Materials For Tank Bases

[saz326]

I plan on building a custom tank when I have bought (and settled into) my new house.

It will have glass side pannels (I want to SEE my fish! ) but I do not want to have a glass bottom..

Every tank I have seen has a glass bottom with between 1cm to 1 inch or airspace beneath it. This makes for the perfect conditions to smash the base when placing rocks and heavy wood.

Do any tanks have glass bottoms without the airspace?
What else have people used as bases for their tanks?

 

[fishguy2727]

They used to use slate, a LONG time ago.

Actually that space is valuable. Believe it or not glass will bend a little, that space allows for this and cen be just enough to prevent a crack. Glass is also not strong in that way. Glass has a very high tensile strength and compression, but it is not as strong as a plane like that.

If you are concerned about rocks use eggcrate under the sand. Lay down some eggcrate cut to fit snugly against the bottom. Then place some heavy rocks on it to hold it down, lay down the sand (or gravel, but I suggest sand), and you will have a protective barrier that will protect against impact and spread out the weight of the rockwork, as well as give it something to grip. Eggcrate is the plastic light diffuer in the lighting section of the hardware store, it is usually white plastic with all the squares.

 

[nurglespuss]

No all tanks have this gap (though agreed many new ones now do) - seek out a clearseal tank,t hsi shouls have a flat bottom that you can rest on polyatyrene

Safe as houses.

 

[fishguy2727]

Are clearseal tanks acrylic?

 

[divegirl]

Are clearseal tanks acrylic?

No!

 

[fishguy2727]

Then what are they? Any links?

 

[Tizer]

glass..oddly

 

[fishguy2727]

Okay, then what is different about it?

 

[nurglespuss]

Every tank I have seen has a glass bottom with between 1cm to 1 inch or airspace beneath it

Thats whats different

Glass base, but no airspace, in my opinion (being the longer rinning type of aquarium), making for a much more stable tank.

Yeas ago, you could also but tanks with bases made from glass internally reinforced with mesh. That might help you

Slate is very good, but, currently very expensive, hevier than glass and notoriously brittle (you need a beferctly flat surface).

 

[Tolak]

Slate is from back in the day when small oil burners were used to heat the tank. I've seen tanks with a floating base & eggcrate set up as mentioned, packed nearly full with rockwork, old world cichlid setups. It spreads the weight, no cracking or leaking problems.

 

[saz326]

Please forgive the tardiness of this reply.

Thanks to all for the info.

I am simply amazed by glass being used as the base with no supporting structures like it is on most tanks. It seems crazy to me that such a delicate material can take all that weight (dispersed) and not give in.

I guess the manufacturers use a specific thickness of glass as a minimum depending on the expected load to be borne.


' coz glass "walks" over time too doesnt it. It is basically a liquid. Thats why old mirrors and windows tend to be distorted with thicker and wavey glass at the bottom.

How old do you think a tank could get before it needed the glass to be replaced.

 

[micko]

The air gap in it is used so that any little bits of grit or anything doesn't sit on the flat piece of glass and can eventually cause a crack.
Also its used as anti-shock. Less vibrations in your tank which means less stress to your fish.

 

[fishguy2727]

Yes, old glass will 'slump'. I am not sure modern methods will allow for that. Those types of glass are hundreds of years old. If our tanks last that long then we can maybe think about worrying about it.

Glass is actually quite durable, even the thickness used on ten gallons. It can bend with an impact.

I honestly can't think of anyone who has ever said their rock pile fell over and broke the bottom (or side) of a tank. As stated the last thing you would want is no gap underneath because then even a small grain of sand could cause it to crack.