Best way to build a large tank?

[tigerlover]

Ok, I love big tanks. I want a HUGE reef tank, maybe 1000+ gal.
Can someone tell me the cheapest way to go and how to do it?
If I use wood, what type? and how do I keep the wood from leaking?
Thanks in advance.

 

[timo]

I did a search for "cracks" on the DIY forum and one of the posts included a person that built a huge tank with arcrylic and a wood frame. It may take a few minutes, but you'll find it.
HTH
-Tim

 

[novice150]

Tis me
This a VERY shortened version of the whole project, but....Most people recommend using marine grade plywood. But I think its unnecessary, because if built right, the water should never reach the wood anyway. I reccomend using top grade plywood from HD. IMO, your best bet is to lay several layers of fiberglass in the corners and on the walls. On top of that, you will roll on a few layers of 2 part marine epoxy.
You can either post here, or email me and I will try to help in any way I can.
You can also look
here
Edited because I missed your questions.

 

[tigerlover]

Should I use acrylic or glass?
Thickness minimum?
Should the back be just pure wood, or does glass need to coat it?
Thanks

 

[novice150]

I prefer acrylic over glass, but its really just a matter of personal preference. Cost, weight, strength and clarity were the determining factors for me. If you went with glass, you could use two 1/2" starfire glass panels laminated together. I think you'll find the cost to be pretty high though.
Required glass thickness depends on a lot of things. The length and height of your tank are the main factors, along with cross bracing, support/overlap on the window pane, and overall rigidity of the tank itself. The deeper you go, the thicker the glass needs to be. On my tank, I used 1.5" acrylic.
What are the proposed dimensions of your tank?
You do not need glass on the back/side walls of the tank. But it cannot be just pure wood either. Again, depending on the dimensions of your tank, you may just be able to lay fiberglass tape in the corners/seams of the tank, and then roll a few coats of epoxy on the walls. If the tank is real big (deep) I would reccomend fiberglassing the walls as well.
Some people choose to lay 1/8"-1/4" acrylic over the walls of the tank as well. They do this not to seal the tank, but in an attempt to protect the epoxy. I personally feel this is unnecessary, as the epoxy is very durable. Furthermore, I was concerned that algae would grow behind the acrylic, and be impossible to clean.

 

[broncofish]

I've looked into the price of building an 8' X 8' x 30"(1200g) tank out of acrylic. It would be a giant 8 foot cube style that i would build into the center of a room(not for me request of a customer) The price of my supplies alone would be over 2g, that include standpipes, weld-on and 1" acrylic, about $600 less for 1/2". The reason why the guy did not go for it, I could not put any promises on the tank because of the fact I never built one that big, and I would have ot weld 2 pieces of acrylic on the bottom unless I custom ordered$$$$$$$. I would do it my own house if it were big enough. Imagine a reef tank that you could walk around, and have multiple MH on pendants hanging form the ceiling, with a 500g fuge, and 100g sump underneath, plus a big protein skimmer, thousands of pounds of lr and ls $$$$$$$$ I guess it all depends on the lotto. Plus look into the damge caused to MR.4000 house. Follow Novice150's plans. He is prepared for the evap, humidity, and such, I'm super impressed with his tank.

 

[javatech]

this is my plywood and glass tank

 

[javatech]

and then i put in a pond liner to protect the epoxy paint

 

[03]

hey novice i sure would like to see some pics of that 1700 gal tank thanks m.l.

 

[novice150]

Just took this pic tonight.
Still not carpet.

 

[chevytrks]

good god novice what are you feeding that blacktip
I remember your post a month ago, he only looked half that size!

 

[novice150]

Honestly, its an optical illusion. He really hasnt grown much at all. Black tips grow at an average rate of 1/10 inch per month. How close I am to the tank, and how far back in the tank the shark is, affects how big he looks.

 

[03]

very nice he has alot of room to grow
Originally posted by NOVICE150
Honestly, its an optical illusion. He really hasnt grown much at all. Black tips grow at an average rate of 1/10 inch per month. How close I am to the tank, and how far back in the tank the shark is, affects how big he looks.

 

[broncofish]

Big Gigantic bump

 

[sweettooth162]

maybe this is asking alot NOVICE150 but i was wondering if you have any step by step process of how you did this. not only the construction of the tank but also the filtration and lighting. with all the equipment you used. thanks.
p.s. i looked on that ciclid site earlier and i didn't see an article on build a 1700 gallon tank.

 

[broncofish]

Do a searhc for novice150 user name. He either has step by step...or a link to his webpage that has them...he's the envy of a lot of us.

 

[suver569]

My god, how do you clean that thing, scuba gear?
Very nice btw. Any pics of all the equip on that baby?

 

[broncofish]

Originally posted by suver569
My god, how do you clean that thing, scuba gear?
Very nice btw. Any pics of all the equip on that baby?
I don't know how much Novice stops by anymore but do a search for his username. He has threads on building, a picture of him swimming with the shark and cleaning his tank, and pics of all his equipment, or at least a link to his website with that stuff.

 

[eric4usa]

Anyone have any success welding acrylic in a "museum" bond?
That's where you join 2 pannels of acrylic into one and afterwards the seam is invisible.
Necessarry if you were planning say a tank that had a good 10' - 15' front pannel.

 

[broncofish]

Thats well beyond my talent level.