I failed, I did a clean job but didn't get the silicone between the glass panes and only did the fillet.
How do i get it between the panes?
Last time I masked it off,
perfectly aligned the panes then silicone it and finally used my finger to finish it off.
Here is a pic of a what I'm talking about.
The area where the black box is (was)(I pulled the tank apart and removed all the silicone)
devoid of silicone.

I feel like a complete clown,
should I press harder with my finger or space the panes out ever so slightly?
Maybe I duct tape the tank together too tight(I masked the panes, aligned then taped them together)?

you don't need to get silicone between the planes of glass. its a selant not a bonding agent therefore you only need to run a bead in the corner.

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...=223162&hl=
That's what I was previously told.
I notice on commercial tanks it's between them.
It held water for3 weeks(I put off pulling it apart)
and was very strong....
Custom Pico aquariums has it between the joint,
is this just a formality or a necessity ?

Bump

silicone only has x amount of adhesion to glass, the in-between panes is mostly aesthetic from what I understand, as it develops more 'grip' when covering more surface area, i.e. both sides of a corner vs a skinny edge.

If your using clear silicone, match it all up perfect and use your finger and tape to make nice corners. If your using black silicone and like the look leave a small (1/8" or less) gap, fill it completely with silicone (tape and finger to smooth the outside, and do the inside corners like you would a normal tank--but use your thumb or something stiff with a larger circumference than your finger to make up for the added 'width' in the corner from the gap you just filled.

Thanks for the information I really appreciate it,
that really clarifies things and makes me want to start building it right now
I have black silicone however am not very particular on if it's between he panes.

backwards.
take a look at ada tanks or elos.

also use black silicone to hide the bubbles.


this may be helpful
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=218584

When I visualize the forces at play and the mechanical properties of the silicone I always come up with the silicone in the joint being the strongest part... I can see it still working with just an inside fillet with good silicone but if you get it between the panes the joint will be much stronger. If nothing else it allows you to use a smaller, less obtrusive fillet; I do a fillet that is less than 1/8" radius now.

Here's a tank I just built a few days ago:


You kinda have to put silicone between the panels as you assemble the tank, even if you do a gap between the panes the thick silicone won't want to flow in there very well.

what thickness of glass is that cptbjorn? I was figuring he would be using the thinner stuff--my bad on that. I do agree with edge to flat if you have a thick enough piece of glass.

Did you finish the edges of the glass, or have them made that way?

That's 3/8" glass but the technique also works on 1/4".

I have the glass shop do the edges, I was able to sand+bevel the edges on my (1/4" glass) pico pretty well using a thick piece of aluminum bar wrapped in wet/dry sandpaper, but when I found out how cheap the glass shop will do it I won't mess with that again. It was 5 cents per inch on the 3/8 and like a dollar per panel on the 1/4.

So you apply the silicone as you went then fingered it?
There had to be excess silicone on the outside.
I'm assuming you wiped it off then used some acetone to remove residue.
I've read about that method of assembling an aquarium,
I think I will do that.

Nice work, kudos cptbjorn.

It cracked me up seeing someone say that there didnt need to be silicone between the panes/joints

When I built my cube, I went like this:

Lay down the bottom panel, run a bead of silicone all the way around the perimeter, grab the front panel and run a bead bout 2 mils away from the edge on either side.

Put the front panel down onto the bottom panel, then put on both the side panels one at a time onto the bottom panel pushing them against the front panel and finally, do the same to the back pane as you did to the front and put it in place.

Run your finger along the joints on the inside and leave whatever is left on the outside to dry. Once dry you can use a razor to scrape it off and make a little bit less of a mess

I set the bottom on some 1/8" rods and find a couple good weights, I usually end up with 5-10lb bags of sugar/flour or gallon jugs of vinegar/milk/whatever.

I silicone along the edge of one of the sides that contacts the bottom and then push that into place and prop it up with one of the weights. Then I repeat with the other side so I have a U shape.

Then I silicone around the 3 edges of the back panel and put that in place and repeat with the front.

Once all the panels are together I start radiusing the corners and then immediately start pulling tape. I try to lay a good thick line for all the joints so that enough excess squeezes out to tool into a good radius with my finger but if one of the lines is too light I add a little extra.

For the outside edges where it squeezes out I take off what I can with a razor while it is wet, then smooth with my finger (only if glass is beveled). I lay out 5 or 6 new razor blades and paper towels before I start so any excess can be removed and residues buffed away before they can dry at all.

I will follow those directions down to the T

so you don't set the vertical panels on top ofthe bottom panel, you set the vertical panels around the outside of the bottom panel ?

Or did I misunderstand ?

Depends on what kind of tank you're building. I've seen it done both ways. The walls are outside of the bottom panel especially if you will be using plastic/metal trim pieces.

And from what I understand silicone has very good adhesion properties to glass. But it doesn't stick well to itself (when cured), so be sure you get all of the silicone off of the glass edges.

I build with the sides around the bottom, mostly because it looks cleaner but also that way most of the bottom is raised up a bit. That can be a good thing so that there are no pressure points if the stand has a bump or if a tiny rock/debris/whatever gets under there.

Cptbjorn
An hints to polishing the edge's. What grit do you start with.