DIY glass aquarium

[Kronk]

So i am waiting on a quote from bigals to build a custom sized aquarium nothing crazy just 40g. I priced out the glass at well under $100 and may do it myself if they charge a ton. Has anyone built there own tank ? i found some tutorials and it doesnt look too difficult so long as you have the proper silicone... anybody ever built there own tank?

Thanks,
Ken

[justinl]

i built my own 60gal acrylic. Id imagine glass is not any harder. My main tipsas follows:

practice. Get scrap pieces and make a couple 1gal tanks for fun (they may come in handy later anyways).

DO NOT SKIMP ON SILICONE. this is the most important part, get the best silicone you can. it will lengthen the life of your tank.

do whatever you have to to avoid getting silicone on the glass (other than the bonded parts duh). i would suggest covering both sides of the panes in newspaper and taping down the paper using masking tape close to the edge (within an inch or so).

[Kronk]

OK big gay als big gay animal farm wants $229 for a 40g tank me thinks i will build it myself... some questions

1) what is the best, strongest brand of silicone?
2) where is everyones favorite place to get glass?
3) Any other tips?

Thanks,
Ken

[Rippin]

OK big gay als big gay animal farm ...


Wow, can you feel the love..?:lol:

[Kronk]

HAHAHA havent you ever seen south park...

http://www.insomniacslounge.com/uploaded_images/gay_al-717096.jpg

[Rippin]

Oh, I knew what you were referring to. :mrgreen:

[kwirky]

people say to "degrease" your glass with turpentine to remove fingerprints, which I never understood, since turpentine is grease based.

I know this from my lithography (printmaking) experience. I'd say when you're using turpentine, make sure you're wearing a respirator with properly stored organic filters, and follow it with a wiping of rubbing alcohol.

The turpentine leaves an oily residue, and the rubbing alcohol will make it squeeky clean afterwards. Basically they're solvents for two different things, and using both will make the glass super clean to work with. Rubbing alcohol's cheap anyways, so it doesn't hurt to use it.

Just make sure you're wearing new rubber gloves while handling the glass afterwards. Don't want to go through all the effort cleaning it only to muck it up again :)

Oh and don't be cheap when applying the silicone. Allow a 1mm thickness of silicone between the two glass panels. Apply masking tape before you silicone to get a clean edge. Just remember to remove the tape before the silicone dries. And if you get sloppy and get silicone somewhere that you don't want it, don't clean it while it's wet. Wait for it to dry and it'll come off real easy with a razor blade.

As for strongest silicone, I think GE 1200 would be just fine for a tank that size if you properly degrease it before-hand.

Big al's might have quoted you that price because getting polished glass isn't cheap usually. They charge by the inch to polish the glass to that nice smooth edge we all like. With a tank of the 40g size, you might be able to build it with acrylic for cheaper. You'd be dealing with a completely different set of problems if you did though.

[hqgc]

Here is a good link for diy tank building. http://garf.org/tank/buildtank.asp

[Kronk]

Cool thanks for the link, one wierd thing about that is it has the bottom piece surrounded by the 4 sides... i was planning to stack the sides on the bottom piece... makes more sense to stack it to me because the pressure from the water would push OUT, separating the bond between the bottom and the sides. If they were siliconed on top of the glass it would be pushing ALONG the bonded edge not away from it... know what i mean?

[Kronk]

For the benefit of people searching for DIY tank links in the future here are a few good links...

Tutorials (http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/diytanksrefugiums/ss/diyaquarium.htm)

Examples (http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/dyiprojects/DoItYourself_Projects_Plans_Index.htm)

Glass Thickness (http://saltaquarium.about.com/cs/aquariumdiy/l/blcustomtank.htm)

[Kronk]

Cool thanks for the link, one wierd thing about that is it has the bottom piece surrounded by the 4 sides... i was planning to stack the sides on the bottom piece... makes more sense to stack it to me because the pressure from the water would push OUT, separating the bond between the bottom and the sides. If they were siliconed on top of the glass it would be pushing ALONG the bonded edge not away from it... know what i mean?

Can anybody comment on this i am going to be getting the glass cut soon... Thanks

[LeeR]

just finished siliconing my second tank together last night and i put the sides on top and did so with my last tank and it seems to work fine.

[bv_reefer]

-gotta admit for big tanks 60+ your better off buyin' a tank (unless u have some unique idea that hard 2 find) but as for the bigger tanks, making it sounds very logical when u look @ some of the prices...big $$

[Der_Iron_Chef]

I've been doing some reading on this. Apparently, since the bottom pane is generally thicker, it makes sense to silicone the side panes NEXT to it instead of on top, so that the area where the two connect is bigger. More area, more silicone, stronger bond.

I don't think I'm explaining it well...does it make sense? I was at Wai's the other day and inspected the big a$$ display tank there, and his were also designed this way.

[muck]

I've been doing some reading on this. Apparently, since the bottom pane is generally thicker, it makes sense to silicone the side panes NEXT to it instead of on top, so that the area where the two connect is bigger. More area, more silicone, stronger bond.

I don't think I'm explaining it well...does it make sense? I was at Wai's the other day and inspected the big a$$ display tank there, and his were also designed this way.

Chef's right it will be a stronger bond provided you go with a thicker bottom pane if the side panes are siliconed on the outside instead of on top. But i find it easier (and with a 40G it won't make a difference really) to silicone the side panes on top. Myself and Russ built a number of tanks and haven't had any problems.

A couple tips though..

1. Use thicker glass than you would need (if you can).
2. Measure twice or three times before you cut (of course this is a moot point if you are buying the pieces already precut).
3. Lubricate your glass cutter to help it slide/score the glass easier. (WD40 works good for this)
4. Use lots of silicone but try not to play with it too much trying to make it "look better". The more you fiddle the worse it will look. (True Story..:mrgreen:)
5. Always work with a couple cold ones near by.

Good Luck..

P.S. Moving to the DIY Forum.

[Mik_101]

Well have fun with it and post pictures along the way.

[LeeR]

is having the bottom pane thicker really that important if your tank isn't that tall but has a large surface area. say 24X12X24 (L.H.W)

[Der_Iron_Chef]

My understanding is that having a thicker bottom pane serves two purposes:

1) For the stronger bond, as I mentioned above
2) If you want to drill it, having thicker glass will obviously be stronger, and help maintain structural integrity

I have very little experience in this practically speaking, though, so perhaps others could chime in!