DIY: from scratch.

[Beano1169]

Hey everyone, my parents have agreed that its cool for me to get a much bigger aquarium. deminsions are looking like a 36.4"L x 23.5"W x 24"H about 88.8 Gallons of water. I have a fileing cabinet I am converting into a stand, I need some ideas of how to brace it properly though. I am very curious on what thickness of glass I need if I get it tempered, I do know some people who can make the tank for me with holes and everything. Just need to know the correct glass width, i have seen some places saying 9mm for sides and 12mm for the bottom.

[monocus]

type in aquarium glass calculator-there are a number of sites

[Beano1169]

Thanks Ill try that out asap, also does anyone out there have a build thread I could see for where I should drill and How large I shouldd go for the bulk heads. This is my first time building my own tank so I dont want to mess up haha .

[monocus]

if you look through those sites they should have that info-also try melv's reef

[tidal_waters]

Sorry if i misunderstood your post, but if your planning on drilling holes in your tank you'll want to stay away from tempered glass.

[Beano1169]

It plans on being drilled then tempered. And I found out I need around 10mm thick glass for an aquarium 24" tall x 36.4" long.

[Edmonton newbie]

show us some pics of the file cabnet so we can see what we are dealing with as far as extra bracing ect.

[Beano1169]

ok can do Ill get them posted asap

[parkinsn]

You don't need to have tempered glass if you build you euro brace appropriately. Another option would be to have your holes drilled by whoever you buy your glass from. This way you don't risk breaking a piece while drilling and have to by a new one.

[Beano1169]

yah, and really. while ill go take some pictures of the cabinet and post them so i know where to place my braces. ps i hope you sold that tank :P

[Beano1169]

These pictures are kinda poor, and I was too lazy to actually remove the second drawer haha
its a soild oak fileing cabinet i didnt measure the thickness of the wood as I just wanted some feed back cause I have some idea on how to brace it, please keep in mind that im going to try and fix a 30-40 gallon sump in the base. and I know its open bottom but thats easily fixable haha.

http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/?action=view&current=IMAG0134.jpg
Front

http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/?action=view&current=IMAG0135.jpg
Side

http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/?action=view&current=IMAG0136.jpg
In the first drawer slot

http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/?action=view&current=IMAG0137.jpg
Inside/ Bottom

[Beano1169]

so looks like the photos aint working so here goes

http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/?action=view&current=IMAG0134.jpg

http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/?action=view&current=IMAG0134.jpg#!oZZ3QQcurrentZZhttp%3A%2F%2F s8.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fa31%2Fjaybean2%2F%3F action%3Dview%26current%3DIMAG0135.jpg

http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/?action=view&current=IMAG0134.jpg#!oZZ2QQcurrentZZhttp%3A%2F%2F s8.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fa31%2Fjaybean2%2F%3F action%3Dview%26current%3DIMAG0136.jpg

http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/?action=view&current=IMAG0134.jpg#!oZZ1QQcurrentZZhttp%3A%2F%2F s8.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fa31%2Fjaybean2%2F%3F action%3Dview%26current%3DIMAG0137.jpg

[intarsiabox]

The tank will be around 900 lbs when full and would cause a lot of damage if the stand can't support that much weight. I would look up DIY tanks stands and build a 2x4 frame inside the cabinet accordingly so that the frame is supporting the weight and not your file cabinet. The other option would just be to build a stand made for a tank and trim it with a nice polywood like oak or maple.

[abcha0s]

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/IMAG0134.jpg?t=1314239246

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/IMAG0135.jpg?t=1314239319

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/IMAG0136.jpg?t=1314239298

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jaybean2/IMAG0137.jpg?t=1314239294

The tank will be around 900 lbs when full and would cause a lot of damage if the stand can't support that much weight. I would look up DIY tanks stands and build a 2x4 frame inside the cabinet accordingly so that the frame is supporting the weight and not your file cabinet. The other option would just be to build a stand made for a tank and trim it with a nice polywood like oak or maple.

I have to agree with this. There is no possible way to effectively brace the filing cabinet and there is no possible way that it will support the weight. The stand will collapse.

You could have a metal frame built that would go around the filing cabinet. Your tank dimensions would change somewhat as you want the outside edge of the tank to be supported. As you are spanning almost 4 feet without a center brace, I would recommend 1.5" square tubular steel. You could use 1" but you would have to double up the longer spans.

- Brad