rim off an aquarium

[mikesilverado8888]

how to take the rim off an aquarium? Anyone take the back rim off the tank before?

 

[bobman]

They are generally siliconed on with a little elbow grease they will come off however I would not put water in the tank without the rim. It is designed to support the tank when its full of water.

 

[vic67]

This is a 20G long that I de-rimmed. I used a hacksaw to get the trim off and then razor blades and rubbing alcohol for the leftover silicone.

 

[Tegridy Reef]

I'm interested in this thread I thought the rim would b for support I know when I get custom tanks they ask and sometimes if I don't it has to b thicker glass

 

[4FordFamily]

I agree with the others here- the rims are for support on rimmed tanks. Rimless tanks are more expensive because of the glass thickness, better design, better epoxy, etc.

Doing this is a formula for disaster IMO

 

[Tahoe61]

Really depends on the size of tank and type. You can remove the rim on JBJ's and BioCubes.

A blow drier will heat and loosen the silicone and then you carefully pry it off and clean up with a razor blade. There is always a risk, but it's been done successfully by a lot of hobbyist.

If this is not a AIO nano type tank I would not remove the rim personally, but others do on 20 and 40 gallon breeders.

 

[bobman]

Yes it does depend on the size of the tank. Most smaller tanks dont have a brace running across the tank. If it dont have a brace in the middle or 2 braces for 6 footers then you can remove the rim with no worries. Should have asked the tank size in the beginning.

 

[davocean]

Another thing to consider besides structural integrity, usually the edges are not polished, usually rough.

 

[hybridazn]

Hair dryer, flathead screw driver and some time. Then razor blade the silicone off. But be ready to deal with unpolished edges that will be a little on the Sharpe side. If you're worried about structural integrity just add a couple pieces of glass strips to the edge and silicone them in place. Kind of like a euro brace.

 

[Saybng]

I removed black trim on 2 tanks..100g visio and 60 cube..not at all for structural integrity..it's there because the edges are sharp and did not order a trim less tank to get poslished..it is easy to do and it's 4 separate pieces. And it has held water for years. Good luck and be careful.