I am peeking out of my familiar world of wood, metal and leather...
I want to make a trunk that is see through and can hold water, and is strong enough to support weight on the lid (Which does not need to be transparent).
I am assuming I would need to use lexan.
Anyone out there making watertight devices that could give a little advice? (Cutting, attaching, sealing...Thickness needed for X quantity of water...Where can I get it for reasonable cost...)
This is a completely new medium to me, so forgive my apparant lack of direction. I just would hate to get to work and find out that I missed something inherent in the properties of the material.
Thanks,
Gwyd

Lexan has its pros & cons. It is more shatter resistant because it flexes, however, that same flexibility is what makes it not the ideal material to use for your project. It will flex or bow and will pop the corner joints. Acrylic while more shatter resistant, will not flex or bow like lexan under the same amount of pressure. Thickness here is what makes acrylic a good choice.

Thickness required is based on how deep the water is...or what is known as 'head pressure'. The deeper the water, the more head pressure there is. There are some water tanks with a thickness as high as four inches. Your project will probably be around 1/2"-1".

As far as bonding acrylic, you will be chemical welding them together. It is a liquid and comes in various viscosities. The liquid will actually 'melt' the acrylic and bond the two surfaces together.

You will most likely need some sort of metal frame to help support the structure. Another thing to consider is will you need to move it while it is full? Now you need a rolling base of some sorts.


Hope that helps, I'm sure it also raised more questions. I have had several water tanks built for us and have seen the good, the bad & the ugly. It is fairly cut and dry once the engineering has been done, but it can also go south very quickly.

Kevin

Definately helped!
Acryllic it is then.
Where the heck do I find the stuff commercially?
I have done some chemical welding on PVC before, so that shouldn't be too hard to figure out.
I figured I'd need a rolling base.
Looks like I have enough info to get started. Thanks for steering me from the lexan to the acryllic.
Gwyd

Since lexan can be bent in a sheet metal brake, if you were to create the box by bending it you would only have one seam to weld. Would the bow and flex still be a problem using that method?

I get 1,170,000 responses when I type "clear acrylic sheet" into Google. Most large city glass suppliers can find it for you if they don't have it in stock. Our population is only about 20,000 and our local glass jobber can order in any thickness available with a weeks notice.

As you assume the chemical welding process is very similar to routine PVC work. Be certain your rolling has a full sheet of metal supporting the bottom of the tank... 3/16" to 1/4" aluminum should suffice- based on your tank size, of course.

Kevin has provided many valuable tips.

A couple of other things to note.

The proper preparation of the edges before cementing is critical. Proper curing time is also very important. Usually 28 days.


Good luck.

Richard

I get all of my acylic from Tap plastics. They are great to work with and will cut to size if needed. brian

I actually spent a few years building custom acrylic fish tanks for a company here in New Jersey. I've built everything from 20 gallons all the way up to 15,000 gallons. PM me with the specs for your project and I'll help ya out with the materials and bracing requirements.

Dave

*Edit: BTW, you can make everything clear acrylic if you wanted to; Bracing, lid, any traps, it's not to hard to do and still be structurally sound.