ctaylor3737 Posted June 4, 2014 Report Share Posted June 4, 2014 I was interested in starting a thread because I am toying with the idea of building a few acrylic tanks for my fish room! I wanted to start with a few small ones to get a feel and then build a 190g or 200g tank. From what I have been gathering it is alot cheaper to make your own you just have to make sure your measurements are accurate. I am thinking about creating a tank that is 4ft wide and has a series of dividers making them into seperate cubes. Does that make sense. it will be a normal rectangular tank but will have the dividers that are welded in to ensure that they are seperate. This will allow to have custom spaces for the shrimp but having something that is neat in appearence and will fit onto an existing shelf. Has anyone ever created something like this before or have experience in working with acrylic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted June 4, 2014 Report Share Posted June 4, 2014 This may help you out: http://regalplastics.net/aquarium.htm Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
00camaro16 Posted June 4, 2014 Report Share Posted June 4, 2014 When I made my 6 gallon it cost me $5 in supplies and I still have enough to make a 10 gallon if I wanted too. But I bought the glass from a recycle re-use place that sells windows. I did the math on multiple sizes of tanks and it's amount 50% of the cost or less. Chris Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted June 5, 2014 Report Share Posted June 5, 2014 But you have to cut your own glass then...and that scares the heck out of me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
00camaro16 Posted June 5, 2014 Report Share Posted June 5, 2014 I only got a 1 inch spike in my foot, and that's my fault for getting lazy in the clean up. True story actually. But really it's easy. Finding the thicker glass cheap and used is hard. Chris Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louie Posted June 5, 2014 Report Share Posted June 5, 2014 Acrylic scratches if you look at it the wrong way but you can certainly keep it scratch free but they always seem to get tiny scratches on the inside . freckleface.com has a nice acrylic section with tools . If me I would buy it not make it because the ready made tanks are one piece molded together . Done incorrectly it is prone to warping . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctaylor3737 Posted June 5, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2014 Acrylic scratches if you look at it the wrong way but you can certainly keep it scratch free but they always seem to get tiny scratches on the inside . freckleface.com has a nice acrylic section with tools . If me I would buy it not make it because the ready made tanks are one piece molded together . Done incorrectly it is prone to warping . They are also 3x the money. I have a buddy who has made several large tanks and they look awesome. The clarity you get from acrylic Is amazing and it holds up great. I have a 50g that's he made and I've moved it about 12 times across the country never seen scratches or bows yet. It will only bow if,you use the incorrect thickness or cuts aren't perfect. My dad was a contractor and grew up,in a wood shop. Pretty handy when it comes to putting things together. I have also made glass tanks not as bad as people think! -Chris Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Acrylic is also MUCH lighter than glass tanks and won't chip when you accidentally bang a corner. ctaylor3737 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louie Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Taylor, Your friend made the tank with several sheets of acrylic ? I was under the impression that if not made with a mold and one piece , they would warp. I am surprised you never had scratches . I had a 30 gallon acrylic when they first came out 9think 80s) and perhaps it was due to astrea and turbo snails but it had its share of scratches . ctaylor3737 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Louie, I have a couple tanks that were made for me. Granted they are both under 4g, but they haven't warped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louie Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Soothing , I notice that a lot of the smaller tanks are acrylic , like those filter, light included nano reef type tanks . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Yeah. Those are nice. And you are correct- many of those are just bent acrylic. However mine are just cut pieces put together. Many people suggest that you use this type of solvent for aquariums. Gotta be careful to avois bubbles in teh seams though because it weakens the structure. You can also use a Euro brace at the top and use corner triangles for extra strength: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subtletanks91 Posted June 18, 2014 Report Share Posted June 18, 2014 I built a 3-4 gallon tank to breed my betas in. I used silicone because it was inside my 55 and so I could break it down when I was done. Did the job very very well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctaylor3737 Posted June 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2014 Taylor, Your friend made the tank with several sheets of acrylic ? I was under the impression that if not made with a mold and one piece , they would warp. I am surprised you never had scratches . I had a 30 gallon acrylic when they first came out 9think 80s) and perhaps it was due to astrea and turbo snails but it had its share of scratches . don't know how I missed your reply, you can buy acrylic in several different sizes I've seen it up,to 3 inches. so they don't warp if made properly. A lot of tanks are made from acrylic, expensive but,cheap if you do it yourself.-Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctaylor3737 Posted June 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2014 http://diyfishkeepers.com/AcrylicThicknessCalculator.htm Check this link to -Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc4PC2 Posted June 19, 2014 Report Share Posted June 19, 2014 Well you could look at mine. It is a 48" long tank with permanent dividers, with 1/8" slits on the top and bottom of the dividers for water flow, and fry proof stainless steel mesh over the dividers. It is custom Acrylic, and I made a glass top for it, as the acrylic one kept bowing on me. But the glass top works great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun Posted August 7, 2014 Report Share Posted August 7, 2014 If you are planning on using acrylic consider thgis first:If the front,bottom and rear is not a single piece and you put in dividers you are going to be I for a rough time.The dividers stay at a constant temperture due to being in the water,the front,bottom and rear is at a different temp and will thus expand and contract at different rates to the dividers.This could cause catastrophic failure of the main tank body. Sent from my BlackBerry 9860 using Tapatalk Soothing Shrimp 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted August 7, 2014 Report Share Posted August 7, 2014 Thanks for the insight, Shaun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun Posted August 7, 2014 Report Share Posted August 7, 2014 No probs bud hope it helps a bit. Sent from my BlackBerry 9860 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun Posted August 9, 2014 Report Share Posted August 9, 2014 Just for kicks did you guys know that you need not buy Weldon for bonding acrylic?There is a cheaper way:Use spirits of salts it will disintegrate the acrylic much like the Weldon does and will permanently bond any and all acrylic to each other I am planning on getting a bottle and to test it on a small 1gal pico to see if it will stand up to pressure, will let you guys know what happened. Soothing Shrimp and countryboy12484 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted August 9, 2014 Report Share Posted August 9, 2014 Please post your results, Shaun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun Posted August 9, 2014 Report Share Posted August 9, 2014 Will do just don't know if I will get around to doing it this weekend though I got a bit side tracked this afternoon.LOL Sent from my BlackBerry 9860 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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