any rigidity. Yes you can use fiberglass mats under our product and it adheres very well to most sub straights such as wood, metal, fiberglass with out any pretreatment except pressure treated wood or galvanized metal. Prices are as follows:
gallons- $55.00
5 gallons- $231.00
55 gallon- $1,700.00
Please feel free to contact me with any questions you might have.
Respectfully,
Scott St.Clair
US Industrial Coatings, Inc"
This sounds good, Im gonna go with them. Thanks for the help, and still open to suggestions.
This is really an amazing site, keep up the good work AC!!
"
Thank you for your interest in Pond Coat. Due to the elongation properties of our product (850%) I do not feel it will add any rigidity. Yes you can use fiberglass mats under our product and it adheres very well to most sub straights such as wood, metal, fiberglass with out any pretreatment except pressure treated wood or galvanized metal. Prices are as follows:
gallons- $55.00
5 gallons- $231.00
55 gallon- $1,700.00
Please feel free to contact me with any questions you might have.
Respectfully,
Scott St.Clair
US Industrial Coatings, Inc"
This sounds good, Im gonna go with them. Thanks for the help, and still open to suggestions.
This is really an amazing site, keep up the good work AC!!
Pond coat is the way to go for sure. You can tip the tank on its edges to pour fiberglass fillets in the corners to make the interior very round in the corners, and at the same time making them extremely strong in the process. After all a round shape is the strongest shape known to man.
Basically you would bild a jig to hold the tank verticle with one corner on the floor, mix some fiberglass resin and pour it into the corner untill its about 1/2 inch thick. Let the tank stay like that for 24 hours and go to the next corner. Do this for all 4, as well as the bottom corners, and you could sit a tank on that thing without if blowing a seam.
I decided to play around in sketchup and came up with these illustrations for clarity..Hope it helps.
Basically you would bild a jig to hold the tank verticle with one corner on the floor, mix some fiberglass resin and pour it into the corner untill its about 1/2 inch thick. Let the tank stay like that for 24 hours and go to the next corner. Do this for all 4, as well as the bottom corners, and you could sit a tank on that thing without if blowing a seam.
I decided to play around in sketchup and came up with these illustrations for clarity..Hope it helps.
Last edited:
Thanks phatboy, Ive been out of town for the weekend. Ill look around and try to locate some fiberglass resin. My son and I were talking about the build with relatives all weekend, it's really cool to see him get excited about something other than video games.
As far as the resin, should I silicone the tank first or after the resin?
Or if I dont resin the corners and just go with pond coat, again silicone first or after, if after will pond coat stick to silicone?
Thanks
Mike
As far as the resin, should I silicone the tank first or after the resin?
Or if I dont resin the corners and just go with pond coat, again silicone first or after, if after will pond coat stick to silicone?
Thanks
Mike
Last edited:
Yeah that is cool. Get him off the couch and out in the shop. I have a 67 mustang you can bring him to work on if you want. lol You can get fiberglass resin at autoparts stores, as well as lowes and home depot. You can also pick up a package of fiberglass mat.
To use the mat, cut a few lengths of the mat about 4 inches wide and long enough to go along all the corners. Mix up about a cup of resin at a time so you dont waste any. Use a paintbrush with short bristles(cut it if you have to) to dab the resin on the fiberglass mat. Make sure you get all the bubbles out and get a good coat of resin on the glass. Let that dry for about an hour, then tip the tank, make up another cup or so of resin and pour it in the corner to form the fillet.
Use gloves and wear old clothes because you will end up getting it everywhere. Of course this is only one option. You could just pour the fillets if you wanted, but the mat will add strength exponentialy.
When dry fiberglass resin is inert, so it wont hurt the tank. Once you get a fillet poured wait at least 24 hours to flip the tank and pour another one. Slow process, tons of strength.
To use the mat, cut a few lengths of the mat about 4 inches wide and long enough to go along all the corners. Mix up about a cup of resin at a time so you dont waste any. Use a paintbrush with short bristles(cut it if you have to) to dab the resin on the fiberglass mat. Make sure you get all the bubbles out and get a good coat of resin on the glass. Let that dry for about an hour, then tip the tank, make up another cup or so of resin and pour it in the corner to form the fillet.
Use gloves and wear old clothes because you will end up getting it everywhere. Of course this is only one option. You could just pour the fillets if you wanted, but the mat will add strength exponentialy.
When dry fiberglass resin is inert, so it wont hurt the tank. Once you get a fillet poured wait at least 24 hours to flip the tank and pour another one. Slow process, tons of strength.
Last edited:
What about white silica sand for substrate, I can get it for $10 a 100# bag, I have used this in making white mortar for laying brick, and also for sand blasting. Dont know much more about it though, has anyone ever used this, without catastrophic results?
Back to the fiberglass part, I would not suggest to just use resin only, the reason being that the resin can be brittle. The strength is in the mat. You could cut up the mat into small pieces and stir it in with the resin then pour it into the corners that you are filling. this will allow it to lay into the corners better. Usually it is difficult to get a corner to lay flat unless you lay 1 edge and then lay the other edge of mat butted up to the first. The cutting, mixing in a cup will probably be your best way.
As for the sand, I did mix some of the silica sand from HD with live sand to seed it. You will hear a couple different schools of thought about this. Perhaps someone with more chemistry knowledge will add to this. My tank (knock on wood of course) is doing fine but I have had some diatom issues in the past and now think it had more to do with water flow.
As for the sand, I did mix some of the silica sand from HD with live sand to seed it. You will hear a couple different schools of thought about this. Perhaps someone with more chemistry knowledge will add to this. My tank (knock on wood of course) is doing fine but I have had some diatom issues in the past and now think it had more to do with water flow.
Thanks xsdbs, I'll do some more research. I dont know if the pond coat will bond with the resin. Ill contact the company again and see what they say.
Semper Fi!
Mike
Semper Fi!
Mike
