$297.57 for a .5in 96 by 48 acrylic sheet

martinc909

martinc909

Member
I'm deciding on building a bigger tank and they sell me a 48 by 96 by half inch acrylic sheet for 297.57 dollars. Is that too much or should I buy it because I heard that people can make a 500g tank for only 300 dollars so does anyone know where I could get cheaper sheet of acrylic or is there something else I can do. Because being 15 years old it's hard to make money. But I'll do it.
 
adamc1303

adamc1303

Active Member
You know if money may be an issue than you may want to go with a smaller tank like a 90, still pretty big. Plus building a 300 gallon tank is nt easy. But I think it's cool good luck, if you have anymore questions just keep posting them here it's the best source for info.
 
psusocr1

psusocr1

Active Member
thats a GREAT price for that sheet, you wont find it any cheaper ill tell you that much, and YES you can build a $500, 500 gallon tank, mine will be around 500 dollars total for mine but it will be plywood with a glass front.. theres noway you can build a 500 out of ALL acrylic or glass for that matter for that price!!
 
martinc909

martinc909

Member
Plywood. I've never heard that before is it like another side of the tank or is it in the inside. Do you know a site where I could learn more.
 
psusocr1

psusocr1

Active Member
its three sheets of plywood with one large viewing window(or you can put them in the sides as well) but basically you build a box, fiberglass it 2-3 times , then epoxy it 10 times , sanding in between each coat and then you get the final product.. i mean theres ALOT more to it but its all detail you would only have to worrya botu if you were building it..
im in the process of building my 500,, it will take about 2-3 months because i had to speical order the glass for the front, and also everythign has ot be deleivered to myh ouse(wood etc.) but i will have a DIY afte rim done with it just like my DIY glass tank
 
acrylic51

acrylic51

Active Member
IMO I wouldn't use 1/2" acrylic for a tank of that size.....I would opt to move up to 3/4" acrylic......You have to take into account length, and height, and water pushing outwards and you might see some flex even with eurobracing the top....Just my opinion, but would actually talk to a custom acrylic tank builder and see what size material they would recommend.....
 
psusocr1

psusocr1

Active Member
good point acrylic,
this is why im using glass on mine, one reason i dont use acrylic on big projects is because the general rule i follow which is whatever glass size iw ould use i use double for acrylic because of the flex and bow..
 
dingo0722

dingo0722

Member
I wouldn't attempt building a tank that large out of acrylic. There was a post on here about a guy that built I believe a 300 gallon tank, stand and canopy for about $500. It was a great post, went through, step by step.
The other big issue with buying large sheet of acrylic to make tanks is that your edges have to be perfect in order to get a water tight seal, and a structually sound joint. I have built many sumps and fuges out of acrylic, but I also used a milling machine to make each piece.
Just my 2 cents
 
psusocr1

psusocr1

Active Member
here was a post on here about a guy that built I believe a 300 gallon tank, stand and canopy for about $500. It was a great post, went through, step by step.
You may be reffering to my post?
dingo0722 I wouldn't attempt building a tank that large out of acrylic.
i agree i wouldnt tell anyone to do it either if it was their first tank build. But for people that work alot with acrylic or glass its really not that big of a deal. Although i really dont know this guys backround??
 
psusocr1

psusocr1

Active Member
no problem i got lots of pics with all my fish in it.. ill make sure i post them tonight in the fish photo section.
the tank is awesome! better than a store bought tank!! (in my eyes anyway!!)
 
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