How to make an aquarium with your own hands?

Many of us love animals. Someone prefers to keep a dog or a cat at home, and someone loves something more exotic. Such people usually hold skunks, chameleons or raccoons. And someone is interested in peace, which brings observation of the fish. This category of people will just be interested in how to make an aquarium with your own hands at home.

Before you understand the direct manufacturing process, you need to decide what will be needed for this in terms of materials and tools. A very important question will be what to choose glass. Not everyone is suitable for creating an aquarium. Usually its varieties are denoted by the letter M with some number.

In most cases, it is better to use glass not lower than category M3. Everything below is no longer suitable due to low strength characteristics.

Silicate or plexiglass is also suitable.

Before acquiring, it is necessary to carefully inspect that it is solid, not bent, and there are no any inclusions, cracks and scratches on it. If there are any stains on it, then polishing can remove them.

The second important selection factor will be the thickness. To select the glass of the required thickness, the characteristics of the future tank should be taken into account. The volume of the aquarium can be calculated by the following formula: V = LxAxH, where L is the length, H is the height, A is the width, V is the volume.

Each parameter makes it possible to determine the parameters of the future aquarium. Calculations are carried out simply, after which the required glass thickness is calculated. But usually the standards in this matter are approximately the following:

• capacity up to 20 liters should have glass with a thickness of 3 mm;
• up to 30 liters - 4 mm;
• up to 80 liters - 5 mm;
• up to 150 liters - 6 mm;
• up to 200 liters - 7-8 mm;
• up to 300 liters - about 10 mm.

An important point will be the so-called stiffeners. These are special glass strips having a width of up to 5 centimeters. Thanks to them, the tank receives resistance to water pressure. They should be used with any volume of the aquarium in order to give it extra strength.

In addition, they allow the use of a coverslip on top, and thanks to them it will be much easier to transport the tank.

Another important aspect is that when the length of the aquarium is more than one and a half meters, there must be not only stiffeners, but also special ties, which also increases the reliability of the aquarium.

Another important point that will affect the selection of glass is the shape of the aquarium. She may be:

• rectangular;
• round;
• panoramic;
• square.

Everything will depend on the wishes of the person.

The color of the glass can also matter. But usually considered categories of containers are made of transparent or green glass.

After the glass has been selected, it must be properly cut. Here we say right away that this is not worth doing on your own for the following reasons:

• high complexity of the process;
• An experienced glazier has special equipment for quality glass cutting.

If we talk about preparation, then it includes several stages. First you need to decide which sealant will be used. It is necessary that it be of the highest quality, since it will depend on it whether there will be a reservoir with fish somewhere in the future. Of course, there are many different substances that can hold together pieces of glass.

But if we talk about the composition for the aquarium, then it should have the following characteristics:

• elasticity;
• non-toxicity;
• maximum strength;
• quickness;
• ease of application;
• high adhesive performance;
• long term of operation;
• nice appearance.

And all these criteria correspond to a silicone-based sealant.

Today it is sold in three colors:

• the black;
• white;
• transparent.

In addition, you will need to have a certain number of tools and materials:

• knives
• spatulas;
• tassels;
• backings for gaps;
• metal corners;
• masking tape;
• silicone with thermal gun;
• clamps;
• roulette.

In addition, you will need to have drawings or diagrams of the future design.

In addition, the determination of the size of the future capacity will make sure that the place where it will be placed is as prepared for this as possible.

When all the materials have been prepared, drawings and diagrams completed, you can begin the direct manufacture of the aquarium with your own hands. The creation algorithm may differ depending on various factors: the shape, size, type of glass used, the presence or absence of a cover, and so on.

Therefore, we will analyze the main points of creating such a capacity.

The first stage involves working with glass. The point is that it is necessary to create the structure itself. This will require:

• to lay on the surface some unnecessary carpet or a large piece of cloth in order to protect the floor from damage;
• we make special corners-stands with our own hands for glass, they should be parallel to each other and arranged vertically;
• Now we glue the surface along the seam using a special masking tape;
• it is necessary to apply sealant to the glass sections;
• now the glass falls on the glue;
• the resulting structure is turned over, and we apply glue to the slices;
• again we glue the surface using masking tape, after which we smear the glue and press the glass;
• now attach another side wall of the aquarium;
• we form transverse and longitudinal ties, after which we close the surface with adhesive tape;
• It remains to wait for the surface to dry.

After drying has occurred, it is required to glue stiffeners as carefully as possible. To do this, it is necessary to put the tank on its side, and then glue the rib with the adhesive.

To dry the glue, you will need to wait a day or two. After that, the blade is taken and the excess glue that is on the seams is carefully cut. From the inside, this may not be necessary if a colorless and safe sealant was used. After that, you can peel off the masking tape.

It would seem that you can already begin to fill the tank with water. But no, before this it is required to make special technological holes so that you can hold hoses from various filters, wires, place some aquarium accessories, and so on.

If the aquarium is made of thin glass, then you can usually take a drill on a tree that can easily make small holes in this type of glass. Usually they are made on the sides of the lid on the side of the container.

Another option that the craftsmen make is that the neck of the bottles is carefully cut off from the glass bottles, after which it is inserted with the edge of the neck out. Subsequently, it is carefully fixed around the circumference with silicone. Then, on such adapters of a home-made type, you can simply fit the hoses of external life support devices.

Another element that a good aquarium should have is a lid. According to some, a tank with fish can do without it. But actually it is not. The lid protects the tank from various debris and dirt from the environment into the water. In addition, its presence will not allow the fish to jump out and die. It should be light, easily removable and made of moisture resistant materials. In the vast majority of cases, lighting is attached to it.

Sometimes it is used to create glass silicate type or PVC. The choice of material will depend on the size of the aquarium and the mass of the material itself.

But consider the whole process using plastic as an example. To create a cover, you can take plastic with a thickness of about 3 millimeters.It would seem that you can, in general, not suffer, but simply put a plastic cloth on the walls of the tank. But then air will be cut off for fish, which threatens them with death. Therefore, you should additionally make such sides to yourself, which will allow you to lift the lid to a small height.

Stripes of plastic should be fastened to each other using the appropriate adhesive.

Aluminum strips can be fixed to the surface from the inside of the lid. This will strengthen it and prepare a place for fixing lighting equipment.

By the way, the process will not be complete if you do not consider attaching the cover to the aquarium itself and installing lighting equipment on it. After the lid has been made and the glue has completely dried, you can begin to fix it on the aquarium. To do this, use small canopies. Another interesting option for this is the use of a cable channel. Its width will depend on the thickness of the plastic and glass. Hinges are attached at the back. The option of how to fix them, you choose: you can either screw them with bolts, or just stick them.

It is through it that it will be possible to pour feed to the fish, which eliminates the need to constantly open and close the lid.

If we talk about lighting, you should choose it very carefully.

And its absence will cause the multiplication of various parasites and bacteria. The color scheme should be chosen at will, but the luminous coefficient of illumination should not be lower than 60 Ra. And the larger the size and volume of the aquarium, the higher this indicator. Usually there should be two lamps, and they should be of a luminescent type, because during operation they do not heat up at all, which means they cannot become a source of increasing water temperature. And the fastening of the lamps on the cover itself usually occurs with a pair of bolts on both sides. Thus, both the first and second lamps will be attached.

Thus, we were able to make not only a cover, but also fix it on the aquarium and carry out the installation of lighting equipment.

And finally, a few recommendations that will help beginner aquarists to make an aquarium, spending a minimum of time.

The first crucial point about which a little has been said is exclusively special sealants should be used without antibacterial properties. The fact is that there are many sealants on the market, but only a small part can carry out high-quality sealing of the space between two parts of glass. The reason for this is the slippery surface of the material itself.

The second tip is that it’s much easier to keep the balance of gases and nutrients in the water in a large-sized and large-capacity tank.

Despite its large size, it will be much easier to take care of fish in such a container than to purchase a 30-liter or 50-liter aquarium.

Another important tip is that when a sealant is used, there should be no air bubbles in it. The fact is that these voids can then cause leaks, because it is clear that due to the constant exposure to water, sooner or later, the properties of the sealant will deteriorate and such a bubble in the future may just become the place where the aquarium leaks will begin. And then it can be very difficult to liquidate it to the extent that a tank made by one’s own hand simply becomes worthless.

Another tip that will also be important when creating an aquarium yourself - when working with various surfaces, they should be treated with alcohol or, in extreme cases, acetone.

Generally, making an aquarium with your own hands is not so difficult as it might seem at first glance. The only thing you need to remember is that you must strictly adhere to all the rules and regulations for creating such a tank so that it turns out to be really strong, airtight and lasts a long time.

You can get acquainted with the advice of a professional gluing an aquarium with your own hands in the next video.