Sunday afternoon DIY refuge

[oldsaltman]

On saturday night I decided to replace my old slump. I bought one sheet of 2' X 4' plexiglas from HD for 39.95. Sunday afternoon this is what it looked like after it was done. Just need to drill a drain and one bulkhead. It's 20" X 10" X 12" tall. Same as a 10gal tank. Four hours worth of cutting, routing, clamping and gluing.:smokin:

 

[george1098]

looks great. I really need to learn how to work with acrylic. I jsut made a 2.8g picotank out of glass, but I wish i could have used acrylic because it looks so clear when you're done. nice job, can;t wait to see it in action.

 

[oldsaltman]

Thanks, it's just like plywood except is is clear. I use a plywood blade on the saw and a router bit made for counter tops, and Weld ON for glue. When you are cutting the thick stuff it has mean (sharp) "sawdust". Be sure to wear glasses and a long sleve shirt.

 

[itstheantitang]

SA057- Funny signature.

Great work on the fuge, your sump wont be a slump anymore.

 

[schristi69]

HD acrylic is extruded unless your HD carries itema mine doesn't. Extruded acrylic is not as strong as cast and you may have warping/failure issues down the line. Keep an eye on it.

 

[oldsaltman]

Thanks, I have been using their plexiglas for several years with no problems yet.

 

[cotter4601]

Did you use weld on 3, 4 or 16? I cut my pieces of acrylic with my table saw so I should be able to use the #3 or#4, right?

 

[oldsaltman]

I used the tube and I think it is 16. I will check tomorrow. I have a bottle but it is too thin for me. I like the thick stuff. I think you need to use a router for a better joint. The saw makes a bad edge for glue. It needs to be very smooth....

 

[cotter4601]

I'll run it through the router table before I glue it up. I ended up getting the #3 stuff. The #16 stuff is thicker and said to use this stuff if you have small gaps. I used a fine tool blade to cut it so it's quite smooth now. I also used a razor blade and scraped it along the side which smoothed them out pretty nice.

 

[oldsaltman]

I think you have a good plan. I like to run all mine through the router before I glue it. While gluing and clamping, I let all my edges overhang some and then use the countertop router bit to clean it all up. That makes nice clean edges all around.

 

[Jester]

I need to get a router... thats one thing I dont have.. but most of the acrylic pieces I use, I cut with a laser cutter, so the edges are clean anyways... larger peices I have to cut by hand though...

Jester

 

[cotter4601]

Laser cutter?? That's the way to go. Does acrylic chip out with a router when you get to the edge like wood does?

 

[oldsaltman]

No, you can route as close to the edge as you want and it doesn't matter. It has such a high speed that it doesn't chip. The router makes a really nice edge.

 

[oldsaltman]

I finally got a photo of my new slump in action!