Ok...so the big 300 gal acrylic has holes drilled throughout the back panel of acrylic which the original owner used for plumbing for water movement behind his reef. There are about 13 or so holes in the back panel. Instead of patching all these holes to close them off since I won't be using them...is there a way to just get the whole back panel of acrylic replaced? I know it probably won't be really cheap but it would look nicer than having little patch pieces of acrylic all over the back. I didn't know if this could be done on an already assembled acrylic tank like it can be in a glass tank.

Is this feasible or not? Or should I just patch the holes like I was originally planning to do?

Thanks!

here is a pic that kind of shows the holes...also a plus of getting a new back panel is that I can get rid of the blue color!

the easiest way to do it is to have it patch with one whole panel all edges with sealant.
it will be easy and fast...moreover, it will give you a back panel with reinforcement.

would I patch with a whole panel from the inside or outside or both? Also what thickness of acrylic have to be for a patch panel? the tank has 3/4" acrylic panels...I would imagine I could use much thinner acrylic for a patch piece right?

inside is more appropriate.the panel with hole as your reinforcement.
moreover, putting the panel inside will make it easier to seal...
and you can even use a thinner material than the existing.

What about sealing the holes with PVC bulkhead fitting with a PVC plug installed? Would this be a leak waiting to happen? Just thinking if someday I wanted to use the holes for something I could. If this would just cause potential problems in the future I will just put patch panels in.

I also plan on painting the interior of the back panel with black pond armor since I don't like the blue color. I would assume this would make the patch panel even more leak proof since it is a waterproof barrier.

if that is your direction, patching inside will be an option. a panel installed
inside would be difficult to dismantle or remove..... you can consider sectional
patching but should be inside, pushing the patch against the wall, not the sealant
holding against the push if installed outside.

Plugs should work fine, if you are gonna hide them with your background.
Would work like a plug in your bathtub,i guess.

while i suppose you could patch a piece of acrylic into it and patch it up that way, i know for sure that bulkheads would work, thats what is designed to go in those holes in the first place

Ok...assuming I use a bulkhead fitting with a plug in it what is the best way to use these and make sure they won't leak?

Was maybe thinking of installing them and them gluing a cap to the backside of the fitting and them maybe using a plug with silicone on the threads to create a better seal??? Correct me if this wouldn't work.

Also what do you use to make sure the fitting itself doesn't leak around the edges? Plumbers putty? I know I read that silicone doesn't stick to acrylic that well...wasn't sure if the fittings required gaskets or putty, etc.?

Thanks for any help you can give me...the back panel has like 14 1.5" holes and one larger 3" hole that I need to plug.

Thanks.

ikkie78 wrote:


im not sure where you read that one ryan but i have used silicone and acrylic many times when building sumps and have never had a problem with its adhesive ability.

but im curious on why you are wanting to close off your overflow in the first place?

necromancer4 wrote:


Ok glad to hear that silicone will stick! And its not the overflow I want to close off...still planning on using that for a sump. If you look in the picture you will see there are about 13 or 14 holes that were drilled in the back panel that the guy used to increase water movement behind his reef structure...these are the holes I wish to plug up as I won't be using them most likely but would like to have the option to use them in the future if I chose to do so. That is why I was thinking the bulkhead fittings and plugs rather than sealing permanently.

u know what ikkie... the proper thing to do would be to put bulkheads, go ahead and setup a sump, and just plumb all those holes properly in the first place. atleast then, your setup to do whatever you want and your options are open. and later on, years down the road even, if your shit fucked off and you lost your fish, you could go straight to a marine setup without having to drain your tank and move it out from the wall to get behind it to setup all that plumbing work again. do it right from the start. i personally would get in touch with the guy that sold it to you, and try to figure out what exactly was hooked up to that, how it was plumbed, and then try to duplicate it. im curious as to why somebody would remove plumbing like that in the first place, what went wrong about it???