Doug's 250, now 300, in wall build

[Gti_Leo]

and what is the rubebr supposed to bond to? it doesn't stick to silicone

 

[Gregcoyote]

We would build plywood freshwater tanks and paint the interior with the blue stuff you mentioned, then siliconed the glass over the blue stuff.

 

[Gti_Leo]

the silicone doesn't bond to well to liquid rubber either. i've only seen one person that had a good result, i don't know if the liquid rubber was still i nthe curing stage when he put the glass on but its been up for 3 years no leaks.

look up DIY plywood/glass aquarium. its a guy names uaru joey, i beleieve thats how its spelt. anyway, to seal his 237 gallon he used two gallons of zavlar

 

[Gti_Leo]

further research yeilds that the liquid rubber can be coated over the glass and will hold so it is totally possible to use 3M 5200 silicone on the glass cut off any that spills out over and liquid rubber over top of the glass to make a seemless seal.

i've always looked into using liquid rubber but mounting the glass has always been my concern, i think i'll try it out on a small build with some glass i have in my garage

 

[Gregcoyote]

That is what we did, we silicon sealed to the liquid (blue stuff) rubber and then painted the blue stuff over a masked portion of the glass and the seams. In freshwater it lasted for years, but saltwater might be different. And we used multiple coats of the blue stuff.

 

[Tomchong22]

The only thing that I would hesitate on is how well will it last in the long run, 10+ years. Because you don't want to hit let's say 8years with a very established tank and find out it is starting to leak. Talk about a nightmare.

 

[Gti_Leo]

zavlar is a pond coating and if used the way they recommend it it will work well for a long time, plus its saltwater resistant and can be used for foundation wall waterproofing also, so it can take a beating

 

[mr_X]

what about a pond liner? i knew of a 1000 gallon tank that used no silicone. they used a rubber gasket and the sheer pressure from the water pushed the glass so hard it made a water tight seal.
in many resort areas, they pipe salt water into their pools instead of using fresh. they don't have any more degradation issues than otherwise, as far as i know.

 

[Gti_Leo]

i've heard of people using pond liner also but you'd have folds and stuff at the corners, you might as well use liquid rubber, it streches and you can make a thick coating of it so it acts like the pond liner. and mounting the glass first will work f you tape off an area around the glass and edge of the glass so after you sqeeze the glass on you cand peel the tape of and mae a seemless finish, then use the liquid rubber and roll it on the wood and on part of the glass that won't be seen. it wil lstick and make good seal

 

[Gregcoyote]

None of this will last as long as a glass or acrylic tank will. If you are okay with disassembling the reef every few years and redoing a liner, then that makes sense. But for something you are going to concrete or let grow together, it could be a nightmare.

 

[Gti_Leo]

i disagree, if done right and built well a plywood tank will last longer, it flexes alot less then glass does and is more resistant to impact and abuse then glass is.

same with acrylic, it flexes alot and can bow it also requires polishing and is extremely easy to scratch dispite being as strong as they are

 

[mr_X]

if never moved, and never gone through the freeze/thaw, i don't see how it would only last a few years. a glass or acrylic tank is gonna cost me 3 grand.

 

[kurtyboh]

I think it would be a different story if it were outside, but in the house youre not going to have any noticeable temp flux unless something crazy happens. So tje wood wont expand and contract.

You could have the glass set on the inside of a lip with a gasket, the higher the water pressure the tight the seal.

 

[Gti_Leo]

thats how i planned it, and i planned on using 2x4s and 6s for all the viewing panels and 3/4" ply with 2x3 or 4 every 8" on center

 

[Gregcoyote]

i disagree, if done right and built well a plywood tank will last longer, it flexes alot less then glass does and is more resistant to impact and abuse then glass is.

same with acrylic, it flexes alot and can bow it also requires polishing and is extremely easy to scratch dispite being as strong as they are

We disagree a lot. But I will bet my 20 year old acrylic reef tank that has never leaked a drop would have needed several tear downs over the years if built out of plywood. Having owned large boats most of my life, both Fiberglas and wood, I know the amount of maintenance needed for both. If you were right about plywood reef tanks, why don't we see them in any commercial uses? Because they degrade.

 

[Smitty]

If you are doing a plywood build I would like to recommend you look up fingerlakesreef.com They have a plywood section on there with a number of builds that are in the 1000-2000 gallon range. There is one build going on right now that is 1300 gallons.

Most of the builds are a couple years old but they have really good information (IMO) on how to build them to last. One guy is selling his right now I think. It is up in NY but I'm sure you could get it to where ever you live. It would save a lot of time

 

[FTMMWS]

I'd be very nervous of a pond liner ...One little pinhole puncture is all it would take...Or a tangs scalpel ,or a rock slipping,who knows ..too many bad things could happen IMO....
I kinda agree with greg too ,,not that it won't last awhile and degrade soon ,,but its not going to out last a glass or acrylic tank

 

[Tomchong22]

So a thought just came into my head, why not use cinder blocks Instead of wood?? Same concept, build Basically walls from the ground up for the tank like you would a house then coat them with the rubber. Just a thought lol.

 

[Bige]

A lot of pond liners have a year rating, ie 5 - 10 etc. Some are guaranteed longer than others. I know they are used commercially for huge ponds. But even those need patches.

As far as fiber glass, I know boats left in the saltwater need regular cleaning and buffing. But what would happen if you didn't do that? Why are they cleaned? I don't know, just curious. I want to do a plywood tank too but now there are a lot more questions than I thought of.

 

[Bige]

So a thought just came into my head, why not use cinder blocks Instead of wood?? Same concept, build Basically walls from the ground up for the tank like you would a house then coat them with the rubber. Just a thought lol.

I was wondering that too, what about concrete of some type?