GTA Aquarium Forums banner

Suggestions on building/buying a water tank

Tags
acrylic tank
2K views 5 replies 4 participants last post by  kevinli1021 
#1 · (Edited)
Hello,
I hope it is alright to ask for help for something not related to fish or plants...

I need a 10"W x 10"L x 48"H clear water tank (Approx. 20 Gal) as a part of an experiment that I'm hoping to do for my Master's degree thesis. It will only hold tap water. I've used most of my research funding to buy other materials and equipment, so now I only have a few hundred bucks to work with.

First, Plastic World didn't know how thick my tank should be, but gave a quote of $57 or something (forgot to write down the exact price) for one 10" x 48" acrylic sheet with a thickness of 1/2".
Primo Reef Acrylics gave me a quote of $375 for a custom-made clear acrylic tank with a thickness of 1/2".
Toronto Plastics didn't give me a quote. Told me their thickest material is 1/2" and my tank is too high to use 1/2" acrylics.
Miracle Aquarium told me that they don't make the acrylic water tanks, and the cost for a custom-made glass tank will be about $700.
NAFB don't make acrylic tanks.

1. Is there any other stores in GTA that make acrylic water tanks?
2. Will it be safe to use 1/2" acrylic for a 10" x 10" x 48" high water tank?
3. If I should use 3/4" or thicker acrylics to be safe, I guess the cost will just be too high. Would it be possible for me (with no experience) to just buy the sheets and successfully build a water tank that won't leak? Or, is it too risky? :$

I would really appreciate it if anyone can answer these questions or give any suggestion for the tank.

Thank you for reading!
 
See less See more
#2 ·
48 inches tall is going to require something very strong. I am not sure how glass and acrylic compare but to give you an idea, a 24 inch tall glass tank should have 1/2 inch glass. I would think 3/4 glass at least for 48 inches tall.

I do have some ideas for you though, you can get food safe 50 gallon barrels. They aren't clear or 48 inches tall but fairly tall. You could maybe cut out a hole and patch it with acrylic to make a section clear if this type of idea can work for you.

if you only need one side clear, maybe you could look up plywood tanks and how to make them and do it that way.

I am pretty sure a clear tank of the size you want would require a huge expense even in just materials if you made it yourself.
 
#3 ·
Thank you so much for the suggestions!
I don't think the pressure will be really that high since it's only 20 gallons of water. But, like you said, I guess 1/2" is too thin for the height.
I can't really change the tank size. Plywood tank with one clear side seems like a viable option tho.
Now I have more research to do :D
 
#5 ·
+1 to what pyrrolin on material thickness. It's not so much about water volume but height.

For research purposes, yes, flat panes will make observations much easier w/o distortion. IIRC, I have seen 4' sections of 10" diameter acrylic but not sure what the cost.

Last resort will be adding 1/2" acrylic square "rods" to the corner to give an extra bonding area.

HTH
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top