upcomming plywood build.
- Thread starter surfpalmsncycads
- Start date
Yeah, I lost track of which thread was which. Sorry about that.
I do want to quickly add that epoxy resin should be well under 2x the price of polyester. That's for resin & hardener.
Sent from my DROID RAZR using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
I do want to quickly add that epoxy resin should be well under 2x the price of polyester. That's for resin & hardener.
Sent from my DROID RAZR using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
You can reply back in your thread if you like. I'll find it.
Sent from my DROID RAZR using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
Sent from my DROID RAZR using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
Ok so locally here in Hawaii, epoxy resin and hardener will cost me 186.00 per gal. I only need 1 gal, but here's my alternative. What you guys think. Zophar cost 80.00 at my local Ace Hardware Store.
Sent from my LG-P509
Sent from my LG-P509
You could use solid core wood doors rather than osb if you wanted. I am the only person I know of that has done it, but it was cheap and worked well for me.
Heres a link to my build.
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...D-Fish-Tank-FINISHED-Heres-the-results-W-PICS
Heres a link to my build.
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...D-Fish-Tank-FINISHED-Heres-the-results-W-PICS
i have shaped and glassed many surfboards so i would think fiberglassing the joints and whatnot should be easy. after that i can just apply the max acr over everything? the vid from acr shows the entire tank fiberglassed then acr over it. i just want a product to make it water tight, fish safe, and im fiberglassing the corners and joints for strength. i dont want to get too technical. should be a basic build its a rectangle box with a viewing window. thanks for all the help so far. alot of knowhow you all have. and my thread... hijack away. i will only learn more =)
I feel the same way about thread-jacks. I learn more and in this format it keeps the thread bumped up towards the top.
If you can fiberglass a surfboard you can fiberglass a wooden box. Inside, 90* angles are a different challenge but you'll have no issue.
So will you use polyester or the Max ACR to wet out the fiberglass? Will you only use fiberglass reinforcement on the outside or on the inside as well? As far as the video, I think that was Buckdog's build which was discussed in detail in a thread here on MFK. I think he strayed away slightly from their advice in an instance or two. Like maybe by applying epoxy to the entire outside of the tank. Not that they said not to do it but said it wasn't absolutely necessary.
I forgot to comment on the OSB issue. I agree that it shouldn't be used. My concern is not the water resistance or even the strength of the panels themselves but rather the lack of strength when screwing and glueing OSB at corners in a standard edge joint way. OSB does not hold screws well at all, especially when screwed into its edge. This can be overcome with framing, of course, which I think you plan to do anyways. To me the biggest drawback to OSB is the highly textured surface which requires that much more epoxy to wet out.
If I were to build a plywood tank on a budget I'd use MDO. It's not marine rated but has been used to make those large highway signs. The face veneers and some of the interior veneers are saturated with phenolic resin which makes them highly water resistant and super smooth. Smoother the surface means the less resin that is needed to water proof the material.
I have a section of primed MDO on top of an old 55 gallon tank stand on my back deck. I have a camping/extra grill set on it and use it as a work surface for our regular grill. It's been there for years and has sat covered with snow for weeks on end, been exposed to countless thunderstorms and the afternoon western sun. It hasn't warped or delaminated at all after all that. And it was very cheap at the time. I've heard that MDO has gone up in price so I'm not completely sure what the price point is today.
The stuff I bought was one of the cheapest MDOs on the market back then but it was flatter and had fewer voids than marine rated plywood I found locally. It was also almost half the cost.
For what it is worth.
You will mix up a thinned out batch of max acr with w/e you choose to thin it, I used denatured alcohol, and then use that to wet out the fiberglass and apply it to the joints or wherever you so choose. I also put a very thin coat down before I laid the wetted out glass down as well just to help get it on there good which worked out well. I have never fiberglassed or used epoxy before my build and it was really easy for even me to do it so you should have no issues.
I forgot to mention uscomposites.com where I bought my glass sells a corner tool that made laying the glass in the corners a breeze, I'm sure anywhere that sells fiberglass will have a corner tool - do yourself a favor and buy it, only cost like $7 or $8 so well worth it.
