# diy tank is up and running!



## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

here she is sofar...till i get some drifwood from home this weekend!!!


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

another


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

lighting wich is screwed into my lid


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

i'll getcha some better pics later as these were taken at nite w/ way too mcuh flash...made the inside and water look crappy...enjoy :nod:


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## Fresh (Feb 8, 2004)

that's gangsta right there


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

thanks! i love the way ti looks and my p is lovin to too!!! he's one hell of a lot more active since he's got a bigger house


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## Phtstrat (Sep 15, 2004)

Very nice man, wish I had time to make one of my own.


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## P-Rex (Sep 12, 2004)

nice!
what did you use to coat the plywood? the thing Im worried about is your lighting. With the condensation inside the tank Im pretty sure the light fixture will rust. Also did you use a metal hinge on your lid?


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## phreakah (Sep 20, 2004)

wow, nice lookin tank!


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

> what did you use to coat the plywood? the thing Im worried about is your lighting. With the condensation inside the tank Im pretty sure the light fixture will rust. Also did you use a metal hinge on your lid?


well to coat it i used a bunch of epoxy resin...the home depot brand...tested it out on a bunch of fishies for over a week b4 i was gonan put my p in there and they were fine.

as for teh lighting , yeah i was considering the same thing wit it rusting, and have been thinking about coating that in epoxy too.

and as for the hindge i used a piano hinge that goes teh entire way across teh back of the lid...makes it really easy to lift up and do maintence

thanks for the comments


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## Atlanta Braves Baby! (Mar 12, 2003)

One thing i never understood about these diy tanks. How the heck do you stop the wood from aoaking up the water?


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## DC_Cichlid (Jun 24, 2004)

Atlanta Braves Baby! said:


> One thing i never understood about these diy tanks. How the heck do you stop the wood from aoaking up the water?


 You coat the wood with layers paint on seals. Just like they use in fish holding tanks, made in some older boats, and things like that.

Congrats on the tank dude, it looks PIMP!


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## Atlanta Braves Baby! (Mar 12, 2003)

DC_Piranha said:


> Atlanta Braves Baby! said:
> 
> 
> > One thing i never understood about these diy tanks. How the heck do you stop the wood from aoaking up the water?
> ...


 And this is good long term in the tank? Or overtime does it need to be re-applied?


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

it's good long term....i've seen cases where these tanks have lasted 10 yrs + w/o recoating. i used a pure epoxy resin instead of paint....asically makes a plastic shell between the water and wood,,....and the sh*t is strong as hell...i ended up killing some paintbrushes and now their only use is ice scrapers for my car











> Congrats on the tank dude, it looks PIMP!


and thanks...i'll throw up some new pics w/ beter lighting 2day


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

here is a lil better of a pic...w/o flash


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## Cobra (Sep 25, 2004)

Very impressive ......ii mite make my own .....but how do u fasten the glass cover onto the wood in front? will that area be more prone to leaks? also does a wood tank weigh a lot more than a glass one?


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

you use aquarium safe silicone...can get it @ home depot at liek $3 a tube..and i used 1.5 tubes to attach mine...works great!


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## Cobra (Sep 25, 2004)

But can silicone bond wood to glass?


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

yup....as long as it's a nice smoth surface it does it nicely...adn as for weight...um...bout the same prolly...i don't really know


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## saminoski (Jun 3, 2004)

dude that thing looks sweet!


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## pats&theoverfor... (Jul 28, 2004)

killer. super nice work.


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

thanks!...really wasn't that hard to make...i mean i never had any wood working skills b4 this project....only took metal shop for a year in hs....


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## BAMBINO (May 29, 2004)

no offense but it kind of looks sketchy


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

and how's it look sketchy?


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## P-Rex (Sep 12, 2004)

TheGreatHoe said:


> > what did you use to coat the plywood? the thing Im worried about is your lighting. With the condensation inside the tank Im pretty sure the light fixture will rust. Also did you use a metal hinge on your lid?
> 
> 
> well to coat it i used a bunch of epoxy resin...the home depot brand...tested it out on a bunch of fishies for over a week b4 i was gonan put my p in there and they were fine.
> ...


 do you have your P's already in that tank? if not just keep some feeder fish in there for about a month and watch for rust on the light fixture. If it is starting to rust, I don't know maybe coat it with epoxy too or you can cut a hole on the lid the shape of the light fixture and put a glass or acrylic sheet then just place the light outside, on the top of the lid.

the last 2 pics looks awesome


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

yeah i've already got him in there...and i'm monitoring that light watching for rust.....how woudl that rustolium stuff work?


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## elTwitcho (Jun 22, 2004)

Very cool dude, I'd move some of that equipment out of the corner because it's a bit of an eyesore but other than that it looks awesome


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## TheGreatHoe (Jun 19, 2004)

> Very cool dude, I'd move some of that equipment out of the corner because it's a bit of an eyesore but other than that it looks awesome


yeah i know...i'm gonna do that as soon as i get a sump set up....i have a fluidised bed on it so i don't need a wet dry, so it'll jsut be a sump to hold my sh*t and myke the tank look pretty


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## redbelly4 (Sep 13, 2004)

cool tank it looks nice in the dark


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## Slim (Jan 9, 2005)

Here is my DIY plywood tank. 
the measurments are 5 foot long, 2 foot wide and 20 inches tall.
Very long process if you dont have alot of time. 3/4 inch thick plywood oak, sanded the whole thing done for nice smooth surface, then stained the outside of the tank. fiberglass the inside. Its pretty costly so make sure you do it right the first time. about 35 dollars a gallon. put 2 layers of fiberglass on . Than I used 1/4 thick glass and siliconed it to the surface were it belonged and siliconed the corners of the fberglass just to make sure it was safe let dry and dry and dry. Than let it sit for a week with water in it to make sure it would hold it and there it is. Very nice setup of a 125 for around 200 dollars a piece with stand even.


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## galland (Nov 7, 2003)

I would of bought glass.


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## Slim (Jan 9, 2005)

I would not ask you. Its fun to build stuff, maybe you should try it sometime instead of sitting there on your butt in front of your computer and your fish tank all day.


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## Fresh2salt (Jul 16, 2004)

looks good


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## Fido (May 21, 2003)

look great, where are the threads for these projects?


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## galland (Nov 7, 2003)

View attachment 46701
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Slim said:


> I would not ask you. Its fun to build stuff, maybe you should try it sometime instead of sitting there on your butt in front of your computer and your fish tank all day.
> [snapback]868160[/snapback]​


Hey Slim,
I built my house and the 300 gallon oak stand my buddy and I are sitting on. That's a small 120 gallon tank sitting on it. As for me I'm a PT and a 4.0 student in med school right now. I've been building things while you were just a twinkle in your old man's eye. Not trying to flame you but opinions are opinions. I just would have bought glass.


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## PacmanXSA (Nov 15, 2004)

How much money did you save doing this yourself?

Is that approximately 55 gals?

Pac


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