you honestly do not need internal bracing, it does not ad structural strength unless built to do so. Building it to do so would require it becoming a frame which would have been much more useful to build around rather than into. An external pressure frame would be more useful for what you are going for. It prevents the flex from the outsie rather than the inside, double bonus, no extra drilled holes. In fact you are flirting with disaster adding more drilled holes, they are the truest weak point in a build. A lot of people have had to scrap one or more walls on their build and cut new ones because they pokes a hole through the sie while pre-rilling holes because they were just off center. .. gl on the build
First plwood tank build started..... with pics
- Thread starter joey02
- Start date
good point. i figuered adding them would help. i actually have no idea, but have seen other builds do it so i thought it wouldnt hurt. Based on my design, do you think i need more bracing for a tank this size? internal or external?Rivermud;3042290; said:
Is your lid going to be attached? Screwed in? If so, you'll have quite a lot of bracing. However, if you want to be secure, build an external frame around it to prevent the possible flex from the water pressure. You can use the space for all sorts of his, like insulation etc.. possibly filtration.. hope those thoughts helpe. i just felt i neeed to give you both sies, you can chose for yourself from there.. I've personally seen very very few tanks with internal braces like what you were speaking of.. I honestly don't think you need the extra bracing but then it's your personal peace of mind, not mine
I would say the extra bracing would only be there for your personal peace of mind but not necassary especially if the top is screwed on. just like alot of the DIY tanks and stands on here are way over built. some of the tanks on here are built to withstand 10X the water pressure that they could ever hold. your tank will be plenty strong enough.I wouldn't worry about the 1x1's or 2x2's like it was aid the more holes you poke in your tank the greater the risk of a leak.
This is all very helpful and inspirational. Its good to know that something like this will work just fine, you don't have to build an army tank of a aquarium for it to work.
looks great. i also agree that more bracing is not needed. it would be nice but i think more holes outways it. if anything maybe a rim for the window. other than that a bit of flex won't hurt anything. have you looked into how the sealant will behave over time? if it turns brittle more bracing might be a good idea to eliminate flex in the future. all screws are predrilled and liquid nailed right?
stocking and filteration?
stocking and filteration?
All seams are wood glued heavily and then screwed every 2-2.5 inches with wood screws. I didnt use liquid nail, or predrill the holes. I wasnt aware they had to be predrilled. will this comprimise the build? I read of garf.org how to put it together and they didnt mention this.
Stocking will be freshwater stingrays. I have an 8inch disc female motoro that will be going in it, and i will either get a male for her, or add my 7 discus. But im leaning more towards two rays.
Lighting will be a 48 inch power compact coralife 130watt strip, two E300 watt hagen heaters(the new type), and filtration will be either one FX5 and a wet/dry, or two fx5's. Since i have a 6.75 inch lip, i have no idea how i'll get the fx5 on it, so i may plumb the fx5 threw bulkheads in the back of the tank.
decor will be white sand and maybe a couple pieces of wood/silk plants.
Stocking will be freshwater stingrays. I have an 8inch disc female motoro that will be going in it, and i will either get a male for her, or add my 7 discus. But im leaning more towards two rays.
Lighting will be a 48 inch power compact coralife 130watt strip, two E300 watt hagen heaters(the new type), and filtration will be either one FX5 and a wet/dry, or two fx5's. Since i have a 6.75 inch lip, i have no idea how i'll get the fx5 on it, so i may plumb the fx5 threw bulkheads in the back of the tank.
decor will be white sand and maybe a couple pieces of wood/silk plants.
Great idea with the liquid rubber; been using a similar product to seal concrete ponds for a few years with good success. I can attest that it sticks to plywood quite well too ( I make plywood weirs or waterfalls coming off of header ponds). Your build inspired me to give the liquid rubber supplier a call here in ontario (zavlar guy) It sounds like they havent done many trials regarding whether its safe for potable water or fish friendly. One thing he did say though is that although its impermiable to moisture, the material will turn a brown color after its been in contact with water. He also claimed it has a certain 'selfsealing' ability if nicked. Just blowing smoke I wonder? It just makes me question how inert it really is. If the material did release something into a pond, the volume may negate any ill effect...but in an aquarium...I really hope this works well for you as I definitely want to use it in a future build myself. Its cheap and easy to find here in canada....
