Protecting non-tempered tank bottom? Red Sea Reefer.

[Chocobo]

I believe the bottom pane in the Red Sea Reefer tanks are not tempered. I've read a lot where people said, "the glass should be fine, it's tempered," and that seems to imply that if it's not tempered it's more fragile.

I had planned on putting my rocks on the glass and surrounding them with sand - but I can support them up off of the glass if it's not a good idea to put them right on the glass?

I was looking at getting some of these for their fiberglass rods:
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Hillman-48-...Marker/3044825

That said I'm trying to determine what size drill bit I should use in order to use these rods. I figured I would drill a 3~4 holes in the bottom of the rock and use short pieces of fiberglass to support them on the glass instead of the bare rock on the glass.

Maybe I'm being overly cautious? I'm not worried about the bottom glass getting scratched - just about it breaking.

[Chocobo]

Also I could get a thin sheet of Acrylic and cut it to the size of the tank bottom and then put the rocks on that?

[anbosu]

As long as you don't spike your rocks into the tank when you're setting them up you shouldn't have any issues. If you are going to worry about it some people use starboard on the bottom of the aquarium to stop breakage concerns.

[mcgyvr]

Originally Posted by Chocobo

I've read a lot where people said, "the glass should be fine, it's tempered," and that seems to imply that if it's not tempered it's more fragile.

You kind of read too much into that or assumed too much..

There is really no need to put anything down to protect the bottom in a glass tank regardless of if its tempered or not..

[Chocobo]

Originally Posted by mcgyvr

You kind of read too much into that or assumed too much..

I asked as not to assume .

I'm not super worried if the glass bottom gets scratches .

Originally Posted by mcgyvr

There is really no need to put anything down to protect the bottom in a glass tank regardless of if its tempered or not..

K, thanks!

[Bent]

The glass on the bottom of my old 55g was not tempered....

It did not turn out well, which is why I now have a 75g

I will never place rock work directly on the glass ever again no matter what anyone tells me.

[Chocobo]

Originally Posted by Bent

The glass on the bottom of my old 55g was not tempered....

It did not turn out well, which is why I now have a 75g

I will never place rock work directly on the glass ever again no matter what anyone tells me.

What happened?

I was planning on picking up a sheet of 0.08" plexiglass and cutting it to fit the bottom of the tank and putting it in there first. It's cheap insurance at $15. I figure it shouldn't hurt anything and can only help. It's thin enough that it shouldn't cause problems but thick enough that it should keep any sharp points / short drops from breaking the glass.

[Bent]

Originally Posted by Chocobo

What happened?

I was planning on picking up a sheet of 0.08" plexiglass and cutting it to fit the bottom of the tank and putting it in there first. It's cheap insurance at $15. I figure it shouldn't hurt anything and can only help. It's thin enough that it shouldn't cause problems but thick enough that it should keep any sharp points / short drops from breaking the glass.

The bottom broke out of it. It wasn’t catastrophic thank god, but it could have been much much worse had I not been there.

[smatter]

This is the first time in 30 years I have ever heard of a tank braking from placing rock on the glass.

[Hal]

Eggcrate is also a popular item to put on the bottom. I've had eggcrate on the bottom of my 250g for years. It's easy to trim to size. I just added my sand right on top of it.

I've heard of only a few instances where a rockslide has cracked the bottom glass. I would think that if you have any amount of sand above the tank bottom it would by highly unusual for a rockslide to cause damage. Of course, sand can move around and reveal bare spots. But then you still need a rockslide.

[Bent]

Originally Posted by Hal

Eggcrate is also a popular item to put on the bottom. I've had eggcrate on the bottom of my 250g for years. It's easy to trim to size. I just added my sand right on top of it.

I've heard of only a few instances where a rockslide has cracked the bottom glass. I would think that if you have any amount of sand above the tank bottom it would by highly unusual for a rockslide to cause damage. Of course, sand can move around and reveal bare spots. But then you still need a rockslide.

Mine was not a rockslide

[ReefkeeperZ]

hehehehe I blew out a tank from underneath once whacking a rock off it, that was 75g of sand water and rock all down on my head at once. what a bloody mess, that was a tempered tank. some times crap happens no matter what you do. I would personally protect a non tempered bottom with egg crate or acrylic, after that big nasty event I am a little more cautious than I used to be.

[Chocobo]

I picked up a thin sheet of acrylic to put in the bottom. :-)

[ca1ore]

I always put a sheet of acrylic or starboard on the bottom of my glass tanks. Never really thought it'd break, but seemed a minimal cost for some small peace of mind. Now that I have an acrylic tank, I put down a thin piece of glass.