Is tempered glass okay to use for an aquarium?

[14 foot reef]

I myself would never ever have a 72" long tank non braced at the top in 1/4" glass.
IMO you aren't even close to safe. Most top of the line tank manufacture's would make their rimless tanks 3/4" at that length.

 

[14 foot reef]

best advise is send quote requests to top of the line tank manufacturers with the dimensions you want, and see what they spec. then you'd be save with that. I always say, let the accountants manage your finances, let the lawyers mange your liabilities and let the professionals do what they are good at and lets learn from them.

 

[toi_ss]

I myself would never ever have a 72" long tank non braced at the top in 1/4" glass.
IMO you aren't even close to safe. Most top of the line tank manufacture's would make their rimless tanks 3/4" at that length.

The it has a safety factor of 7, the sides are 5/16″ /8mm and the bottom is 25/64" /10mm. Because the tank is only 36cm high/14 inches you don't need very thick glass. Every single glass calculator will give you a safety factor between 6.5 and 7.2 for this aquarium size and glass thickness. Glass thickness is mostly dictated to the height of the aquarium not the length.

 

[Reefering1]

I don't have calculations or even know how to do the math but my 6' euro braced(top and botton) tank is made of 1/2"(12.7mm) low iron glass. and all panes sit on the bottom glass. Idk if it's tempered, but it does have drilled overflow. That said 8mm, 6.5' rimless tank sounds scary. And I never liked the red sea style of floating bottom. What's the logic behind that, anybody care to explain(please)?

 

[toi_ss]

I don't have calculations or even know how to do the math but my 6' euro braced(top and botton) tank is made of 1/2"(12.7mm) low iron glass. and all panes sit on the bottom glass. Idk if it's tempered, but it does have drilled overflow. That said 8mm, 6.5' rimless tank sounds scary. And I never liked the red sea style of floating bottom. What's the logic behind that, anybody care to explain(please)?

Well how tall is your tank, it's the height of the aquarium for the most part not the length. My tank will be very shallow

 

[14 foot reef]

The it has a safety factor of 7, the sides are 5/16″ /8mm and the bottom is 25/64" /10mm. Because the tank is only 36cm high/14 inches you don't need very thick glass. Every single glass calculator will give you a safety factor between 6.5 and 7.2 for this aquarium size and glass thickness. Glass thickness is mostly dictated to the height of the aquarium not the length.

14" high makes a huge difference, I missed that. It seems you've done your math so you are good to go. No other opinions needed on thickness. I would protect the top edges some how.

Good luck, please keep us all posted on the final design and pics when set up running. Happy reefing my friend !!!!

 

[BeanAnimal]

Yup, do you think constructing the aquarium the way im planning to - having side pieces between front and back pieces but on top of the bottom panel and having the front and back pieces not on the bottom panel is safe?

I am not sure that it matters from a damage perspective. Flat bottom glass tanks leave very little room for stand error though. Point loading is a partial problem but the bigger issue is torsion pulling on the seams.

I am not a glass aquarium manufacturer. I would certainly consult one if you have concerns.

 

[BeanAnimal]

And I never liked the red sea style of floating bottom. What's the logic behind that, anybody care to explain(please)?

So my post above.

The floating bottom solves a lot of stand issues. While the 4 corners needs to be planar, nothing in between does. This remove a lot of torsion related problems from the equation. If the floating bottom glass is supported by bottom trim, that trim is bedded in silicone that adds another area of flex to relieve stress on the seams for non planar corners as well.

 

[toi_ss]

I have decided to make it not a floating base aquarium - The sides and front/back will sit on top of the base panel

 

[Reefering1]

I am not sure that it matters from a damage perspective. Flat bottom glass tanks leave very little room for stand error though. Point loading is a partial problem but the bigger issue is torsion pulling on the seams.

I am not a glass aquarium manufacturer. I would certainly consult one if you have concerns.

14" high makes a huge difference, I missed that. It seems you've done your math so you are good to go. No other opinions needed on thickness. I would protect the top edges some how.

Good luck, please keep us all posted on the final design and pics when set up running. Happy reefing my friend !!!!

Thanks guys, excellent explanations. I also don't know how I missed the 14"tall part, makes sense, my tank is 28.5" tall. Not to distract, but it seems relative(especially since I'm planning a build)... so on a flat bottom tank(all panes sit on bottom), would it be appropriate to sit the tank on 3/4" plywood(birch) assuming it's well planed with no high spots, or are they supposed to be supported only by edges?

 

[toi_ss]

Thanks guys, excellent explanations. I also don't know how I missed the 14"tall part, makes sense, my tank is 28.5" tall. Not to distract, but it seems relative(especially since I'm planning a build)... so on a flat bottom tank(all panes sit on bottom), would it be appropriate to sit the tank on 3/4" plywood(birch) assuming it's well planed with no high spots, or are they supposed to be supported only by edges?

Yeah im building my tank the same way - my current plan is to have it on 18mm plywood with some pretty thick eva foam between the tank and the plywood