Lots of questions.. please help...

2)
I’m not sure what exactly you would want a glass hood for (sorry I don't mean that to sound snooty). I just don't know how important for it to glass. However, Plexiglas might be a good substitute just for the hood. It can be cut fairly easily (often by the people at the hardware store) and it will be lighter than glass. Glass could be cut but it would be much more of a challenge.

3) what ever you put it on just make sure it will hold the total weight water and all.

1) Does anyone know of a site that sells cheap aquariums but only the aquarium, nothing else? or where would you advise me to look...

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a) Most places will not ship anything over 10 gallons. They break too easily and it's not cost effective that way.
b) The shipping on a large item like that isn't worth buying on line. It usually works out to the same price you'll pay locally.
c) The only place I can suggest to you is http://www.glasscages.com, however, they also will not ship. They attend a lot of fish and reptile shows, however, and what they will do is use their own trucks to take your tank to the show nearest you. You pick your tank up at the show. I've used them and got great cages for my ball pythons and bearded dragons.

2) Is there a way you can just take a slab of glass and cut out holes for light and filter and such with a glass cutter and make a hood out of it? would this work?

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Have to pass on that one. My instincts tell me no, but I'm not conversant enough to explain why.

3) Can I sit the tank on a huge dresser? or do I need some kind of stand, or is there anything I would have to do special to put it on a dresser?

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Definitely not. You have to have some sort of stand made or purchased that will support that kind of weight.

A 75 gallon tank filled with water and 2" of substrate will weigh 845 pounds. You can go here: http://boonedocks.net/fishtank/ftweb.php and work out the different sizes/weights yourself.

Hope this helps,
Roan

1. I agree with the above mentioned suggestion (glasscages.com) or a local vendor (they aren't that expensive).
2. Don't bother making a hood out of glass... do it out of acrylic if you want. Personally I think hoods should be solid to redirect the light down, but that's just my opinion.
3. You absoluletly need a good stand for your tank (especially if you get a big tank). Water weighs about 8.45 pounds per gallon or 62 pounds per cubic foot. Glass and acrylic need to both be levelled so they don't fail or crack. Acrylic needs to be supported all the way through the bottom... glass just needs the corners (but it's advisable to sit both types on a 1" thick piece of commercial grade styrofoam... building insulation).
4. Making a tank? Glass would be easy to put the pieces together but harder to manufacture them. Acrylic would be easy to manufacture the pieces but harder to put together. You will need pretty thick Acrylic for a large tank so make sure you do your homework very well and plan it out beforehand. Otherwise you may end up with a very wet floor and some unhappy fish.

why dont you just go buy a tank its probably going to be less money and save you alot of time.

I would disagree about not being able to to put a tank on a large dresser just so long as it is pretty sturdy and the tank isn't to big (i wouldnt recomend a 75 gallon on something not made to hold it though). i myself have a 15g on my dresser and am setting up a 25g on a very solid desk.

2. I tried plexi glass and the heat made it sink into my water, so I made mine from glass

gourami said:

I would disagree about not being able to to put a tank on a large dresser just so long as it is pretty sturdy and the tank isn't to big (i wouldnt recomend a 75 gallon on something not made to hold it though). i myself have a 15g on my dresser and am setting up a 25g on a very solid desk.

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There's a big difference between a 15g and a 30g+ tank, gourami. The poster also said that they wanted a something bigger than 30gallons, not a 25g (which would weigh around 310 pounds) tank.

Roan

Also, about the hood, I used Lexam, a type of plexiglass. You can drill holes in it, then reinforce it with wood on top. This way it can handle the heat, it won't bend, and you can modify it at any point (if you want a covered canopy)

me and my freind put togather a 55gallon a couple years ago its easyer to by a tank