how thick does glass need to be to walk on?

[tscharf]

Just like the title says how thick does glass need to be in order for someone to walk on it. When i build my 4,000 gallon tank i plan on having a platform above it that you can walk on and feed the fish from. any one have any clue on thickness? Im 200lbs myself so id like it to atleast support me, but if i could make it support, say 600lbs how thick would it have to be? it would be supported on all 4 sides, and if need be i could run supports down the center or every 4 or so feet. From a birds eye view the tank would be 12x8 and i would like the platform to be 12x4.

 

[poly-nomial]

 

[nfored]

I would think Acrylic with a glass overlay would have been a better choice, the acrylic for strong bottom, the glass overlay to protect the acrylic from scratches.

 

[tscharf]

haha no? not gunna work? i thought as much i figured the glass would have to be 2 or more inches thick and at that thickness the price would be ridiculous

 

[FSM]

You will need to do a thin path and brace it well, in order to be able to use a reasonably thin sheet. One continuous sheet, other than being ridiculously expensive, would need to be much thicker than you could otherwise use.

But, why not just create a plywood walkway across the top, and support it with 2x4s or whatever? Then use glass or acrylic for lids, not for standing.
You would save a ton of money, and really the only benefit in having a glass walkway is you can see down through what you're standing on.

thanks for contributing

 

[poly-nomial]

thanks for contributing

just putting is as effective as blathering on for 3 paragraphs on how it would be expensive and difficult

 

[tscharf]

haha yea i thought about doing the 2x4's but i just thought it might be cooler to do a glass walk way, where i could actually look down and see the fish where i was and that way i could see if any fish were there and sick or something. i think ill just go with the 2x4's though

 

[jonclark96]

I work for a General Contractor and we put a back lit glass floor in a recent job we completed. Profile of the glass was 2 layers of 1/2 inch, 1 layer of 3/8 inch, and a 1/4 layer with a anti-slip surface. All layers laminated with a PVB interlayer for strength. Basic module was 5 ft by 5 ft nominally. There was also colored inter layers for aesthetic purposes. Total glass thickness was 1 3/4" nominal when all said and done. The pieces were approximately $200/sf when shipped from LA to DC. Note that this was in a public assembly building and it is engineered for heavy traffic. Not sure if you could get away with a single thick piece or not. Either way, I would think it would be cost prohibitive. PM me if you want to know who we bought it from.

 

[tyndall72]

You could do it... the glass would be a pretty penny tho. You would need glass at least an inch thick with suports every 2 feet or so

 

[fobrinkle]

Build a wooden or metal bridge that goes out over the tank for feeding. Much more cost effective.