My First Foam-Backed Upright

[KingCam]

This is my first ever attempt at making a coco fiber foam ("great stuff") background. This is a large aquarium that had a broken bottom, 30 gallons maybe? I decided this was the only way to salvage this tank, because the bottom was completely shattered. I had to use duct tape to hold the glass pieces in place. I'm hoping the "great stuff" foam will do the rest and keep everything from falling apart. We'll see.

Here are a couple of pictures from the first step.



I already messed up and got foam all over one side of the wood Oh well, looks like that part will just have to get a silicone/coco fiber coating, as well.


My plan is to have plants growing to the right of the wood, and have a waterfall to the left of it. The bottom will be mostly water with aquatic plants. I still have to figure out what I'm going to use to turn the bottom portion into a water-holding container. I might just go get a piece of plexi glass cut to size at home depot and silicone it in.

[UncleChester]

Looks nice so far and a good use of a busted tank. I'd be a little worried that the great stuff might bust the back up more while it's expanding and curing, how long has it cured for and how bad was the damage? I hope it holds for you.

I don't know that I'd trust silicone to seal to a piece of plexiglass and be water tight. Can you get a piece of glass cut instead of plexi?

[KingCam]

Looks nice so far and a good use of a busted tank.

I thought so, too, and thanks

I'd be a little worried that the great stuff might bust the back up more while it's expanding and curing, how long has it cured for and how bad was the damage? I hope it holds for you.

I'm a bit worried about that too. The tank had a big rock dropped in the bottom of it, so the damage is extensive. There is about a 1 sq in hole and then cracks going out from that. The only thing keeping the other pieces of glass in is the silicone around the edges. I covered the outside/bottom of the tank with extremely sticky aluminum tape before I started with the foam, and I even put a couple of strips of tape on the inside (under the foam) to hold it all together. When I checked on it this morning it had been curing for like 10 hours and the glass was still perfectly in tact.

I don't know that I'd trust silicone to seal to a piece of plexiglass and be water tight. Can you get a piece of glass cut instead of plexi?

Oh really? Does silicone not adhere to plexiglass the same as glass? I'm sure I could get a piece of glass cut, too. I just figured there'd be less chance of me breaking it (again) if it were made of plexi. LOL

[KingCam]

Oh, I do have a question. Is the foam water proof, or do I need to coat it in silicone before filling the bottom with water? Will chemicals leak out of the foam into the water if I don't seal it with silicone first?

[NatureLady]

The bottom will be mostly water with aquatic plants. I still have to figure out what I'm going to use to turn the bottom portion into a water-holding container. I might just go get a piece of plexi glass cut to size at home depot and silicone it in.

Could you maybe find a glass/plastic dish or bowl and put into the bottom to hold water?

[KingCam]

Could you maybe find a glass/plastic dish or bowl and put into the bottom to hold water?

I could as a last resort, but I was kinda excited about the prospect of having an actual paludarium, possibly even with a couple of small decorative fish in the bottom. I've always wanted one, but never had one.

Thanks for your feedback though That will definitely be an option if I find it's too difficult to make this work as a paludarium.

[NatureLady]

Thanks for your feedback though That will definitely be an option if I find it's too difficult to make this work as a paludarium.

No problem. My internet connection is rather slow today, for some reason and it only loaded half of your second picture.

And yes silicone the GS from what I have read. This is what I have been researching all day for a project of my own as well!

[KingCam]

And yes silicone the GS from what I have read. This is what I have been researching all day for a project of my own as well!

Excellent, thanks! Good luck on your project, sounds like you thought yours out a bit more than I did :P I might even cut out a piece of pond liner to silicone to the foam in the water portion and on the waterfall.

[NatureLady]

Good luck on your project, sounds like you thought yours out a bit more than I did :P I might even cut out a piece of pond liner to silicone to the foam in the water portion and on the waterfall.

I live in the middle of no where so I have to plan, lol! Good luck on your build as well and I look foward to seeing a finished picture!

[KingCam]

I live in the middle of no where so I have to plan, lol! Good luck on your build as well and I look foward to seeing a finished picture!

haha, I hear that. Thanks for the well wishes

One more thought (inspired by your other topic): Maybe I'll scrape some of the foam off of the bottom water area and re-do it with the pond foam. What do you think would be better? Re-doing the water area with pond foam, or just covering my existing foam with silicone?

[NatureLady]

Maybe I'll scrape some of the foam off of the bottom water area and re-do it with the pond foam. What do you think would be better? Re-doing the water area with pond foam, or just covering my existing foam with silicone?

If it where me...I would forge forward with the foam you already have and silicone it all at once when you do your plexiglass portion!

[J Teezy]

i agree, i would just cover it in silicone

[KingCam]

If it where me...I would forge forward with the foam you already have and silicone it all at once when you do your plexiglass portion!

i agree, i would just cover it in silicone

Thanks guys, that's what I'll do

[UncleChester]

Oh really? Does silicone not adhere to plexiglass the same as glass? I'm sure I could get a piece of glass cut, too. I just figured there'd be less chance of me breaking it (again) if it were made of plexi. LOL

The normal aquarium silicone adheres fantastically to glass, but not as well to plexi. I know I've read not to use silicone for repairing plexiglass aquariums, but your application will be a relatively small amount of water and pressure so it might be ok- I'm honestly not sure. I am much more familiar glass so that's the direction I steer towards. A basic glass cutter can also be had for under $10 if you wanted to learn a new vivarium construction skill.

Do you have specific inhabitants in mind for this tank?

[KingCam]

The normal aquarium silicone adheres fantastically to glass, but not as well to plexi. I know I've read not to use silicone for repairing plexiglass aquariums, but your application will be a relatively small amount of water and pressure so it might be ok- I'm honestly not sure. I am much more familiar glass so that's the direction I steer towards. A basic glass cutter can also be had for under $10 if you wanted to learn a new vivarium construction skill.

Oh, I didn't know that. I'll get glass for sure. $10? That's not bad at all! What exactly does a glass cutter look like? How is it used? Is it difficult? Because I don't want to go through 10 sheets of glass trying to get a good cut :P

Do you have specific inhabitants in mind for this tank?

If all goes as planned I'll be using it as a temporary enclosure for some grey tree froglets. After I find homes for them I don't know. I might keep a few of the baby greys, if I do this will likely become their enclosure. I'd like to have a couple of hardy decorative fish in the bottom. Other than that I don't have anything really in mind, just trying to salvage a broken aquarium.

[UncleChester]

Here's the basics of glass cutting: How to Cut Glass: 8 steps (with pictures) - wikiHow (lots more tutorials to be had on google as well)

I'd add:

-Wearing gloves is a good idea. Safety googles don't hurt either..
-You can also run the score by lining the score up with the edge of a table and pressing down.
-You can also run the score by gently tapping it from below with something hard. This doesn't leave as even an edge but works for curved cuts or very large pieces.
-Sandpaper will scratch the glass when smoothing the edge, so make sure not to sand the face.
-I've cut up to 1/4" plate glass this way with no problems.
-Be sure to read the warnings on that page.
-I found this pretty easy and my failure rate was not at all high even at the beginning. My biggest mistake was cutting the glass just slightly the wrong size, you can't really shave it down easily. Silicone can make up a small gap, so a little small can be better to aim for than a snug fit depending on where your piece is going.

Here's a basic glass cutter:

Home Hardware - CUTTER, GLASS 1WHEEL STRAIGHT END

This kind has a wheel on the cutting end. There are also diamond tipped ones that are just a point to scratch the surface of the glass. I prefer the wheeled ones. Fancier ones will have things like a pivoting head for cutting curves and an oil reservoir inside for self lubrication.

Like they said in the tutorial page, you can usually get scraps at a glass shop for pretty cheap for practice and you only need a small piece so you can probably get that very cheap too. Keep in mind to make the cut you need a couple of inches on either side so be able to run the score.

I'm a grey treefrog fan.

[J Teezy]

yeah make sure you cut it the right size, a tad smaller is better than a tad too big

[helm96]

Thanks for the link and the advice Brian! I have been thinking about about glass but was leaning toward Plexi cause I have worked with it before but never with glass. I may have to give it a shot.

[KingCam]

Here's the basics of glass cutting: How to Cut Glass: 8 steps (with pictures) - wikiHow (lots more tutorials to be had on google as well)

Excellent, I will spend some time looking over that tonight!

I'd add:

-Wearing gloves is a good idea. Safety googles don't hurt either..
-You can also run the score by lining the score up with the edge of a table and pressing down.
-You can also run the score by gently tapping it from below with something hard. This doesn't leave as even an edge but works for curved cuts or very large pieces.
-Sandpaper will scratch the glass when smoothing the edge, so make sure not to sand the face.
-I've cut up to 1/4" plate glass this way with no problems.
-Be sure to read the warnings on that page.
-I found this pretty easy and my failure rate was not at all high even at the beginning. My biggest mistake was cutting the glass just slightly the wrong size, you can't really shave it down easily. Silicone can make up a small gap, so a little small can be better to aim for than a snug fit depending on where your piece is going.

Awesome, thanks! 1/4"? That's a decent piece of glass!

Here's a basic glass cutter:

Home Hardware - CUTTER, GLASS 1WHEEL STRAIGHT END

This kind has a wheel on the cutting end. There are also diamond tipped ones that are just a point to scratch the surface of the glass. I prefer the wheeled ones. Fancier ones will have things like a pivoting head for cutting curves and an oil reservoir inside for self lubrication.

Looks like I'll be making a(nother) trip to my local Home Depot tonight :P

Like they said in the tutorial page, you can usually get scraps at a glass shop for pretty cheap for practice and you only need a small piece so you can probably get that very cheap too. Keep in mind to make the cut you need a couple of inches on either side so be able to run the score.

Hmmm, okay! I have no idea where to find one of those, but I'm sure there is one around. I'll give the yellowpages a look.

I'm a grey treefrog fan.

It's hard not to be

yeah make sure you cut it the right size, a tad smaller is better than a tad too big

That's a good thing to keep in mind. Kinda the opposite of how things would be done with most building materials.

[J Teezy]

the reason you don't want your cut to be too big is because you're not really cutting glass when you do it, what you are actually doing is scoring it and then snapping it off, so it is very very hard to score and snap a very thin cut