Show us your DIY Aquarium

Pro_builder · 12-15-2003, 08:54 AM

We would like to see the Aquarium, with Pics and material lists and instructions, for others to get ideas from for there project.
TIA

sailman · 04-10-2007, 09:41 PM

Ok I havent done this but this is what I'm doing for a sump.

Tank Information:
Material = Glass
Tank Height = 12.75 "
Tank Width = 15"
Tank Length = 34 "
Glass Thickness = 1/4"
Approximate Gallons = 28

Cut List:
Bottom = 33 1/2 " x 14 1/2"
Front = 34 " x 12.75 "
Back = 34 " x 12.75 "
2 Sides = 12.75 " x 14 1/2"
Top Front/Back brace = 33 1/2 " x 2"
Top Sides brace = 14 1/2 " x 2"

Additional Materials
1. Tube of aquarium grade silicone
2. Tape or clamps for holding the peices in place
3. Solvent for clean up.
4. Rags/Paper towels for clean up.
5. 1/4 inch wooden dowels.

Getting Started

Lay bottom, front, back and side pieces out on a large flat surface.

Cut the 1/4 inch dowels slightly shorter than the length of the bottom. Place the dowels under the bottom piece of glass. It is important that the weight of the aquarium is supported by the front, back and sides. There should never be any support under the bottom glass as this could fracture it.

Run a bead of silicone along all edges of the bottom glass. (these are the edges that will seal with the front, back, and side glass)

Carefully place all pieces in place surrounding the bottom piece. All contacting surfaces should have a bead of silicone.

Use tape or clamps to hold the pieces in the correct position. When using silicone you will have plenty of time to make adjustments. Silicone can become a gooy sticky mess so you should keep the material and work area as clean as possible.

Once all pieces are correctly positioned, let the aquarium set for 24 hours.

After the silicone has cured, it is time to add the glass to the top. This piece of glass makes the sides stronger so the glass does not bow when the tank is filled.

Let the tank cure in a warm room for 72 hours before you fill it with fresh water. If there are any leaks you can apply an additional bead of silicone to the inside seam.

I got this off this site. Geothermal Aquaculture Research Foundation Home Page Look under DIY Pages, Tank Building.

mps9506 · 04-10-2007, 10:12 PM

wow Troy! You started this thread in 2003 and finally got an answer!

Woodstock · 04-10-2007, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mps9506

wow Troy! You started this thread in 2003 and finally got an answer!

haha... nice resurection~

BigAl07 · 04-10-2007, 10:41 PM

It's a Mircale!

boozeman · 04-11-2007, 11:28 AM

karma goes to sailman for ancient thread ressurection!!!

Woodstock · 04-11-2007, 12:57 PM

Sailman, sweet avatar.
Are you building a sailboat?? Pics Please!!

rDr4g0n · 04-11-2007, 04:25 PM

ive been curious about how to build an aquarium. now that i have an idea, horrible horrible things can happen.

i mean bad stuff. worse than ressurecting 4 year old threads.

Saltwater Noob · 04-11-2007, 04:33 PM

lets see the tanks

sailman · 04-11-2007, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Woodstock

Sailman, sweet avatar.
Are you building a sailboat?? Pics Please!!

Yes I dont have many picks. Ill see what I can find.

LENGTH: 14'-0"
BEAM: 6'-0"
WEIGHT: 165 lbs.
SAIL AREA: 85 sq.ft.
DRAFT: 6"

sailman · 04-11-2007, 06:15 PM

Ok i found some...
Picture005.jpg

Picture006.jpg

Picture007.jpg

Picture008.jpg

Woodstock · 04-11-2007, 06:51 PM

Sweet!!
My husband has the blueprints for a large sailboat that he plans on building one day....

cheeks69 · 04-11-2007, 06:54 PM

If anyone is truly interested in building an aquarium our partner site has an excellent thread;

Como fazer um aquário - Page 2 - aquariofilia marinha - REEFFORUM

vdituri · 04-11-2007, 07:27 PM

Cheeks, was that supposed to be in a foreign language?
Is that portuguese? I was wearing my spanish hat and still couldn't make heads or tales. Good thing I was only looking at the pictures.

cheeks69 · 04-11-2007, 07:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vdituri

Cheeks, was that supposed to be in a foreign language?
Is that portuguese? I was wearing my spanish hat and still couldn't make heads or tales. Good thing I was only looking at the pictures.

Yes it is Portuguese, I forgot to say auto translator please

12-15-2003, 08:54 AM	#1 (permalink)
Pro_builder DIY Moderator Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Oxford, Iowa Posts: 1,746 View Gallery Karma Komment	Show us your DIY Aquarium We would like to see the Aquarium, with Pics and material lists and instructions, for others to get ideas from for there project. TIA __________________ -Troy 180 gallon Reef, 3- 250 XM 15K MH Electronic ballast, 380 watts VHO Actinics, 2- 5 watt LED Moon lights, 100 gal rubbermaid sump, 75 gallon Fuge, ETSS 600 Skimmer, 4700-5400 gph pump for return, Octopus 3000 controller, Iwaki 40 RL skimmer pump, 2- 65w PC 10K fuge lights, 2 55 gallon barrels, Custom light oak stand and hood, misc pumps, extra 600 gallon rated tank size protein skimmer. Purple tang, yellow tang, pacific blue tang, 2 green chromis, 1 Sand sifting star, snails, hermit crabs, 2 mated perculas, pulsing Xenia, Anenome, mushrooms, ricordia, zoanthids, kenya tree 1 1/2" tall, misc other hitchhiker stuff. DIY is my dream... ...well OK the only way I can afford this Addiction!! Just as the light goes on in my head... ... I break the bulb!!

04-10-2007, 09:41 PM	#2 (permalink)
sailman Fire Coral Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: NC Posts: 84 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium Ok I havent done this but this is what I'm doing for a sump. Tank Information: Material = Glass Tank Height = 12.75 " Tank Width = 15" Tank Length = 34 " Glass Thickness = 1/4" Approximate Gallons = 28 Cut List: Bottom = 33 1/2 " x 14 1/2" Front = 34 " x 12.75 " Back = 34 " x 12.75 " 2 Sides = 12.75 " x 14 1/2" Top Front/Back brace = 33 1/2 " x 2" Top Sides brace = 14 1/2 " x 2" Additional Materials 1. Tube of aquarium grade silicone 2. Tape or clamps for holding the peices in place 3. Solvent for clean up. 4. Rags/Paper towels for clean up. 5. 1/4 inch wooden dowels. Getting Started Lay bottom, front, back and side pieces out on a large flat surface. Cut the 1/4 inch dowels slightly shorter than the length of the bottom. Place the dowels under the bottom piece of glass. It is important that the weight of the aquarium is supported by the front, back and sides. There should never be any support under the bottom glass as this could fracture it. Run a bead of silicone along all edges of the bottom glass. (these are the edges that will seal with the front, back, and side glass) Carefully place all pieces in place surrounding the bottom piece. All contacting surfaces should have a bead of silicone. Use tape or clamps to hold the pieces in the correct position. When using silicone you will have plenty of time to make adjustments. Silicone can become a gooy sticky mess so you should keep the material and work area as clean as possible. Once all pieces are correctly positioned, let the aquarium set for 24 hours. After the silicone has cured, it is time to add the glass to the top. This piece of glass makes the sides stronger so the glass does not bow when the tank is filled. Let the tank cure in a warm room for 72 hours before you fill it with fresh water. If there are any leaks you can apply an additional bead of silicone to the inside seam. I got this off this site. Geothermal Aquaculture Research Foundation Home Page Look under DIY Pages, Tank Building. __________________ 90 gallon reef 100 lbs. live rock, tank lost to Ich

04-10-2007, 10:12 PM	#3 (permalink)
mps9506 Totally back Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Wilmington, NC Posts: 8,525 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium wow Troy! You started this thread in 2003 and finally got an answer! __________________ Mike Reefkeeping Since '99 Help Build Reefpedia Premium Memberships Available! Support Reef Sanctuary Sponsors

04-10-2007, 10:41 PM	#5 (permalink)
BigAl07 Do I look as lost as I am Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Waynesville, North Carolina Posts: 21,549 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium It's a Mircale! __________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~ *Live Rock Rubble will do the SAME thing as Bio-Balls and is NOT a suitable replacement for BIO-BALLS in a Reef System! It's ALL gotta go!!* Nitrate (NO3) reduction is directly proportional to percentage of Water Change. Allen's home-made formula...currentNO3-((%WC.01)currentNO3)=finalNO3 (thanks Luukosian) This means if you change 50% of your total water volume (That's EVERYTHING) you'll get a net reduction of (NO3) somewhere around 50%. Ask me about how to increase your REEF budget without going without FOOD!!* Big Al's 10g Julie's (BigAl's Gal) 6g NanoCube Gone but not forgotten BigAl's Slow 90g Tank Chronicle Allens OFFICE 12g Nano-Reef

04-11-2007, 11:28 AM	#6 (permalink)
boozeman The CodFather ~ Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: new york Posts: 8,802 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium karma goes to sailman for ancient thread ressurection!!! __________________ ...and when I'm old and wise little things mean little to me like autumn winds they'll blow right through me and someday, in the mist of time when they ask you if you knew me remember that you were a friend of mine

04-11-2007, 12:57 PM	#7 (permalink)
Woodstock The Wand Geek was here. ;) Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 25,502 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium Sailman, sweet avatar. Are you building a sailboat?? Pics Please!! __________________ ~Doni Marie~ *GOT ICH???* *My Victorious Battle with ICH* 120 Reef Chronicle ~ *Breeding Picasso Clownfish~* *Massive 300 gal growout~* *My Anemone & Picasso Tank ~* *Picasso & Snowcasso for sale~* "Energy and persistance conquer all things." Benjamin Franklin __________________________________________________ ______________________________________________

04-11-2007, 04:25 PM	#8 (permalink)
rDr4g0n Elegance coral Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: south texas Posts: 1,169 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium ive been curious about how to build an aquarium. now that i have an idea, horrible horrible things can happen. i mean bad stuff. worse than ressurecting 4 year old threads. __________________ I know there are quite a few typos in this post. It's not that I'm stupid... it's more like... I'm lazy. - John My 29 Gallon tank of AWESOME My DIY Projects: My $50, 150watt lighting • 10 gallon tall tank • Hood for my 10gal. tall my r0xx0r DIY protein skimmer • 2 cheap strip lights into 1 • Grow cyano!?

04-11-2007, 04:33 PM	#9 (permalink)
Saltwater Noob I'm Learning Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: New Port Richey, Fl Posts: 367 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium lets see the tanks __________________ 65 gal Reef Tank 8 gal sump aquaC remora Skimmer w MJ 1200 pump Hydro #3 for flow MJ1200 for flow Current Extreme Pro 6 Bulb T5 Setup Live Stock Yellow Tang - Six Line - Clown - and about 50 red leg hermits - 25 snails - 2 star fish and 2 cucumbers. Corals zoo's and GSP and shrooms surge return pump

04-11-2007, 06:15 PM	#11 (permalink)
sailman Fire Coral Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: NC Posts: 84 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium Ok i found some... Picture005.jpg Picture006.jpg Picture007.jpg Picture008.jpg __________________ 90 gallon reef 100 lbs. live rock, tank lost to Ich

04-11-2007, 06:51 PM	#12 (permalink)
Woodstock The Wand Geek was here. ;) Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 25,502 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium Sweet!! My husband has the blueprints for a large sailboat that he plans on building one day.... __________________ ~Doni Marie~ *GOT ICH???* *My Victorious Battle with ICH* 120 Reef Chronicle ~ *Breeding Picasso Clownfish~* *Massive 300 gal growout~* *My Anemone & Picasso Tank ~* *Picasso & Snowcasso for sale~* "Energy and persistance conquer all things." Benjamin Franklin __________________________________________________ ______________________________________________

04-11-2007, 06:54 PM	#13 (permalink)
cheeks69 Wannabe Guru Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Northeast Posts: 7,386 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium If anyone is truly interested in building an aquarium our partner site has an excellent thread; Como fazer um aquário - Page 2 - aquariofilia marinha - REEFFORUM __________________ Robert My Cube “A spirit is manifest in the laws of the Universe—a spirit vastly superior to that of man, and one in the face of which we with our modest powers must feel humble.” Albert Einstein

04-11-2007, 07:27 PM	#14 (permalink)
vdituri Excellent Guesser :D Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Sacramento California Posts: 6,244 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Show us your DIY Aquarium Cheeks, was that supposed to be in a foreign language? Is that portuguese? I was wearing my spanish hat and still couldn't make heads or tales. Good thing I was only looking at the pictures. __________________ Victor ----- People come into our lives for a reason, a season or a lifetime. When you know which one it is, you will know what to do for that person. When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually. They may seem like a godsend and they are. They are there for the reason you need them to be. Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered and now it is time to move on.

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