drilling all glass 90-Fish Tank-3reef Forums

tulare reef · 11-30-2007, 01:53 AM

in about 3 weeks i will be moving into my new house and i was wanting to get the hob overfloe off and drill s few holes in the back because the bottom is not drillable tampered glass.

any ideas on how easy it is to drill glass that thick?

reef_guru · 11-30-2007, 03:33 AM

the bottom is drillable, but the only way to do it is to take the tank apart and use a diamond cutting tool with water. your local glass shop can do it.

Tangster · 11-30-2007, 06:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tulare reef

in about 3 weeks i will be moving into my new house and i was wanting to get the hob overfloe off and drill s few holes in the back because the bottom is not drillable tampered glass.

any ideas on how easy it is to drill glass that thick?

If that bottom is tempered there is no way to dill it.. Holes in any tempered glass is are made during the pouring or drilled before tempering it under more heat. No way a temperd glass panel can be drill period! Now you take that for what its worh as free infomation been drill tanks and glass for 25 yrs and I have seen a few explode .. You will to if you try to drill that bottom labled tempered.. But to drill untempered glass is easy enough to do..

emtp380 · 11-30-2007, 07:18 AM

I tried to drill the back panal of a 55 gal. tank that I have had for 15+ years, and it blew up like a bomb. The bottom said tempered so I proceded to drill the back. Needless to say I threw the remains away. While breaking up the remains I did find out the two ends of the tank are NOT tempered. After doing some research, I found that all the ends are non-tempered. So if you are going to drill, drill the ends.. Good luck

reef_guru · 11-30-2007, 08:02 AM

to elaborate on what i wrote, the bottom would probably need to be replaced, hence taking it apart. tempered glass has an 80% chance of not making it. there is a possiblility of the sheet making it, even though you might have a better chance of winning the lottery. i did a tank a couple years ago with tempered glass and the shop didnt want to do it since the probablity of breakage was so hi, but it turned out for the good. if the bottom pane is replaced, the glass can be tempered after drilling. your local glass shop can do it.

smallcrpt · 11-30-2007, 08:10 AM

i'm about to get a 90 this weekend. Whats the plumbing look like coming out of a drilled tank, is there just a 90 and PVC going to the top to collect the water?
Thanks

Tangster · 11-30-2007, 10:04 AM

You need to have a bulkhead in the hole to connect to and then the drain riser too sump has to have a vertical or left to right horizontal overflow;ow to skim the waters top few inches thats where all the waste and oils collect. I have sen guys just to drill and put a strainer into the bulk heads and they never work well always a oil or dust slick on the surface of the water. If you need any info ask I'll tell you what me experiences have taught me over the yrs. But if you have a older tank and not sure if its tempered or not Don't drill it Tempered Glass can Never be drilled it has a 10000% probability of going BOOOOOM period. Ya Maury I'm a Hundred thousands percent sure thats My baby's daddy's busted tank LOL If you have never a seen Maury show then you won't get the Joke (:

tulare reef · 11-30-2007, 11:36 AM

the local glass shop said that they will not drill any aquariums nor the lfs. should i do it my self? it seems like the odds are aginst me.

Tangster · 11-30-2007, 12:04 PM

Drilling a tank is a simple thing to do. Just don't touch the bottom.. All you need is a bit a hand drill and some oil to keep the bit cool and lubercated . If you try with a HOB overflow in a yr or so you'll be saying Man I wish I had drilled the tank

Marlin65 · 11-30-2007, 12:50 PM

Tangster is 100% right Tempered glass can NOT be drilled or cut.
They drill Float glass first then they heat it red hot and cool it under 500 HP fans. Works kind of like heat treating steel the particles are aligned.
To be able to tell if it is tempered they put a DOT number on each piece. All tempering factory's have their own number. This is because some times the temper is not right and that way if someone sues they know where the glass came from.
The mark is usually close to the edge and in one of the corners.
If it has a mark it is tempered don't try to drill or cut it. If It is Float
you can drill your own glass. The thicker the less likely it will break.
The Diamond drill runs around $70.00 plus you need some coolant oil.
You could send it out for tempering after, but your local glass store is not going to be able to do this you need to go bigger the place they get their glass from.
If you do that just order the right piece of glass with the hole in it.
Not sure where you are but we have local shops here that drill for $20 a hole.
Maybe call around a bit more you might find someone that will do it.
They probably won't warranty it but its always possible to brake it and for $20 that is too much risk for them.