Acrylic Tank Build - Bubbling in the seams..What went wrong??

Adambowersva

Feeder Fish
Jan 19, 2012
3
0
0
Chantilly va
I took advantage of the long weekend to work on my acrylic tank build. When it came time to weld the seams the Weld-On 4 went in clear as glass with no bubbles, but as minutes passed and it set bubbles developed. In almost all cases the bubbles are on the inside and outside edges of the seams but the middle of the seams remained clear. What happened?

Edge prep was done with an acrylic scraper to remove saw marks. Acrylic pieces were set in place and assured to be on a proper 90 degree angle prior to use of Weld On. Capillary action properly drew the Weld-On in and as said seams were perfect upon application, but developed bubbles as they cured.

I'm perplexed as to what would have caused this. Any insights???
 

cvermeulen

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Jun 4, 2007
1,876
3
36
Los Osos, CA
Read this: http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/diy_acrylic_aquarium_3.php

^^until I found that writeup, I had the same issue. I'm fairly thoroughly amazed at how many people say all you have to do is put the pieces together and throw some weld on #4 at it. I had a sump split apart and flood my house because the seams weren't done with the pin method.
 
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