diy acrylic overflow on glass?

bojik · Nov 25, 2006

Originally Posted by sleasia
I used to have the chiller on a different pump, so, I may make two diversions off of the main pump, one to the skimmer and another to the uv, which also has its own pump, then maybe the pump will behave like a normal pump.
careful I'd not modify the uv unit. they need a pretty small range of flow to work as desired.

dual45s · Nov 25, 2006

sleasia · Nov 27, 2006

Dual45...very nice stuff...you are very talented!!!

dual45s · Nov 27, 2006

Thanks a ton, now if only I made decent money off of it. HA!

sleasia · Dec 3, 2006

dual45 do you by any chance know how to weld? I would like to learn so I can custom make metal stands for some of the sculptural pots I do.

sleasia · Dec 3, 2006

Ok..I wanted to finish all the plumbing this weekend. but I ran into a problem. I'm going to have a big problem going through the wall to the laundry room, because it sounds like there is a metal vent running through the wall exactly where I need to drill? so either I put the sump in the stand, and plumb down through the sides of the stand, or I try to get the guy painting for me to do some bigger drywall work, meaning taking off a chunk, figure out how to plumb the pvc, and then repair the wall for me. ..I'm not thrilled about taking off drywall to figure out whats up with the wall and how to get through it....so maybe I should put the sump under the stand and go through the side doors?...I'm still stewing over this and thinking it over. but, it means I'm not going to get it done this weekend.

bojik · Dec 3, 2006

eeek sounds like a mild headache... Try a metal sensing stud finder before you go wall shredding and see if you can gently use a pencil to figure where the vent is. (draw LIGHTLY on wall so its erasable) only Thing short of doing what your thinking i can think of to figure if its doable.

dual45s · Dec 3, 2006

I do know how to weld. Specifically, MIG welding. It's a pretty simple concept, but takes practice. On top of that, the welder is one expensive toy. Once you get it down, however, it's an invaluable skill, especially in the art world. When it comes to sculpture, welding is key and a skill that surprisingly few are proficient in. So I say that if you have the cash lying around, go for it. In addition, if you're going to be metal working you're probably going to want some other toys to go with that, namely an quality angle/portable grinder, a cutoff tool (probably needing an air compressor), a jigsaw with ALOT of metal cutting blades and lube, and some sort of drill press. Granted you can probably do alot of great work without these, I just personally find that these make for less headaches and scrap metal.

sleasia · Dec 4, 2006

dual 45s...thanks..what are the "welding toys" I assume the tank of whatever and what else...have a jig, have a portable grinder. have a ton of other tools but not a drill press....what do I need to weld and also where do you buy metal rods, the types used for pot stands. I would rather make stands to conform to the pots, rather than pots which conform to standard garden shop stands....this way I can get the heights and sizes which will show the pots better. thanks....

sleasia · Dec 4, 2006

Bojik...thanks...yeah its a headache for me. the painting guy will probably stop by tomarrow, so I'm going to ask him what he thinks. I'll pick up a metal stud sensor at Lowes or HD and try to figure it out....but sometimes bad stuff happens for good reasons, and the reason may be that my original idea of going into the laundry room may be dumb, because the only place for the sump in there is under the laundry room sink...In retrospect, I may have more room and accessability right under the stand. All I would have to do is partially wreck one of my side doors, by cutting a piece off for the pvc from the drain and returns to pass and then make a box or something to hide the pvc....on the other side of the tank, the closed loop, I can probably use flexible tubing and just wind behind the tank and then through the back of the stand without too much of a problem. So unless the painter/handyman is willing to do this, I don't think I will try myself to go through the wall, and in that case will plumb under the stand.

dual45s · Dec 4, 2006

By welding toys I meant the welder itself. The unit and the shielding gas (tanks) take up a bit of space. As far as welding rod goes, a vise, and a bunch of pure metal vise-grips will set you up pretty well. Alot of places where you can get welding supplies have a very handy angled magnet. http://www.grainger.com/industrial-e...lies3G921.html That thing is so useful it's crazy.
If you're going to be doing a lot of bending or fancy curls with the rod you might want to pick up a torch set, depending on how thick you're going with the rod, even one of those torch attachments for a propane bottle could be suitable. Also, these are a lot easier to handle than an oxy/acetylene setup.
Metal rod can be picked up at pretty much any of the larger home stores, Lowe's, Home Depot, even hardware stores etc. If they don't have what you like, there's probably a few metal supply places in your area, check out the phone book. Definately call ahead, most of these places aren't used to people coming in off the street and don't have a showroom per se. So you'll need to know what you want before you call. The advantage is that these places tend to do a lot of high-volume business so the scrap stuff is cheap if not free.
Starting off, I'd say get some cheap 3/16" possibly 1/8" stuff, depending on your welder, any thinner might get melted through. Practice getting the tacks down. (Single trigger squeezes that will fire off a small glob of metal that hold your two pieces of metal together.) These will let you rip them back apart if you mess up, but will hold everything while you finish the weld. Tacks are nice and easy, but running the bead is tougher to get perfect. With anything though practice makes it second nature. Hope I helped.

sleasia · Dec 4, 2006

thanks dual45s...I'll check it out and see if maybe in the spring I can teach myself to weld ! cool!!!

dual45s · Dec 4, 2006

Yeah, you'll be amazed at what you can accomplish once you get comfortable with welding. Just let me know if I can help any further.
SkippyMOTF@sbcglobal.net

saltn00b · Dec 5, 2006

man this has been an informative thread! sleasia you have been doing a great job on the tank - whats the last update? i am looking to put in to overflow column on my acrylic tank thats already established and i am about to do it when i move in 2 weeks. i have gotten a little feedback so far and am starting to get a little frantic, maybe you can give me some pointers?!?! aaah

bojik · Dec 5, 2006

well hows the tank coming together shelly?

sleasia · Dec 6, 2006

Talked to the painter and he thinks its going to be a mess and I'd be better off putting things under the tank, so I am going to go ahead and do it...Its actually going to work well, and in the end may be a better decision. There is actually more room under the tank than in the laundry room.. I plan on doing the plumbing today and tomarrow......

sleasia · Dec 6, 2006

Back to welding...they weld at the mechanic shop I go to and said they'd teach me in the spring if I can't find a course...but I forgot there actually is a welding supply place where I bought my kiln gloves near here so they may be able to teach me too!!!!

dual45s · Dec 6, 2006

There ya go! Pretty soon, you'll be eyeing up forging some stuff. THAT's a blast. I did a damascus blade back in college and I wish I could be back into it...no toys out here.

sleasia · Dec 7, 2006

saltnoob...this should not be hard since your tank is already acrylic...you can "weld" the acrylic overflow you make to the tank using weld-on, and as I understand it, this bond will be much stronger than siliconing acrylic to glass....also if you drill, it will be soooooo easy... just use a hole bit. and it will be like cutting through butter. good luck.

sleasia · Jan 15, 2007

Ok, I have been a jerk and wimped out over the holidays working on the tank....too much stuff going on...but finally, the sand, live rock and water are in. I had to modify my plumbing to accomodate the sump under the tank since I couldn't figure out an easy way to go through the wall to the laundry room, thanks to a huge heating duct....so I had to cut into one of my doors....Ouch!!!that hurt alot, but its not too ugly and I will figure something out....here's pics so far, including the surgrey on the one door.

diy acrylic overflow on glass?

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