I want to remove the center brace on a 75 gallon, opinions on best method?

[TDEcoral]

I need to place a LED light right in the center, but the brace will block too much light. I've read of people using acrylic that they drill and tap then put holes in whats left of the brace and secure it with nylon bolts. I was thinking of doing this but using some kind of epoxy as well. The other option is to cut a strip out of a pane of 1/4" glass that I've got. Not sure what the strip width the thickness ratio should be. For example is a 2" strip sufficient for 1/4" or would I need more like a 4" strip? If anyone reading this has a tank with a glass center support, I'd be interested to know what size the tank is and what the dimensions are on the center brace.
I've worked with both acrylic and glass so the material is of no concern, I just want to use the option that will be most secure.

 

[Zohar78]

i have an older oceanic 130g ( 60"x18"x28" tall. oceanic tend to overbuild on their tanks.i rather have that way than any other way i could be wrong but oceanic seem to be one of the only tanks at the time that did a combo glass/plastic frame brace.. the tank has 1/2 glass,all around. it also has for the brace it has a strip of plastic like 1/2 inch with atleast a 6" piece of glass on each side of it for bracing.. its definitely well built and braced.

 

[TDEcoral]

i have an older oceanic 130g ( 60"x18"x28" tall. oceanic tend to overbuild on their tanks.i rather have that way than any other way i could be wrong but oceanic seem to be one of the only tanks at the time that did a combo glass/plastic frame brace.. the tank has 1/2 glass,all around. it also has for the brace it has a strip of plastic like 1/2 inch with atleast a 6" piece of glass on each side of it for bracing.. its definitely well built and braced.

Thank you for the info. It seems that over 4' manufacturers move to using two center braces instead of just one.

Anyone else?

 

[Malifry97]

I'm not of any assistance but i'd like to know the answer

 

[cvrle1]

Brace is there for a reason, it is structural piece keeping your tank from bowing and seams from coming apart. Cutting brace and trying to replace is not a good idea. Once that brace is cut, its integrity is gone. it is injection mold, so once it's gone, it cannot be replaced anywhere close to the way it was originally made. With all that said, what you could do is remove whole top plastic frame, and then do a proper euro bracing. That way you have strong brace that will keep your tank safe, and get rid of the plastic brace in the middle that is causing issues light wise.

 

[Zohar78]

Thank you for the info. It seems that over 4' manufacturers move to using two center braces instead of just one.

Anyone else?

welcome sir, I could be wrong but it seems the oceanic was the only one that did it that way. when i do add corals to the tank, im going to try and configure that light (three xr15 g4 pro, and 4 bulb t5) in the middle to output about 10 to 20 percent more to counter the light loss. but with t5 supplementing.. may not need too.

 

[Reef-junky]

Brace is there for a reason, it is structural piece keeping your tank from bowing and seams from coming apart. Cutting brace and trying to replace is not a good idea. Once that brace is cut, its integrity is gone. it is injection mold, so once it's gone, it cannot be replaced anywhere close to the way it was originally made. With all that said, what you could do is remove whole top plastic frame, and then do a proper euro bracing. That way you have strong brace that will keep your tank safe, and get rid of the plastic brace in the middle that is causing issues light wise.

+1 on this

 

[DSC reef]

I agree with not cutting the brace and buy a rimless tank when you can. I never really noticed any effect on coral from the brace when light was directly above it. A little shadowing was more of an annoyance.

 

[DCR]

A glass brace can certainly work. What are the dimensions of the tank?

 

[TDEcoral]

A glass brace can certainly work. What are the dimensions of the tank?

It's a standard 75g, 48" x 18" x 21". Wish I could find info on the width that manufacturers have used. I had a 90g with a glass center brace but I never measured it. I'm also thinking I could cut out the center brace and leave the rest of the brace intact then silicone in a 2" x 48" strip of glass in the front and the back just underneath the trim on the inside. Sort of a plastic brace/euro brace hybrid.

 

[rc1626]

I've successfully done it to a Marineland 75, 120, and now a 180 gallon. I haven't had the 75 for a few years but both the 120 and 180 are currently running. All three tanks were replaced with a clear piece of cast acrylic. 180 has two 1/2" x 3" x 23" pieces. The 120 has one 1/2" x 1 1/2" x 23" piece.

Cross brace was cut leaving approximately 3 - 4" on each end to bolt the new brace to. Plastic bolts were the largest I could find at the hardware store and are the ones used for mounting toilet seats.

Absolutely no bowing of any kind. 120 has been running this way for two years. 180 was just done over the summer and is a new setup.

It can be done it's just a matter of how confident you are in your diy skills.
Obviously I can't guarantee similar results so attempt at your own risk.

Good luck with whatever way you go.

Pic of 180 attached.

 

[DCR]

The old Oceanic 75's used a piece of 3/8" thick glass about 8 inches wide as a center brace. They were very stout. I would probably use a 4" wide piece.

 

[TDEcoral]

I've successfully done it to a Marineland 75, 120, and now a 180 gallon. I haven't had the 75 for a few years but both the 120 and 180 are currently running. All three tanks were replaced with a clear piece of cast acrylic. 180 has two 1/2" x 3" x 23" pieces. The 120 has one 1/2" x 1 1/2" x 23" piece.

Cross brace was cut leaving approximately 3 - 4" on each end to bolt the new brace to. Plastic bolts were the largest I could find at the hardware store and are the ones used for mounting toilet seats.

Absolutely no bowing of any kind. 120 has been running this way for two years. 180 was just done over the summer and is a new setup.

It can be done it's just a matter of how confident you are in your diy skills.
Obviously I can't guarantee similar results so attempt at your own risk.

Good luck with whatever way you go.

Pic of 180 attached.

Thanks for the info! Did you use an epoxy as well, or just the bolts?

The old Oceanic 75's used a piece of 3/8" thick glass about 8 inches wide as a center brace. They were very stout. I would probably use a 4" wide piece.

That's good to know, thank you.

 

[rc1626]

Just the bolts.