Slate Tile for tank???

[Rebel Souljah]

heres my tank...i have more photos if you would like...and i didn't use any silicone

 

[kzimmerman]

You could also sprinkle some sand onto the silicone, to give it a grout kinda look. I saw something on a website, I think it was reefzone, where a guy used a two part epoxy, mixed sand with it, and formed a bottom. He used wax paper to break it up into pieces for removal. Maybe something along those lines? How big is the tank? It might be possible to get a piece of slate or granite cut to match your tank bottom. Try places that do countertops or tabletops, but expect to pay. Another option, more labor intensive, but more creative, is to take a piece of foam, carve it to whatever countour you want, coat it with epoxy, paint, and silicone to the bottom of the tank. Works well for backdrops, don't see why it wouldn't work for the bottom.

 

[Riv D]

Why not just paint the outside bottom glass a tan or buff color? Just a thought

I've painted the bottom before,you still see the glass, it scratches up after a while.

 

[wow_it_esploded]

Gray silicone would look best with slate, but I would go with epoxy. If you do it right the first time, then it should last forever. If you want substrate down the line from now, you can add the substrate over the slate and it would be ready to be converted back into BB at a later time.

2 part epoxy in a double barrelled syringe is pretty cheap and strong. Like I said, you can get a doubled barrel syringe at Dollorama for a buck. You would probably need 10-15 depending on the tank size.

 

[Riv D]

What If I chose to use ceramic tile?
Or those ceramic(or what ever they are?) tiles for patio table furniture?
Is that safe?

 

[Curly68]

I have tiled a bottom of a tank with normal ceramic tiles. I used an epoxy grout in grey and looks great imo!

 

[Riv D]

I have tiled a bottom of a tank with normal ceramic tiles. I used an epoxy grout in grey and looks great imo!

That's exactaly the type of tile I want.
-Except I would put them right next to eachother to create less of a seem.
Thanks for posting!
Now I know what to get.

 

[Riv D]

OK, I found slate tile.
Then I picked up the cheapest tile cutter I could find.
It didn't work.
-So I resorted to a more primitive method....
The end results so far are ok, but I'm sure once the fish are in there it'll look a lot better.
I used black silicone to seal it.

 

[KLee79]

not a bad idea! makes me want to build a plywood tank and use tile to seal it all. might get expensive, but its more for the look. anyone ever try that?

 

[Riv D]

not a bad idea! makes me want to build a plywood tank and use tile to seal it all. might get expensive, but its more for the look. anyone ever try that?

They were $2 ea.
2 tubes of Black Silicone $12
Total $36
Filled 24"x72"