how do you make nice silicon edges when making an aquarium?

[frdchang]

hello,

i am going to make my own aquarium, and before i go about experimenting.. i was wondering if there was any tips to making straight and clean silicon edges when assembling a glass aquarium.

i was going to outline the corners with tape first...then pass silicon over them and rub a concave shape with my fingers.

then when it dries, i score the silicon then rip the tape off to make something that is straight.

anything else?

 

[Anonymous]

That seems like all you will need to do. To help make the bead look nice rub only in one direction and keep your finger clean of the buildup that will happen.

 

[ChrisRD]

I pull the tape right away before the silicone dries or gets tacky. Less work and a cleaner edge IMO. Also, just run your finger up the seam once - don't keep messing with it.

HTH

 

[LA-Lawman]

there is a little tool made by the company DAP. it is a small thin plastic little shovel that bends back and forth. it is used to help even beads of sealant on windows and such. it has a nice blunt-round tip that if you drag it over at max pressure it forces the sealant into the crack and leaves a perfect little edge... it gives you graduations that you can trim for your sealant width...

it was $2.99 at home depot and it came with a tube of Dap acrylic sealant....

hope this helps...

 

[frdchang]

thanks for the information.

 

[Anonymous]

nothing beats a damp potato

 

[Anonymous]

nothing beats a damp potato

HUH?

SHare the trick!

B

 

[Anonymous]

Vitz me boy, you are showing your age with that one.....


:lol:


I would rather make potato soup with my potatoes....

 

[Anonymous]

old fishheads trick



peel a potato 1/2 way, only on one end, and cut to a rounded elipse (should look almost like the end of an egg)


run it up the seam-the moisture of the potato prevents the silicone from sticking to it, and the curve meets the corner in a fashion to produce a perfect seam-the rounded end pushes it into the corner, and the arc on each side thins it out perfectly to meet the glass pane

adjusting the size of the end of the potato by cutting is all that's required to work in smaller tanks

 

[Anonymous]

I still prefer a nice potato soup, or a pile of mashed taters and gravy, or some of Mom's scalloped potatoes....

 

[Ricordia]

I used popsicle sticks when I partitioned my nano. They have the perfect round shape, are displosable, and were really cheap.

Ricordia