in need of help

[Kelly68]

I just bought a tank that was homemade. It is made well. 3/8" thickness glass....dimensions are 5 ft by 23 7/8 by 23 7/8. So almost 5 x 2 x 2. It has no trim or center brace. It was set up for fish. So apparently there is no need for a center brace...even though I don't like that idea.

My husband can make me trim for the tank and a stand...possibly a canopy. Won't the wood kill the fish or the stain or whatever the wood gets treated with bad for the tank?

Any ideas would be wonderful. Do you think we should make shift a brace?

Thanks for any help and replies.

Kelly

[wharyat]

At that size I would expect 1/2" glass, and evern at that thickenss it should have at least one cross brace.

Unsealed would won't kill the fish, but in a high humidity environment it wouldn't last very long and warp like crazy. The wood should be sealed with a few coats of poly or other high quality oil based sealant. Also, make sure to use a good waterproof, structural joint quality glue.

It might also be a good idea to redo all the silicone joints, depending on how old the tank is.

[Wiskey]

You could do a center brace out of a peice of 1/2 inch glass, along with Euro-bracing out of the same material. I wouldn't use wood to make anything that will be constantly touching the water.

I hate to say this,... but that tank sounds scary,...

Whiskey

[Kelly68]

The tank is not scary. It is very heavy and well built. The only thing I would have done different is a center brace. It was up and held water...and didn't break. But I would be more happy with that extra security.

[Geoff]

i have wood all over my tank. it should not be in constant contact with the water though. you can use shelac for sealing the wood. not the greatest sealant, but it is non-toxic. heck it covers M&M's. it is also used for sealing wooden salad bowls. it takes more to cover surfaces than polyurethan, but it is non-toxic. you could also use the two part epoxy, the thick stuff, but it may be a pain to put on.

my canopy rest on top of the tank. the parts that are right there are slightly falling apart after about 3 yrs. i will prolly replace it in the next year or so.

G~