Hacking up an Acrylic Aquarium for fuge

Playa-1 · 11/12/2007, 08:23 PM

Anybody ever cut the end off of an acrylic aquarium or took a few inches of length out of the center.

I need to shorten the length of my 48" tank by 5 or 10 inches to fit it under my stand to be used as a sump.

I'm interested in successes or failures and advice for the procedure.

Thanks for your help.

Southern Boy · 11/12/2007, 08:37 PM

Well as long as your cuts are precise then the pins and needle method ought to work great.You'll need weld on #4,an applicator, and some accupunture needels.Read this here a little.
http://www.melevsreef.com/tools.html
You'll probably need to do some euro bracing as well and maybe an xtra piece of acrylic over the inture seam.

Playa-1 · 11/13/2007, 08:42 AM

Ya, that's kinda what i was thinking too. I also did a google search and found that some people highly recommended using a table saw with the appropriate blade for acrylic.

I'm thinking i would like to cut a section out of the middle and then rejoin the two end pieces, and maybe put a brace along the interior seam to provide extra support.

I may just keep this tank in the garage for a rainy day and find another solution for the sump. I'm still kinda throwing the idea around a bit. Thanks for the information Southern Boy, Anybody else have any input on a project like this ?

I probably should have posted this in the equipment forum

11/12/2007, 08:23 PM	#1
Playa-1 Moved On Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Laguna Niguel, CA Posts: 7,497	Hacking up an Acrylic Aquarium for fuge Anybody ever cut the end off of an acrylic aquarium or took a few inches of length out of the center. I need to shorten the length of my 48" tank by 5 or 10 inches to fit it under my stand to be used as a sump. I'm interested in successes or failures and advice for the procedure. Thanks for your help.

11/12/2007, 08:37 PM	#2
Southern Boy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Fort pierce, Florida Posts: 671	Well as long as your cuts are precise then the pins and needle method ought to work great.You'll need weld on #4,an applicator, and some accupunture needels.Read this here a little. http://www.melevsreef.com/tools.html You'll probably need to do some euro bracing as well and maybe an xtra piece of acrylic over the inture seam.

11/13/2007, 08:42 AM	#3
Playa-1 Moved On Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Laguna Niguel, CA Posts: 7,497	Ya, that's kinda what i was thinking too. I also did a google search and found that some people highly recommended using a table saw with the appropriate blade for acrylic. I'm thinking i would like to cut a section out of the middle and then rejoin the two end pieces, and maybe put a brace along the interior seam to provide extra support. I may just keep this tank in the garage for a rainy day and find another solution for the sump. I'm still kinda throwing the idea around a bit. Thanks for the information Southern Boy, Anybody else have any input on a project like this ? I probably should have posted this in the equipment forum