While my plywood structure will be glued and screwed, I would like to avoid having to fiberglass in my build. I know silicone doesn't bond well with wood for structural elements, but would a thick bead in the seams bond well enough to water seal? And if it can, is it ok to coat Pond Armor or MAX ACR ontop of silicone?
Wood and Silicone
- Thread starter Deep South Frontosa
- Start date
Why do you not want to fibreglass the corners? All the builds i've seen use the fibreglass and then coated with pond armor. This seems the best way and would certainly give me peace of mind. Sealing the corner seams correctly and ensuring your viewing window is right are probably the most important part of the build on a plywood tank.
That said, i'm an overkill type guy when it comes to aquariums, the thought of a tank fail fills me with horror. Some might chime in and say it's OK to do it your way but I know which way i'd approach it.
That said, i'm an overkill type guy when it comes to aquariums, the thought of a tank fail fills me with horror. Some might chime in and say it's OK to do it your way but I know which way i'd approach it.
I did not fiberglass the seams of my tank. Pond armor states you don't need to do so. I instead used silicone like you are wanting to and they recommend. You CANNOT put pond armor on top of the silicone, and I don't like how it looks because I used clear silicone. My buddy used black silicone, forget the brand, but it looks awesome in his tank that way. Barely even noticeable.
Ok, so silicone is ok, but only once the pond armor is down. Got it. My reasoning for not wanting to fiberglass is pretty petty lol. While you have nightmare about failure, I would never be able to unsee the fiberglassing. There are some seams that I will have no choice but to fiberglass, but I'd rather not fiberglass 12 ft of seems. I won't need it for extra support as the tank will be way overbuilt and fully 2x4 stud frame.