rearranging glass on a tank

[rnocera]

I recently bought a custom built 90 gallon aquarium. The thing is a beast at 48x18x25 with what appears to be 1/2" glass. I was looking at it and wondering if I could possibly flip the tank around so it lays on its front instead of standing up the way it is now. My thought is if I take the back pane off I could get it cut so that it would fit in the opening that is right now the top of the aquarium, reseal it in place, and then I'd have a tank with a much bigger footprint than it has now, which would work nicely for my gar and my bichirs. Would this be feasible? The front and back panes are longer than the sides, with the sides fitting inside them, so the pane taken off would have to have about 1" taken off the end and 7" taken off the top, but it would nestle in between what is now the front and side panels.

Does this sound like it would be worthwhile? I'm thinking it would last the gar much longer, and it seems like it would be a much better setup for almost everything I like, and be easier to plant since light won't have to travel down as far to hit the plants.

Anyone ever done anything like this? Or is it a problem/not worth it?

Thanks,
Ronnie

 

[CHOMPERS]

It looks like you already have it figured out. And yes, a glass shop can cut the pane to those dimmensions. The only thing I can add is for the trim. If you are going to build a hood for it, then the old trim can be trashed. If not, new trim can be purchased from most tank manufacturers.

 

[CHOMPERS]

One additional thought, check how the bottom is mounted into the tank. If it is raised up then you'll want to reset it to be flush.

 

[rnocera]

I'm planning on building a hood/canopy for it, so I don't mind scrapping the trim, and the way the stand will be constructed will overlap up over the bottom bit, so that can go, too. That's great- I'm thinking I like the idea of those dimensions much better. I'll have to give some glass shops a call today, then break out the razor!

Also- the recessed bottom- is that just for cosmetic reasons, or is there a structural reason to move it if it's recessed?

And, do I need to tear all the glass out, completely reseal it & clamp it all together, or would it be OK to just fit this piece of glass in, trim all of the current seals and apply a new bead along the inside?

Thanks again

 

[CHOMPERS]

Moving the bottom is only for cosmetics. If you are only going to modify the one panel then I'd just do that one. If you remove two, then you should break it all down and start from square one (it will be easier and you will have a nicer looking tank in the end).