New to aquaria building

[Muskoka Chef]

hello to all of you on this list.
I am a relative newcomer to the DIY crew and need some information. I am interested in building myself a tank but need much information that does not seem available in any category I am looking at.
The space where the tank is going is an opening between living room and hallway, dimensions are approx. 75cm wide, 1 metre deep and as tall as 3 metres(if I want). The ends of the tank will be the walls of the opening(one side finished plaster, the other open brick) and
the sides will be open to view from either angle. I would like to construct this from acrylic(less weight) and need to know what the thickness needs to be. As for the ends, could I just use 10mm sheets as the walls are giving the strength to the structure? The bottom I am going to use the existing floor witha 10mm sheet of acrylic(unless that is foolhardy?)
any help would be appreciated,
thanks

 

[Acrylics]

Chef,
Try to pinpoint exactly how tall you want to make it first. Going up to 3 metres high gets real thick and REAL expensive. I would suggest no more than 1 metre especially for a DIY project.
If you went 1 metre high, you are looking at about 18mm acrylic/Perspex given the length of 75cm, just to give an idea.

James

 

[Muskoka Chef]

Acrylics;
thank you for the information. By Perspex do you mean some sort of concave/convex material or is that just a brand name? Also, why the hesitancy for something taller than 1m? I would like to be able to have a tank that is a chunk of the reef with various depths or at least that is what I am aiming for!
dave

 

[Acrylics]

Acrylics;
thank you for the information. By Perspex do you mean some sort of concave/convex material or is that just a brand name? Also, why the hesitancy for something taller than 1m? I would like to be able to have a tank that is a chunk of the reef with various depths or at least that is what I am aiming for!

Dave,
Perspex is a brand name of acrylic but also a generic term for acrylic used throughout much of the world. Not knowing your location (not many in the US spell "metres" the way I learned ), I used both - apologies for any confusion.
My hesitancy for gowing taller than 1m is two-fold.
1) The taller you go, the thicker acrylic is required and therefore much more expensive as well as 2) substantially more difficult for most DIYers. A 3m tall tank is a helluva project for most DIYers and one that *most* would probably not attempt.

Now these may not be issues to you, but you did mention you were new to the DIY crew and if this is one of your first DIY aquatic projects, will certainly be a challenge. If you are an "advanced" DIYer or similar tradesman but just new to these parts, then the sky's the limit and I'll try to answer all that I can

HTH,
James

 

[Muskoka Chef]

James;
thanks for the info. btw I am in Canada, that is why I spell metre that way!
So what you are saying is that I should only make basically attempt a cube that is 1x1x1m? Are my original assumptions of 10mm bottoms and ends all right or should I use thicker against the wall?, and how about 18mm for the sides(view) is that thick enough?
dave

 

[Acrylics]

I am in Canada, that is why I spell metre that way!

So what you are saying is that I should only make basically attempt a cube that is 1x1x1m?

For the most part, yes. Would be a rather messy and expensive lesson should you make a 3m tall tank and it not hold. I would suggest making something smaller to "get your feet wet" first.

Are my original assumptions of 10mm bottoms and ends all right or should I use thicker against the wall?, and how about 18mm for the sides(view) is that thick enough?

If firmly supported by beamed wall, then 12mm would probably be fine for the ends, 18mm would be preferable. If the stand is flat and level and fully supporting the tank, the 10mm should be fine for the bottom. 18mm would be the minimum for the viewing panels as well as the top though 24mm would be preferable for these.
Generally speaking 90cm in height is where we start going to 24mm acrylic rather than 18mm. Since this tank is not long, I would think you could get away with the 18mm without difficulty.

James

 

[fishfogg]

Just woundering, how would one go about buiding out of cement for the two sides, the bottom and the back go, with a sheet of arcyrilic for a veiw pannel.

thanks