Bulkhead + chipped glass question.

[Zk92]

Hi everyone, I'm currently in the process of setting up a 110 and ran into a slight problem. The tank was plumbed, I removed the the overflow and was planning on using capped bulkheads... after a better inspection in better light I noticed a small chip in the rim of the one drilled hole - on the water side, where the gasket would be....

Should I be worried about the integrity of the glass if I just flip the bulkhead and gasket to the dry side? Would siliconing glass in be a better option?

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[Preacher]

It’s hard to say without a picture. Can you attach a picture of the chip?

 

[Zk92]

My other concern about siliconing in a piece of glass is the drilled hole being so close to the already existing seam..

 

[Sassafras]

I've never seen a hole that close to an edge seam. I know custom tank manufacturers won't generally drill a hole within a certain distance of the top edge of a tank, not sure about an edge, but that would make me as nervous as the chip. If you flip the gasket, just make sure it is on the flange side of the bulkhead and not the nut.

 

[xenacanth9]

+1

 

[Zk92]

I've never seen a hole that close to an edge seam. I know custom tank manufacturers won't generally drill a hole within a certain distance of the top edge of a tank, not sure about an edge, but that would make me as nervous as the chip. If you flip the gasket, just make sure it is on the flange side of the bulkhead and not the nut.

It's a Marineland tank with as far as I can tell factory drilled holes. Do you think I have enough space/gap to work with siliconing in a piece of 1/2" thick glass?

 

[Sassafras]

Looks pretty tight from what I can tell from the photo but having the extra 1/2" of glass might help. Were you thinking of a strip of glass along the inner seam, kind of like the Reef Savvy "armored seam" concept? I believe that would best reinforce the seam as it would increase the surface area bonded by silicone..

 

[Sassafras]

I think I just understood what you intended with the 1/2" piece of glass. I was still thinking of your using the bulkhead fittings, but you want to cover the holes entirely with glass since you don't plan on using them, is that right? Again, I would put the glass on the inside of the tank and silicone it to the adjacent tank wall as well as the face with the holes.

 

[Zk92]

Looks pretty tight from what I can tell from the photo but having the extra 1/2" of glass might help. Were you thinking of a strip of glass along the inner seam, kind of like the Reef Savvy "armored seam" concept? I believe that would best reinforce the seam as it would increase the surface area bonded by silicone..

I'm not really familiar with the Reef Savvy seam. My plan was to increase my gap very slightly by cutting a small section of the existing excess silicone, just enough for a clean seam around the patch.

If I can get away with using a reversed bulkhead I would rather do that. Is that chip going to affect the integrity of the glass?

 

[Zk92]

I think I just understood what you intended with the 1/2" piece of glass. I was still thinking of your using the bulkhead fittings, but you want to cover the holes entirely with glass since you don't plan on using them, is that right? Again, I would put the glass on the inside of the tank and silicone it to the adjacent tank wall as well as the face with the holes.

Yes, I'm sealing off the holes, just am unsure which is the better route.

If I use a reverse bulkhead will the chip effect the integrity of the glass in anyway - should I worry about it cracking?

If I silicone a piece of glass over the holes instead, I'm unsure if I have enough room for proper silicone placement being that the hole is so close to the existing seam.