ok i have everything i think i need to start this build. just give me your comments on if it will all be strong enough... i got a 84x24 piece of glass for free its 3-8 thick tempered. i would have gone thicker and not tempered if i had to buy it... 4 full sheets of 1 inch layered plywood. butyle rubber caulk. and 5 gal of zaflar rubber. i plan on building the box with screws and liquid nail. i don't want the 2x4 frame on the inside or outside. do you think it will be strong enough? i am going to leave a 4inch wood trim on the front viewing piece 2 inches the glass will over lap and be sealed with the caulk. planning on inforcing the joints with matting and liquid rubber then doing 10 layers on the joints and 8 on the walls. my 2 biggest concerns are will the 1 inch plywood be sturdy enough with out any framing? i have seen alot of ppl build this way with success. and next will a 2 inch over lap be enough for the glass and plywood or are ppl bringing the glass further into the wood? i want to keep my viewing window as big as possible so the less i lose the better. give me your opinions please
320gal ready to start. tips- ideas
- Thread starter wheatgerm
- Start date
"and next will a 2 inch over lap be enough for the glass and plywood or are ppl bringing the glass further into the wood?"
Interesting...
I would think 2 inch overlap is more than enough... (some) All glass tanks have none.
Good luck with the build.
Interesting...
I would think 2 inch overlap is more than enough... (some) All glass tanks have none.
Good luck with the build.
so your saying that the "cut out" on the front board of a plywood tank is cut out the exact same size as the glass window that is being put in? i dont think so.. i was re ferring to the over lap being that the glass is bigger than the cut out in the wood so it doesnt "pop out" when it has pressure on it. almost every build i have looked at does have wood overlapping the glass. its hard to say how big it is in a picture thats why i was asking if a 2 inch border of wood AROUND the glass would be enough.
"i was re ferring to the over lap being that the glass is bigger than the cut out in the wood so it doesnt "pop out" when it has pressure on it."
Yes, and my comment to that was "I would think a 2 inch overlap is more than enough"
What I thought was interesting is the question "how much overlap is enough?" Personally I would estimate that 1/2 an inch (or equal to the glass thickness) would be plenty and would be interested to hear other posters comments on this subject.
Yes, and my comment to that was "I would think a 2 inch overlap is more than enough"
What I thought was interesting is the question "how much overlap is enough?" Personally I would estimate that 1/2 an inch (or equal to the glass thickness) would be plenty and would be interested to hear other posters comments on this subject.
oh i get ya now. i didn't know if i had worded my question right the first time. but i guess i had just misunderstood your answer, sorry that's my fault. so even a half inch would be enough? that would be great if so because i want to get as much view out of my glass as possible lol. but that's pretty obvious who wouldn't hah. anyone have anything to say about the glass thickness? its kindof got me nervous because i looked at the charts and they are saying half inch or more mine is 3-8 but tempered so it should be stronger but is it strong enough? also i got 3/4 thick ply i wasn't planning on building an external frame but does anyone have an opinion on if it would hold with only screws and glue or should i have gotten 1 inch thick for this to work?
I think the overlap from viewing window to plywood needs to be at least 1" and 1.5" would be better. One think to keep in mind if you go w/o a frame on the viewing window, if the glass or the plywood starts to bow and they to do not bow at exactly the same rate, your going to get a leak. If you frame nothing else, I would frame the viewing window. You also mentioned liquid rubber, remember liquid rubber does not stick to glass or silicone. Silicone also does not bond well to liquid rubber. Plan accordingly when figuring out how to seal the window. I have seen larger builds where plywood was doubled up and the screws were staggered to go w/o a frame.
would you frame from the inside for the glass? i was wondering about not really making a full external frame but using extra pieces from the ply that i will cut and laying a 3 to 4 inch wide strip along all the joints on the outside? the tank is going in the wall but won't be built in so im not too worried about how the outside of the tank looks but the lighter the better since i will be sliding it into a window in my wall haha. as for the issue about bonding to the liquid rubber i have buytol rubber caulk ppl have used these 2 products with success and that is what liquid rubber company suggest to use.
If it were me, I would be using full sheets of plywood but strips might work out just fine. I have heard that rubber buytol will bond with liquid rubber but I was never able to find any that was safe with fish. I ended up having to use fiberglass resin to bond the 2 products.
it might be fish safe but just not say on it? i have sted alot of silicone that didn't say it was aquarium safe but never had any problems. im just going to frame it i decided and be better off safe and that way i won't have to get as thick of plywood im getting excited to start it i promised the wife i would finish the hard wood floors before i started this and they should be done monday !!