Astochristo Posted February 9, 2015 Share Posted February 9, 2015 Hi Looking at putting together a tank 1700long X 900hight X 750deep. with euro style bracing for extra strength Any idea to what size glass i should use?Any advice would be helpful.Thanks in advance.Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Link2Hell Posted February 9, 2015 Share Posted February 9, 2015 have a look herehttp://www.theaquatools.com/building-your-aquarium Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve24cro Posted February 9, 2015 Share Posted February 9, 2015 Not clear on exactly what you want. If you want to have an open top tank eurobraced with no bridges you would need 15mm all around minimum, You would also be wise to get 100mm straps all round the base for extra support. If your going for a standard tank with braces and bridges then 15mm base with 12mm sides may hold up. Personally with that size I would still go 15mm all round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckmeister Posted February 9, 2015 Share Posted February 9, 2015 If I were going to have a play at this I'd make the tank out of 12mm all round. then I'd cut strips of 12mm, say 20mm and baton every join on the inside.Gotta say I'm the nervious type though and I'd baton the whole tank vertically every 30-45cm too lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stepod72 Posted February 9, 2015 Share Posted February 9, 2015 I definately wouldn't be using 12mm for a euro braced tank, as mentioned 15mm would be an absolute minimum.Cheers,Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astochristo Posted February 9, 2015 Author Share Posted February 9, 2015 Ok. Thanks for the tips. Looks like I'll be going with 15mm. There will still be bridging on the tank. Unfortunately it's not my tank, just helping a mate. I would love a tall tank like this! Thanks for all the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stepod72 Posted February 9, 2015 Share Posted February 9, 2015 Ok, with having the bridges on the tank you can use 12mm.With this size tank I use 60mm wide bracing around the top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve24cro Posted February 9, 2015 Share Posted February 9, 2015 Most tank makers will recommend a 15mm base as your tank is very wide (900mm). I guess this is for stability and extra strength around the bottom edges. 15mm glass price is a big jump from 12mm (about double per square metre) , So having the tank made from 15mm all round will be expensive, So 12mm sides would be sufficient with good tank maker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckmeister Posted February 10, 2015 Share Posted February 10, 2015 Ahh my bad, I didn't notice it was 3 foot deep and not wide. For 3 foot deep I'd also go 15mm all round. In fact if it was 3 deep and still go 15mm even with bracing.I'm curious, why would you ever want a large tank made that had no cross bracing?edit - In fact I would not recommend a tank this size to not be fully braced. Every tank that I can see on google are all shallow reef tanks or sumps. Seems a big gamble for such a deep tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve24cro Posted February 10, 2015 Share Posted February 10, 2015 Ok maybe I read it wrong too, if the height of the tank is 900mm then nothing under 15mm all round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astochristo Posted February 10, 2015 Author Share Posted February 10, 2015 Ok, the confusion is all my fault!sorry. 1st I only notice today that my dimensions were not clear. It said 900wide... I edited it to high this morning. 2nd the idea was to have bridge bracing but also add euro bracing for additional strength. Sorry about the confusion! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buccal Posted February 10, 2015 Share Posted February 10, 2015 10 years ago I built my own display tank for the living room.It's 1950mm long x 1300mm wide x 1000mm deep.I used 15mm base and 12mm for the sides.I have three center braces on top at 120mm x 12mm.The top perimeter edge brace is 80mm x 12mmThen all glued butt joints are doubled up with 50mm x 12mm straps all round sides and bottom.Looking along the mid and top edges, there is no visible bowing.Tank is still going strong.Part reason for the thickness formula in building tanks is surface area of thickness for glue contact.Glueing straps in doubles the glue surface area for double strength joint hold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckmeister Posted February 10, 2015 Share Posted February 10, 2015 really I'm a little confused as to the meaning of euro style bracing.here are a couple of pics of my 8*3It has that 'Euro' style bracing also with the cross bracing but personally I think this is the minimum a good tank should have in the first place.12mm may be alright under a well built tank but if I were going to recommend glass thickness for someone I'd be saying 15mm to be sure that you dont have to wake up every day wondering if the tank has burst or not.Glass by its very nature comes in different quality. Every batch of glass is different. You are better off spending a little more on a quailty build that guessing imo. There are tricks with cross bracing for thinner type glass but unless your sure you want to risk it then play safe imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buccal Posted February 10, 2015 Share Posted February 10, 2015 As already mentioned, when engineering these sized tanks,,, it's always a big weigh up,,, as the cost difference between 12mm and 15mm is big time.I guess it's for the owner builder to ponder..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stepod72 Posted February 10, 2015 Share Posted February 10, 2015 900 high does change things a little. As a tank builder I would recomend using 15mm glass, but it does come at a cost. It is over double the cost of 12mm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astochristo Posted February 11, 2015 Author Share Posted February 11, 2015 Thanks for all the replies. I think 15mm will be the safest bet. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buccal Posted February 11, 2015 Share Posted February 11, 2015 To right its over double.My father is a special projects supervisor for BGC commercial windows.He said that 12mm is a very commonly used thickness and the vast amounts used is reason for it being cheaper (bulk pricing).The needed glass sizes cannot just be ordered and paid for.The glass comes in standard size sheets,,, so usually you will have to pay for the full sheet/sheets,,, so basically your paying for a bit of unwanted glass.When I engineered and fabricated a cutting list,,, out of all the scraps I managed to economically get all my straps and joint bracing done out of the scraps.It's a handy way to make most of the 12mm and improve by by double edging the glued corners for twice the glued surface area (24mm),,,,,,, theoretically the joint becomes a little less than twice as much stronger than straight 15mm glued corners.The double edging also gives it a heavy duty well built look.Crap,,,, sorry I only read to the end of the first page. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astochristo Posted February 11, 2015 Author Share Posted February 11, 2015 I think I'll show my mate this thread and he can make up his mind. I'm unsure of his budget. But it's a lot of money. I would just cut down the hight a bit. But I think he is putting it in a custom built wall space. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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