Tank Stability

[Ranger9206]

I have a 65gal Perfecto manufactured 36" by 12" that is 24" tall, and at the top of the tank there's the plastic wraparound, for lack of a better describing word, that you can place a glass top on. The problem I have with it is that it bisects the top of the aquarium right down the middle, which blocks most of the light from my Halide fixture, which I cannot move to get around it. I am debating whether I should cut it off, it does not seem necessary for stability, but then again, I wouldn't want to wake up some night with 65gal of water all over my floors. If anyone has any experience with doing this, or knows what I'm talking about, any input would be greatly appreciated,
Thanks,
Dan

 

[Ranger9206]

http://www.glasscages.com/gc2/prodpics/t_65terr-side.jpg

Here's a picture to help out, the part I am considering removing is that black plastic middle part that bisects the tank, but only that part, leaving the rest of it on.
Thanks

 

[Bri Guy]

[welcome]

My 55 had a broken brace like that, the tank bowed out!!!! needless to say I got a new brace for it. I think its needed for the stability of the tank.

You could cut it out and replace it with a piece of glass and silicone it into place, that way the light could penetrate through it. yet the tank would still stay together.

Good Luck!

 

[dots]

Those frames are designed to transfer the force from the water equally throughout the system. If you remove the brace, the system will transfer the force through the silicone joints only intended to seal. Over time they will fail. By removing the brace, you are removing the factor of safety built in to the tank and its dynamic loading capacity. Though it may not do anything today or the next day or ever if your lucky, one day it could just take a child pushing on the glass to get it to fail.

Think of it this way: Would you put a brace smack dab in the middle of the only opening of a box only if you had to? From a manufacturers point of view, would you want to spend the money producing this extra feature, if you didn't have to?

Leave it on and redesign your lighting system, (DEs mounted low work just fine), the risk is not worth the gain.

FYI, even though the lighting is not as intense at that point, the corals in that region recieve lighting on both sides and do quite well.

I think somewhere down the line, they figured that it was cheaper to put the plastic rims on rather than use thicker glass which could span that distance......but I bet it became more expensive.

 

[jdieck]

For the reasons stated above do not remove it. besides it is not wide enough to represent a problem with the lighting.
If you are using metal halide for a long tank like that the recomendation is one for every 24" that means that if the tank is 48" long one bulb on each side will do.
If you use VHO, PC or T-5 the bracket is not an issue with interference.

 

[Ranger9206]

Thanks for the input, the only reason I brought this up is because my lighting fixture is a leg mounted one, with a 250w MH dead center and two 96w VHO fluorescent bulbs running the length of the fixture. That plastic brace is directly below the MH bulb, and casts a very unsightly shadow throughout the middle of the tank because of it. I am unable to hang the fixture from my ceiling, or I would have just raised it a few inches and done it that way, but I will consider using acrylic to replace the black plastic area. Any ideas on how to go about it? I was thinking of making a piece roughly shaped like this: l___________l but flipped around so that the outside parts would fit snugly around the rim of the tank, putting it directly over where the black piece was, and then sealing it into place. Would this be worth the time/effort, or should I just let it be? Thanks for all your help

 

[jdieck]

The concern more than the shadow will be that the brace may be afected by the intense heat. How long is the aquarium? As I mentioned you may need two MH rather than one if the aquarium is 48"

 

[Ranger9206]

The tank is 36" long, 18" deep and 24" high, so I think my lighting is pretty good considering I have 442watts for a 65gal. I hadn't thought about the brace being affected by the heat, so maybe heat tempered glass would be a good option to replace it with?

 

[Toddrtrex]

Or, sell the lights and get 2 MHs. (( I have 2 *175 over my 58 - which is 36" though mine was built without the center brace ))

But I would watch that brace very carefully -- back in the day I had the plastic brace on my 55 snap just for normal florescent bulbs. Didn't know that glass could bow that much without cracking, I was just glad I was running late for work that day.