aquarium repair

[Mr.Midas]

A friend of mine gave me a 27 gallon tank that has a broken bottom, he was using it to house crickets. Now i plan on replacing the bottom and cleaning it up, I was thinking of using plexiglass because it is easier to work with. The dimensions of the piece will be 35.5"x12". What do you guys think i should use?

 

[jbradt]

I would go with glass... it's (imo) easier to work with cleanly, and easier to seal.

 

[Mr.Midas]

oh, defindently easier once its in the tank. I agree thats its way easier to clean. I was just mainly wondering about the sealing problem. i think it will be easier to get in the bottom tank where it will have a bit of flex, but i was concerned that the seal might be broken if it flexes under the weight of the water. My 75 gallon has a plexiglass bottom, but it ontop of the glass(im assuming to prevent it from bending)

 

[Sploke]

Silicone doesn't adhere very well to acrylic/plexiglass, I wouldn't trust it. Especially on the bottom of the tank, where the largest pressure is.

 

[Mr.Midas]

Silicone doesn't adhere very well to acrylic/plexiglass, I wouldn't trust it. Especially on the bottom of the tank, where the largest pressure is.

ok, thanks. Ill go with glass then

 

[paztruk]

I replaced the bottom of my tank with Acrylic that I picked up from Home Depot and right next to the Acrylic was a silicone special for the Acrylic and also adheared to glass. Sets up in 12 hours and has low fumes.

 

[sed03f]

good luck, How do you cut it?

 

[Mr.Midas]

im going to try calling Apple Autoglass and see if they'll cut me a piece, its pretty simple and relatively small, so it shouldn't cost too awful much

 

[SubluxT7]

Good luck. Let us know how it goes

SubluxT7:headbang2:

 

[Rallysman]

The flexing of the acrylic could cause issues with it sealing, and as mentioned before silicone is less reliable on acrylic. Glass is the right way to go IMO.