# Removing the brace on a Juwel Rio 125



## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

Hi guys,

I have a Juwel Rio 125 (about 29G) I just brought a new light unit for it the problem is that the juwel has a dark plastic brace in the middle of the tank which casts a nasty shadow down the middle.

I have spoken in my local shop and they said they got confirmation from Juwel that these braces can be removed without any problems, do you guys think its safe?

Tank Measurements: 81 x 36 x 50 cm

Some photos:



















Many thanks


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## rullypullyfishhead (Jan 6, 2007)

i would be neverse removing any brace from a aquarium.if the manufacture
put the brace onits for a reason.if you get a ok from the guy who built it then
maybe.
only thing i might do if it was mine would be to drill multiple half inch holes
to let light through.
but to be honest i really dont know


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## rullypullyfishhead (Jan 6, 2007)

i meant to spell nervous but fingers get ahead of them selfs.
if you are really certian you want to do this i would drill the holes to see how
much of a difference it will make.if the holes are enough to let light through
then leave the brace in.but if your certian the aquarium will not come apart the go for it and take it out.


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

What if I cut that one out and glue in a clear acrilic brace?


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## rullypullyfishhead (Jan 6, 2007)

another idea would be to build a see through brace out of glass or plexiglass
and attach it to the top brace of the aquarium where that ledge is{or leave about a inch on ether side of the original brace and attache with stainless
steel bolts and glue.
that way the brace is still securing the aquarium and the light is getting through.


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## rullypullyfishhead (Jan 6, 2007)

just dont cut the orginal brace until you have the new brace in.i see you where thinking that to.


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

Would silicone do the job when glueing the new piece?


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

I don't think silicon is good against shear forces especially since it won't really have anything to hold onto. i would bolt it as suggested and use silicone as a backup.


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

Don't think I can bolt the hood. guess I will have to leave it as it is, if its too risky to remove :|


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

No....don't bolt the hood, bolt a acrylic brace instead of the plastic one you have shown in the pic. Basically cut out the old brace, leaving a little of the old brace on both sides, like an inch or two. Get a piece of acrylic, and drill both the acrylic and the remaining portion of the brace and bolt the acrylic in place (use silicone if you want as additional support, but you don't need it). this will allow you to still have a brace, but allow the light to penetrate to the tank, eliminating the shadow.

this is not an "easy" DIY but very doable. I am about to do it on a 50 gal on found on the curb that had a broken brace.


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

Thanks gmccreedy I think that is very doable, might have to get to work on that idea next weekend.

Never thought about that one  many thanks


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

No problem. let us know how it works out and post some pics!!!

Best of Luck!


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## tazcrash69 (Sep 27, 2005)

I had to do this on a 55 gallon with a cracked center brace (Do not try to lift from that brace!!!) 
I didn't remove the original brace, used a piece of 1/4 acrylic that was 2" X 10" strip, plastic auto body panel plugs (about 12 total). I fit the strip in, drilled the correct size holes through both the original brace, and the new one, put a nice player of silicone down, put down the Acrylic, and then used the body plugs.

HTH, and good luck
Walter


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

i guess I know who i am calling when i do mine...nudge nudge Walter...


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## melbourne (Sep 20, 2004)

I did this on a 55g to replace the center brace because of the shadow. I did the same thing that mcgreedy did. I think I used around 6 nylon bolts in total. I used weld-on to weld the acrylic brace to the plastic. I did this when the tank was empty. Its been holding up fine now going on 2 years I used 1/4" acrylic for the brace.


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

thanks guys that really helped  
Now all I need is some 0.6cm acrilic and some nylon bolts!

Would something like this do for the bolts?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Plastic-Fixin...098504530QQcategoryZ56422QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Thanks


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## melbourne (Sep 20, 2004)

Yup that should do the trick - looks close to what I used. Make sure you map out where you want to place the bolts and don't cut your old brace too short otherwise you will run out of space to place the bolts.


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

Thanks melbourne, so if I understood correct, this is what I need to do:

Existing brace:









Cut brace and leave 3.5cm of old one:









Drill the holes, one already exists in the middle:









Attach new acrylic brace:









Thanks


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

thats it!! nice rendering. thats a keeper...


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

gmccreedy said:


> thats it!! nice rendering. thats a keeper...


Thanks, I will post some photos when doing it, can be a reference for someone else trying to do the same thing!


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## LS6 Tommy (May 13, 2006)

If you're intending to do it with H2O in the tank, get a bar clamp and put it acroos the tank next to the brace BEFORE you cut it. Don't squeeze the tank. Just get the clamp set to the same size. This'll keep the glass from bowing while you work on it.

Tommy


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

melbourne said:


> Yup that should do the trick - looks close to what I used. Make sure you map out where you want to place the bolts and don't cut your old brace too short otherwise you will run out of space to place the bolts.


What diameter bolts should I be using? is 4mm enough?

Tommy I was planning in half emptying the tank while I do it, should not bow if its only half, what do you think?


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## confuted (Jan 31, 2007)

I would suggest glue in addition to the bolts. Gorilla glue is very strong and completely waterproof. Glue would provide some additional redundancy to the bolts, and only adds a few seconds of work to the project.


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## tazcrash69 (Sep 27, 2005)

You might have to empty more than 1/2. When I broke my 55 brace, the tank was less than 1/2 full when I saw the gap between the braces start widening.
The problem will be the difference in length of the new brace if the glass starts to bow. 

If you can get a bar clamp or two (One on each side of the brace), It will really be better.


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## steve.hes (Aug 9, 2006)

how is that brace attached right now.
it might just be gunk on the tank/brace, but from the picture you attached in the first post it looks like it's glued in place.
If it is then you should just take it out as it can't be providing much support.

PS
so you are a rugby fan?


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

tazcrash69 said:


> You might have to empty more than 1/2. When I broke my 55 brace, the tank was less than 1/2 full when I saw the gap between the braces start widening.
> The problem will be the difference in length of the new brace if the glass starts to bow.
> If you can get a bar clamp or two (One on each side of the brace), It will really be better.


Mine is much smaller than a 55g, I don't really want to buy some clamps just to do this job. I will do this duing my weekly 50% water change and then maybe empty some more of the remaining 50% into buckets and do the work then. I can always tell by measuring it if there is any bowing.



steve.hes said:


> how is that brace attached right now.
> it might just be gunk on the tank/brace, but from the picture you attached in the first post it looks like it's glued in place.
> If it is then you should just take it out as it can't be providing much support.
> PS: so you are a rugby fan?


The brace comes in place by the manufacturer, I had a look and it doesn't seem glue, looks like it was melted in place or something, looks very strong.
So by cutting it, would make the job a lot easier.

Rugby fan not really, more into football! Come on Chelsea!!!



confuted said:


> I would suggest glue in addition to the bolts. Gorilla glue is very strong and completely waterproof. Glue would provide some additional redundancy to the bolts, and only adds a few seconds of work to the project.


I intend in using something for that 


Thanks for all the feedback guys, much appreciated.

Any ideas on the diameter of the bolts? 4mm? 6mm? 8mm?
Already purchased the 6mm thick acrylic.


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## rullypullyfishhead (Jan 6, 2007)

i would use 8mm bolts with the gorilla glue.the stronger the better.that 29 gallon has alot of gravitational force pulling in apart with all that water in it.use a measuring device to see that the 8mm bolts will fit in the excisting
brace so that not to have bolts holes to close other wise the original brace
could come apart.
manchester wank wank wank


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

rullypullyfishhead said:


> i would use 8mm bolts with the gorilla glue.the stronger the better.that 29 gallon has alot of gravitational force pulling in apart with all that water in it.use a measuring device to see that the 8mm bolts will fit in the excisting
> brace so that not to have bolts holes to close other wise the original brace
> could come apart.
> manchester wank wank wank


Thanks, think 8mm is too big as you can see from the images bellow, all drawn to scale.

8mm:









6mm:









4mm:









P.S. Man U second place I am afraid


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## steve.hes (Aug 9, 2006)

*cough* Valencia *cough*


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

steve.hes said:


> *cough* Valencia *cough*


We can win in Spain so we will see on the second leg


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

rullypullyfishhead said:


> ithat 29 gallon has alot of gravitational force pulling in apart with all that water in it.


Gravity goes down...not sideways. 

Force on vertical glass is Hydrostatic Force.


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## rullypullyfishhead (Jan 6, 2007)

big words hydrostatic.the bleepin things gonna be pulled apart man.as far iam concerned there is only one force that is pulling me down and that is
taxes.


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

Think 6mm should do the trick or maybe 4mm would be saffer, what do you guys think?


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

rullypullyfishhead said:


> big words hydrostatic.the bleepin things gonna be pulled apart man.as far iam concerned there is only one force that is pulling me down and that is
> taxes.


hey bro...not knocking you down. just figured i would tell you what it was you were refering too. Amen to freaking taxes...i owe this year for the first time. there goes my fish tank money.


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## LondonDragon (Mar 15, 2007)

Finally got around to doing it, check this post:

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/diy/45752-diy-replacing-juwel-plastic-brace-acrylic.html

Thanks guys, for all the tips


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