Hey Rhyno8 I had never heard of monsuta tanks before your recommendation but they seem to have a big lead time and won't do custom sizes
I've also decided to take the advice you guys have given and increased the glass size to 19mm
I'm also looking at going with double thick 20mm ply for bottom, sides, face's and bracing with timber reinforcing the angled corner as that is considered a weak point.
One issue I have come across is with the thickness of the glass I'll have the front sheet weighing in at 170kg and back glass around 130kg or so, with this being the case I'm thinking I might have to mount the glass on the faces prior to screwing the front and back to the sides and bottom and also sealing the tank post glass install. I'll also most likely have to install beams in the roof to be able to hang the sides from during install
I'm still not 100% sold on the frame being made of metal for a few reasons 1 it would have to be made in 2 pieces cut lengthwise just to get it into the room and 2 based on the size of box section I would need I don't believe it would work out any cheaper or save any space over wood.
I am considering running a 45x90 wood flat along the inside faces of the tank (across the top and bottom from left to right) for extra support but do you guys think that's excessive being that I'm already using in essence 40mm ply and those 2 pieces of wood would be considered live timber so may risk deforming the tank as the moisture content changes in the wood? I'm just looking at the length of the tank and thinking I want it to be strong especially with the height factor, that being said I was thinking of having spacing of 500 between bracing do you think I can increase this size to allow better access into the tank? I've also increased the width from 700 to 800 OD to allow better access into the tank and it just looks better this would allow a opening of 580 wide (2x40mm ply(front and back sheets) + 100mm front bracing (flat on top each side) being that I'm not a small person I want all I can get for cleaning and chasing fish when needed)
I've also decided to take the advice you guys have given and increased the glass size to 19mm
I'm also looking at going with double thick 20mm ply for bottom, sides, face's and bracing with timber reinforcing the angled corner as that is considered a weak point.
One issue I have come across is with the thickness of the glass I'll have the front sheet weighing in at 170kg and back glass around 130kg or so, with this being the case I'm thinking I might have to mount the glass on the faces prior to screwing the front and back to the sides and bottom and also sealing the tank post glass install. I'll also most likely have to install beams in the roof to be able to hang the sides from during install
I'm still not 100% sold on the frame being made of metal for a few reasons 1 it would have to be made in 2 pieces cut lengthwise just to get it into the room and 2 based on the size of box section I would need I don't believe it would work out any cheaper or save any space over wood.
I am considering running a 45x90 wood flat along the inside faces of the tank (across the top and bottom from left to right) for extra support but do you guys think that's excessive being that I'm already using in essence 40mm ply and those 2 pieces of wood would be considered live timber so may risk deforming the tank as the moisture content changes in the wood? I'm just looking at the length of the tank and thinking I want it to be strong especially with the height factor, that being said I was thinking of having spacing of 500 between bracing do you think I can increase this size to allow better access into the tank? I've also increased the width from 700 to 800 OD to allow better access into the tank and it just looks better this would allow a opening of 580 wide (2x40mm ply(front and back sheets) + 100mm front bracing (flat on top each side) being that I'm not a small person I want all I can get for cleaning and chasing fish when needed)