1900ish gallon plywood build

[JayM]

Long time lurker... finally signed up...

The wife and I have decided to start a aquaponics muni farm for friends and family.

The tank will be 8'X8'X4'. I have a lot of scrape steels so the entire frame is welded steel. Just like my 150 gallon tanks.

I look forward to any insights the community can offer so I avoid mistakes...

The pics are of the 150 steel frames and the yellow steel is the setup for the plywood tank.

1st item will be... should I spray foam insulation between the frame rails?

Thanks all

 

[jjohnwm]

 

[Backfromthedead]

Interesting approach. Whats the viewing window situation going to be if there is one?

 

[JayM]

I have 4 pieces of acrylic - 2 at 4' X 4' and 2 at 3'X 4' all are 1".
Figure I will do two viewing windows with a vertical center support made from 4" "C" channel.
Will use a full sheet of 3/4" plywood with 2 cut outs - leaving 6" boarder all around and 1 foot in the center.
Cutouts will most likely be rounded and routed for a nice smooth edge.

Still researching best way to mount the acrylic:
Are bolts needed?
Should I make my own - mega o-ring? and use the bolts
Will a pressure fit with fiberglass be an adequate seal? - without bolts

 

[wednesday13]

I have 4 pieces of acrylic - 2 at 4' X 4' and 2 at 3'X 4' all are 1".
Figure I will do two viewing windows with a vertical center support made from 4" "C" channel.
Will use a full sheet of 3/4" plywood with 2 cut outs - leaving 6" boarder all around and 1 foot in the center.
Cutouts will most likely be rounded and routed for a nice smooth edge.

Still researching best way to mount the acrylic:
Are bolts needed?
Should I make my own - mega o-ring? and use the bolts
Will a pressure fit with fiberglass be an adequate seal? - without bolts

IMO… no need to cut/brace the 4x4 windows down. 1” will support 4’ height in 4x4 no problem especially with a 4-6” surround which is already overkill. 4” is more than plenty. I dont think ull need bolts either. Ive done acrylic windows with and without bolts but on pond liner tanks with very little adhesion. Using fiberglass u will have a good bit of “bite”. Just make sure to sand both the acrylic and fiberglass down for the best possible seal/adhesion. The only reason ud need bolts is if ur trying to “free float” the window off the tank bottom like u can do with glass/fiberglass. Seems like ur acrylic will b resting right on the tank bottom tho from ur dimensions, so good to go un bolted. Dow corning brand silicone adheres fairly well to acrylic. So does 3m5200. Any higher quality silicone should work well really with sanding ur materials.

 

[JayM]

Thank you very much sir....
Yes we will be sitting on the bottom, and for even more over kill between the steel uprights I will use a 4" wide "C" channel steel brace at the bottom edge of the window on the plywood side to prevent any bottom kick out movement. Might be overkill - the material is all scrap off job sites so it is better to use on this tank than to sit int he field and rust.

What do you think about spray foam insulation between my steel runners to provide insulation from the floor?
I think it would keep the bottom of the tank a much more stable temperature and reduce the speed of temp swings when we get really cold.

 

[wednesday13]

Thank you very much sir....
Yes we will be sitting on the bottom, and for even more over kill between the steel uprights I will use a 4" wide "C" channel steel brace at the bottom edge of the window on the plywood side to prevent any bottom kick out movement. Might be overkill - the material is all scrap off job sites so it is better to use on this tank than to sit int he field and rust.

What do you think about spray foam insulation between my steel runners to provide insulation from the floor?
I think it would keep the bottom of the tank a much more stable temperature and reduce the speed of temp swings when we get really cold.

Spray foam, or any kind of foam insulation is a good idea. Might be a better idea to just lay ur whole steel frame on foam insulation board and leave that “air gap” under there just in case of a leak. Want that wood to be able to dry out and prevent rot. Heck, i think even heavy mil plastic alone over the cement will act like a vapor barrier against the concrete.

 

[JayM]

Sorry for the pause in posting, we have been dealing with a puppy with cancer.

Cancer Sucks!

 

[JayM]

Here is a pic of the poor guy after having a leg removed. Cancer was localized in the knee.
You never realize how much your chin itches until you no longer have a paw to scratch it with ... Good thing the Humans understand....

 

[JayM]

Had a chance to get back to the tank...