It's too bad I can't keep this tank. It was the first time I've worked with acrylic and I was a little nervous in the beginning because I only had one 50"x100" sheet to work with. The acrylic was 1/2" thick.
Here's a pic from the side with the lid open. There is a 1/2" lip on the lid. The entire tank sits about 2" off the ground both for ventilation and "looks".
I was surprised that I only needed one support hinge to hold the lid up. I screwed up when putting this on because I didn't notice that the package it came in had measurements for proper placement on it. I noticed this only after drilling holes on both sides of the tank using my own measurements. I felt stupid, but decided to "cover up" the mistake with a couple "vent" holes on each side. Luckily, I hadn't drilled into the lid yet. Originally, I was going to use two hinges but after installing the one and making a few adjustments, I found that it did fairly well on it's own.
Now for the surprise! This may not be a big deal for some of you, but it was for me and it might help someone else out in the future. Two acrylic pieces cannot be glued together, instead, it needs to be "chemically welded" to adhere. Essentially, the two pieces are melted together. (Correct me if I'm wrong anyone, but this is my understanding of the process). Anyways the chemicals used to do this (methylene chloride) are generally only found in sign shops or online. I was warned that I wouldn't be able to find it in hardware shops, but I'm an idiot and couldn't help looking. No luck. I decided to check out the local Hobby Lobby (a general hobby supply shop for just about any hobby imaginable), and in the plastic model section I found what I am looking for.
There were 3 or 4 different products to choose from. The one I bought was called PROWELD made by Ambroid and cost about $3.00 for 2 ounces.
The bottle was more than enough for my project. If I had to order it online or get it at a sign shop I would have paid a lot more and a lot of it would have gone to waste. The only problem was with the applicator brush that comes attached to the underside of the cap.
I found the brush the be very ineffective for practical use, it was too stiff and didn't hold enough of the solvent. The solvent evaporates very fast and by the time I would get the pieces together and get the brush near them it would have already evaporated. Instead, I decided to try q-tips. They held more solvent and it was a lot easier to control where and how much solvent was applied. Unlike glue or other adhesives, the solvent must be applied after the pieces have been joined. Using capillary action the solvent is "sucked" into the tiny crevices. It will not work if the solvent is applied onto one side or piece and then they are joined.
A few things I learned working with acrylic:
1. When cutting a large piece on a table saw wear earplugs. My eardrums were literally buzzing. I was in a large room with concrete walls and the noise was actually painful.
2. Make sure your cuts are very accurate and straight. I have one piece that became warped somehow (I used a square to check and my cuts were straight but there was a slight bow to the piece...no clue how it happened.)If the pieces do not fit together almost perfectly they will not bond.
3. Use sharp drill bits, I had one bit break off in the acrylic. The break was flush with the acylic and I didn't want to risk more stress on the piece by attempting removal. The hole was for one of the four hinges on the lid. I covered it up by cutting the head off of one of the screws that came with the hinges and glueing it into place. You wouldn't even know it was messed up unless I pointed it out.
4. Work slowly. Make sure every piece fits right before attempting to weld it. If the fit is a little too snug, use a palm sander and sand down a little at a time. The palm sander also came in handy for smoothing some of the sharp edges.
Any exposed edges also recieved a coat of the PROWELD. This was to smooth them down a little more and it also made them a little more transparent and glasslike. I have a slight tremor at times and not getting any of the solvent onto the sides was my biggest obstacle.
Sorry this post was so long, but I'm pretty excited about this tank and how it turned out for my first time working with acrylic.
I'd like to thank Chris Harper and Jungle Habitats for answering my questions.
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Sometimes, things are exactly as they appear...sometimes.
