So I started to build my aquarium a couple days ago, and I got to the point where I was going to fiberglass the entire inside of the tank. One problem, I SUCK at fiberglass, all the people that say it's not that difficult must have way more experience than I do. The wood working was simple but I really think I screwed up with the fiberglass. I wetted the fiberglass cloth and tried to lay it but I couldn't get it to stay put very well, then all the strands were coming off and getting stuck to my gloves making it impossible to work. Anyway long story short I ended up pulling off all the cloth that I laid, and I just spread all of the resin around on the bare wood. Did I totally screw myself by doing that? I was kinda hoping I could just spread the resin all around then after it hardens, coat it with a epoxy paint. I was really looking forward to posting pictures of my build with details, but right now i'm so irritated I could care less about posting pictures. BTW I tried multiple times to work with the cloth and now I have resin with no cloth on 3 sides of the tank. Please some one give me advice, because right now I want to throw the thing in my fire pit.
250 gallon plywood glass.
- Thread starter Rmelz
- Start date
Did you use fiberglass mat, fiberglass cloth or fiberglass roving?
And what type of resin did you use?
All is not lost. You may just end up with a thicker layer of protection, which is not a bad thing.
I went out side and tried to chip off the resin, but it won't come off. I also tried to sand it but it's going to take forever to get it all off, if I even can get it off. Will it crack and peel over time, or am I ok just to sand it smooth and leave it on there.
Well I tried a heat gun, and a scraper and it was working pretty good, but really slow. So then I tried a grinder with a flapper wheel. It worked really well, but to aggressive. From the research i've done on a bunch of boating forums, the poly resin without a mat will not stick to wood very well over time. So now i'm going to get a orbital sander with some very aggressive sandpaper. Hopefully that works. I have another question though. Can I use drywall fiberglass mesh seam tape, and poly resin for the corners, instead of fiberglass mat?
Are you sure you used cloth and not mat? Go to Google Images and look up "fiberglass mat" and "fiberglass cloth" and tell me which one you used. I don't mean to question you but fiberglass mat is often referred to as fiberglass cloth. Point being once you know what you have I'd suggest going to YouTube and looking up tutorials. Not that it's that much different but you might find some specific tips for mat, if that's what you're using.
I haven't fiberglassed in years and I never felt great at it so I don't want to try to teach you. If you did use cloth I'd be surprised since I always found it easier to use.
Years ago we built a huge plywood brine shrimp tank and had spots where the mat sort of clumped up. We just knocked it down a bit and went over it with more polyester and mat and just took more care. I did hold water once we were done.
Wheatgerm just used fiberglass drywall tape on his build. I'd suggest reading that thread.
that is what happen with fiber glass. for corner is ok but for a big flat surface you need a metal roller to remove the bubble on the fiberglass and smooth it out. Its the tools that you must have when working with fiberglass.