# DIY First Tank please comment and rate



## Fuma (Feb 18, 2012)

this is my first atampt at making a tank with the assistance of my girlfriend (reika059) .... its 8"x10"x10".... i bought the plexi glass at lows for around $2 an 8"x10" sheet.. also bought two hinges and a handle.. first i started from the bottom and silicone the walls to it and each other (sorry forgot to take pics) then took my soldering iron and made 8 holes on the two side walls and 10 in the back. next i made holes for the screws for the hinges and handle with my soldering iron... and attached the top.. then i wanted to add sub straight to the sides and back (kinda stole idea from TalonAWD) by using aquarium grade silicone and spreading it, then laying dry sub straight on it and patting it down flat.. i liked how it came out... tell me what you think

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## Fuma (Feb 18, 2012)

siliconed walls and add sub straight.. but not finished yet

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## ScarecrowGirl (Feb 18, 2012)

Looks good to me, I've never made my own tank before, but it looks like you did a pretty nice job of it! 
If I may, what did you use to keep the sides strait? I'd like to know in-case I ever have time to make one of these my self, I dont want it to come out all wonky lol.

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## suzypike (Feb 18, 2012)

I've been considering trying this.  Thanks for the post!  

What kind of tape did you use to hold the sides together while your glue dried?  
Did you have any problem getting the tape or residue from the tape off of your acrylic?  
What glue did you use to hold the sides together?
Awesome tank! Thanks!

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## Fuma (Feb 18, 2012)

Thanks  ...i used aquarium grade silicone to hold the sides... takes about 30 mins to dry each side so took a while... i wasn't expecting it to turn out that good... even i was surprised

---------- Post added 02-18-2012 at 03:14 PM ----------

the side were silicone together witch is very easy to remove....but then i used electrical tape to make it look nice

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## Tarac (Feb 18, 2012)

Silicone is not a great adhesive for acrylic.  Doesn't last long-term, it doesn't bond well.  Silicone should be used only if you need to get acrylic on glass or something like that (or as a sealant after solvent welding, to help with leaks from non-perfect joints- especially relevant if you hand-cut the acrylic), but for straight acrylic applications you want to solvent weld with methylene chloride-based products.  It's usually referred to as "solvent welding" or "capillary gluing/welding."  Lots of tutorials available online.

Here is more info about how to do it:

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?224664-Acrylic-Cage-Question

And a brief summary of why not to use silicone:

http://www.aquarium-pond-answers.com/2007/03/aquarium-silicone.html

I don't know if you can retroactively solvent weld with silicone already present, I would test it first to make sure it doesn't do something wonky to the silicone as methylene chloride is pretty horrible stuff.  Looks like a good plan otherwise, I like the substrate adhered to the side for a somewhat sub-subterranean look.

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## Fuma (Feb 19, 2012)

well it seems to be strong to me... doesn't flex or bend at all, and the where the silicone lays i sanded for  better adhesion... i don't think a small leek would matter im not putting water in it... this is my first tank made so i really wasn't try to be perfect.. thanks for the advice i will remeber it next time


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## suzypike (Feb 19, 2012)

Tarac said:


> Silicone is not a great adhesive for acrylic.  Doesn't last long-term, it doesn't bond well.  Silicone should be used only if you need to get acrylic on glass or something like that (or as a sealant after solvent welding, to help with leaks from non-perfect joints- especially relevant if you hand-cut the acrylic), but for straight acrylic applications you want to solvent weld with methylene chloride-based products.  It's usually referred to as "solvent welding" or "capillary gluing/welding."  Lots of tutorials available online.
> 
> Here is more info about how to do it:
> 
> ...


Why would it matter if we don't need it to hold water or a tiny sling?  I drill holes around the bottom anyway. 

Silicone looks a LOT easier. Is there another reason not to use silicone,  other than it not being sealed well enough to hold water?  

I checked those links, but the subject did not match my purposes for building a tank to hold coco fiber and an adult tarantula. 

- not arguing, just asking.


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## Tarac (Feb 19, 2012)

Yes, if you read that link it explains why it's not a real bond.  Basically the two materials are chemically incompatable so you are always battling release.  The physical grab (not a true bond) for sandpapered acrylic will help a little, but the two surfaces are always rejecting eachother so eventually it's likely to fall apart, especially as the acrylic warps since the enclosure *I think* is somewhat large for 1.8" acrylic.  The OP doesn't specify what the approximate final dimensions are but does mention the 8x10" per sheet and looking at the proportion of the bottom and considering less cuts is much easier and less wasteful I'm guessing it's 8x8x10."  Even a completely empty tank at that size would warp and pull away at the seems.  

For fish, like in the link, people use accurately cut arcylic that is capillary/solvent welded and then basically caulk the acrylic with silicone because it is clear and fills any small gaps that might be leaks if you were to fill it with water.  But the tanks are still solvent welded first because it literally liquifies the two surfaces and then allows them to fuse back together so it is virtually as strong as the original material.  It's almost like having formed acrylic, just not quite as good.  For a really really tiny tank silicone might work (but you can buy those Amac boxes for about $3.00 average that will work for most slings until they are large enough that they have outgrown anything made from 1/8" acrylic anyway- I do keep some of my dwarves in 8x8x6 made from 1/8" acrylic without warping but note that the door system (I use front loading) is an 8x2 lip and a 4x8 door so and is setup so it pulls tight around the rim when closed, supporting on all sides and thus preventing distortion over time).  

I suggest going the solvent welding route, even though it means you have to plan a little early to order some materials, for several reasons:

It's much much easier, sets up in a matter of moments.

It's extremely clean looking, no globby line of silicone filling the whole corner.  

If done properly (i.e. proper thickness acrylic to size of the largest walls, etc.) it is permanent.

There's a reason why all the pros do it this way.  From herps to fish to display cases for dolls, if you can't heat form what you need it is solvent welded.  It's still very cheap, check the other threads and the online tutorials and look for comparisons.  You will like what you see and will find it's actually much easier than working with silicone anyway, and great for impatient people too lol.

edit: I should add that they aren't avoiding silicone in that aquarium post because they are concerned about water-tightness (in fact as mentioned it is frequently added afterwards to ensure a good water-tight seal), they are avoiding it as the primary bonder because it doesn't really hold long-term, it's a physical bond not a chemical and thus far less reliable.

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## suzypike (Feb 19, 2012)

Thank you very much for your answer.  I will look into it further.  
I"m planning on making some 16" X 16" X 8" tanks over spring break.


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## Tarac (Feb 19, 2012)

One more thing... you may need a little more ventilation, but that's easily fixed.  Have to monitor to see if that's sufficient.  Mine require more holes.

With solvent welding you won't have to drill/melt for hinges or anything either, you can get those sharp looking clear hinges or "living" hinges which I prefer (they are more opaque and have a white line but make a completely impenetrable hinge that I prefer personally) and nice hasps, even little knobs and handles and they just weld right onto the acrylic.  It's the better route, and use 1/4" acrylic for that size of tank for sure.  You might want to order larger vents and get a hole cutting bit for a drill as well, 1/4" is harder to melt holes through.  I do it but not for any good reason.  All my enclosures are melted-holes right now so for consistency of aesthetic I have stuck with it.  If I had started with vents earlier I probably would go that route but since I didn't I can't compare fairly.  I have cut holes in acrylic before for aquarium purposes, it's easy.  Lots of online tutorials for that too.  Really almost anything you can think of some 10 year old has made a video of and posted it on youtube lol.  I learned how to move my music from my mac computer to my pc computer via my ipod from a kid on youtube.


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## Scorpion Tom (Feb 19, 2012)

Tarac said:


> One more thing... you may need a little more ventilation, but that's easily fixed.  Have to monitor to see if that's sufficient.  Mine require more holes.
> 
> With solvent welding you won't have to drill/melt for hinges or anything either, you can get those sharp looking clear hinges or "living" hinges which I prefer (they are more opaque and have a white line but make a completely impenetrable hinge that I prefer personally) and nice hasps, even little knobs and handles and they just weld right onto the acrylic.  It's the better route, and use 1/4" acrylic for that size of tank for sure.  You might want to order larger vents and get a hole cutting bit for a drill as well, 1/4" is harder to melt holes through.  I do it but not for any good reason.  All my enclosures are melted-holes right now so for consistency of aesthetic I have stuck with it.  If I had started with vents earlier I probably would go that route but since I didn't I can't compare fairly.  I have cut holes in acrylic before for aquarium purposes, it's easy.  Lots of online tutorials for that too.  Really almost anything you can think of some 10 year old has made a video of and posted it on youtube lol.  I learned how to move my music from my mac computer to my pc computer via my ipod from a kid on youtube.


Yes ventilation is key to a healthy pet


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