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Bought a busted 180!

12K views 37 replies 17 participants last post by  Eb0la11 
#1 ·
I made the plunge and bought the 180g tank I had talked about HERE
First I had to come up with $100 so I cleaned up the stash of old iron my grand-dad left me back in the woods and carted it off to the recycler


That got me $180 so hopefully I should be able to buy the materials for the DIY sump and stand as well!
Its a TRUVU 72x24x24, Keep in mind it is sitting on an 8' banquet table!


After inspection it turns out the left side seams split on the front and back from the water freezing not the bottom as originally told. You can see the "white" about half way bown here..


It came with Weld-on 4, weld-on 16, some 1/2" acrylic square stock, and the Novus polishing system. I plan on first trying to glue the split seams with the weld-on 4, if that fails glue in the square stock with the weld-on 16, and if THAT fails, buy a 24 x 24 piece of 3/8 cell cast and cutting out the old and replaceing the whole side... Any advice from the veteran acrylic tank builders is appreciated!
My wife thinks I need to be committed but so far we aren't out a dime and the junk got hauled away!
 
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#2 ·
Ordinarily you would put pins in a crack but you might have to use a board to wedge in and pull the crack apart just enough to get the solvent in, then remove the board. Tape up the contct spots the board could touch so that there are no mars to the tank. Well, looking at the tank's picture, no more mars!
 
#3 ·
Mcdaphnia said:
Ordinarily you would put pins in a crack but you might have to use a board to wedge in and pull the crack apart just enough to get the solvent in, then remove the board. Tape up the contct spots the board could touch so that there are no mars to the tank. Well, looking at the tank's picture, no more mars!
:lol: Yes I know it truely is a diamond in the rough, Really not many scratches more of a haze and scum from the old water. I am going for the "Before and After" so I took these first pics from when I first brought it home.
I was (and may still) going to use the pins to hold the crack open and allow the adhiesive to wick in. Thanks for the idea of wedging in a board to spread the gap, I was thinking how I was going to open it enough to get the pins in :thumb:
 
#4 ·
Here's a trick that might help, I use it in woodworking all the time. Put the hose of a shop vac up next to the crack then inject glue on the side opposite the vac tube. The vac should pull the glue into the crack and possibly out the other side of the crack. Works great with wood but I'm not sure how well it would work with acrylic and the Weld on...
 
#5 ·
matpat said:
Here's a trick that might help, I use it in woodworking all the time. Put the hose of a shop vac up next to the crack then inject glue on the side opposite the vac tube. The vac should pull the glue into the crack and possibly out the other side of the crack. Works great with wood but I'm not sure how well it would work with acrylic and the Weld on...
My uncle used to do something similar in a way. :fish: He'd drop a Sears sump pump into the Atlantic to pump saltwater into his shrimp tanks. When it rusted out in two or three weeks, he got a new one. You and my uncle must both be really hard on electric motors! :dancing: Of course with the Weld-on which is highly flammable, you could have the marshmallows on sticks waiting for the flames to shoot out the shop vac muffler! :popcorn:
 
#8 ·
lloyd said:
those two boat hulls could have made for a nice pond set up. :(
:lol: Not those! They were taken back to the woods 20 years ago when there wasn't enough left to patch. Rusted through and you could fit both feet through the holes! I saved the good 14' steel hull and my 10' aluminum john boat. After all, In not only like fish, I like TO fish.
 
#11 ·
bentcountershaft said:
Have you starting any experimenting with it yet, or still in the research stage? I wish I had some acrylic experience so I could offer advice but I don't so I won't. I'm just hoping you have some luck with it, as it would make a great tank.
Thanks for the intrest and support! While you were posting this I was out in the garage working on it. I cut a piece of 2" PVC I had to 6'1" long and wedged it inside the tank spreading the crack on one side, inserted pins on the crack then rolled the tank over so that side was down. I used masking tape to isolate any accidents. Then applied the Weld-on 4 with a squeeze bottle and needle. It seemed to wick into the crack like it should. I pulled the pins and used a tie-down ratchet strap to wrap around the tank and a short piece of wood over the crack to apply pressure while it dries. Looks good this morning but I'm gonna let it set a day before doing the other crack...
 
#14 ·
stuckinthemiddle said:
what do you mean, "pulled the pins"?
Once I had the piece of PVC wedged inside the tank to spread the crack open, I inserted pins in the crack to hold a small gap. When I applied the adhiesive, it could easily flow though the crack because if the gap. After about 30 seconds I removed the pins working from one end to the other and the gap closed uniformly. This was to keep any air bubbles from being trapped.
Hope that is more clear. Looks good now i need to do the otherside tonight.
 
#15 ·
Well here is an update. I have the tank repaired, quick tested and then polished with the Novus2. Now on Fathersday I framed up the 72"L X 24"W X 36"H stand and capped it with 3/4 B-C plywood. Last night we carried it out into the yard and made sure it was level (trick to find a level sport in my yard). Filled it up and now it sets for what I hope to be 3 days. I would think if it holds that long we are good to go.
Next will come the 3/8 sheeting, 4 doors, canopy and getting it all sanded, stained and varnished, plumb the sump, then the final polishing with the novus1 and it goes into the house!!!
Thanks to all for your stand projects for guidance. Hopefully "Irkedcitizen" and "Mcdaphnia" will approve :D :p

 
#17 ·
Time for an update. I finally got the plywood sides on, sill and the doors sanded and stained.



Then after 3 coats of semi-gloss polyurethane I mounted the doors. I bought the wood Friday for the canopy and got it framed up. here is where she sits tonight. But I still got a long way to go....



 
#18 ·
How do you move that sucker around? Gotta be some hard work.

Looks unreal though. This is the kind of project I want to take on someday. I've done quite a bit of cabinetry, worked as a cabinet maker for a couple years so someday I'll be doing a custom cabinet for a massive tank I'm sure.

This looks pretty sweet though. Makes me want to upgrade my 120 to a 180 but I just did an upgrade from my 50 to 120 like 4 months ago lol.
 
#19 ·
Lookin good Hoosier..... :thumb:

I almost have my canopy complete… I should be able to post some pics in a few days…

I ordered some support hinges that may interest you…..(I order the 65 to 95 lbs)
http://woodworker.com/cgi-bin/FULLPRES. ... rt%20Hinge

I should have them by Wednesday … I will let you know how they work…

.
 
#21 ·
Thanks for the props all, I am really getting stoked on this and spending a lot more time on it than "Weekend filler work" :lol:

Eb0la11 said:
How do you move that sucker around? Gotta be some hard work.
Ha, I got 4 daughters 23, 22, 21 & 20... so there is ALWAYS a strapping young man around...

CICHLUDED said:
I ordered some support hinges that may interest you…..(I order the 65 to 95 lbs)
Thanks for the link, I'll be watchin your build, my tank has 2 really small cut-outs for openings in the top, only 6 1/2"x23". So I put 1x8s in the front and back of the canopy and a 1x10 in the center that will be hinged, that gives me room for my "DIY lights with a twist" I might need to use a pair of the weaker supports :thumb:

greenbirds said:
What are your stocking plans?
My mbuna are outgrowing their 40 long as predicted by many here and started breeding like rabbits (or more!) So it's going to be their new home, with more of the same...
 
#24 ·
Now you know why I spend so much time with my cichlids, in the garage with my DIY's, and on the computer... not to mention my avatar :p :lol:
 
#25 ·
WOW Hoosier!!!! We have 4 daughters too (no boys) but we spread them out a little :lol: The oldest is 31 (I had her when I was 10 :wink: just kidding) and the youngest is 18. Wait until you start getting grandkids...that's when the real fun starts.

You're doing a great job on that tank and stand :thumb: Looks awesome. Can't wait to see it done and full of fish.
 
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