Long, low and narrow tank glass thickness

[_erik_]

Hi everyone! I want to build a glass tank measuring approx. 10x1,5x1 feet (lxwxh). I will probably do some form of top bracing (either ”euro bracing” with glass or some kind of diy aluminium solution).

Since the measurements are somewhat unusual I am not sure if the thickness calculators online are accurate. How thick glass do you guys think I need?

 

[Backfromthedead]

I would use 1/2" glass on the entire thing. At 12" deep i dont think you would need any top bracing but it certainly wouldnt hurt.

 

[the_deeb]

Agree that 1/2” should be fine. The outward outward deflection of the front/back panes of glass typically puts the greatest strain at the center, and this exacerbated on very long tanks. Eurobracing at the top (or the bottom if you want to go for the rimless look) resists the bowing and helps to minimize this strain.

 

[Backfromthedead]

If you eurobraced the entire top of the tank, you could actually get away with 3/8" for the front, back, sides, and eurobrace. I would still leave the bottom panel 1/2" though.

 

[M1A1]

Agreed with all of the above. You're probably seeing 3/16" or 1/4" on the calculators which is technically correct but as the_deeb said, the length will make the bowing significant.

 

[_erik_]

Thank you for your replies! I will go with 1/2” glass. I have also decided to shorten the tank by a foot - so it will be 9x1,5x1 instead.

After some research I have decided against diy aluminium bracing. And Eurobracing is off the table aswell because the company I order the glass from doesnt cut strips of 1/2” glass less than 4” wide - which means that almost half of the top of the tank would be covered by glass (18” tank width with 4” wide bracing front and back leaves only 10” of space between the braces).

Although it might not be necessary, I would like some bracing just to be safe. I am thinking front to back bracing: One on the the left side, one on the the right side and two in the middle approx. 3 feet apart. So four braces in total.
How wide would you guys make the braces?
I am thinking 4” for each of the side braces and maybe 8” for the two middle braces (1/2” glass)
Will that be enough to make the tank real solid?

 

[Backfromthedead]

Whats the reason for only 12" height on this tank?

 

[the_deeb]

Eurobracing is off the table aswell because the company I order the glass from doesnt cut strips of 1/2” glass less than 4” wide - which means that almost half of the top of the tank would be covered by glass (18” tank width with 4” wide bracing front and back leaves only 10” of space between the braces).

You might still want to consider the bottom eurobrace I suggested in my earlier post. This would mean running the 4” strips along the inside of the front/back at the bottom. This effectively gives you double the bonding area and double the tensile strength, and since it’s at the bottom it doesn’t interfere at all with your access from the top.

 

[Andyroo]

I adore this idea - where's it intended to be in the house, like running a shelf~wall? Stock? Flow? Filtration? Please tell me it'll be a loach-stream!

I also do'know... it's only 30cm tall, so maybe lighten/simplify:
If you're stuck with braces anyways, just do the whole thing in 1/4" glass with 3' wide braces at 36' spacing - so two of 'em (or more). Cut little glass isosceles triangles to stick underneath the junction to increase the adhesion surface. It's taking a tension, so the glass can be thin - the silicone will give up before the glass breaks ...so don't buy the cheap silicone.

With thinner glass you'll have more money to work with, & can go for a low-iron glass - it's weirdly invisible, as my cat can attest. The braces will also disappear so long as you keep them clean.

Note: you may have a rough time finding any glass more-than 8' long, 8x4 being the standard pane. Your 9' might have to be diagonal cut & so you'll be buying the whole pane - costly. If you're still going with the 9', think about how to hide the splice. Having said that, I'm on a rock in the Atlantic where we work with what's available

Avoid aluminum or steel as framing unless you're particularly keen on a steam-punk look - which could be very cool - as silicone really doesn't like to stick to anything but glass (IME). You can make it work as a gasket and/or with epoxy/polyurethane, but don't bother if you don't have to.