How safe would a 30br (36Lx18Wx12T) be as a rimless tank? I have a regular aqueon tank 1/4" glass....

I had to rip off the black trim to replace the back pane... I don't really want to replace the black trim if I don't have to.

Thanks for your input!

1/4in glass is really thin. I wouldn't trust it to be honest.

How did you get the panels to seperate? I tried "deconstructing" an Aqueon 20L I was given...it didn't end well. I got all the silicone off the inside and used a razorblade along the seams. None of the panels would budge. I was hoping to do the rimless/frameless thing, but it cracked. 1/4" glass 12" high should be ok as long as it's not in a high risk area. You can always fill it, watch for bowing and add brace(s) if needed.

Yeah, euro bracing is a possibility

It definitely was not easy... The back pane was broken so I wasn't particularly careful. I ended up forcing 1 razor slightly into the seam wherever I could get it in and then I stacked the razors carefully to separate the silicone.

Check this thread:
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...=206133&hl=

Thanks, I'll give it a try tomorrow.

How did it go?

Trashed it...ended up messing up one of the corners pretty bad. Did you try filling yours yet?

Hmmm... that sucks hardcore...

I haven't purchased the new glass yet... Still a 3-sided tank. So no water. I'm delaying the tank and focusing on the stand for now (I can't make up my mind on how I want to design my overflow).

have you thought about using abs sheet for the back panel. this would make drilling, for closed loop and such, much safer. somethhing i have been contumplating is an external coast to coast, with abs this would be super simple. could almost be like uhuru's sliced pvc.

Black ABS plastic you say?

I have contemplated the material for the actual overflow box, but never for the entire back panel!

What kind of bond will silicone create between ABS plastic and glass?

may be of use glass and pvc

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.p...mp;pagenumber=1



also this is great same brand (age) but with a really nice external overflow. its also not on that other site.
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=192316

sorry hadent noticed that you had posted in that other thread.



anyway here's some info that may be usefull about silicone

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...20916&st=20



post #39 by tiperkins

A club member pointed this online article out to me after reading this thread.

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/diy/2781...glass-tank.html

I'll cut and paste the excerpt thats most interesting.

"More information on silicone
I spent an hour an hour on the phone with an industrial application silicone guru at GE, and got the real low down on silicone. Here are some fun facts from that call:

1) No manufacturer will tell you their silicone works underwater, since they all degrade underwater over time. Only someone OEM'ing silicone will make that claim.

2) Silicone's primary strength is to itself, not what it is bonded too. So if it starts to pull away in a spot in an aquarium, it is almost certainly not going to "snap" with the tension, creating only a small leak. It will hold together in one piece and if more pressure is applied will continue to tear away from the glass instead, creating a potentially catastrophic leak instead.

3) GE’s SCS1200 has their highest adhesion strength, twice that of their commercial grades, and an unspecified amount over their consumer grades.

4) Silicone's adhesion strength in general does not approach its tensile strength. If you lay down a bead on top of some glass, you will be able to pull it up much easier than getting it to snap while pulling it.

5) The aquarium application requires silicones weakest strength, adhesion. This explains why all tank manufacturers all lay down a nice wide seam along the bottom edges of the tank. That's not just to fight water pressure, that's also to provide more adhesion surface to keep the bottom edges from ripping apart.

6) Silicone bonds very well to silicone, but much less well to anything else... like glass.

7) SCS1200 will only cure to a 1/4" depth. So under 1/2" thick glass, there can be no excess on either side while it cures. And that is 5 days at 50% humidity - more days if the humidity is lower. "


Point number 1 is the same conclusion I had come to in my previous post.
Not saying this is gospel but just another bit of information.




this is also interesting
http://www.technologylk.com/images/pdf/CRL-sealant.pdf

Thanks for the links Bitts!!

I'm still doing research on different ways to do this... I'm also getting a quote on some ABS or PVC sheet to see what I come up with price-wise.

have been looking into doing something along these lines for a while. one of the questions Ive never been able to get a satisfactory awnser to is wheater the weir has to have the notch cut out of the back wall or not.

have recently found sevral treads were the weir was not notched but instead utilized a slit or teeth.

examples
macheteavanue's 24 gal (really like this one)
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=163883

rocketboy52's from that other site
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.p...ternal+overflow

wondering about the long trem durability of using the slit/teeth vs the notch type weir.

well water pressure increases with Height only Right?

If so I think you would be fine with a 30 gal breeder de-rimmed it should not have anymore pressure than a 10 gal right? and the glass is thicker 10 is 1/8 I think.


I was plan on upgrading to a 40 br but a rim less 30 would be so much cooler!

ok so Ive done a little more research.

depending upon which materials are being bonded they make spacific silicones. glass to pvc, glass to abs, either way there is aparently a primer to use with each.