# Solid tank divider



## JellOh (Mar 13, 2013)

I'd like to divide a 20 gallon long into 4 5 gallon tanks that are seperated by a solid divider. There would be absolutely -no- water flowing between the four tanks. Each would need its own seperate heater and filter and each could be emptied and filled indepent. Almost like 4 little tanks that are side by side. The only thing is; what could I use? And has anyone done anything like this before?


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## Xeek (Sep 28, 2012)

Have any acrylic shops around town? If you can get some exact measurements they can make panels you can fit in very easily and if you so choose, use nontoxic water proof silicone to mount them permanently.

Why do you want to do this? If you use mesh instead you can decrease the amount of filters and heaters you need! Instead of 5 filters you would only need 2 or 3. Same for the heaters which you would want near the filters so they get a bit of flow.

There are some really decent tanks already built the way you suggest though.


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## registereduser (Jul 30, 2010)

Xeek said:


> Have any acrylic shops around town? If you can get some exact measurements they can make panels you can fit in very easily and if you so choose, use nontoxic water proof silicone to mount them permanently.


I did this to divide my 15 gallon in half except I used glass and aquarium silicone. It was messy but you can go back when it's dry and scrape away excess with a razor blade. Worked great! Each side has its own filter but I only have one heater which keeps both sides warm, one side is just a few degrees lower than the other.

To make sure they can't see each other I thickly applied the aquarium silicone to one side of the glass and "textureized" it so that it looks frosted.

I also asked the glass guy to bevel all sides of the glass square so it wasn't at all sharp. Cost $8.


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## JellOh (Mar 13, 2013)

I'll look for an acrilic shop then. Coils I put in two small pieces with a binder divider in between so they couldn't see each other? 




Xeek said:


> Why do you want to do this? If you use mesh instead you can decrease the amount of filters and heaters you need! Instead of 5 filters you would only need 2 or 3. Same for the heaters which you would want near the filters so they get a bit of flow.


Bettas release their sent everywhere they go, and with a divided tank they can usually smell the other bettas. I'd rather cut down on stress and make it so they can't smell one another. Plus, I already have 3 great heaters, and 4 small sponge filters plus a gang valve wont cost too much.


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## Briz (Mar 22, 2013)

When I made acrylic dividers, I frosted the panes on both sides so that they Bettas couldn't see each other clearly. If you frost it enough, they shouldn't be able to associate the blobs they see as Bettas.

I used steel wool and sandpaper to rub both sides vigorously. I had my bf help me with that!


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## JellOh (Mar 13, 2013)

I see. So, step one in making a great tank is getting a geat boyfriend! I might be stuck with ok tanks then


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## Briz (Mar 22, 2013)

Haha, I'm sure you can do it with some elbow grease! Or maybe poke your dad to help if he's available. If the frosting doesn't get good enough for a single sheet, you could always double layer the sheets (both frosted) and THAT should be good enough as well! There just isn't much paint that's safe for prolonged submersion.

If you don't want to bother with frosting, uou mentioned having two sheets but something inbetween them. Maybe you could use aluminum foil? It's super thin and obviously not transparent, haha.


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

I actually like this idea and I happen to have some frosted acrylic glass that is really thick and I got it for free. I also have an old patio door in my shed too as an option.
The plus about doing this is you severly reduce potential sharing of disease (drips of water are the remaining risk) and stress on the fish. Jumping and escapees are less likely or nearly zero if you take the precaution to cover the tops of your dividers properly.

I've already ordered a specific color of craft dividers but they are returnable. The report binder things in order to get one color are expensive for for 6 dividers. $3.89 a pack only two of the same color in one pack. I think I will investigate this as an option as well. I already have a heaters and filters so no extra expense there.


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## JellOh (Mar 13, 2013)

Yes! Lets start a revolution to make a better divided tank!


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## motherpeters (Mar 3, 2013)

I saw someone a while ago use the cheap wal-mart cutting boards as a stiff divider that was not see through. You'd just need to find one big enough to cut to size.


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

JellOh said:


> Yes! Lets start a revolution to make a better divided tank!


Yes even if I do use craft dividers I have been dreaming up a safer, better built like Fort Knox tank. I really would feel better about my divided tank if my fish "share" a little less (germs, stress, ect.) I already feel a bit guilty because the divided tank benefits me more than my fish.


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## Laurenie (Aug 5, 2010)

For anyone considering this, I would HIGHLY recommend using actual glass and NOT plexiglass for the dividers. Aquarium/aquarium safe silicone is specifically designed to form a much stronger bond with glass than other materials like plexiglass. Since this seems like the kind of project you'd want to last over time, it'd kinda suck when one or more parts of the plexiglass dividers started to detach in 6 months. The thicker, sturdy type of plexiglass you'd need also tends to be more expensive than the regular 1/4' sheet glass appropriate for this project.


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