Attaching acrylic to glass

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Lycosid
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Attaching acrylic to glass

Post by Lycosid »

I've got an idea for a 20 gallon long that involves removable barriers across the length of the tank. I want to install mostly-permanent "grooves" (I'll be installing the double short dividers that make the groove, of course) on the sides of the tank that I can slide the barriers into or out of. However, I don't see any very good way to glue acrylic to glass. My last attempt, using silicone, failed quickly.
Does someone have a brilliant idea? If not, should I just make 3-sided (no top) acrylic slots that I can stand up in the tank on their own and slide things into and out of?
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Re: Attaching acrylic to glass

Post by bekateen »

What happened with the silicone glue? Was it that the glue didn't adhere to the acrylic?

I've seen plastics attached to glass pretty well (obviously, tank frames work this way). Can you find a flat edged, slotted plastic strip to clue against the glass?

Good luck,
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Re: Attaching acrylic to glass

Post by Bas Pels »

If I understand you correctly, you want to glue acrylic in a glass tank. In that case, the seam does not have to be watertight

I once used hard PVC glue (which adheres to hard PVC and nothing else) to glue Hamburger matten, which are not PVC. BUT the glue did surround the matten particles, and as it adhered to itself, the connection held.

A fortnight back I used a glue that does not adhere good to metal to glue lead on my putter (for golf). again, I formed a coat of rubber around the lead, which cannot easily get out of the hole in the putter, so it must remain.

Could this not help? Use lots of glue.
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Re: Attaching acrylic to glass

Post by Narwhal72 »

I use silicone to glue the acrylic strips in to hold my mattenfilters and that has worked pretty well.

You do need to use thicker acrylic so that you have a larger bonding surface. I used 3/16" thick material.

Household Goop also works well bonding acrylic to glass, But it has more flow to it than silicone. If you try to do a vertical bond, a lot will flow to the bottom of the tank until it cures. You will need to lay the tank on it's side while it cures and then flip it to do the other side.
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Re: Attaching acrylic to glass

Post by Lycosid »

bekateen wrote: 07 May 2018, 00:11 What happened with the silicone glue? Was it that the glue didn't adhere to the acrylic?

I've seen plastics attached to glass pretty well (obviously, tank frames work this way). Can you find a flat edged, slotted plastic strip to clue against the glass?
Hard to tell. By the time I found it the silicone was a string attached to the glass at one end and the acrylic at the other. However, there was water pressure behind that acrylic sheet (there was a unidirectional flow in that tank, and it was a "dam" divider) and so the acrylic had been pushed out of position.

Sounds like everyone is in agreement that this can work, given enough plastic to hold on to.
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