does any one know of any other ways to make an aquariums out of plywood water tight?

Question

i have read about using epoxy resin and fiber glass fabric and lining the inside. or using a pond or pool liner strapped inside. please no comments on this cannot be done becasue i can produce 1/2 of a dozen or more websites that say other wise. i was merly wondering if anyone had read about this and had another idea besides epoxy, or a linear.
this is for my two turtles and i know thickness of glass is corelated to water depth.

Answer 1

Here are a few sites I found that lists how to in detail. Hope this helps!!

Swell UK:
http://www.swelluk.com/articles/build-your-own-aquarium.html

Malawi Cichlid The Art & Science of Fishkeeping:
http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/panis/plywoodtank.htm

A Successful Mix of Water and Wood by Bob and Jacquie Goad
Aquarticles: ( Pictures in numbered order of steps)
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Goad_Build_An_Aquarium.html

Free Aquarium Plans:
http://www.freeaquariumplans.com/assembly.htm

Indiana Aquarium Hobbyist: ( Photos and fairly detailed measurements): http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.indianaquariumhobbyist.com/images/madanply/ply032.jpg&imgrefurl=http://indianaquariumhobbyist.com/community/modules.php%3Fname%3DNews%26file%3Dprint%26sid%3D37&h=369&w=492&sz=29&hl=en&start=16&sig2=xjFxosJA9rIPQrWvzka0pA&um=1&tbnid=wZgpRnBFAeiacM:&tbnh=97&tbnw=130&ei=YcdKRvuKCp_WggPt1JTfBg&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmaking%2Bplywood%2Baquariums%2Bwatertight%26svnum%3D30%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN

Tank Ideas:
http://fins.actwin.com/fish/killietalk/month.9810/msg00221.html

Take Care!!

Angel

Answer 2

OK, let me get this straight.... you are trying to make a wooden box that will hold water?

For turtles, most of us use pre-formed plastic things- commonly things like large plastic tubs, children's wading pools, plastic stock tanks, pre-formed garden pools, etc.- depending on money , size needed, and what it needs to look like when done.

Most of these have the advantage of being cheap, light (when empty), and easy to work with. Many people take one then 'frame it' with nice wood to make it more visually attractive for display purposes.

I have no idea what size of tank you are looking to make, but I'd probably build it around a pre-formed plastic thing like mentioned above. There is no way I would mess around with any resin/fabric mix- incredibly messy and hard to work with if you are unexperienced. (It sounds easy, but it aint!)

You can try some other options:

- Build your wooden box. Make sure the seams are as tight as possible. Line it with thin pastic (plexiglass, acrylic, etc.) panels glued to the plywood with a thin layer of silicone adhesive, then caulk the seams well.

- Build your box, then buy a thick 'pool liner' sheet and carefully lay it in the box- , folding the edges over, like wrapping a box from the inside. Wrap the liner over the tank edges, add a nice piece of trim along the top, and cut away any visible liner on the outside.

- Eh, why keep on? Using a preformed plastic shell is just plain and simply the smartest way to go!

Answer 3

I used to build 250 gallon plywood tanks and I used deck screws and epoxy to hold the box together then I painted the inside of the box with swimming pool paint. Hard to find swimming pool paint that does not contain an anti-fouling agent to keep down algae these days. Next install the glass front with a quality aquarium sealant.

Answer 4

Yeah, this sounds a little wierd, but, I would suggest using L brackets on the corners for extra stability. Just make sure the screws are shorter than the thickness of the plywood. Check out drfostersmith.com for tank sealants or get the 800 number off the site and call. I don't think epoxy would be safe unless you gave it a really long time to cure.

Answer 5

Hello...other then for reptile enclosures why would any one want a wooden tank, wooden frames with a tank inside would be the better way to go for aquariums..no wood is ever going to be "WaterProof" the way glass or plexiglas is, not too mention the water proofing needed is toxic. .. I know this from over 25 years in the boat repair business !! Take Care :)

Answer 6

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Answer 7

you must have a lot of time on your hands google it and work it out most people won't know how to do it its your progect you figure it out, this is the lazy way besided some one could give you the wrong information and you could kill your namial.

Answer 8

why dont you pay 25 dollers and go buy one...