looks really good. I plan on building my own tank and got some good tips from this thread!
thanks!
thanks!
First Tank Build - 400 Gallon
- Thread starter Grant427
- Start date
So I got a reply from liquid rubber. They have a topcoat product available in a few colours and it's tintable. Unfortunately, the person I dealt with was unsure of this product's longevity if completely submersed. You might want to check with nolapete, he has done lots of research into liquid rubber and may have more info.
Your tank and the mancave are looking great. Good luck with the next steps. The painting is awesome, she did a great job.
As far as your question about living up here, you get used to it. If you like outdoor activities (quading, snowmobiling, hiking, etc) you'd love it up here. The bad part of it is lack of conveniences. We find we have to go to Edmonton about 3-4 times a year for shopping (about 5 hour drive). You've probably heard bad things about this town, but it's what you make of it. Personally, I like it up here. For work, you probably wouldn't find a lot of difference here compared to there, maybe a bit colder for longer, a bit longer nights during the winter and longer days in the summer.
Your tank and the mancave are looking great. Good luck with the next steps. The painting is awesome, she did a great job.
As far as your question about living up here, you get used to it. If you like outdoor activities (quading, snowmobiling, hiking, etc) you'd love it up here. The bad part of it is lack of conveniences. We find we have to go to Edmonton about 3-4 times a year for shopping (about 5 hour drive). You've probably heard bad things about this town, but it's what you make of it. Personally, I like it up here. For work, you probably wouldn't find a lot of difference here compared to there, maybe a bit colder for longer, a bit longer nights during the winter and longer days in the summer.
Yah bubbles I'm just going to go with the LR with no top coat for now and hope maybe I won't mind the color it turns. I've never been up there, but for some reason everyone only has bad things to say about it, I agree with you totally about it being what you make of it.
So just got of nights and my glass gets delivered in 2 hours!!! Woohoo finally... Will be installing the glass tonight, test fill Thursday night!
So just got of nights and my glass gets delivered in 2 hours!!! Woohoo finally... Will be installing the glass tonight, test fill Thursday night!
I wish you would not have said that and I wish I would have kept updated on this thread! I built a tank using LR about 2 years ago and did a lot of testing with LR and silicone (GEI). What I found out during my testing was that LR does not adhere to silicone and silicone did not adhere to LR. I tried about everything and came to the conclusion that the two products don't play well together. I have seen posts since I built my tank and did my testing that Dow795(?) worked well with LR but I never tested it myself. I ended up bridging the two products with fiberglass resin and that worked great. You didn't go into any detail on how you put your glass in but I hope you didn't silicone it directly to the plywood.
I had read that Silicone and LR don't mix as well aside from a few exceptions. I went to my local Home Hardware and looked for various Silcones, I found one called WeatherShield Indoor/Outdoor silicone that is safe for aquariums. To test it all I did was cut strips of my plywood and silicone them to an old 10 gallon fish tank, the bond was extremely strong. Not exactly sure what you mean about "bridging" with the fiberglass resin. What I did was LR on the whole tank except for the frame the glass sits in, the glass piece is 79" long and the frame it sits in is 79 1/8" long. When I put the glass in the remaining 1/16" on each side was filled with silicone so no plywood will be exposed to any water.
It's hard to see what I mean in the pictures, but I'll try and sketch something up for you to clarify - not sure why you say siliconing to plywood is a bad idea.
So that paint picture is just showing the upper right hand corner, kind of a zoomed in picture of the 2nd photo I just posted.
Thanks! She actually did two more quick little paintings for that room as well, I'll post a picture of them!
Costs
Stand
(16) - 2x4 8's - $31.84
(300) - Assorted Screws - $5.19
Total = $37.03
Tank
(4) - 4x8 G1S Pine Plywood - $184.88
Fiberglass Resin and Cloth - $103.12
78"x31"x1/2" Glass Sheet - $204.00
(2) Gallons Liquid Rubber - $99.98
(5) AquaShield Silicone tubes - $19.89
Total = $611.87
Grand Total = $649.90
Hoping that is the last of the costs for the build
My silicone has said it cured in 24 hours, it's been about 23 hours now and when I was cutting away the excess on the front the middle of the thicker beads is still wet, must take longer to cure if your beads are thick I guess... so no promises on a test fill this weekend, but I'm sure hoping for it!
More fish paintings
A Oscar and a Jag!
