Constructing Your Glass Aquarium by Madan Subramanian

Constructing your Glass Aquarium

by Madan Subramanian of Bangalore, India.
www.indianaquariumhobbyist.com
Aquarticles

Size of the Aquarium
Before you actually start constructing your glass aquarium and order or buy glass for the aquarium you have to decide on what size of aquarium you want. The size of the aquarium will be governed by what fish you would like to keep, availability of space to keep the aquarium, what purpose the tank is going to serve - show tank or quarantine tank or fry tank or hospital tank.

- Small fish like mollies and guppies can be kept in as small an aquarium as 2 x 1 x 1 feet.
- Larger fish like angels will need a deep tank and a good size is 3 x 1.5 x 2 feet.
- Smaller cichlids can be kept in a 3 x 1.5 x 1.5 feet aquarium.
- Larger cichlids like oscars will be better off in a 4 x 2 x 2 feet aquarium.
- A breeding tank for discus will be 2 x 1.5 x 2 feet.
- Fry raising tank for discus would be 4 x 1.5 x 1.5.

These are not absolute values but a good guide for beginners.

- In case you are bitten by the planted tank bug then an ideal planted tank would be 30 x 24 x 21 inches size or 54 x 24 x 21 inches size. Odd figures you say - well not exactly, planted tanks need light and quite a bit of it. With the above sizes you can very conveniently use 2 feet or 4 feet Phillips Trulites and save a lot on lighting cost and have a more even lighting of your aquarium as opposed to when using PL lighting etc. This tank size also lets you upgrade very easily to metal halide lighting should you want to do that.

Another very important point to remember when you decide on the aquarium depth is - any tank over 2 feet in depth will be very difficult to clean unless you can breathe under water.

Glass Thickness
Once you have decided on the above you should now decide on the glass thickness for your aquarium. I would recommend the following for various tank sizes (footprint of tank):
2 x 1 x 1 = 5mm glass
2 x 1 x 1.5 = 6 mm glass
2 x 1.5 x 1.5 = 8 mm glass
2.5 x 2 x 2 = 10 mm glass
3 x1 x 1 = 6 mm glass
3 x 1.5 x 1.5 = 8mm glass
3 x 2 x 2 = 12 mm glass
4 x 1.5 x 1.5 = 10mm glass
4 x 2 x 2 = 12 mm glass
6 x any size x 2 feet max. = 12 mm glass

Now that you have your glass thickness, the next step is ordering the glass.

Ordering the glass
The tank size detailed above is the size of the footprint of the tank ( Length x Breadth x Height). The size of the bottom glass pane will be L x B. The size of the front and the back pane will be L x H. The two side panes will be B - (2 x glass thickness) x H.

Ask for polish grinding, that is mirror finish of the edges. (It costs Rs.12/- per running foot in Bangalore irrespective of glass thickness).

Hand ground edges are not even, end up being wavy and cause problems.

Order plain float glass.

Preparation
Keep the following ready:
1. Silicone sealant and gun
2. An old hand towel
3. Masking tape - not the brown variety but the whitish one about 1 inch width
4. One small teaspoon, but your finger can substitute for this
5. 1 or 2 persons to help you
6. A small ball of jute string 4-6 mm dia.

- Once you receive the glass and have it at home, lay out the glass panes on a thick piece of cardboard and wipe them all clean with a moist towel.

- Place a sheet of Thermocel or Thermofoam, on top of which place 2 pieces of jute string at least 2.5 x (B+H) at 1/4 the length of the tank from both the ends of the tank and then place the bottom pane on top of the jute string.

- Now stick on the masking tape in a line parallel to the edges of the bottom pane at a distance of (glass thickness + 2mm), on all four sides of the bottom pane.

- Similarly stick the masking tape on the 3 edges of the front and back panes (leave out the top edge ) parallel to and at a distance of glass thickness + 2mm from the edge for the vertical sides and at a distance of about 3mm from the bottom edge.

- Stick on the masking tape at a distance of 2mm from the edge for the vertical sides of the side panes and 3 mm from the edge for the bottom edge of the two side panes.

Remember when the 4 sides of the tank are in place the masking tape should be on the inside of the tank.

Pasting the Tank
Now comes the all important part of pasting the tank.
Have the following handy -
1) Silicone sealant and gun,
2) A towel,
3) A small teaspoon (not absolutely necessary),
4) The ball of jute string.

Have the two persons helping you ready, and discuss the following procedure with them so that there are no delays. The team will have to work fast now, as you have about 10 minutes only to apply the silicone and position the glass. Your 10 minutes starts from the time the first silicone bead is laid on the edge of the glass.

- First select the back pane of the aquarium. Cut a V groove on the nozzle of the silicone sealant.

- One person now holds the back pane of the aquarium standing it on its longer edge. Apply sealant liberally along the entire edge ( thickness side ) of the glass pane. Once done, position this pane on the bottom pane exactly - so that the two outer edges are in line with each other.

- Let one person continue to hold this pane.

- Now the other person helps you apply silicone sealant on the bottom, front and back edges of the side panes. Apply silicone liberally and position them in place accurately.

- The same person holding the back pane can now hold the 3 panes in place. Keep in mind the alignment of the outer edges.

- Stand the front pane on its longest edge and apply silicone liberally and position this too on the bottom pane ensuring all horizontal and vertical edges are aligned perfectly.

- With the two helpers holding all four panes in place run your finger or a tea spoon ( I find fingering a better option !) along all the horizontal and vertical seams applying a little pressure so that any silicone squeezed out is evened out.

- Take up the two edges of the jute string placed beneath the aquarium and tie a couple of knots above the open top of the aquarium so that it is a little loose. Now slide the jute string tight along the top edge of the front and back panes so that it is tight. Repeat the procedure for the other string.

- Wrap one round of jute string around the vertical sides of the aquarium at the top and tie a couple of knots so that the string is a bit loose around the vertical sides.

- Hold one side of the string along the top of one of the end panes and slide the string down along the edge of the other end pane so that it is tight and in place.

- Again take a second piece of string around the bottom of the vertical sides and tie a knot on the string as above. Now hold the string at the bottom of the first end pane and tighten the string around the aquarium by sliding it UP against the second end pane until it is tight or as far as it will go.

- These two strings compress the vertical edges against the silicone and hold the vertical sides in place.

This whole procedure until now should not take more than 10 minutes.

- Now take the silicone gun and apply a continuous bead of silicone on all the horizontal seams, while running your finger along the silicone to smooth it out against the bottom and vertical panes as you finish applying silicone along each edge.

- Repeat similarly for the vertical seams.

- You can further ensure good compression by wrapping the jute string a few turns around the vertical sides and tightening it.

Your tank is done now. Well, almost !!!!

Finishing up
- Wipe your hands on the towel and have a smoke or a soft drink or coffee whatever it is you normally do.

- 15 minutes later peel off the masking tape with the excess silicone.

Your tank is now complete. Leave the jute string taught around the aquarium and go about your normal day's work.

In case any silicone inadvertently gets on the viewing sides of the glass at any time let it be ! Do not wipe it! It will make a mess if you do that. Let the silicone dry out and a day later remove it easily with a sharp shaving blade. Believe me this will save you a lot of trouble.

The Day After
24 hours should be enough to fully cure the silicone sealant.

- You can now remove the jute strings tied around the aquarium. Scrape off any silicone from the glass using a sharp shaving blade and the thin film left behind locally on the pane can be removed easily by rubbing with NC thinner and steel wool.

- Fill up your aquarium with water and check for leakages. There will be none.

From Now on ..... Marvel at your handiwork and bask in everyone's appreciation !!!!