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DIY 300'ish Gallon Tank... The Start

28K views 126 replies 28 participants last post by  BigDaddyK 
#1 ·
Finally talked the Wife into letting me start my first Plywood Build :dancing:

I have 2 kids and a second job so I can't promise much in the way of speed on this but I started my 300 build tonight. My ultimate goal is to use this tank as a learning curve to build an 870 gallon.

Last night I managed to procure the Plywood (forgot one sheet :( )

Tonight I started on Gluing pieces together as I am not using 2x4 structure on this one. I only managed to get the back piece glued up at this point hoping to get all the cuts for the sides done tomorrow so I can work on it later than I could tonight (4 yr old early bed. Light sleeper etc)

Here's what I managed:

Glue on the First Sheet


Clamped and screwed the second sheet to the first (note the foreman in the window)








Feedback??
 
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#4 ·
Well got a little further tonight. Here's a pic or three

for reference, a shot of the back of the tank against my tv stand. tv is a 42".



Getting ready to put the back up.



I really screwed up in gluing both pieces together before getting them secured to the tank. 1.5" of plywood is much more difficult to bend than 3/4" plywood. It has a slight bow from sitting in the pile and that bow is proving difficult to deal with at this point. Luckily a friend contacted me to see where I'm at and hopefully before end of tonight I'll have a photo of the back and at least one side.
 
#5 ·
What a task getting that 1 1/2" plywood into place... it was NOT easy. I'm whoooped. Got it into place though I'm happy overall but its not as precise as I usually accept. I broke 2 clamps trying to force things into place. I have to deal with a 1/16" out of square tank. Really not pleased with that but it was clearly not going to get any better. Here's a shot of the back in place.

 
#6 ·
Coln said:
Never thought of doing that, looks a good way to go will be following your build :thumb:
Coln glad to have you on board for the journey. I read through your build while I was planning things out. The 1 1/2" Ply I think is a good plan overall but the bowing is definitely something I didn't consider.

Shawn Stone you're right the screws are def. not needed to be honest they were used exclusively to hold the two sheets together while the glue dried. I could def. take them out now but why?
 
#9 ·
I hate to tell you, but the bowing is due to the fact that your sheets were not sitting on a flat surface when you glued them. When you laminate two pieces in a bent state, they stay bent.

I use this effect on purpose for laminating scaffolding planks. I bend them a bit and then laminate to introduce a camber. Then when you stand on them they do not sag.

to achieve a flat lamination you need to oppose any cupping in the two sheets and clamp the assembly to a flat surface.

I hope you are planning on euro bracing the top of that tank, otherwise you have a serious point of weakness in the front corners.
 
#10 ·
pistolpete
Yes I know. I realized hours after I glued. Really disappointed in myself on this one. I know better as I am a hobby carpenter. I had some company watching me when this happened and we were talking while I was working and I made a mistake. Fortunately I had planned on bracing from the start anyhow so I can still make it work. To be honest I'm more frustrated with myself than worried at this point I can fix it.
 
#13 ·
I don't understand. With no framing, what will keep this tank from ripping apart at the seams once there is water in it?
 
#15 ·
Know need to be frustrated live and learn. I am going to be watching your progress and applauding every step of the way. Good luck.
 
#16 ·
the tank will not blow apart because glued and screwed joints are immensely strong. Much stronger actually than the silicone holding regular tanks together. The other part of the equation is the box shape of the tank, which provides rigidity. IMO Bigdaddyk is going way overboard with his plywood thickness, 3/4 inch byrch plywood would be enough for this build.

For peace of mind, many people embed glass cloth in the epoxy coating at the corner seams. This makes a plywood tank even more bullet proof.
 
#17 ·
Thnx for the Kind words and constructive advice all.

pistolpete I think u'r prolly right with overkill but i wanna sleep at night and I have a wife that is not 100% behind me on this build. having the "I told you so" has kept me thinking of the possibilities and how to avoid that possiblity
 
#18 ·
Haven't done much for a couple of days. Had Family visiting over the weekend and last night was a recovery night. Hoping to build the Sump's tonight. The way I built the stand dictates that I'll need two sumps I'm thinking about joining them together and having the pump external. I'll try and get a rough sketchup tonight to get input from the experts :)
 
#19 ·
I screwed up bad last night. Against my better judgement I bought and tried to install a piece of pine to pull out the bowing knowing full well that it'd be too weak but due to some $$ "savings" I thought I would try it.

Just so I could make a bad move worse I glued it into place using outdoor wood glue. I gave it approx an hour to set... let the clamps off an the bowing was pretty much as bad as it was before. I worked as fast as I could pulled all the screws and cracked it with a hammer all that did was splinter the pine to toothpicks..... Looks like a night of chiseling and or getting the circular saw out and testing my horizontal cutting skills...
 
#22 ·
Hey big! So I see your going with pond armor.. I think it's a great choice.. I have been digging through loads and loads of info on sealing my project.. It will be similar to yours.. 375 gallon pond.. I have decided to go with black pond shield.. I think black is the absolute best choice.. I feel no matter the fish color (unless its black) a black background will compliment the fish the best..

I am buying 2 differnt colors.. First coat will be blue and the second coat black.. The reason I am doing this is because I want to be sure the second coat completley covers the first.. This is not a must but I figure I will most likely need more than one can for possible future tanks and the sump I'll be building for my pond..

Wanted to know if you are planing on putting this right over the plywood or will you be lining the tank with a mason board first?? Butch from pond armor suggested mason board as an added safety precaution.. For one the pond armor will adhere better to the mason board and the glue between the mason board and plywood will add a little cushion and allow some flexing..

I really want to do it as simple as possible.. So I have decided to not use mason board and just use the Pond shield over the plywood.. I'm sure this will work our fine if the tank is properly built.. One thing I am thinking about adding is a fiberglass mesh or fiberglass tape for the corners.. Going to use either a bondo putty or possibly the pond armor to coat the fiberglass into the corners..

I know you didn't ask but I figured I would put out some info on the product.. This response was started in your background color section but I figured I'd put in your DIY thread.. Good luck!! :thumb:
 
#23 ·
stefan88 said:
Hey big! So I see your going with pond armor.. I think it's a great choice.. I have been digging through loads and loads of info on sealing my project.. It will be similar to yours.. 375 gallon pond.. I have decided to go with black pond shield.. I think black is the absolute best choice.. I feel no matter the fish color (unless its black) a black background will compliment the fish the best..
I did go with Black. It's on order and I'm trying to get in touch with Butch to see if I can track it. I do have a Black oscar but it's mostly coppery red and my background is black in my current 135. He's a NINJA in that tank LOL

I am buying 2 differnt colors.. First coat will be blue and the second coat black.. The reason I am doing this is because I want to be sure the second coat completley covers the first.. This is not a must but I figure I will most likely need more than one can for possible future tanks and the sump I'll be building for my pond..
Great Idea but I already ordered 2 Black

Wanted to know if you are planing on putting this right over the plywood or will you be lining the tank with a mason board first?? Butch from pond armor suggested mason board as an added safety precaution.. For one the pond armor will adhere better to the mason board and the glue between the mason board and plywood will add a little cushion and allow some flexing..
I am not using (or at this point planning on it) mason board. To my knowledge I've never found that TFG did that on any of his builds. I can't say it's a bad plan at all but it would interfere with the dimensions of the tank and glass and that can't happen any longer

I really want to do it as simple as possible.. So I have decided to not use mason board and just use the Pond shield over the plywood.. I'm sure this will work our fine if the tank is properly built.. One thing I am thinking about adding is a fiberglass mesh or fiberglass tape for the corners.. Going to use either a bondo putty or possibly the pond armor to coat the fiberglass into the corners..
Avoid using Bondo. In my experience bondo and water are not very compatible. If it were me entertaining this idea I'd be going with some type of resin for fiberglass. It's actually meant for the tape and it's water resistant.

I know you didn't ask but I figured I would put out some info on the product.. This response was started in your background color section but I figured I'd put in your DIY thread.. Good luck!! :thumb:
Glad to have the feedback! I'm glad to have additional thoughts and feedback
 
#25 ·
I'll quote roughly on this as I don't have the reciepts. I also haven't picked the glass yet. I really want the StarPhire but I don't like the extra $200.

Plumbing - $180
Plywood - $130
2x4's - $50
Screws - $60
Glue - $30
Pond Armor $200
Glass - StarPhire - $440
Glass - "Regular" - $240

I'm hoping to be out for < $1000. I have not purchased any of the finishing material. I'm considering finishing with drywall when the tank is in it's final place to make it look mostly like a wall instead of a tank and stand.

Remember I'm in Canada so some of the $$ might not match up to what you lucky devils down south might get away with .
 
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