# Glass thickness for frameless 180 long



## vidiots (Jun 17, 2006)

Doc305 said:


> I want to make a 180 long (72" x 24" x 24") with a frameless top, ADA style if you please. I don't want to use the horizontal top reinforcements. Can anyone advise me as to the thickness of glass I need to use. I did see the DIY thread Scolley posted (thanks, very informative) but the table he referred to says I should use 12mm thick glass. It is about .5 inches which is what Scolley used. It would seem to me that I would need a thicker glass. Can anyone put my concerns to rest?


I have a purchased Oceanic 180 gal 72"x24"x24" glass aquarium. It has 0.5" thick glass, however it does have a center brace across the top. It could be just over built for strength though, which I would say is usually a good thing.

Not sure of the math behind it but I too would think that if you wanted to skip the brace you'd probably want to use thicker glass. How much thicker, I have no clue. If I had to guess I'd think you'd should be safe with 0.75" to 1.0" thick glass.


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## RoseHawke (Mar 10, 2004)

Unfortunately 3/4" thick glass is going to weigh over 400lbs, and 1" will weigh over 500# just for the glass! I hope you have a lot of very strong friends!


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## Jason Baliban (Mar 3, 2005)

ADA's 180 comes in two thicknesses, 12mm and 15mm.

I would shoot for the 15mm.

jB


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## ianiwane (Sep 7, 2004)

I thought ADA's tank is 180cm not 180 gallons. Its about 150 gallons.


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## Jason Baliban (Mar 3, 2005)

ADA makes a 180cm tank that is 180x60x60cm. It is about 167gallons. Pretty close to a 180 gallon tank.

jB


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## Doc305 (Jul 22, 2006)

Vidiots, does your oceanic tank have the bottom glass set inside or on top of the vertical sides?


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## vidiots (Jun 17, 2006)

Doc305 said:


> Vidiots, does your oceanic tank have the bottom glass set inside or on top of the vertical sides?


I'm a little confused by your question. Do you mean does the weight rest on the bottom glass or on the sides? I think the side glass extends all the way to the frame with the bottom glass inbetween the sides. I don't think the sides sit on top of the bottom sheet of glass. Tough to say for sure because the trim hides the bottom connection all the way around, but the weight of the tank is resting on the trim all the way around and the bottom glass is not in direct contact with the stand. If the tank wasn't full and heavily planted I could probably check from looking at the inside.

As mentioned above, the tank is quite heavy. With the 0.5" thick glass it weighs about 300+ pounds empty. I re-enforced the floor beneath my tank prior to filling, not because I was afraid it would fall through the floor, but feared that with a ton of weight sitting in one spot for an extended period of time that the floor might bow slightly over time.

Out of curiousity how much do you think you'll save by building your own instead of buying one ready made? I admit I didn't shop around for the best deal on mine, and paid extra to have it come with built in overflows and paid $2000 for it plus a glass top and oak stand and they delivered it for free.

The only thing I think would have made mine look better is if it were made of acrylic instead of glass so that you wouldn't see the corners at all. On the tank I have they did a very nice job of putting a clean beveled edge on the glass so it still looks very nice.


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## Doc305 (Jul 22, 2006)

It apears that you understood what I was getting at about the bottom and side pieces. Scolley built his with the glass on the bottom, Wendle put it on the inside of the vertical pieces, and I wanted to see how Oceanic did it.

I am not concerned about the weight because the floor is concrete slab, so I guess I'm lucky there.

I have been quoted $350 for all the glass in .5 inch and I have just about all the tools already. The tools I don't have, the corner clamps, I was planning on buying anyway for the cabinets. I only need silicone, which is $6.50 a tube for scs1200. I'll buy a dozen to play it safe. After considering the cost of the materials for the stand, I think I will still come out well ahead. All Glass brand 180s go for over $600 without shipping and they still have the trim that I don't care for.

Ah acrylic... It is beautiful but I find they scratch too easily for my taste and my son likes to "drive" his hot wheels on every inch of our house, including the aquarium.


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## shake (Apr 17, 2006)

Try this link. It's not the same size as what you are after, but he used 3/4" glass. The interesting thing about this tank is that he used pvc for the bottom instead of glass.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=839423


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## medicineman (Sep 28, 2005)

One thing for sure if you are shooting for a custom made frameless, rimless tank at such size (or even DIY) is to opt for 19mm glass. 

12mm will not do, 15mm will barely do it especially if you use regular cheap glass. Even at 19mm, it will still bow a bit (no rims and bracings), but you will be much safer from failures such as when you knocked the glass accidentally or as when you lean over into the tank while doing maintenance. 

Just seeing from the safe side and existing custom made tanks. Keep in mind that ADA glass and our regular glass are totally of different quality and strength.


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## Doc305 (Jul 22, 2006)

Thanks to all for the help. I will be proceeding in 3/4" glass.


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## markdem (Jan 20, 2005)

You can use this if you are really keen

http://www.fnzas.org.nz/glassthickness.0.html

Mark


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## wendle (Feb 24, 2006)

6' is a big span! 12mm with a 200mm (minimum) centre brace or 15mm. Can't hurt to go to 18mm, just make your joinery and floor very strong! The ends and the bottom will be fine in 12mm.


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## dizguy (Oct 29, 2003)

I'm going with 19mm glass all around. I hope it will do.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

I'd use Acrylic, stronger, better insulation, lighter, cheaper and easier to buff out any scratches.

Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## medicineman (Sep 28, 2005)

plantbrain said:


> I'd use Acrylic, stronger, better insulation, lighter, cheaper and easier to buff out any scratches.
> 
> Regards,
> Tom Barr


That is the best solution if you dont mind having acrilic tank


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## Badcopnofishtank (Jan 20, 2004)

Anyone know of good inexpensive sources for acrylic by the sheet for these projects?


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## Sietch31 (Feb 13, 2006)

Is it possible to built rimless/braceless tanks out of acrylic ????


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## bharada (Mar 5, 2004)

Sietch31 said:


> Is it possible to built rimless/braceless tanks out of acrylic ????


Braceless, yes. Rimless, not unless you use very, very thick Acrylic.

I had a 120g tank made (48x24x28) using 3/4" Acrylic for the sides (5/8" for the bottom). It has a 3" wide, 3/4" thick rim around the top with no center brace. This seems to be the standard, "Euro braced" style for Acrylic tanks.

But without the center brace my tank builder advised me against having any holes drilled through the rim unless I increased the width of it (the rim) to 6". I ended up getting the back of the tank drilled for my plumbing connections since I really wanted the look of an open top tank...not a cube with a small hole cut out of the top. :icon_lol:


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

Yep.

What's wrong with Acrylic?
Folks sure seem to snub it yet it's great, light, easy to work with, you can buff out any scatches etc.

Why do you think Monterey Bay AQuarium uses it as do most public aquariums?

Strong, fixable, etc.

I'd use a 1/2" panel on the front of a 180 and 3/8" for the bottom and sides.
You can always go thicker, 5/8" 3/4" etc for those longer panels.

Unlike glass, it's still lighter, clearer and stronger.

Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## Badcopnofishtank (Jan 20, 2004)

Acrylic scratches a bit easier, but will not break and send umpteen gallons of water on your floor. 

Acrylic is also clearer than glass, unless you have the new low iron stuff that is more expensive than acrylic anyways.

If i didn't already have a glass tank I would really consider acrylic.


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