Looking for DIY thread regarding acrylic or plywood tank build

[saf1]

Hi everyone. I've been searching and reading all day looking for a custom tank build which I thought was on the forums here. It was either a acrylic or plywood tank which had a odd build. Hard to describe, so please don't laugh :)

Standard tank but on the right side it had the bottom section cut out. So in short it looked like a step was built in it. Deep on one side and then shallow on the other side. It was rather unique and I am looking at trying something like this but maybe make it shallow more with a deeper / taller section for fish that school and dive.

Just really not sure I like acrylic much due to my current tank scratching easy and kids. I've never built a plywood tank but seems easy enough. So may have to be a custom build but the costs are a bit scary.

Anyway - was hoping to re-read the thread again and see how it is doing. Thanks for any info if this rings a bell.

[dahenley]

http://fingerlakesreef.com/forum/index.php

they have their own Ply Wood section.

a lot of their tanks are actually here on RC as well.

[der_wille_zur_macht]

Maybe this was the thread you were looking for?

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1754535

[saf1]

YEAH! That was it Der, thank you so much. His tank and the one he used as a reference is exactly what I have been tossing around in my head to support Anthias, Cardinal's, and staghorn coral. I really want to build something that can support a school of either and the Anthias like to dart and dive (at least when I see them when I scuba dive :)

Dahenley - thank you for the reference there. They sure do have a lot of information regarding the building of tanks. A lot of good information there so thank you very much.

Acrylic scares the bejeezes out of me and I'm no where near the skill that Troylee or others show in these forums. I'm thinking of making a box make up first then visiting the local Tap's Plastic and see if they can help me. Maybe buy the mats and pay someone on the side like a work shop type deal. I'm not sure if they do that but I'd like to really make something like this. I'm not after anything huge and would like to keep it under 125 gallons.

I can make the stand easy enough as I'm comfortable working with wood. I was also going to try and migrate my current truvu 100 gallon display into a sump but not sure if it would fit under the design as they have it. Two things the government (my better half) required:

1. You make it so you can clean it and keep the primary display pane clear
2. Reduce cost both initial investment and long term in power
3. Has to be able to be moved

So size will play a factor for sure. Lights will be LED. I've followed and employed two builds over a 20 gallon and a 6 gallon on my desk that I'm happy with. Just not sure how to build this like the more skilled folks on the forum(s) here.

So thanks both of you. This is what I was looking for!

[troylee]

acrylic aint that bad man...... i made that tank 24tall and dropped to 36" which sucked for cleaning..... if i ever build one again the only thing i would change is drilling the drop for a closed loop.... i am totally against closed loops for variuos reasons but that tank needed it bad!!!!! everything liked to settle on the drop side......hth...;)

[der_wille_zur_macht]

acrylic aint that bad man......

Says the guy who does it for a living. :D

Based on my somewhat limited experience with acrylic - mostly small stuff - reactors, skimmers, sumps, etc - vs. my experience with plywood - building my 360g, which holds water, but isn't running yet - I would, personally, do plywood for a "weird" tank shape like this. It strikes me as more forgiving.

[troylee]

wood and acrylic use the same tools and skills..... the only thing different is gluing the seams.....get a gun for weldon 42 and your in buisness..... the hardest part is keeping the glue from getting every where....:lol:

[der_wille_zur_macht]

Indeed many methods are the same, but the thing that strikes me as different is, as you said, gluing the seams - with wood, you get to finesse it, glue, biscuits, screws, etc.. With acrylic, it's more or less one shot.

Plus, with acrylic, your structure is also your waterproofer. With a wood tank, you get to waterproof it after the fact, which has advantages - if you're worried about a seam, you can use a thicker epoxy pour in that area, etc.

Granted, as I said above, my feelings on this matter are absolutely skewed by my own skillsets - I don't mean this to be a speech about how wood tanks are better than acrylic, just rather reporting my own thoughts on the matter. :) If I trusted myself with acrylic, and it wasn't so much more expensive, I'd probably have different thoughts!

[troylee]

i hear ya willie..... a plywood tank of that design would be a pita!!!!! the glass would have to have a seam on the drop just like the glass tank in france or where ever it was.....
i guess you could build it from wood and just use 1" acrylic on the face for viewing.....hmmmm....

[der_wille_zur_macht]

Or, use an acrylic viewing panel, or find a shop with a water jet that can cut the glass to that shape in one piece!

[IndyCJ]

As an alternative.

Get a 'deep' standard glass aquarium and build a 'box' out of glass to fit in one end of the aquarium.

I'm considering going this route. I really don't want to get back into the same old rectangle, it's just not that exciting.


I've been looking at a 60x24x31 tank and building some sort of 'shelf' like maybe 30x24x15(obviously I'd need inside dimensions). So roughly 'half' of the tank would be 30x24x16 and the other half would be 30x24x31.

Just build your stand as you would normally, however when you skin the stand, cover the 'shelf', nobody would be the wiser.