Glass Thickness Guide
- Thread starter amehel0
- Start date
I find this thread and all online guides in general interesting.
a quick look at my tanks finds a 48"x12.5"x20.5" with 1/4" tempered glass
a 60"x18"x22" with 1/2" plate glass
and a 72"x18"x22" with 3.8" plate glass and center bracing.
if you look at my 100g (60"x18"x22") you would think this thread ludicrous in it's recomendations, however my 125 is quite close to the reocmendations here and this "proper bracing" is little more than another piece of glass at the top in the center of the tank. not some fancy carpentry like you're describing.
I've also found rivermud's calculator a bit on the high side especially in relation to my 125g which has taken 12" pacu's full speed crashes without issue and has taken several accidental hits as well.
obviously different people are going to have different recomendations but I think is anyone builds a tank improperly they've no one to blame but themselves. And seriously many of those recomendations are within reason, I'd really like to see all the documentation on who decides what thickness is related to what safety factor at what dimention and how they came to their decisions.
a quick look at my tanks finds a 48"x12.5"x20.5" with 1/4" tempered glass
a 60"x18"x22" with 1/2" plate glass
and a 72"x18"x22" with 3.8" plate glass and center bracing.
if you look at my 100g (60"x18"x22") you would think this thread ludicrous in it's recomendations, however my 125 is quite close to the reocmendations here and this "proper bracing" is little more than another piece of glass at the top in the center of the tank. not some fancy carpentry like you're describing.
I've also found rivermud's calculator a bit on the high side especially in relation to my 125g which has taken 12" pacu's full speed crashes without issue and has taken several accidental hits as well.
obviously different people are going to have different recomendations but I think is anyone builds a tank improperly they've no one to blame but themselves. And seriously many of those recomendations are within reason, I'd really like to see all the documentation on who decides what thickness is related to what safety factor at what dimention and how they came to their decisions.
okay i take that back, rivermud's calculator seems on the high side for the 125g dimensions but keeps that same 1/2" thickness all the way out to 108x48x22. even 144x48x22 is not much higher. This peaks my curiosity as if you were speaking stricktly structurally without water, the 72x18x22 with 1/2" glass is stronger than the 108x48x22 by a wide margin. (unless of course you apply some bracing to the larger without giving the smaller the same bracing) so what gives the larger tank the same safely factor as the smaller. We're talking much more than double the size and the same glass recomendation so how's that different than the recomendations in the original thread?
edit: nm
72x15x18 6mm
72x18x18 6mm
72x18x20 6mm
72x24x24 10mm
72x24x28 10mm
72x36x24 12mm
72x24x36 12mm
72x30x30 12mm
I've gone through alot of online calculators but pretty much you get 1/4" at 18" tall, 3/8" at 21", 1/2" at 24", 5/8" at 27", 3/4" at 30" and at 36" tall you have to be 1" thick
So I get it now, some of his recomendations are fine, it's those odd men out with the height.
edit: nm
72x15x18 6mm
72x18x18 6mm
72x18x20 6mm
72x24x24 10mm
72x24x28 10mm
72x36x24 12mm
72x24x36 12mm
72x30x30 12mm
I've gone through alot of online calculators but pretty much you get 1/4" at 18" tall, 3/8" at 21", 1/2" at 24", 5/8" at 27", 3/4" at 30" and at 36" tall you have to be 1" thick
So I get it now, some of his recomendations are fine, it's those odd men out with the height.
its interesting to note that Aqueon (aka Allglass) who is arguably the best built prefab "stock" glass tank out there (besides oceanic but they are owned by the same company now) makes their
180g 72x24x24 tall
150g 72x18x29 tall
210g 72x24x29 tall
all out of 1/2 inch (with thick plastic braces though). the bottoms on these tanks are tempered.
I would be curious as to how the safey factor changes for these tanks as the volume goes up. and the height?? perhaps someone could see?
as I said, I own the Aqueon 150g and it appears solid as a rock..
180g 72x24x24 tall
150g 72x18x29 tall
210g 72x24x29 tall
all out of 1/2 inch (with thick plastic braces though). the bottoms on these tanks are tempered.
I would be curious as to how the safey factor changes for these tanks as the volume goes up. and the height?? perhaps someone could see?
as I said, I own the Aqueon 150g and it appears solid as a rock..
Please be advised that the OP has supplied this tool as a starting point to building your own tank. The numbers listed here are not set in stone. Tanks can be built many different ways.
It is up to the individual person to build their tank to the level that they see fit. Some prefer a higher safety factor, some do not mind what has been tested and works. That risk, is passed on to the builder of the tank. It is the builder's responsibility to verify that the thicknesses listed below meet the safety requirements desired.
Please be advised that little has been mentioned regarding proper bracing. This is most certainly a concern when designing your tank. This is something you should research further before proceeding with your build.
It is up to the individual person to build their tank to the level that they see fit. Some prefer a higher safety factor, some do not mind what has been tested and works. That risk, is passed on to the builder of the tank. It is the builder's responsibility to verify that the thicknesses listed below meet the safety requirements desired.
Please be advised that little has been mentioned regarding proper bracing. This is most certainly a concern when designing your tank. This is something you should research further before proceeding with your build.
ok. here's another one that I am thinking of (not yet planning just thinking)....
10' x 4' x 3' : possible in 19 mm ???? about 800 gals..
10' x 4' x 3' : possible in 19 mm ???? about 800 gals..
is 1/2" enough for a 72x48x24 tall tank?
There will be 2 to 3 cross braces at the top and braces on all 4 sides at the top and bottom of the tank
There will be 2 to 3 cross braces at the top and braces on all 4 sides at the top and bottom of the tank
