# plywood tank help...



## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

what do you use to seal it up? im looking for the cheapest crap i can get, i want the roll on kind. and i want it to be available at the local hardware store no specialty stuff thats a million bucks. 

if i cant find this cheap enough ill be going with a rubber mat type deal for a over the top view only plywood tank built for on my deck.


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## grogan (Jan 23, 2011)

you get what you pay for bro. simple facts


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Not always, there's some cheap crap that works. I don't plan on it lasting me a lifetime but threw summer would be nice. If I can't find something cheap I think the rubber matt would work with a few staples and tube of silicone.


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## jamestanker (Jun 30, 2012)

When I used to build plywood tanks for greenhouses to raise Tilapia we would paint the inside with a fiberglass resin you can buy at homedepot 

Never had any problems. Each tank had a footprint the size of one 4X8 sheet of plywood. you can raise thousands of tilapia fry in a tank that size.  

We had 8 of these wooden tanks we used a plastic drum to create the filter. 

Good luck with the project


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

1 sheet of 3/4" plywood will build a 120 gallon tank..cut it into 4 pieces each measuring 24 x 48.....cut one of those in half..24 x 24...cut one to 24 x 46 1/2..that will be the bottom..2 pieces 2" x 4" x 48"..front and back top brace...screws every 2 inches....
i use sherwin williams paints..either tileclad II or polane b...i only use black...but they cost more that 5 or 10 bucks a gallon....lol
what you could do is line it with heavy black visqueen.(plastic sheeting)...i think you can get a roll that is 10' x 25' used for the garden for just a few bucks.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Thanks John I'm going to go get the pricing for all of the stuff I need iv gt a few sheets of plywood laying around from a past project so I'm thinking all ill need is the liner. 

Now the paint your talking about, that's for the outside only correct? I was possibly thinking of maybe just maybe putting in a couple small glass panels from a old tank of mine. But how do they get them to sit in there? Is it just silicones like crazy on? Or is there a trick to doing this?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

i use those paint for the inside and outside...they are 2 part epoxy paints that are water proof and will last a long long time.....i have built dozens of plywood tanks of all sizes and i love them...you can build one to fit a certain spot where glass tanks don't match it...painting them black allows the fish to feel more secure which means they will exhibit more color and hide much less...
for the window a hole is cut in the front of the tank prior to painting..after the paint has cured lay the tank on it's face on saw horses..apply silicone sealer around the edges of the hole..this is a two person job..maybe even 3...lay the glass in and center it....press edges of glass to spread the sealant..lay some bricks wrapped in towels around the edges of the glass and let cure for 24 hours..remove the bricks...run a small bead of sealer around the edge of the glass and smooth...cure 24 hours..
you are ready to go..

very often i see people throw out a big tank because one of the panels broke...they see a worthless broken tank..i see 4 brand new tanks with at least 2 of them with the potential to be even bigger than the original tank...
lets say you find a 150 gallon tank with a broken end panel.if you take it apart you will have 4 pieces of glass..
1 piece.....18 x 72
2 pieces 25 x 72
1 piece 18 x 25
from the 18 x 72 piece you build a plywood tank 22H x 78L x 24D = approx 175 gal.
18 x 25 piece....22H x 30L x 30 D = approx 85 gal.
25 x 72 pieces...2 tanks...30H X 30D X 78L = approx 300 gal
you could even make them a little bigger...
now who wouldn't want tanks like that....


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## snyderguy (Feb 9, 2010)

What is a plywood tank??


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## jamestanker (Jun 30, 2012)

A tank built out of Plywood of course!


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## jamestanker (Jun 30, 2012)

Its usually coated with a waterproof sealant ( epoxy , fiberglass or some other safe product)


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## snyderguy (Feb 9, 2010)

So the framework is plywood, but I assume there's glass or acrylic within the framework?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

1 sheet of plywood 4' x 8' x 3/4"......
2 peices of 2" x 4" x 48"
1 sheet of 1/4" clear plate glass..
lots of screws..wood putty
silicone sealer 2 part epoxy paint
a little time..a little work..a little patience..

= 120 gallon tank.
i got my first plywood tank in 1973..a year of later i got another..in 1975 i built a 240 gallon plywood tank 2' x 2' x 8'....when i got divorced in 1985 i sold the tank to a friend....it is still being used todaor rather it was last time i talked to the guy about 3 years ago..y...


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Usually one side is glass so you can see in. But think about it, do you watch your fish through all 5 glass sides? Maybe 3 at most. Not the bottom or the back. Glass for big tanks is really thick and heavy and expensive.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

I'm going to check out the epoxy paint today, do you still use the rubber Matt then?


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

John, do you have any pictures of a plywood tank you have set up? since iv been looking at monsterfishkeepers.com im kinda mind set on trying this out. i just dont want to asks someone there and get bashed lol


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

the sherwin williams tileclad II is less expensive than the polane "b"....after a couple of good coats of that you will not need any rubber mat or the plastic sheeting.
keep in mind that cuts have to be extremely straight...and you should fill in the seams with wood putty.
i don't have any pics of my wood tanks as they were sold long before there were digital cameras...
i will try to draw up a set of plans for you and will mail them....


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

alright that would be awesome John, iv built a tester tonight about the size of a 10g tank and put a tarp in there just to see if what i have could hold water. 

kinda like a ghetto floor model of a house it works pretty good i did a screw every 2 inchs on all sides using 1/2 inch plywood. so far its been sitting with water in it for about 4 hours or so now. im going to grab some over the sealer paint the inside of this and test it to make sure it hold water then ill try the bigger tank. i found a guy on craigslist selling big sheets of plexiglass that are 1/8th inch thick. do you think something along them lines would work for a 150-200g tank?


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

just checked the tracking on your box, should be there tomorrow by the end of the day.


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## funlad3 (Oct 9, 2010)

1/8" thickness is way too thin. I'd look in the neighborhood of 1/2 inch, give or take 1/8th. I've never built a plywood tank, but I ca tell you that every panel on just a 125 gallon tank is 1/2". I wouldn't go any less than that.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Alright thanks, I figured for the price it would be to thin. It doesn't really need a window anyways because I'm going to use it for outside as a possible goldfish tank that's viewable from the top only. Kind of set up like a pond type deal. Lot of plants no filters I'm looking to build 200ish gallon set up I'm playing with the idea of a 300g that would be wide and tall. My demo model is drying right now and I'm going to let that sit for a week with water before I attempt this build.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

If its outdoors and permanent, you can put concrete blocks around it and put a bench seat on top so you can sit and look down at the fish I think you can do it with just concrete blocks and a liner, but you'd need soft rubber under it to keep the sharp concrete from tearing the liner. Plywood sounds like less trouble. Sounds like a great project, post pics.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

That sounds like a good idea, I just filled my small demo and not to surprised but with just a silicone bead around the edges it leaks like crazy. So it's deffinantly a must to do a thick sealer or rubber mat. I put just a thin coat of the sealer on the inside so I'll try to make it thick and start on the real build soon.


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## IAoddball (Jun 19, 2012)

When I waterproofed mine, I used a product called rubberizeit. I got a 5gal bucket for $50 and barely used 1/2 the bucket ( I also did 6 coats to ensure it was good ). I also sealed my edges with fiberglass resin, as well as the 1/2" plexiglass for the front. But that was what I did, if I could post pics off my phone, I would show ya. It was completely waterproofed and sealed nicely. Keep the updates for yours Cory


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Ok guys I did some 2am shopping because this was bugging me, what I'm doing is a wooden frame out of all plywood. Since the roll on stuff worked like pure crap I brought a clear plastic painters tarp. It's thick it's going to be my liner and it works nice. 

Here's my small demo I just threw together. Box frame like I wanted plastic liner stapled to the edges. Of course it won't look so ghetto when I build the full size one. Instead of ducktail and staples there will still be staples but also a wood trim nailed into it. I already have a lot of black gravel that I'm using and ill put in my pond plants.

I estimate it's going to take me a bunch of hours and the final cost of everything will be around 40-50$ 

Remember this is a over the top pond type of set up for outside nothing fancy. 

My crap demo that will go in the trash below...

I put this one together within like 15 min. Im still trying to add more sealant to the other "demo" tank. So I made this one.


























I guess this tiny demo is super ugly but it could work for some sort of fish or something. Maybe a breeder? Who knows.

Real build coming up soon...


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Oh goodness, looking at the pictures my 15min demo looks even worse lol... The real deal will look a lot better and I'll take my time on it. Like I said I slapped it together just to see how it would work and the way id be building it...


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

This is where the cheap build will go...


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

ok...there are probably a number of products that can be used to coat the tank...pratt & lambert palguard is a great paint but hard to find and limited colors.may not make black..
sherwin williams tileclad is about the same price...i use safety black..
sherwin williams polane "b" is the best but tricky to work with....perfect for sealing seams...
there are others but i haven't used them.why buy a cadillac when you drive a rolls...
no doubt ; these paints are expensive ; but well worth the investment ; and they will last for decades..

DO NOT USE PLEXIGLASS !!!!!!!!!!!!!
silicone does not adhere well to plastics of any kind...and they get scratched and clouded up pretty quick...
for a 120 gallon tank i use 1/4" clear plate glass...it works perfectly and is plenty strong.

as i said.....your cuts must be perfectly straight..but still preseal all seams with wood putty...then sand and tack so no dust remains..
always apply at least 2 coats of paint..
cory.....you can build it as cheap as you want to ; but in the end don't expect much...would you want the doctor to do cheap surgery on your kid ??
always excel...even for crappy projects....

oh yeah...cinder blocks make a perfect stand...and they are pretty cheap too..


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Yea my other demo one is holding water now with the rubber coating on the inside so I'm going todo that instead of the plastic linner. The only diffrance with that is that it's going to take a little longer. Iv already brought a gallon of the sealant but I can already tell that in going to need much more. Ill keep you guys updated with what happens with it.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

hey cory...i have an idea...lets say you decided against a window...
how wide is it from the railing to the window ?looks to be 5-6 ft...you could make a tank long enough to just fit that space and say 30" front to back and about 14" tall...
that would give you a huge amount of surface area where you could keep and breed lots of fish...if you wanted to kill all of the snails and bugs and parasites you could get some potassium permanganate and soak your plants for a couple of hours in a bucket...then rinse and put in the tank...when you go hiking gather some dried oak leaves and put them in the tank too...then throw some nice egg scatterers such as barbs or danios and let them breed...


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

That would be a good idea, so far what iv got drawn up is 6 1/2 feet long and I will make it 2 1/2 feet high and 3 1/2 feet wide. I'm not sure what that would come out to for gallons but it's pretty big area that I'm taking over.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

just hope your deck is sound. lol.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

They are brand new condos. I'm the vary first person to live in this unit and iv been here a year. They put these up 5 years ago so it should be more then strong enough to hold 2-300g of water without a problem. We just had a baby shower here and had like 20 overweight 200lbs each person on the deck for a photo. So I'm not worried about the weight. 

Plus the condo association comes here every 4 months to check the property and look for damage. And every 6 months they reprint our decks. Mine was just sanded for the 2nd time since iv been here to repaint it. Lucky for me they work for the condos and no my landlord so they will say nothing about the big tank. Plus they are all pretty nice guys. So after it gets reprinted in the next few days I can move forward with putting it up.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I'm sure it will fine since its built to modern codes and not rotting


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

well...you are looking at approx. 425 gallons..roughly 3500 lbs....i think it's a little deep but doable..just make sure you use 2" x 6'' s for front and back bracing or the tank will bow too much and break...also alternate screw lengths between 1 1/2" and 2"...also use a good quality wood glue on every joint....
good luck partner..you are going to get hooked on big tanks...lol


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Lol thanks John, I'll need all the luck I canto pull this one off. I'm bracing the tank with 2x4s and cover half of the top with a 2x4 type of a floor so I can stand over it. I'm excited to try this and if I can make this work with a open top then I'll try to build one with a window for inside the house. The reason why I'm doing this outside is rcause I'm scared of leaks. Plus a homemade pond type deal can be carried with me anywhere I go.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

I was going to ask you, how are the plants now that they are in the water? I know they smell a bit but are they going to pull threw?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

don't know yet...will check them in a couple of days to see how they are doing..let you know then.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Alright, just keep them in as little water movement as you can.


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