The Tenecor® Pico DIY Drops March 2nd, 2024

[Stang67]

Second thought on the "One cross wise left to right above the AIO back." Being that it will be rather narrow and thin this piece most likely will warp over time. Reason the lids are Polycarbonate and not Acrylic.
Worst case some corner triangles would tie the sides together without impeding on the open space too much.

Corner triangles are above my pay grade

 

[Jim Gomoll]

Corner triangles are above my pay grade

Few scores across and snap it off. Easy peasy

 

[Stang67]

Few scores across and snap it off. Easy peasy

 

[Tenecor Aquariums]

Rather have the whole top open. Similar to a rimless. Would like mangrove in main area not sump. Never got answer from Tenecor re if brace was necessary or not.

First of all, "lid" is what sits on the"top". If you don't use a top the walls will bow out. Not right away but eventually. If you decide to go with a top and cut out one side of it, that wall will eventually bow out. We have tanks coming with thinner perimeter tops. Other companies go the budget route and leave off the top assuming the tank will eventually end up in a landfill in three years. They probably are right. We have a problem with making things last longer than they should. There are thousands of 25 plus years Tenecor tanks out there.

 

[Stang67]

First of all, "lid" is what sits on the"top". If you don't use a top the walls will bow out. Not right away but eventually. If you decide to go with a top and cut out one side of it, that wall will eventually bow out. We have tanks coming with thinner perimeter tops. Other companies go the budget route and leave off the top assuming the tank will eventually end up in a landfill in three years. They probably are right. We have a problem with making things last longer than they should. There are thousands of 25 plus years Tenecor tanks out there.

Thanks! I appreciate the info! I am going to leave it open for the time being as I don't anticipate having it running for more then a few years. I get bored very easily and when the time comes to redo it I will be sure to add the top to it. That little lip along the back is prohibitive for the top off and clip on light I have. I am very pleased with the tank and the ease of construction. Looking forward to more projects with you in the future.

 

[danimal1211]

I figured this question was related enough, what’s the best way to attach epoxy covered magnets to acrylic sheet. Superglue isn’t a very strong bond

 

[Tenecor Aquariums]

Thanks! I appreciate the info! I am going to leave it open for the time being as I don't anticipate having it running for more then a few years. I get bored very easily and when the time comes to redo it I will be sure to add the top to it. That little lip along the back is prohibitive for the top off and clip on light I have. I am very pleased with the tank and the ease of construction. Looking forward to more projects with you in the future.

Are these going inside the tank? If so, silicone might be a good option. If on the outside, a small bottle of trial and error seems to be a good choice. Or of course, silicone.

 

[danimal1211]

I think you meant to reply to my question. The magnets will be submerged.

 

[Jim Gomoll]

First of all, "lid" is what sits on the"top". If you don't use a top the walls will bow out. Not right away but eventually. If you decide to go with a top and cut out one side of it, that wall will eventually bow out. We have tanks coming with thinner perimeter tops. Other companies go the budget route and leave off the top assuming the tank will eventually end up in a landfill in three years. They probably are right. We have a problem with making things last longer than they should. There are thousands of 25 plus years Tenecor tanks out there.

Food for thought. Not mentioning another company here but the original "desk" versions with the colored bottoms came without a Eurobrace. New versions have a thin border only around the display area. The AIO wall going all the way to the top, underside of the brace with about a 3" x .25 shot in the middle for overflows. The brace ties all three sided of the display together leaving the AIO area open and connected by the baffles keeping the back wall from bowing out. This design leaves the AIO area open without a top brace which does not get in the way of light mounting or in/out of a removable media basket. On ours the brace around the back wall/AIO forces a smaller media basket to be made if not just using the one shelf with the kit.

 

[Tenecor Aquariums]

Food for thought. Not mentioning another company here but the original "desk" versions with the colored bottoms came without a Eurobrace. New versions have a thin border only around the display area. The AIO wall going all the way to the top, underside of the brace with about a 3" x .25 shot in the middle for overflows. The brace ties all three sided of the display together leaving the AIO area open and connected by the baffles keeping the back wall from bowing out. This design leaves the AIO area open without a top brace which does not get in the way of light mounting or in/out of a removable media basket. On ours the brace around the back wall/AIO forces a smaller media basket to be made if not just using the one shelf with the kit.

The "original" desk versions were made by us in the 1980s with full wet dry AIO's. We were producing around 120 to 220 per day. Different world back then. We figured out quickly that without tops these tanks will bow out. If you want to toss these into the trash in three years, we can crank them out fast and cheap. But that's not our game. That other company markets to a certain clientele. Our customer base is different.

 

[tbrown]

@Tenecor Aquariums here's what I was thinking:

Not the best quality, sorry, no napkins nearby.

Overall length is 12.25" overall height is 5", overall width is 5.25". Each strip of acrylic is 5" wide, cut to lengths shown - (1) 12", (2) 12.25", (2) 5", (3) 4.875". Bottom is inside, ends are inside.

Each dosing chamber would be 2.9" x 5" x 4.875" and hold just over 1000 mL (1 litre) if filled to the top.

Makes sense I hope?

@Tenecor Aquariums did you see this?

 

[Minifoot77]

@Tenecor Aquariums did you see this?

It's his anniversary man leave him be!!

 

[tbrown]

@clarsen28 and I built the Picos today! Headed to the store for silicone to install the rear chambers.

 

[Tenecor Aquariums]

Posting on this thread as well

DIY DROP OFF UPDATE

>>>

More coming.

 

[tsharpe291]

very helpful tips! thank you

 

[dansyr]

what are people's preferred acrylic magnet scrapers / sleeves? For not scratching acrylic, have seen the horror stories vicariously but never had a serious enough acrylic tank. I've seen a few suggestions through searches but figured this might be a nice place to find a consensus.

 

[Minifoot77]

I use the flipper one that uses credit cards

 

[Jim Gomoll]

Magic Eraser and credit cards

 

[Jim Gomoll]

All glued up with Weldon-4, left to dry for 2 1/2 days/60hr. Half way through 24hr water test.

Chose Electrical tape to hold edges together since the elasticity of the tape acts like a clam pulling the sides together. Only used the blue tape for mock up and holding pieces together while gluing. Prior to applying Weldon I firmly adhered one end of the ET strip to one piece being glued, applied glue, and then stretched tape before adhering other end.

Anyone doing any edge prep before gluing?

Originally thought of flame polishing but watched a video that pointed out the heat changes the acrylic properties which will cause ugly crazing when glued together. This process is only good for non-glued pieces.

Did this quick edge clean up test on the last panel after seeing how the first 3 sides have tinny stipes or bubbles after being glued together. Wet sanded last piece with 600 & 1500 on a flat surface a little to see if the edge appearance would clear up any. Since this was only a quick test I didn't spend allot of time sanding but after this I most like will allot more in the future and possibly include some buffing of the edge. You can see in the middle picture below that some sanding knocked off the outer edges more than the center and looks clearer when glued up compared to the non-sanded panels that go all the way across the edges.

 

[OutColdCRNA]

Love the little tank! My 9 years old decided it was going to be hers. So freshwater started tank it is!