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Water in a water cooler - what product do I need?


fov

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I'm making a roombox of an office scene based on characters from a video game: http://www.emilymorganti.com/blog/?p=14575

The office will have a water cooler in it. Town Square sells one that's supposedly 1:12 but I saw it at a store and it's more like 1:18, so I'm going to make my own. I'll use a glass bottle for the water bottle (turned upside down, so the cork is hidden inside the water cooler base) and I want to add water to it.

I've never done this before. What product do I need to make fish tank-like water? Would something like this work? https://kitkraft.com/products/water-effects

The bottle needs to have an air gap at the top, so I think I'll have to pour in the water stuff and then cork the bottle and flip it upside down to dry. Ideally the water cooler should have a castle and a goldfish inside it. I can just add the goldfish if I can't figure out how to do the castle, but I'm not sure how to suspend the goldfish in the resin water?

You can see the water cooler off to the side in this screenshot, to get an idea of what I'm talking about. Any ideas for how to do this are appreciated!

 

water-cooler.jpg

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Emily yes the water effect works. I have seen a resin used also. I used a two part resin for a pond I did. Check out the Tube videos there are a lot on how to make the fish and how to make them float in the water. 

Here's one on how to make a latex mold. Maybe you could make the mold and the top seperate then you can put the castle and fish in with the water and glue the very top on last.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqhHm3m_N8o

 

 

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I don’t know about the water, but I would pin the castle to the cork. Then it would be placed when you put the lid on and flipped it. 

I’d probably buy a charm or earrings like in the link below, paint them and solder or superglue a pin to the back to be able to pin it to the cork. I’d probably superglue that too so it doesn’t dislodge during the flip. 
https://etsy.me/2XMIUf5

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I had the same idea! I'm glad you thought of the same thing, that makes me feel like it might work.

I thought maybe I could pin the fish to the cork also (is there such a thing as a clear pin?) and then once the resin is added it'll look like he's swimming. Or I could not add water at all.

I'm thinking of using a glass bottle that has a 1/2" wide mouth. Unfortunately that castle charm is 14mm (a hair over 1/2") so I don't think it'll fit. (It's really cute!) But I'm looking around for other options.

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If the fish is dimensional (polyclay?) it could be stuck on the ring atop the castle charm. Horizontal may look  contrived, but if it is at an angle (diving) it could be convincing.

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1 hour ago, havanaholly said:

Stick your wee fishie on the end of a short bit of monofilament fishing line; what you would need would stick up on its own, especially if your fish is paper.

There is that stiff fishing line stuff that they string beads on in their sales packaging, I always keep that when I buy beads, you could try that for the fishies, if you found some cute light plastic ones they would probably stay upright. Also look at nail art, thru might have castles and fish in an appropriate size. 

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I have some fishing line but I'm not sure if it will be sturdy enough to stand up under the weight of the fish. The stuff beads are strung on is also a good idea. I was also thinking about the plastic thing that connects price tags to new clothes.

So far I haven't been able to find a plastic fish. I'm looking at these made out of clay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/10-Pcs-Goldfish-Clay-Animal-Dollhouse-Miniature-Figurine-Size-1-12-Handmade-Tiny/172864082191

I thought I could poke a hole in the bottom and super glue in the fishing line (or whatever I use).

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6 hours ago, havanaholly said:

Uh, that's what monofilament fishing line is...

Haha, I didn’t know the technical term. No idea what monofilament fishing line is, but the stuff they string beads on, I understand. I’ve learnt something new today, thanks Holly :D

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42 minutes ago, havanaholly said:

How tiny a fish are you thinking?

Goldfish sized...? The ones I linked to are 3/8" which seems a bit big... that would be 4.5" in 1:12 scale. But anything much smaller might be too hard to work with.

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Is this going to be 1:12 or 1:24?  I suggested paper because it's very easy to make a simple 1:24 goldfish from about 4 layers of paper and glue its halves on either side of the end of a short bit of monofilament fishing line.

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It's 1:12. Also I'm not sure how paper would withstand the resin water?

I'm still trying to figure out what product to buy to make the water. The stuff I've seen for dollhouses (like Magic Water, Miniatures.com sells it) and trains (Woodland Scenics brand) say you need to pour it in small layers (Magic Water says 1/2"; Woodland Scenics says 1/8"). I won't be able to do that because the water cooler needs to dry with the cork side down for there to be an air gap at the top, so I need to add all the water at once.

I guess that means I need to use resin? I found this post about making fake water for a flower vase: https://www.mommyupgrade.com/making-fake-water-vase/

I'm not sure if having the water cooler corked while it dries (e.g. no air touching the resin) will cause a problem. Or for that matter, if filling the bottle with resin with an air gap at the top will cause the glass to break.

If anyone has worked with resin to make fake water before, I hope you'll chime in! I just want to make sure I understand what I'm getting into...

 

 

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19 minutes ago, fov said:

Also I'm not sure how paper would withstand the resin water

Take a look at the aquarium we got in the half-scale swap last year.  Doesn't it have paper fish and resin water?  I'm looking at my picture of it, and can't tell for sure.  That could give you an idea of how well it would work for you.

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2 minutes ago, Debsrand56 said:

Take a look at the aquarium we got in the half-scale swap last year.  Doesn't it have paper fish and resin water?  I'm looking at my picture of it, and can't tell for sure.  That could give you an idea of how well it would work for you.

Yeah, I keep meaning to dig that out. I think it does have paper but I'm not sure if it's inside the aquarium or around the back.

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I’ve used this product (Envirotex Lite Pour-On High Gloss Epoxy for Sealing Bottlecaps 4 oz) for water in the ponds and fishbowls I’ve made https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0058DVYHC/?coliid=I35103D7GAGB2P&colid=UHIHH79IDJDN&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

The problem is removing bubbles, although you may not care about that in a water cooler. For fish, I made them from polymer clay. I mixed clay colors to get orange and white fish and used translucent clay in the mix to get filmy fins. :D 

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6 minutes ago, Dalesq said:

I’ve used this product (Envirotex Lite Pour-On High Gloss Epoxy for Sealing Bottlecaps 4 oz) for water in the ponds and fishbowls I’ve made https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0058DVYHC/?coliid=I35103D7GAGB2P&colid=UHIHH79IDJDN&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Thanks! Finding small quantities has been a challenge. This is the other one I found: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000XAR0DM/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

I think bubbles will be okay.

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16 minutes ago, fov said:

Thanks! Finding small quantities has been a challenge. This is the other one I found: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000XAR0DM/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

I think bubbles will be okay.

I mix small batches at a time using disposable plastic cups (ie, condiment containers). :) 

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I have made a pond I thought I had everything sealed. Well I din't and everything leaked I tin foiled fast and saved it then added more resin. Because it was going in a pot being a complete mess under it didn't really matter.

 I think the biggest issue I see is having the corked sealed because I believe it will leak out . I believe a good solution might be once you flip be ready with a glue gun and seal around the cork then flip. You should be able to peel the glue off once all is set .

I also worry about it curing with little air.Not sure on this 

Not sure if this would work but I just happen to have these plastic containers you could glue the bottom on and hide it in the cooler base. Then pour your scene like you would an aquarium then trim top to fit . Then paint with that stained glass paint in thinned out blue creating those lines a water bottle seems like the have painting a line over where you sealed the top. ( I have 3 or 4 if you want to give it a try)

IMG_1449.JPG

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Very cute scene!  

If you are thinking of using a glass container for the tank, they sell small glass jars that are a little taller in the airbrush section of many craft shops (Michaels and Hobby Lobby come readily to mind).  The cap is usually a black plastic twist on and can easily be painted white if desired.

I would definitely secure the items to the cap first as if you were making a snow globe.  This video shows how the fish were created and embedded in their own resin "water" prior to the whole tank being filled with resin so that affixing to an actual structure wouldn't be as much of an issue.  I have used both fake water for artificial plants and two part epoxies/resins for my fish tanks.  If you decide that bubbles are a problem, mix slowly and then you can exhale on the resin after you pour and the carbon dioxide in your breath should pop them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEgki4IYB5I&feature=share

I have created polymer clay fish for my tanks as well as print/draw on shrinky dink material so that you can size how you wish.  If you use this second method, you can also draw/print the castle and fish all in one and affix to the cap/cork.

Best of luck!

 

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