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Building Your Own Tanks

Some questions have been asked of late about tank building, while I do not claim to be an expert, I have built many tanks.The following is a basic guide on putting a tank together.

First things first!. When cutting , try and cut to the center of the glass, if you try and cut off a 1" strip (for example), the break would not be square, but would lean towards the narrow strip. When assembling the tank, the sides, front and back are placed on TOP of the base. Silicone can be any 100% silicone, I use DAP, and GE brands from the builders supply.

As far as precision, the front and back can be cut close, as the sides fit inside these pieces. The two sides must be cut exactly alike. After cutting, place the two sides together, and place on edge on a piece of glass. If the edges do not aline,(one slants away from the other), then turn one piece only and try to re-match.If this still fails, try turning that same piece end over end. If that fails, try cutting another!! The easiest way to cut in my opinion is with a Square.

After cutting, "sand" the edges to take off the cutting edge. You can get silicone carbide sandpaper from a glass company. If you are doing a few, it is worth ordering a belt for a belt sander. You have to keep the belt moving, but it is a lot faster.

No jigs are used during assembly, clean the glass and stack in "like pieces." Place the base in a position where you have room to work arround it, and place a box about 1" behind it. The back is the first piece to glue, run a bead along the bottom edge, and stand it in place on top of the base. Lean it against the box for support. Next run a bead along two edges of one side. Stand it in place on the base, and raise the back into an upright position against the side. Gently squeeze the two and remove the box. "Wipe" your index finger along the bead to smooth and press into the corners, inside and out. Wipe once only, if you try to wipe again later in the process, the silicone will ripple. Next bead two edges of the other side, and stand in place, and wipe the joints. Bead the base of the front, and the edges of the sides, and stand in place. Wipe again , and then do a final alignment of the pieces. You will be able to slide the pieces for about 5-10 min depending on temp.The entire assembly process will take about 10 min after practice.

Glass thickness depends upon tank dimensions, I use 1/4 " Plate Glass for tanks up to 30 gal. A 40 gal can be built with this glass, but a center brace would be needed. I recomend 30 as the largest size for 1/4" glass. When buying thicker glass, the price goes UP!

It goes without saying, glass is very sharp, and you will cut yourself until you get the feel for it. Then you will cut yourself even worse!!

Written by Ian Buckley