Interest in acrylic DIY video series?

pdxmonkeyboy · Oct 12, 2019

Hey people. I have built about 10 tanks and sumps and have actually gotten pretty dang good at it. It is really easy if you know some of the tricks and which things you need to pay special attention to.

I am building a 1" thick 4x8 in the next week or so.

With a small amount of tools and some patience you can save a LOT of money on tanks and sumps and also make all kinds of shelves and stands and whatever with acrylic.

It costa me $250 to make a show grade 120 gallkon aquarium. Showdow box overflow? $50.

Anyways, just wanted to gauge interest. I have a job and family and cant promise pro level youtube quality, but i will show you what you need to know.

Cheers

Swingline77 · Oct 12, 2019

Brian Bieger said:
Hey people. I have built about 10 tanks and sumps and have actually gotten pretty dang good at it. It is really easy if you know some of the tricks and which things you need to pay special attention to.

I am building a 1" thick 4x8 in the next week or so.

With a small amount of tools and some patience you can save a LOT of money on tanks and sumps and also make all kinds of shelves and stands and whatever with acrylic.

It costa me $250 to make a show grade 120 gallkon aquarium. Showdow box overflow? $50.

Anyways, just wanted to gauge interest. I have a job and family and cant promise pro level youtube quality, but i will show you what you need to know.

Cheers

I'd be interested. I've looked at instructional videos, but always seem to have slight gaps when trying to weld acrylic. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I use 90-degree furniture braces. So, because of this, I've never had the confidence to build something that will actually hold water.

pdxmonkeyboy · Oct 12, 2019

Ok, how are you holding the acyrlic to the furniture braces? I just use spring clamps that will let the piece "fall into place" when I take the pins out.

Are you using pins? Acrylic sheets are pretty flat..but NOT perfectly flat. So stick pins in the joint. Any pins will work but i use acupunture pins because they are long and thin. Now. Here is the part nobody told you.

After the pins are in, give them a pull, some will be loose, some will be tight. On the loose ones, slide a playing card under the bottom of the flat piece. Do this until all the pins are under even tension. Then apply the solvent.

Also.. any dust or oil on the edges WILL interfere with the capilary flow of solvent into the joint.

Make sense?

BiGGiePauls33 · Oct 12, 2019

I'd be down for some instruction.

Ikk · Oct 15, 2019

count me in

FishDoc · Oct 23, 2019

pdxmonkeyboy said:
Hey people. I have built about 10 tanks and sumps and have actually gotten pretty dang good at it. It is really easy if you know some of the tricks and which things you need to pay special attention to.

I am building a 1" thick 4x8 in the next week or so.

With a small amount of tools and some patience you can save a LOT of money on tanks and sumps and also make all kinds of shelves and stands and whatever with acrylic.

It costa me $250 to make a show grade 120 gallkon aquarium. Showdow box overflow? $50.

Anyways, just wanted to gauge interest. I have a job and family and cant promise pro level youtube quality, but i will show you what you need to know.

Cheers

Interested!

pdxmonkeyboy · Oct 23, 2019

Hmm, I was planning to just not do it for lack of interest but I suppose I will. I am cleaning up the shop this weekend and will probably start.

don_chuwish · Oct 27, 2019

Hey if you need an 'apprentice' helping hand I could be convinced to drive up!

The Aquatic Arsenal · Oct 27, 2019

Yeap I am interested. Maybe I could build all the tanks for my storefront

pdxmonkeyboy · Oct 28, 2019

Absolutely Don. What part of oregon are you in?. You can help me pull pins

. I will say that it is not "difficult" to build acrylic tanks. I mean it is not like sculpting or something but you do need a decent table saw a good router table and ATTENTION TO DETAIL.

If you can cut and face the pieces accurately then you are 80% there.

lapin · Oct 28, 2019

pdxmonkeyboy said:
Absolutely Don. What part of oregon are you in?. You can help me pull pins . I will say that it is not "difficult" to build acrylic tanks. I mean it is not like sculpting or something but you do need a decent table saw a good router table and ATTENTION TO DETAIL.

" If you can cut and face the pieces accurately then you are 80% there."

If you cant, you can have the acrylic supplier cut and route the edges. It will cost more, but if its a 1 time tank then you would need to figure in the cost of the tools vs have the cuts done.

eric.tech · Oct 28, 2019

I think a DIY for acrylic would be awesome. There's a lot of good info out on the web, but again as previously mentioned, there are a few gaps in the instruction.

pdxmonkeyboy · Oct 28, 2019

I don't know if an acrylic supplier can cut things accurately enough. Unless they batch cut and route things for you, typically they get within 1/8". For things to work out you need to be in the 1/64" realm of accuracy.

Well, not to "work" but to be bubble free and have no additional bracing and what not. A new bosch router is $100 and the bit is $40. Then you just need a big sheet of 4x8 mdf to mount it on.

Anywho.. I'm trying to get to this as fast as I can.

Dragon52 · Oct 28, 2019

I'm in, dont have the router table but interested anyway.

Reef-junky · Oct 29, 2019

pdxmonkeyboy said:
Hey people. I have built about 10 tanks and sumps and have actually gotten pretty dang good at it. It is really easy if you know some of the tricks and which things you need to pay special attention to.

I am building a 1" thick 4x8 in the next week or so.

With a small amount of tools and some patience you can save a LOT of money on tanks and sumps and also make all kinds of shelves and stands and whatever with acrylic.

It costa me $250 to make a show grade 120 gallkon aquarium. Showdow box overflow? $50.

Anyways, just wanted to gauge interest. I have a job and family and cant promise pro level youtube quality, but i will show you what you need to know.

Cheers

So do you use the pin method?

pdxmonkeyboy · Oct 29, 2019

Yes, that is how the professionals do it.

ToesInTheSand · Oct 29, 2019

I'd be interested. We have build a few but there are always bubbles at some spots. Would love to see how its done the right way.

lapin · Oct 29, 2019

Pins are the way to go.
Having said that anything over 1/2 inch causes me bubble issues.
I found it is easier for me to do a 2 part like sci grip 40 for thick stuff for perfect bubble free seams.

The Aquatic Arsenal · Oct 29, 2019

Ok, so I am sure this isn't the simplest question out there, but is there anyway post a general list of supplies one would need to start out with?

pdxmonkeyboy · Oct 29, 2019

I have been debating about using 2 part as I am working with 1" acrylic. That said, did you finish your edges with a router and blow the joint clean before applying solvent?

I got some home made high quality solvent from James at Envision Acrylic. He told me he never uses weldon and that this stuff will flow better.