Mehaffy's 1100+ gallon Plywood display in North Alabama
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- Thread starter mehaffydr
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OP
OP
I currently do not plan to. Not sure of your reasoning but I had urchins in my past tank and I did not like the way they devoured my Coraline. I like the purple rocks and they really cleaned it off.
OP
OP
That would really be a bummer. I will leave the urchins to others. I guess if they can scrape Coraline off of rocks they could sure scrap epoxy and fiberglass off of plywood.
h2so4hurts
Active Member
I'd worry a bit about not using a void free marine grade plywood on a tank this tall. Looks great though and if you do 3 layers on the bottom and about as many at the seams it should be fine. Glass windows are smart (I tried an acrylic window on a plywood build and it was no bueno). Good luck!
OP
OP
I currently have 2 layers of fiberglass on the bottom and 3 on the sides. I will have 3 on the bottom and I think I will add 1 more for a total of 4 on the sides and I will have 6 or more on the corners. Originally I looked fro marine grade plywood but could not find that in the 5" x 10" sheets and I did not want any seams. This is exterior grade but not Marine. I am also considering building support walls around the tank but haven't decided if that would be necessary yet so still on the fence on that. The bottom is well supported so I really have no concern for the bottom. I did a lot of research prior to starting this build and quickly decided that acrylic and plywood are not a good idea. also my current tank is acrylic and I hate to clean it so decided glass was the way to go.
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NO. WAY.....I have decided to go ahead and start a build thread for a massive undertaking that originally started a couple years ago and is now really getting going with the exciting part. First let me say like others I am not a carpenter by trade but I think I have some really good building skills. Otherwise I would not be considering this.
I have been keeping fish for over 35 years started with freshwater and then went to saltwater and Reef about 13 years ago.
My wife and I moved from Missouri to Alabama in 2012 and at that time I moved my 225 gal Reef tank which was actually a success but a ton of work and planning. But my wife does not like my tanks in the house so the first thing I had to do at the new house was build a building for my tank. YES build a building. Below are the pictures of this project. Is is 20'x30' and I did every bit of the work myself framing, electric, plumbing, roof, everything. Except for the gutters because I did not have a roll former and wanted seamless gutters. From the beginning I called this a Pool House so that I could get my wife's full support. It includes a 1/2 bath, Tanning bed and Sauna along with outdoor shower.
End of Phase 1
OP
OP
Thank You its been fun so far except for the Fiberglass part.
OP
OP
Thank You
h2so4hurts
Active Member
The weakest seams are the ones at the edges. You're already fiberglassing the entire thing. Butting marine grade plywood is the safest option. Baltic Birch is 13 plys, they ultrasound the board and remove all voids. There is a lot of weight in a system this tall. You might want to think about a finish layer with woven mat to add structure. I'm surprised you're doing so many layers of stranded chop mat. Typically its woven, followed by chopped, followed by woven at a bias (or rotate 90 degrees) which adds extreme structural integrity. Tanks this big should be built like inside-out boats. I'm really not trying to be negative, you've done a great job. I just had a build like this blow up on me so I'm trying to share what I learned in that process. Do what you will with that!
OP
OP
I do appreciate the info the whole purpose of this thread is for everyone to learn from success or mistake. This is the first time I have ever worked with Fiberglass. I used the chopped strand because what I read while researching is that it provides strength in all directions and woven is more unidirectional. But I do like to idea of woven and alternating layers that does make sense. I may order some woven and add more layers.
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h2so4hurts
Active Member
If this is your first time fiber glassing be sure to get a very good fiber glass roller. Getting the bubbles out is critical! Like, the most important part. You may have seen this already but fiber glassing 90 edges is impossible. Round everything to 3/4" and you'll be golden. For the corners and edges that absolutely have to be 90, like your window rabbits, use a 90 roller. Those are the weakest seams by far and if you have an air bubble in any of those it's just a ticking time bomb.
Check every seam before moving on to the next layer, sand out any large bubbles, repair and then move on to the next layer
Check every seam before moving on to the next layer, sand out any large bubbles, repair and then move on to the next layer
OP
OP
Thank You
I did do a lot of research and watched a lot of videos before I started this project. I bought a variety of rollers and I am being very careful about air bubbles. All of the videos made a big deal about them so I figured that I better be careful with them. I did get a couple on the second layer so I cut them out sanded the area and them mixed some resin and pulled apart some of the fiberglass mat and mixed that up to like a thick paste. I put that in the areas that I cleaned out and rolled it out with the roller and then sanded it down smooth before starting the next layer. Since then I have not had any more air bubble issues.
OP
OP
Your welcome to come visit anytime
I will for sure you working on it this weekend
You remember this thing? It’s grown a bit
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