viewing glass on a plywood aquarium

[emma01]

hello there managed to find materials to start off for water proofing just stuck on the viewing glass the thickness the dimensions are 4 foot long 2 foot wide and 2 foot deep..the viewing glass probably be about 2 feet for the viewing glass ..i just need to no the thickness of the viewing glass if anyone who nos there stuff that be great last time i posted i got messers..just need some one who has done this before thanks

[fr499y]

15mm or 12mm

[codheadjohn]

12mm is massive overkill. I was looking at an 8ft tank with 10mm glass a few weeks ago.

6mm would be typical for a 4ft tank about 200-250l. Yours is a bit bigger, still should be fine but 8mm will be very safe if you're concerned. It'll be stronger with a plywood aquarium than all glass too.

[Stephen]

Generally aquariums of around 4 foot come with a glass thickness of 8mm as they are often less than 18 inches in depth.
Custom built aquariums that are 4x2x2 foot come with 10mm glass (example ND Aquatics), the extra depth gives extra water volume (approx 390L) & therefore more water weight/pressure.
I would therefore suggest 10mm glass based om professional manufacturers spec.

All the best with the build

[fr499y]

true in most cases... this is a plywood build.

For a 4x2x2 glass tank 10-12mm glass is needed, for a plywood tank add a couple mm for safety, hence the 12-15mm recommendation. Some people recon you can go thinner with a plywood tank due to plywood being stronger, but i wouldn't risk it.

[Stephen]

I just watched a Joey (king of DIY) build a 1400L (370 US gallon) plywood aquarium on YouTube and he used 12mm glass front panel.
As this aquarium will only be approx 390L then I would assume that 10mm glass would be more than adequate.

Joey (king of DIY) YouTube links: HOW TO: Build a plywood aquarium
part 1
part2
part3
part4
part5
part6

Very interesting, but not for me.

[fr499y]

Very interesting, but not for me.

I personally wouldn't do it, not when a used 4x2 could be had for a lot less money ( and time ). A word of advice though, give it a 3-5 days for the silicone to set between the glass and plywood frame!

[emma01]

thank u all for all the replys i will read through all the posts this evening once again thanks