260g acrylic tank overhaul.

[Backfromthedead]

so i managed to score a 7x2x2.5 curved acrylic tank off Craigslist last night. awesome tank but it has been well used. lots of scratches but none appear to be too deep. has a crack in one of the bottom layers of acrylic across the bowfront. lots of crud caked on from where they were keeping river turtles in it.

What do you people recommend for cleaning this thing up. polishing agents? good tools? sandpaper or steel wool? will a brillo pad work? I don't want to make it cloudy but get a lot of these scratches out best I can.

I also have a 1/4" piece of acrylic to reinforce the area where the crack is, but I was just thinking about cutting a piece of plywood to fit the tank, waterproof it and adhere it to the bottom.

Thank you for any and all advice!

 

[J. H.]

I help my grandmother at the museum where she works, and they have these acrylic display cases that get all scratched up sometimes. They have this solvent that really gets rid of all but the deepest scratches.It is nasty stuff, and I don't know what it is called, but it works. You have to make sure the acrylic is clean before you use it, too.

 

[Backfromthedead]

I help my grandmother at the museum where she works, and they have these acrylic display cases that get all scratched up sometimes. They have this solvent that really gets rid of all but the deepest scratches.It is nasty stuff, and I don't know what it is called, but it works. You have to make sure the acrylic is clean before you use it, too.

Yeah I plan to clean it thoroughly with vinegar then start working with the scratches. got a name for that solvent?

 

[Steve_C]

Don't use any solvents or anything you're unsure of on acrylic. To do it properly you want to wet sand the entire tank with a palm sander and 1000 grit then move to 1800-2000 grit. That will remove all the scratches. Then go over it with an orbital buffer and a Novus 1/2/3 buffing kit. You can pick up the palm sander and small orbital buffer from any local Harbor Freight tool supply pretty cheap if you don't already own them.

It'll take about 10-12 hours but it's worth it in the end. I just did my acrylic 240g about 8 months ago and was very pleased with the results. Some people try to avoid wet sanding and just use the Novus kit but you won't be happy with the results unless you wet sand it. The novus kit gets out micro scratches but you will need to wet sand to get rid of the scratches that you can feel with your fingernail so wet sanding first is a must.

Can't help ya with the crack/plywood as I have never done a plywood tank or crack repair but I'm sure someone else can offer help there on that.

 

[Backfromthedead]

also, the tank has a maker's Mark but only half is still visible. the las

Don't use any solvents or anything you're unsure of on acrylic. To do it properly you want to wet sand the entire tank with a palm sander and 1000 grit then move to 1800-2000 grit. That will remove all the scratches. Then go over it with an orbital buffer and a Novus 1/2/3 buffing kit. You can pick up the palm sander and small orbital buffer from any local Harbor Freight tool supply pretty cheap if you don't already own them.

It'll take about 10-12 hours but it's worth it in the end. I just did my acrylic 240g about 8 months ago and was very pleased with the results. Some people try to avoid wet sanding and just use the Novus kit but you won't be happy with the results unless you wet sand it. The novus kit gets out micro scratches but you will need to wet sand to get rid of the scratches that you can feel with your fingernail so wet sanding first is a must.

Can't help ya with the crack/plywood as I have never done a plywood tank or crack repair but I'm sure someone else can offer help there on that.

ok that sounds great. I think you're right about doing the whole thing especially in this case. will a belt sander work or does it have to be a palm sander?

 

[M@T!@$]

also, the tank has a maker's Mark but only half is still visible. the las


ok that sounds great. I think you're right about doing the whole thing especially in this case. will a belt sander work or does it have to be a palm sander?

Can you put some pictures of the scratches and crack?

 

[wannadivesteve]

I'm trying to figure out what you mean by "one of the bottom layers". Has it been repaired before? Usually acrylic tanks have "a" bottom or side or back or top each cut from a single sheet, no layers.

If trying to do waterproofed (epoxy or liquid rubber, whatever) plywood to acrylic, few things bond well to acrylic other than plastics. Acrylic windows work in plywood tanks in large part because water pressure presses the acrylic against the frame and the sealants act as a gasket in a lot of cases. The bottom would be a bit of a different matter quite likely.

 

[Backfromthedead]

I'm trying to figure out what you mean by "one of the bottom layers". Has it been repaired before? Usually acrylic tanks have "a" bottom or side or back or top each cut from a single sheet, no layers.

If trying to do waterproofed (epoxy or liquid rubber, whatever) plywood to acrylic, few things bond well to acrylic other than plastics. Acrylic windows work in plywood tanks in large part because water pressure presses the acrylic against the frame and the sealants act as a gasket in a lot of cases. The bottom would be a bit of a different matter quite likely.

Right I was just hoping to install something to reinforce the bottom of the tank. I have a piece of 1/4" acrylic that i could fit over the cracked section too. the tank is an unusual shape, it's 7 ft long but curved front and back, not really a true bowfront but just a curved tank I guess. it appears to have multiple bottom layers of acrylic to perhaps support the odd shape (?) idk. I've been cleaning the sucker all day since I got off work I'll post some pictures tomorrow when I can get it in the light.

 

[Backfromthedead]

the last five letters of the maker's Mark are "-necor". any idea what brand this is?

 

[Grinch]

Tenecor. I've read that their quality went to crap right before they went out of business... and that their quality was never that great to begin with.