DIY- "Pins" method of gluing acrylic.

Is there some type of formula to determine what thickness of material is needed for a project? I want to build a holding tank 48"Lx24"Hx48"W
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11088043#post11088043 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chriscobb
Is there some type of formula to determine what thickness of material is needed for a project? I want to build a holding tank 48"Lx24"Hx48"W
Click to expand...
There is but it's got it's shortcomings; www.cyro.com and search for "aquarium thickness calculator"
For most all tanks, thickness will depend on the dimensiond of the tank and your tolerance for bracing. For this tank (IMO):
1/2" material with 3" perimeter flange (aka eurobrace) and (2) 6" crossbraces in a criss-cross pattern, leaving (4) 18 x 18" openings
3/4" material with 6" perimeter flange and no crossbracing
1" material with 3" perimeter flange and no crossbracing

HTH,
James
 
I needed some suggestions on what material i should build my sump/fuge out of??? Either acrylic which i heard is quite expensive. Or pexiglass that is thicker?? Which of the two?? I was thinking of using 1/2" thick pexiglass for it so it would be on the cheaper side since i am on a tight budget. Would that work or no???? Any suggestions and more info would help alot! Thanks
 
What size sump? If it is for you 120g reef, 1/4" to 3/8" is fine. I use AcryLite FF. You can use AcryLite GP (cast acrylic) if you prefer. PlexiGlass is a name brand, I believe.

1/2" is way overkill. My own sump is 3/8" acrylic, and it is 60" x 36" x 16".
 
I'm tossing around ideas or sizes for a cube tank, I'm under the impression that height of the panel dictates thickness of material???? Would 3/4" cast acrylic be more than enough to handle a tank 60"Lx30"Hx48"W? I do understand that it would need to be eurobraced as well.....any help would be greatly appreciated......
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11107944#post11107944 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chriscobb
I'm tossing around ideas or sizes for a cube tank, I'm under the impression that height of the panel dictates thickness of material???? Would 3/4" cast acrylic be more than enough to handle a tank 60"Lx30"Hx48"W? I do understand that it would need to be eurobraced as well.....any help would be greatly appreciated......
Click to expand...
Height *and* span determine thickness. 3/4" would suffice but would need to be both eurobraced and crossbraced (in both directions) to be structurally sound over the long term IMO. You could make it with a wide enough eurobrace but would be a PITA to maintain.

James
 
I am looking at building another larger tank and have a thickness question. How tall do you recommend going with 1/2" material? I am looking at a 72x24x24 but wondered if I can go a little bigger and stay with 1/2" material. Can I go taller? wider? longer?

I want to have it divided into 3 sections, so two crossbraces plus eurobracing. I have 3 lumenarc reflectors for lighting and want one over each opening. Other than that, I don't have any restrictions on size. I want to "maximize" the tank using 1/2" material and the 3 openings.

Thanks for all your help.

Dave
 
Last edited:
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11108840#post11108840 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jpndave
I am looking at building another larger tank and have a thickness question. How tall do you recommend going with 1/2" material? I am looking at a 72x24x24 but wondered if I can go a little bigger and stay with 1/2" material. Can I go taller? wider? longer?
Click to expand...
Yes, but realize that deflection (bowing) will increase as you do so. I've seen tanks up to 10' long and 30+" high made from 1/2" material and they hold water but bow badly and look, well, awful.
72 x 24 x 25" will hold up nicely and only take 2 (4 x 8') sheets to build. You can go a little longer, up to 36" or so wide and up to ~27" high with tolerable deflection & without more bracing but becomes economically impractical to do so from standard 4 x 8' sheets.
If you stick with the 72 x 24" footprint, 3" eurobrace all around with (2) 6" crossbraces yields you 3 nice openings measuring ~18 x 18" and will do well.

HTH,
James
 
well im pressed for space under the 125... the dimensions under there are 30"l x 17"w x 30"h. That is the available space i have under the 125. Is that enough?? So the thickness of it should be 1/4 or 3/8??? ya this will be for my 120 reef.... where can i get AcryLite FF???
 
Polishing Kit

Polishing Kit

What is the current recommended polishing kit?

Have any of you used the 3M Trizact system?

Thanks,

Dave
 
Dave,

I used the 3m Trizact kit when I had to polish up my old 240 tank. I got the type that goes on a 5" random orbit sander and it worked BEAUTIFULLY. They are very hard to find these days (I would almost guess that 3M doesn't want to sell them!), but if you can find them, I wouldn't hesitate to buy and use it.
 
Thanks for the reply Roamer. One of my suppliers carries them (Louis & Co.) so getting it isn't a problem. I was looking at that same size, 5" stickit discs. I just need to polish the edges that I glued and routed.
 
Is that the dry sanding system? I looked at 3Ms site awhile back and saw there was some dry sanding kit up to about 2000 grit. Not sure how that could work without severe loading.
 
That is the same system I used. It is a wet system. I used a spray bottle with water and a small amount of dish washing liquid in it.

Also, be sure to flush out the sanding pad after every pass. And I do mean EVERY pass. I would run the vertical-horizontal pattern on the end of my tank, take the pad off and take it to the sink and rinse it out completely. Then, wipe the tank off with a clean towel and make another pass. Repeat until you are happy with that pad, then go to the next finer pad and repeat again.

I goes pretty fast when you get into the groove. I would HATE to do this all by hand, but the RO sander REALLY speeds it up. And the results are fantastic!

One other thing, this is one area where it is a bigger mistake to be too conservative on picking the starting grit. You will HATE life if you decide to "be careful" and start with a high grit pad (aka: finer pad) and then sand and sand and SAND and STILL not get those scratches out. If you start with a pad that is a bit too course for the size of the scratches you have, the very first pass will probably take all the scratches out, and then you can move to next finer grit and start working your way up.

There used to be some pretty good articles on how to polish up acrylic online, so you might want to do a bit of reading before you start work.
 
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