Mandelstam
Well-Known Member
Couldn't help myself, I brought home a dirt cheap 70gallon glass tank today. Glass looks good, or at least ok. But... Plastic rims with broken mid brace. The woman had had gerbils in it (!) and the little critters had chewed up most of the silicone along all the seams.
It seemed like a good idea to bring it home at the time, ok?!
So at least it needs new structural seams and new internal seals which is fine. My first thought was just to remove the rim, reseal it and then put the rims back on and add a aluminum flat bar as a new mid brace, bolting it to the plastic rim. But if I don't paint the rims it's going to look pretty scabby even if I polish up the glass and reseal it.
Now I'm thinking that IF it's possible, convert it to a eurobraced tank. Two inch glass bracing along the sides and a glass mid brace. Completely remove the plastic rims.
When researching if this is a good or bad idea it's hard to find any straight answers. Most people who ask about it wants a completely rimless tank and I understand how that's a bad idea.
In my head I'm thinking it should be ok to change the plastic rims into glass bracing but thoughts and reality aren't always completely aligned... Hence my need for advice.
I haven't removed the rims yet so I'm not sure about glass thickness.
It seemed like a good idea to bring it home at the time, ok?!
So at least it needs new structural seams and new internal seals which is fine. My first thought was just to remove the rim, reseal it and then put the rims back on and add a aluminum flat bar as a new mid brace, bolting it to the plastic rim. But if I don't paint the rims it's going to look pretty scabby even if I polish up the glass and reseal it.
Now I'm thinking that IF it's possible, convert it to a eurobraced tank. Two inch glass bracing along the sides and a glass mid brace. Completely remove the plastic rims.
When researching if this is a good or bad idea it's hard to find any straight answers. Most people who ask about it wants a completely rimless tank and I understand how that's a bad idea.
In my head I'm thinking it should be ok to change the plastic rims into glass bracing but thoughts and reality aren't always completely aligned...
Hence my need for advice. I haven't removed the rims yet so I'm not sure about glass thickness.
