jaggedfire Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 So I resealed an old Oceanic 75 gallon tank and did not replace the rims on top or bottom. The bottom is 1/2" drilled and the sides are 3/8". The tank originally had a center (approx) 10" brace that I have not put back in yet as I wanted to see how much the tank would bow without. After a leak test (all is well!) the center top panel edge bows 3mm. I have a long clamp on it right now for the extended leak test. I have seen mixed responses from searching but have no experience with this. All the online calculators state this combo of dimension and glass thickness is safe with a factor of ~3.8. I would love to keep this think completely rimless, but not at the risk of failure. Would love to hear others experiences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grim Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 So I resealed an old Oceanic 75 gallon tank and did not replace the rims on top or bottom. The bottom is 1/2" drilled and the sides are 3/8". The tank originally had a center (approx) 10" brace that I have not put back in yet as I wanted to see how much the tank would bow without. After a leak test (all is well!) the center top panel edge bows 3mm. I have a long clamp on it right now for the extended leak test. I have seen mixed responses from searching but have no experience with this. All the online calculators state this combo of dimension and glass thickness is safe with a factor of ~3.8. "I would love to keep this think completely rimless", but not at the risk of failure. Would love to hear others experiences. "I would love to keep this think completely rimless"don't do it....... trust me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woods Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Have you thought about Euro Bracing it as an option? That would leave the center open but give the front panes added strength against failure... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaggedfire Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 Euro is an option. contemplated cutting the brace in two and spacing them evenly. Grim, is yours 3/8"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grim Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Euro is an option. contemplated cutting the brace in two and spacing them evenly. Grim, is yours 3/8"? 1/4" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
offroadodge Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 i would just EURO brace it, hell with that nasty brace running across the middle. I built the current tank i have and it 1/2" glass euro braced 200G, it has between a 1/8" and 1/4" bow in the front glass from about half way up to the top. I know of a tank that is bigger than mine rimmless 3/4" glass with 1/4"-1/2" bow. I would defntly eurobrace it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsea Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 When I broke my center brace on my 135G lagoon, I used a big rubber band to pull together at the top. I used a fish scale to measure 30 lbs of tension. For a permanent repair, I will use stainless steel fishing leader material and apply, the same tension. I have a 75G tank that has no center brace from the manufacture. Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaggedfire Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 The 3/8 inch glass should take the tension, which I suspect yours is too Patrick. Bowing without the brace is .118 or less than 1/8" at the max deflection point. How long before the failure occured Grim? This tank isn't nice enough to be a high end DT, but looks SO much better than OEM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 The 3/8 inch glass should take the tension, which I suspect yours is too Patrick. Bowing without the brace is .118 or less than 1/8" at the max deflection point. How long before the failure occured Grim? This tank isn't nice enough to be a high end DT, but looks SO much better than OEM. Patrick and I viewed his tank without the rubber bungee cord and the bow of the outer glass is obvious. It's amazing how much just the bungee reduced it, and I think his plan of using steel leader as a "wire center brace" is definitely justified. Tanks without braces look cool, but nobody wants to come home to an empty or broken tank and water and critters on the floor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsea Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 My wire tension brace is on 135G tank that is 29" deep. My seaweed grow out tank on back porch is 75G standard tank with no center brace. The glass is 3/8" thick and the tank is 18" high. Do not ask me to tell you the flex in this tank. You can come measure it, I can not see that good. Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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