do wood and glass tanks work?

[lapoza]

hello everyone, i am new to the whole fish thing, my neighbor has had tanks his whole life and i wasnt to interested unitl he bought a new tank last week for salt water fish. now i am hooked. but my question is about building a tank using wood and glass. i am a complete do it yourselfer and i love to build things and when i decided i wanted to build a tank i started asking questions and looking on the net for ideas. i found this. its a tank you make with 3/4 inch thick AC Exterior plywood and the front of it is glass. the design that i have been shown will work thats not the question . the qestion is will salt water fish be able to live in this tank. the person who made the plans says he has made about 20 or so of these and that they work but i like to get second opinions before i invest money. the ******** of the tank is painted with2 part epoxy paint, and a local fish store said that this could be the only problem that they know of that would cause it to not work. if anyone knows more and could stop me from making a mistake id appreciate before i spent the money. thank you for your replies
jeremy

 

[jt]

Jeremy - Go with glass. Being able to see through all sides of the tank is a plus, especially with a saltwater tank. Wood sounds very questionable for any tank (especially plywood and especially with a saltwater tank). It sounds like someone's bad idea of how to make a few bucks. Sounds like a scam too.

 

[kmr]

I understand that it is possible to make a wood and glass tank for marine use. I have a few reef books and the older ones explain about them. It doesn't sound hard to do but it doesn't sound cost effective. Unless your out to build a huge tank (300+ gallons) glass would be cheaper and more visually pleasing. It is nice to see things from the sides. I was even considering some mirror in the back of my tank so I can see all sides of the reef. Sounds fun though.

 

[krazzydart]

Just go out and buy ONE!!!!!!!!! it is cheaper and they are gaurenteed!!!!

 

[jt]

Seriously! I agree with Krazzy. Just buy a tank. They really aren't that terribly expensive.
A comment on the mirror backing. I considered doing that too - it would look great. But the lfs said that several species (angels are the only ones I remember, but there were others) might freak out seeing their reflection. Fish that don't get along with others of the same kind would stress out.