Questions regarding the properties of glass...

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donald432

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Jan 28, 2010
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I have been without any fish for quite a while and am now building a new aquarium. The footprint will be 36" x 18" and it will be 24" tall. The glass is 3/8" thick.

It wasn't until after I ordered the glass that I realized the bottom wouldn't be tempered. Will 3/8" thick non-tempered glass bend or flex under the pressure of the aquarium? I'm considering 1/8" thick bracing across the bottom to keep it from sagging; it's going to sit on a slab of granite when all is said and done, and I really don't want the glass bottom of the tank to come into contact with the granite table top.
 
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SubRosa

SubRosa

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No problem, your tank has exactly the same dimensions as a stock 65, and mine is constructed of 1/4" glass with a tempered bottom.
 
greech

greech

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I agree you should be fine but I am confused about the bottom. By brace, do you mean rim or just a front to back strip?
 
jbradt

jbradt

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Maybe it's just me, but I'd be concerned about the botom not being tempered. I'm thinking of the possibility of pressure from substrate and such. If it happens just right, could crack the whole bottom. It doesn't take much to crack a piece of glass that already is under a lot of strain. That's a lot of weight and a lot of money resting on that bottom piece of glass.
 
viboy

viboy

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Just put a piece of pink foam insulation cut to the size of the glass underneath. It will completely support the glass and get rid of any imperfections at the same time. Either way I would think 3/8" thickness would be plenty.
 
SubRosa

SubRosa

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dbosman said:
For insurance, put egg crate plastic, inside, on the bottom.
Click to expand...
Absolutely, because untempered glass will crack much more easily, say if you place a heavy rock incorrectly.
 
glasman

glasman

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Tempered glass is much more impact resistant. Its the edges that are fragile. I worked for a glass wholesale company for 10 years, we used to take turns during our breaks seeing who could break scrap pieces of tempered 3/8 glass with a baseball, and not once did anyone do it. Take any hard object and tap the edges however, and BOOM!!!
 
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donald432

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Jan 28, 2010
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I really like the pink insulation idea. I was going to put 1x1/8" bracing along the edges with a couple of sticks across the middle to prevent bending. I'll probably still use the bracing around the edges with the insulation in the middle. I'll bury some egg crates and try to avoid bulky heavy rocks. @jbradt It's gonna be for mudskippers. I feel like the missing water will more than compensate for the weight of the substrate, especially if I use something other than rocks to fill the space beneath the beaches (chunks of wood, plexiglass boxes, etc.). lol@glassman I had a 1/4" thick tempered glass door explode in my hands the other day because a metal clamp was improperly installed somewhere along the line. There were pieces everywhere! It's the dust that gets you. The chunks aren't very sharp but sweeping them up without using some sort of mask or respirator is a bad idea.
 
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donald432

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Jan 28, 2010
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Oh! Thank you everyone for the speedy responses. I'll go take some pictures for you guys.
 
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