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Post by Pooka on Nov 19, 2004 14:48:22 GMT -5
So I have been researching glass aquarium construction and have found out that it is rather easy to do. Have any of you looked into doing this? It allows custom widths and heights that are not commerically availabel and if you get the correct glass you can drill ventilation holes and drains with relative ease before construction. The concern that weighs heavily on my mind though is structural soundness. I would like to do a 5' long x 3'wide x 3' high size and for an aquarium it would require very thick glass. Where I have no water pressure could I cut cost by using thinnner glass? I'm not sure. Just wanted to muse a bit and get some feedback.
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Post by Cyrene on Nov 20, 2004 6:49:24 GMT -5
Your best bet would be to find a company that does glass repair (auto glass replacement or home windows) and ask them about the structural soundness of the glass at different thicknesses, the difference in tempered glass and the safety coated glass. I do know that any holes or circles cut into the glass will reduce it's strength, especially putting drain holes in the bottom of the cage. Maybe you could go with a laminated board on the bottom instead of glass? I've worked with stained glass for years, I even have the diamond bladed saws and drills to cut it with, it's not hard to do, but it does weaken the glass. Granted, stained glass is a lot thinner but it doesn't have the pressure on it either. The other thing about building your own is that it has to be pretty close to perfectly square and the base has to be as well. Any pressure on one corner or the other will put stress on the glass..kind of like twisting it..and glass doesn't bend.
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Post by dragosmom on Nov 20, 2004 9:10:27 GMT -5
Are you planning on building a viv or an aquarium? Aquariums are obviously designed to hold large quantities of water which weighs 8.333 lbs. per gallon. This puts alot of weight and PSI on the glass. If you are going to buld a viv the PSI rating would be much, much less. Also, keep in mind that tempered glass cannot be drilled or modified. One of the viv's I recently reviewed was made of heat resistant glass.  |
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Post by Pooka on Nov 20, 2004 11:01:47 GMT -5
You both are right on the money as to what I am up to. Fish tanks are made to hold tremendous amounts of weight (I think a gallon of water is like 4 pounds or something) so the thickness and safety rateing of the glass must be much higher. A vivarium will not be subejected to these pressures. My main concern (and the only reason I don't jump right in with 6mm glass and start) is that if I build something 6 foot x 3foot x 3foot then go to lift it will the structure support its own weight to be lifted onto a stand? Unfortunatley nowhere can I find a thickness calculator chart that tells to recommendation for glass boxes. I can only find the ones for aquariums which take the pressure and weight of a fully filled aquarium into account. Building my own out of thinner glass would be cheaper I expect as the tiunner glass is rather cheap compared to the thicker. As far as squareness I'm not to intimidated. For several years I was a stainless steel welder makeing pharamceutical mxing vats and storage tanks for big medical companies and they expect accuarcy to the blue prints  Keep the stuff coming though, this topic interests me greatly. |
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Post by dragosmom on Nov 20, 2004 13:30:42 GMT -5
Most aquariums have a plastic band (for want of a better word) around the bottom and top to help support them. You could make this out of wood and polyurethane the wood to water proof it. As long as the glass is strong enough to resist shattering when something 3 or 4 lbs. hits it, it ought to do the trick.
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Post by Cyrene on Nov 21, 2004 6:19:47 GMT -5
The wood frame would be a big help in providing stuctural soundness, especially with moving it. Good call, Dragosmom! I didn't even think of that. Silly me! And if you put some cross supports in it as well, to help support the middle of the bottom piece, I think you could get away with using a thinner glass. I'm still not sure about drilling holes for ventilation and draining. It would be real convenient though, that's for sure. I have seen it done, but not on something the size your talking about. I've been thinking about how to build a cage here as well. The one thing me and my husband are tossing around is using laminated board on the bottom and cutting a hole to set a sink into the bottom of it. It would have to be 'roughed up' so it wouldnt' be so slippery but I don't think that should be a problem. The sides then would be made of acrylic sheeting, or laminated boards with windows (acrylic sheeting) set into it. |
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Post by dragosmom on Nov 21, 2004 13:05:41 GMT -5
It appears you and your husband put a lot of thought into things before you begin. Well done! Building a large viv is not something you should rush into. I know I viewed pictures of hundreds of enclosures and read what the owners felt they would do differently or change if they could and incorporated the best of each design into my own plans. |
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Post by Maureen on Dec 7, 2004 14:37:16 GMT -5
Is it possible for you to build with sheets of lexan or plexiglass instead? You'd have to be careful with aiming lights though lexan is pretty heat resistant. I have one side of Figment's tank done in plexi and it's been fine so far. Just a thought, there are probably a lot of benefits to glass instead...good luck!
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Post by dragosmom on Dec 7, 2004 15:28:21 GMT -5
 Actually, Maureen, my viv IS made of plexi. The drawback is that CWD nails really scratch up things other than glass. I used GE's lexan and it seems to be doing pretty well but I can understand why most people prefer glass. Thanks for your post!
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Post by Cyrene on Dec 8, 2004 7:30:47 GMT -5
I'll probably be using acrylic sheeting for my viv. It's lighter than glass and more scratch resistant than Plexi. It's often used for windows, stairs and they even made a floor out of this stuff with lighting under it...it was awesome looking! There are the regular sheets and they make a special one that is Mar-resistant as well. I haven't compared prices yet, however.
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Keep the stuff coming though, this topic interests me greatly.
Actually, Maureen, my viv IS made of plexi. The drawback is that CWD nails really scratch up things other than glass. I used GE's lexan and it seems to be doing pretty well but I can understand why most people prefer glass. Thanks for your post!