plywood aquariums?

[lee1]

im thinking of making my own aquarium made of marine ply ,not heard of much in theese parts,i am a cabinet maker by trade so materials and the construction are no problem tho finding an epoxy suitable is another matter .upto now i have found a product called west epoxy primarily made for boat repair it is a two part product that will create a tough durable water tight coating but i belive that this product can leach toxins ,so therefor another coating of non toxic coating wil need to be applied over the epoxy. for this i am considering g4 blue pond coating i am looking forward to making my new marine tank and will keep my progress posted

any thoughts on this matter would be welcomed

[jamieb]

make it very difficult to see the fish!

[Blue]

how does G4 fair with salt?

[Blue]

make it very difficult to see the fish!

the front is perspex.

[MR Teee]

Not sure on the specific products that don't leach toxins. But to be sure how about leaving a mild bleach (or similar) in there for a few weeks after being built.

This should give it the opportunity to leech away with no consequences.

I know for a fact that such products exist as I have seen other tanks made out of plywood.

[Blue]

Yes, i've spoken to Lee and he knows this. Can't wait to see how he gets on.:)

[MR Teee]

Excellent Chris, I can't wait either. Plywood tanks are something you don't see very often on this side of the Atlantic.

[Tangman]

Hi I you use fibre glass to cover the plywood you will have to cover the fibre glass with a product called Flow cote which is non toxic to fish its what they use for Koi ponds when they have been fibre glassed. HTH. Eric

[lee1]

not sure how g4 will fair with salt but i will do some more research this week and post details ps cheers for all your comments

[lee1]

cheer eric you did mention that product when i talked to you last but i got sidetracked when calling around possible suppliers i will do some more indepth reasearch into flow cote thank very much for your comments

[Blue]

Keep us posted :) :)

[Blue]

I never thought about it till now, but, the other side of our company is building public aquariums all over the world. On speaking to the director, he told me that you would need polyester resin for the fibreglass and then, to give it a glossy finish, you would use flow cote. When you do the polyester mix , it must be correct or you will poison all the inhabitants. He advised that you speak to the fibreglass manufacturer that you are going to use regarding the mix. Hope this is of some use.:)

[Macca]

Ok, this might sound really stupid here but are we taling about the stand or the actual aquarium. The thread looks like we are talking about the actual aquarium and this to me sounds very strange to the point of being ridiculous. I have heard of acrylic, concrete, plastic, glass tanks but never plywood!!! What happens if you get wood worm :eek:

James

[Gillybaby]

Yes James, he is indeed talking about the tank. Can't believe you've never heard of plywood tanks although they are a lot more common in the US than over here. I've on and off followed this thread over on Reef Central, might be useful in the circumstances:

A First Plywood Project (http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=716410&highlight=plywood)

[keith]

I think the principle is the same regardless of whether you use concrete, blockwork,plywood etc. Its basically a rigid structure. Its what you line it with inside to waterproof it thats the issue. Forming a seal around the viewing panel is the other issue.

I would imagine a plywood structure would be much more forgiving in the event of any unevenness on the stand. Also very easy to drill for closed loops and other pipework. I think it makes a lot of sense if you are happy with just one viewing panel.

Keith

[Macca]

intresting, You could have a very unusual back drop for instance. Well you learn something every day and hopefully someone on here decides to go for it one day. I would love to follow this project, maybe give me ideas for the future!

James

[justinbs]

hi

if you need any fibre glass good i also own a fibreglass company we make tanks and filter sump tanks for one of the countrys bigest aquatics companys we make i sump at the shop a few of you may have seen it

thanks

justin

aquarius koi and aquatics

[lee1]

plywood aquarium on hold at moment while i am making a larger cabinet

for my existing tank a juwel record 120 . not very large by your average

tank sizes i know :o :o :o :o :o ..........the unit then can be modified

to take my plywood aquariumt top size 600 x 1600 pics will follow when

my cabinet is finished .. about 2 weeks away from completion:)

ps the plywood tank will happen in a few months time due to moving

house a larger tank is not practical at this moment keep an eye on these

posts;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) i will be the first guy on this site to make

his own plywood aquarium all the trials and im sure errors

[Blue]

Ok, keep us posted, this will be great.:)

[lee1]

shure will m8:)

[Guest]

i will be keeping my eyes peeled lee to see how it goes good luck , i just read the link on reef central thanks gilly , very interesting i just wandered
what the benefit was to building a plywood tank other than stress really
by the time you have bought good quality marine ply and sealed and resined it i was wandering the cost would be near the same and you have
put a vast amount of time into it , im not picking at it im just curious :D whats your thought lee please

john

[Reefer]

i will be keeping my eyes peeled lee to see how it goes good luck , i just read the link on reef central thanks gilly , very interesting i just wandered
what the benefit was to building a plywood tank other than stress really
by the time you have bought good quality marine ply and sealed and resined it i was wandering the cost would be near the same and you have
put a vast amount of time into it , im not picking at it im just curious :D whats your thought lee please

john

I was thinking the same thing, cant be any cheaper than a glass tank when all said and done, are you doing it for novelty value or because you can (or cant depending on how it goes!)
Interesting project though.

[lee1]

cost i estimate to be around £150-£200 not sure yet tho, time? how much

is your time worth ? or if you put a price on a diy project? i think if that

were true we would all call in the decorators, because by the time most

people have decorated it would be cheaper imo. i am a cabinet maker so

machinery is available to me i have made kitchens, fire surrounds, bedroom

units bathroom units,tv cabinets,book cases,computer tables diy may be a

novolty thing to some people but to me its everyday by the way cost ive

saved tens of thousands making my own furniture i dont know much about

tank prices but i bet i can make it for a third of the price and the benifits

are drilling and dimensions options just to see if i can, oh did i mention i

was tight:) if your tank is in an alcove how many sides of the glass do

you see through ? i look at the cabinets that are being sold and ive looked

on the sites and gasp at their prices i look at a unit and price it in my mind

and can t belive how they get away with it.. we all use glass aquariums

because that s all that s available if anyone could make what they wanted

would they buy it????????? not me sir:D :D :D :D i can make it better

cheaper to my spec to my colour my way and learn and maybe make

and save money:) :) :) :)

[Reefer]

Yep cabinets I agree if you can make one thats great all power to you mate.
£150-£200 would buy a fair size glass tank though.

By the way I do get the decorators in or just get the missus to do it!
Do you make furniture to order by the way? I may need some in the future how you fixed?

Good luck with the tank.

[Guest]

hey lee good luck with the project like i said i was curious to find out why you decided to go down that avenue i agree with what you are saying with using your skills as i am an engineer and will make most things that will save some cash , and yes you can make it bespoke to yourself , you answered my questions cheers pal john

[lee1]

Yep cabinets I agree if you can make one thats great all power to you mate.
£150-£200 would buy a fair size glass tank though.

By the way I do get the decorators in or just get the missus to do it!
Do you make furniture to order by the way? I may need some in the future how you fixed?

Good luck with the tank.


nice 1 mate i wish i could get my wife to :) but i would spend more time

and effort putting it right :) .......ouch she saw that:o i work for a

laboratory furniture supplier i do guvvies but always got somthing on the

go, what the wife want s the wife get s ....there she s happy now:D :D :D

[lee1]

hey lee good luck with the project like i said i was curious to find out why you decided to go down that avenue i agree with what you are saying with using your skills as i am an engineer and will make most things that will save some cash , and yes you can make it bespoke to yourself , you answered my questions cheers pal john



:) no problem mate i see what you mean if it was electric s id get an

electrition if it was a big build id get a builder i like little projects and its

usually in my half hour dinner break at work suprising what you can get

done when it s for yourself;) ;)

[Guest]

lee hows the tank coming along mate any updates ?

[lee1]

been a bit busy mate :eek: have you seen my thread on ****cabinet of the

month****, that's kept me busy for a while and i am planning on a move

soon, so not practical until after the move. also i quite like my cabinet and

tank at the mo so will see what i want to do when i move mate .will keep

u upto date mate:) :) :) :) it's not over yet:D :D :D

[Guest]

okey dokey pal will have a read of cabinet builds

[Tangman]

This project is intriging me as i want to see how it turns out, i am sure that Lee will make a topping job of it being a cabinet maker. Keep us all informed on how you are progressing. :) Eric

[lee1]

thankyou Eric, since my first post re. plywood aquariums and advice from

yourself and MT i have realised that polyester resin is the best

lining/coating to use .My build will be a little unconventional to previous

posts on variouse sites , im sure my design will be very strong. it may

take some time for me to get around to making one. i will be selling my

house in the next few months hopefully:) and as you probably know not

much moves fast when you get in a chain. :rolleyes: :rolleyes: