Mike's Money Pit - Custom 31 Gallon Peninsula

[TheMikey]

2. DIY Tank Building - "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

I ordered my tank glass from Dynamic Glass in Saskatoon. They were one of the only places locally that would make my tank using non-tempered glass (the other places I contacted refused to make glass for an aquarium if it wasn’t tempered, which was warning sign for me that they had no idea what they were doing). I chose to do a “peninsula” style tank. My rear and bottom panes are normal glass and the front and sides are starphire/low iron.



- "Everything fits! Where's the silicone?"

My overflow measures 7" x 4.25" x 6" and is drilled for two ¾” holes that are in a “herbie” set up (I think). Theres the normal drain, which has a strainer to ensure that nothing escapes into my sump, an emergency overflow and a return line. The flow is going to be controlled with my Vortech, so my return pump is just there to cycle the water. The “notch” is two inches deep. I wanted to experiment with water level a bit, so I cut it deeper knowing I can silicone a piece of acrylic with teeth later if I want my water level any higher.

This was my first attempt at building a tank and I needed a lot of confidence before my first attempt. I probably did about 20 hours of reading on how to prep/silicone a tank. Sorry for the lack of pictures during construction, if there’s one thing I learned it’s that it is VERY easy to use too much silicone.







I actually did the inside twice. I was unhappy with how my first tank looked and thought that if I was planning on keeping this setup for a while (I am… my wallet can’t handle another upgrade!) that I might as well be happy with how the silicone looked. The problem was that I siliconed everything at once and, when I eventually got to the place where I used my finger to smooth the seams, I had left it cure a bit too long and the front side silicone looked atrocious. Fixed on the second attempt and I’m much happier now:



And on goes the overflow:







I tested the display for leaks over the course of a week. I filled 25% and kept it for two days; 50% for two days, 75% for the rest of the week. Everything was A-Ok! The Overflow is tight also, so after many months I’ve completed my custom tank!