Genius, or idiocy?

[logan89]

Call me crazy, but.....could I use a fresh water storage tank as an aquarium?!

I mean, they make these things from 30-5000 gallons, and they cost ~$1 per gallon (i.e a 300g tank would be $300, however the 1,500+ gallon tanks are less than $1 per gallon).

I know they are opaque plastic, but I was thinking I could just cut out windows on all sides, and silicone glass/acrylic in as windows...?

Here's a link to a 300g "tank" I thought has suitable demensions for (almost) any fish http/www.plastic-mart.com/class.php?item=1157 It's a 300g, they have them up to 6,500 gallons if you search around a bit (google.....).

Tell me what you think guys! Am I on to something, or is it just one of those things that just wouldn't work, or wouldn't be worth the time/money?


Thanks,

-Logan

 

[SRC]

If that tank is made of acrylic (cannot be plastic..those are 2 different things...even though they appear similar..they are not structural or chemically the same in any way) you could weld them together just like you would a plexiglass tank.

You have to use a special type solvent to eld plexigalss together. It only works on plexiglass (it actually melts it so you can form a bond between 2 pieces)...it won't do anything to rubber or plastic.

I do not think the silicone would hold..as it does not bond well with plastic, it tends to just peel off.

 

[Tolak]

I would worry about screwing up the structural integrity of the tank by cutting holes in it. The price is nice, no doubt.

You may want to look in to watering tanks for livestock. Toss in a pond liner & you have a large, cheap tank.

Tolak

 

[andywg]

The solvent weld used on acrylic works on most plastics by melting and bondind. I've used it on acrylic and pvc and it stays water tight.

Silicone sealant isn't great for plastic but would probably hold out if you made the window overlap the edge by around 2 inches so you can put a seriously heavy bead on it. Then the pressure of the water should ensure the window stays water-tight (like the guy from Cichlid-Forum did when he made his 1,900 gallon shark tank from wood).

 

[SRC]

Funny, when I made my tank I spilled the weld solvent all over my mothers plastic table cloth and it did absolutely nothing to it. I also spilled it on the kitchen counter tops, which are really old and made from that, for lack of a better description, cheap counter topping matertial....did nothing to it either. I've also tried putting it on silicone..nothing happened.