# DIY fish tank



## Heagney (15 Feb 2016)

has anyone built their own fish tank? Always fancied doing it but the price of glass (unless bulk buying) makes it pretty uneconomical


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## jagillham (15 Feb 2016)

Exactly that. Getting it custom made always seems to be cheaper than buying the glass and going DIY!


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## Heagney (15 Feb 2016)

Just think it would be interesting to try build your own. Could easily source glass for a small aquarium it's just the larger ones that's pretty difficult


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## MrHidley (15 Feb 2016)

Heagney said:


> has anyone built their own fish tank? Always fancied doing it but the price of glass (unless bulk buying) makes it pretty uneconomical



Use acrylic instead? Clearer than glass and easier to work with. There are hundreds of tutorials on youtube on how to make your own.


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## Heagney (15 Feb 2016)

Again acrylic is even more expensive than glass. Not sure if it's come down in price since the oil prices crashed?


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## MrHidley (15 Feb 2016)

Heagney said:


> Again acrylic is even more expensive than glass. Not sure if it's come down in price since the oil prices crashed?



I have often seen people buy cheap old tanks, just to salvage the glass from them, unfortunately you may get scratches this way, however, glass is very easy to cut (as long as it hasn't been tempered).


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## Heagney (15 Feb 2016)

I've looked at that aswell, aquariums come in so many different sizes! I think I'll build my own quarantine tank and see how that goes  
I've even looked at reclaimed Windows as a source of glass


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## MrHidley (16 Feb 2016)

Heagney said:


> I've looked at that aswell, aquariums come in so many different sizes! I think I'll build my own quarantine tank and see how that goes
> I've even looked at reclaimed Windows as a source of glass



Yeah that would be a good idea for practice, as with all DIY, once you've done it once, it becomes a lot less daunting.


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## zozo (16 Feb 2016)

Heagney said:


> pretty uneconomical


?? Depends on the dimensions you fancy..  I recently builded a 90x35x35cm x 6 mm blank floated glass with kit included for €42. Next to the fact in the LFS this dimension is not to find the closed dimension available was about double in cost. I asked the glass farmer from whom i bought the glass, out of curiousyty for my next project, what the price would be for Opti White glass? he said about double.  Compare that with the regular opti whites offered at the LFS.

If you know what your doing and can do it pretty quick.. It's far from uneconomical. 


It took me 10 minutes.(skinning time kit is 12 minutes). (preparing with masking tape took me half an hour.)..


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## PARAGUAY (16 Feb 2016)

Mans a genius with the silicon gun,can see that part running it neat catching one or two out, important not to use second hand glass


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## zozo (17 Feb 2016)

PARAGUAY said:


> Mans a genius with the silicon gun



Yes the guy in the video has definitely kitted a million tanks or something before. If you're not that good use 2 inch masking tape at the glass inside corners.
Just stick it straight on along it's edge and mark the seam widht, with a pencil and gently cut and pull off that strip of masking tape. Make sure the glass surface where kit is applied is perfectly clean, rub it with a cloth and alcohol, do not use white spirit or any other oil based product. If not clean you'll get airbubbles and leaks or you'll see the dirty spots, because the kit in between the glass surfaces is glass clear it shows every spek of dust in there.

Once all masking tape is on and glass edges are clean, it doesn't realy matter how good your kit skills are, just make sure you have enough kit and apply it with in it's curing/skinning time (usealy 12 minutes) That's 12 minutes for the kitting essambling, smoothening the inside seams and pulling the masking tape out when all edges are done. Use a little spray bottle with a (dishwash) soap solution and spray it on your finger before you start smearing. Or els there will be to much kit sticking on your fingers, killing time with wiping off.

Above prosedure doesn't acquire and carpenters square, if the glas is cut in the proper sizes with straight angles the tank will be perfectly straight if all edges line up.
If you are precise with cutting the tape along the edges and get it done withing 12 minutes you'll have a perfect straight tank with a pefect seam after pulling the masking tape out. The higher the tank the thicker you need to make the glass and the seam.. I did 6 mm glass and a 4mm seam, but since it's a 35cm tank a 2mm seam would have been sufficient. And looking better. I over did it a bit, and learned for the next time.. 

Put the bottom plate on a thin paper sheet (news paper) before kitting or else you will kit the tank to the table..  Leave the tank alone for at least 24 hours after kitting, 2 days more is even better. Because the longer you wait the better the kit will be cured. Then take a razor sharp stanley blade and cut off all kit sticking out at the outside edges. Cutting fresh not fully cured still somewhat soft kit is more difficult, so the longer you wait the harder the kit the easier it is cut.

Realy it's actualy childs play and fun to do..


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## Heagney (17 Feb 2016)

Yeh it does look pretty simple as long as you plan ahead. Making an acrylic tanks looks pretty fun as well. It's just the cost of the glass or acrylic that seems pretty expensive, I've obv not found a decent supplier yet.
I've been basing my calcs on the tank I desire ie 5+ftx2x2 and would prefer acrylic. Anything smaller I would use glass


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## zozo (17 Feb 2016)

Acrylic is a totlay different story..  In the dimension you would like it, i think you're going to need 15 to 20mm thick GS-acrylic that's what makes it so expensive and probably will need brases. The edges need to be perfectly straight machine routed and it needs to be welded instead of glewed. Because it's a welding procedure where teh 2 parts need to melt into eachoter any tiny gap is fatal, the welding solution doesn't fill gaps. There will be no return, once welded it will be a permanent bond. There are acrylic glewing compounts which fill gaps, but this will be very tricky regarding aesthetics, same story once glewd no turning back.

Material cost actualy is not the issue here.. My first plan was an acrylic tank and asked for prices for a 90x30x25cm tank, 10mm thick cut in size with routed edges it was €100. Glass would be €25.. The provider said i can weld it too if you like for €350 ex. shipping. ??? €250 for welding the thing together?? Yup he said, that's the price of craftsmanship in the western world.


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## xim (17 Feb 2016)

The tank in the video has the better type of structure as well, i.e., side panels enclosing the base. 
Looks more beautiful and stronger than one with side panels sit "on" the base.

It will be quite easy, if you start with very precisely cut sheets of glass.
I've built mine (yep, side panels enclosing the base) but it's very difficult. 
Because there were some small (2 mm.) errors on the cutting that I had to 
compensate for before applying silicone.


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## Heagney (17 Feb 2016)

Thanks for all the info guys!! Where are you from then zozo?


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## zozo (17 Feb 2016)

From the Netherlands..


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## Heagney (17 Feb 2016)

Ah! You'll need to send me some grass then! I mean glass ha ha


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## zozo (17 Feb 2016)

Glass?? Be warned our glass is extra green.. That's why our famous saying "A glass a day keeps the doctor away." is actualy very untrue. 
It just makes you to dizzy and to dull you wont feel your getting sick and when you finaly feel it you're still to lazzy to go..


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