chuck

If you have never worked with acrylic before I would advise against build a tank for your first project. 1st Marc makes it look easy , 2nd it only take you to drip alittle bit of solvent to trash a piece of acrylic. The "glue" is water thin and take some time to get use to working with it. If working with acrylic interest you start with smaller projects first like overflow boxes, frag racks, small sump ect. I remember seeing him say some where that even with all the work he has done with acrylic that he wasnt even comfortable build a tank of any size. If your dead set on building your own use glass I build several back in the early 90's it not that difficult but I found that the price of the glass almost equals what you pay for a pre build unit unless your doing some of a odd or custom size.

Oh btw Chuck welcome to the site glad to have ya lots of good people here to help you out with any unknowns

Ty DJ in WV

I look forward to meeting people on here and learning. I tried sw many years ago with no success due to not taking the time to learn what I was doing. Not taking that approach this time.

I am a woodworker by hobby and am building a bookcase that I want to place 2 "nano" tanks and a sump in

what size tank are you looking to build LxWxH nano is a little different story but on the other hand a far as careing for them is much hard to care for due to the fact the water chemistry can change so quickly. but plumbing 2 nanos into the same sump would help with that issue

On another note, I have an acrylic aquarium and I do not like it. It is very difficult to clean and easy to scratch. My next tank will be glass for this reason alone.

Originally Posted by DJ in WV

what size tank are you looking to build LxWxH nano is a little different story but on the other hand a far as careing for them is much hard to care for due to the fact the water chemistry can change so quickly. but plumbing 2 nanos into the same sump would help with that issue

i am looking at something in the neighborhood of 24w x 20w x 16h
was thinking the same thing... plumb the 2 into the same sump

as for scratches???? i have never owned anything but glass but the acrylic sure offers the weight advantage

I have thought about this too and found these videos and you want to talk about making it look easy this guy is worse the Marc. Food for thought any way but like midnight said the scratch's are the main issue and my dream tank is a Marineland DD 250gal so i don't think i would be comfortable doing one that big. Welcome and keep us posted
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYhfV7SvoRs

If you clean the acrylic with a MR. Clean sponge (without any soap additives) you won't scratch the acrylic.

thats alittle over 33 gal . 2 of those and a sump would get ya about a 80g system which would remain pretty stable. One thing about acrylic is you can buff out scratch pretty easy

Wow Mustang! Last night I stayed up late watching the videos of that guy building the tank. Makes ya wanna try it; he made it look simple.

Tell me about it but i still think i will probably go with glass for my realistic dream tank.

@DJ inn WV that is about what i calculated also... i was hoping that would be enough to be a stable system Am thinking about doing one as a reef and the other as a "fuge" and then the sump underneath

@Mustang thanks for the link awesome information and your right he makes it look very easy I have got to try this

have to finish designing the bookcase and build it... then i will work on the sump and aquariums for it

i will no doubt need help with figuring out the plumbing, pumps, etc when i get to that point and will ask for suggestions

thank you everyone for your feedback

Lots of good conversation. You really should practice on something smaller to get your feet wet. Learn and make mistakes on something smaller so you don't mar your final display.

I won't run a reef in an acrylic tank because it is so prone to scratching. I got to meet a hobbyist in the Boston area that has a stunning acrylic reef in a plant-filled sunroom. He has a method of erasing scratches that works, but he's a meticulous guy with the patience of a saint. I'm not wired the same way, and opt to use glass. Starphire glass is softer than regular glass because it has a lower iron content; I use credit cards to scrape it clean, and a normal cleaning magnet to erase film algae.

Originally Posted by melev

Lots of good conversation. You really should practice on something smaller to get your feet wet. Learn and make mistakes on something smaller so you don't mar your final display.

I won't run a reef in an acrylic tank because it is so prone to scratching. I got to meet a hobbyist in the Boston area that has a stunning acrylic reef in a plant-filled sunroom. He has a method of erasing scratches that works, but he's a meticulous guy with the patience of a saint. I'm not wired the same way, and opt to use glass. Starphire glass is softer than regular glass because it has a lower iron content; I use credit cards to scrape it clean, and a normal cleaning magnet to erase film algae.

Marc I am going to practice on the parts for the sump first and just practice putting scrap pieces together. Does it matter if you use extruded or cast acrylic for the sump internal pieces? What size router bit is best to make the teeth in the overflow?

Cast acrylic is stronger and more clear, but for a sump extruded is fine.

I use a 3/8" laminate trimming bit for the teeth.
http://www.melevsreef.com/acrylics/teeth.html

Originally Posted by melev

Cast acrylic is stronger and more clear, but for a sump extruded is fine.

I use a 3/8" laminate trimming bit for the teeth.
http://www.melevsreef.com/acrylics/teeth.html

Thanks

I am going to make the template you show in that link and then use a router bushing