DIY : Glass Covers
Glass covers can be quite economical to build yourself, and the best part is that you can configure them anyway you choose. The more lights you run across the top (polo or strip lights) the narrower you make your feeding hatch. If your lights are in a canopy several inches above the tank, then your hatch can be as large as you like (for feeding and maintenance). You can position your plastic accessories strip where you will be locating your filters or hoses or any other peripherals, along the sides, or anywhere along the back. The glass cover can be set up to be much more rigid than what you would buy in a store. Hinge strips and accessory strips will need to be ordered if your pet shop does not stock them. Measurement should be taken on a filled tank if you have any bow. Make the pieces slightly smaller than measured so they don't bind.
Before purchasing the glass, obtain the accessory strips, as these are available in more than one width, and you might only have access to one model. With the plastic in hand, measure the glass thickness which would fit into the track. Typical thickness is 1/8" or 3.5mm, but thicker glass can be used if your accessory strip allows. Make a sketch of your design and then take it to your local glass shop. Order extra thin strips of glass, which are siliconed and clamped to your supporting pieces, to act as a shelf for the sliding pieces to sit on. Handles can be made by siliconing and clamping a few small squares of glass, ending with a larger one. There are also a variety of handles available at renovation centres.
In my illustrations, I show an exploded top view above each tank. Pane numbers indicate where common dimensions have been used. The panes which have shelves glued to them (to hold adjacent panes) need to be the full width of the tank.
In figure 1, I show a cover built for a 49" 66 gallon tank. The canopy held multiple 4' fluorescent lamps, so hatch size was not critical. I used an accessory strip along the back and along a side (reversible) for flexibility in future filter configurations. My measurements are all approximate, as this varies by aquariums. Sections #2 are identical except for the handle to lift the hatch. Section #1 is smaller than #3 by the width of the accessory strip. Section #1 and #3 are the shelves for the middle panes.
In figure 2, I show a cover built for a 60" 108 gallon tank. This tank was flat against a wall, so the accessory strips were on the ends. I could have added more accessory strips to the top of sections #5, as the shelf panes are the 3 sections #4 (these have to be full tank width). Sections #4 are identical except for the shelf strip placement. Small knobs were added to the narrow 3" feeding hatches. Dimensions are approximate. The centre section #4 is actually a bit longer than the other two #4 at the tanks-ends. This was to compensate for the extra width at the centre of this non-crossbraced tank.
When your glass panes are received, if the glasscutter has not already done so, wearing gloves, pass a fine sandpaper over all the edges.
|
