Building a glass sump

[TimberTDI]

How hard is it to build a sump out of glass? Because of the footprint of my 92 corner bow, I can only fit a 20 gallon under there. I'm thinking of custom building a 30x30x18 with a refugium. I really don't care about aesthetics, just strength. Is it a matter of just siliconing the glass together? I'll work on design and post later on.

Steven

 

[Deanos]

Contact Herman. He has the same tank and experienced similiar decisions in respect to the sump.

 

[aaron]

Technically its just siliconing glass panels together, but you need to make sure you have the right type of silicone. Most silicones say they are not for aquarium use or "below waterline applications" You might be able to talk to a tank builder and find out what kind or brand they use.
The second problem with building a triangular tank is that you need to grind the edges of the glass to the correct angle to get enough contact area for the silicone to stick. This will probably make this project too expensive to bother with.

 

[TimberTDI]

Deanos,

No offense to Herman, but I've been waiting for pics of his sump setup for almost 2 months.

Aaron,
This is going to be a square tank 18" tall. As long as the silicone is 100% silicone it's usually ok. Also the Lowes by us will cut glass to size.

 

[cali_reef]

Acrylic will be much easier to drill and work with.

Otherwise 1/4" thick glass, some GE Silicone II, corner clamps, bar clamps, and some trial and error will get you a leak free sump. 1/8" glass is too thin to play with first time and may not stand up to rough use under a stand with moving equipment in and out of.

 

[TimberTDI]

Acrylic would be my first choice, if I could find a place to cut my pieces to size. I've worked with acrylics before and I'm still picking pieces of melted acrylic out of my table saw.

 

[cali_reef]

Get a 80 or 100 TPI blade, push the acrylic thru fast and you should only have nice clean shavings. better way is to use a 1/4" trim router bit on a large router table.

 

[TimberTDI]

Anyone know where I can get acrylic locally? and Weld-on-4?

 

[regal]

I got mine from this store and he cut out and drilled all the pieces for me. I just have to give him the blueprint. He will also glue them for you for extra. But I did that myself, first timer. Not that hard at all. (He gave me the glue for free)

Julio's plastics in Brooklyn

 

[TimberTDI]

Thanks Regal,

I'll give him a call Monday. How are his prices? How long did it take to get your order?
Steven

 

[regal]

Thanks Regal,

I'll give him a call Monday. How are his prices? How long did it take to get your order?
Steven

I gave him the blueprint and he cut them the same day. Price is great. Mine costed less than $150