I've been looking at different ideas and I can't seem to find an answer to this question. If the glass thickness is measured based on the height of the water behind the glass. Can you build an aquarium deeper and still use the same glass thickness. Example say a 4 foot tall aquarim with only the top 2 feet as a viewing area. Can you use glass thickness based on the top two feet or does the thickness have to be calculated for the entire 4 foot depth.
Glass thickness question
- Thread starter tthanatoss
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Since a certain thickness of glass is needed to withstand pressure from a certain depth I would logically conclude that the thickness of the glass would only be regulated to the deepest part of the tank. So......if the bottom edge of your glass is only 2' under water I would think it would be OK to use glass based on that. Thicker doesn't hurt though.
That's the conclusion I've come to as well. I would really like to find an example of someone who's done something similar. I'd hate to find out the hard way
I have a similar question if you are building a 12 foot long plywood aquarium. would using say 4 sheets of 3 foot glass instead of a single 12 foot piece
allow you to use thinner glass ?
allow you to use thinner glass ?
^ perhaps, but not by much. Depth is a far more important factor than length when calculating glass thickness, provided it is adequately braced along the length.
And for the original question,I agree with Knowdafish. If, for example, you were building a concrete pond 4' deep, if you only had the top 2' as viewing window with 2' below supported by the concrete you would be able to use ~12mm glass as is standard for a 2' deep aquarium. But if you had a 4' full height viewing window (or even a 2' high window at the bottom of the tank with the top 2' supported by something else) you'd want much thicker glass.
And for the original question,I agree with Knowdafish. If, for example, you were building a concrete pond 4' deep, if you only had the top 2' as viewing window with 2' below supported by the concrete you would be able to use ~12mm glass as is standard for a 2' deep aquarium. But if you had a 4' full height viewing window (or even a 2' high window at the bottom of the tank with the top 2' supported by something else) you'd want much thicker glass.
Below using float glass and a 3.8 safety factor and assuming proper support at the edge of the glass....
Comparing a 366cm x 61cm glass to a 91.5cm x 61cm glass you'll go from needing .408cm to .342cm thick glass. (This is going 12x2 feet to 4 3x2 feet panes.) So it's thinner, but not by a lot.
Comparing a 366cm x 91.5cm glass to a 91.5cm x 91.5cm glass you'll go from needing .749cm to .493cm thick glass. (This is going 12x3 feet to 4 3x3 feet panes.) So, it's a bigger difference.
Basically, it appears that for glass that is not too high, there isn't a lot of incentive to creates panes. Deeper tanks will exhibit more benefit.
If I recall, Arapaimag used 5 foot x 3 foot panes in his 50,000 tank to take advantage of this fact. (If this is wrong, I stand corrected, but I'm almost certain.)
As David R noted, it's the pressure from the tank water level to the bottom of the glass that determines thickness. If the tank is 6 feet high, with water going up to the 5.5 foot mark and the glass stopping at the 3.5 foot mark (with plywood, concrete, etc forming a wall below) then the pressure is still 2 feet (5.5-3.5).
Comparing a 366cm x 61cm glass to a 91.5cm x 61cm glass you'll go from needing .408cm to .342cm thick glass. (This is going 12x2 feet to 4 3x2 feet panes.) So it's thinner, but not by a lot.
Comparing a 366cm x 91.5cm glass to a 91.5cm x 91.5cm glass you'll go from needing .749cm to .493cm thick glass. (This is going 12x3 feet to 4 3x3 feet panes.) So, it's a bigger difference.
Basically, it appears that for glass that is not too high, there isn't a lot of incentive to creates panes. Deeper tanks will exhibit more benefit.
If I recall, Arapaimag used 5 foot x 3 foot panes in his 50,000 tank to take advantage of this fact. (If this is wrong, I stand corrected, but I'm almost certain.)
As David R noted, it's the pressure from the tank water level to the bottom of the glass that determines thickness. If the tank is 6 feet high, with water going up to the 5.5 foot mark and the glass stopping at the 3.5 foot mark (with plywood, concrete, etc forming a wall below) then the pressure is still 2 feet (5.5-3.5).
This is great info!
I'm looking to build a 10x4x4 plywood tank, and have been stuck on what's the best viewing window configuration.
If I were to put 3 windows that are 36"L x 24"T, with 6" of support on each side of the tank and 2 braces in the front for strength...and in the middle of the front plywood panel, 36" of water pressure...I could use 12mm(1/2") glass? Or would that be stretching the Safety Factor a bit much?
I'm looking to build a 10x4x4 plywood tank, and have been stuck on what's the best viewing window configuration.
If I were to put 3 windows that are 36"L x 24"T, with 6" of support on each side of the tank and 2 braces in the front for strength...and in the middle of the front plywood panel, 36" of water pressure...I could use 12mm(1/2") glass? Or would that be stretching the Safety Factor a bit much?
Thanks for the info, am I correct in thinking that the thickness measurements are actually inches rather than cm.
Also do you have a formula or is there a calculator as I am still trying to work out the exact dimensions of the tank.
Having just got some quotes on glass prices it looks like I will be building using 12 mm float
I am really trying to find out the maximum safe size tank
I would be happy with the window at the top of the tank 2 feet high. The Ideal length would be 4 meters
a maximum Height of 1.2 meters so how wide can the tank be ?
Also do you have a formula or is there a calculator as I am still trying to work out the exact dimensions of the tank.
Having just got some quotes on glass prices it looks like I will be building using 12 mm float
I am really trying to find out the maximum safe size tank
I would be happy with the window at the top of the tank 2 feet high. The Ideal length would be 4 meters
a maximum Height of 1.2 meters so how wide can the tank be ?
Thanks,
I see your tank (Nice !) is in 15 mm glass
The price I was quoted was 4 times that of 12 mm and only marginally cheaper than 19 mm
is this a local pricing issue or inline with prices in the southern hemisphere?
I see your tank (Nice !) is in 15 mm glass
The price I was quoted was 4 times that of 12 mm and only marginally cheaper than 19 mm
is this a local pricing issue or inline with prices in the southern hemisphere?
Ok I re-did everything and converted it all to mm. I have 2 calculators one that used cm and the other uses mm for input. I used the one expecting mm for input, but I input cm, so it gave a correct answer, but it was the wrong question.
Comparing a 3657.6mm x 609.6mm glass to a 914.4mm x 609.6mm glass you'll go from needing 12.88mm to 10.80mm thick glass. (This is going 12x2 feet to 4 3x2 feet panes.) So it's thinner, but not by a lot.
Comparing a 3657.6mm x 914.4mm glass to a 914.4mm x 914.4mm glass you'll go from needing 23.66mm to 15.56mm thick glass. (This is going 12x3 feet to 4 3x3 feet panes.) So, it's a bigger difference.