bwoodfield
New member
April 25th
Our poor little leopard gecko, Buffy is rapidly outgrowing her 10 gal tank that she currently calls home. After checking out many of the great viv's that other GU members have shared I figured that this would be a great project to do.
I recently acquired a old aquarium from a friend. He used to have a bearded dragon in it until about 4-5 years ago the power went out in his house during the winter and the temperature dropped to about 12 degrees in the house. The poor dragon got sick and died not long after.
He decided that he didn't want to get another and the tank has been unused since then. During a recent move the tank was damaged and put outside where it's been for the last 2 years.
It's a 90 gal (19.25w X 22h X 48L) which is REALLY HUGE for one little leo, but as you can see in the picture the one side is quite damaged. The bottom of the tank is about in the same shape with a spider web of cracks radiating from the center where the tank was resting on top of a stone. My plan is to cut the tank down to a 45 gal (19.25h X 22w X 24L) with a sliding doors in the front.
Using various methods I was able to dismantle the tank in about 3 hrs. I found that the best method was a thin scraper and a Olfa case cutter slowly working my way along the joints. After removing the good end and the two sides I disposed of the many pieces of broken glass from the bottom and broken end. Using a glass cutter I cut the two 48" sides in half, then cut one of the pieces down again to create a new end (19.25 x 22). When cutting the back piece I had a bad cut with the glass and it left a 5" long by 1 inch piece that didn't break off. When I saw it I new it meant trouble but I had to try and remove it. I carefully scored over the glass again to ensure I had the entire line marked, taped and clamped both sides of the score line to give each piece as much strength as possible. I then carefully began tapping along the scored area while applying pressure to the small problem area. Tap, tap tap.. CRACK. The entire back piece split in 3. Needless to say there was a great deal of swearing and I now have to order a new piece for the back.
NOTE: If you have never handled or cut glass before I would suggest taking the pieces to a professional to cut them for you. Working with glass can be tricky, especially thick aquarium glass like this. If you don't cut the glass properly you can end up ruining a piece (like I did) or in severe situations have it violently shattering with shards flying all over (and yes I've seen that happen as well). Always where safety glasses and gloves when you handle and cut glass. The glass can be replaced, your eyes and fingers can't. I have past experience working with glass from working in a frame shop and I was still nervous about cutting this 1/4 inch thick glass. I've recently gotten 14 staples put in my arm from a mishap with glass, and I got away lucky at that. No tendon damage, and no major arteries hit.
So I've gotten all the piece cut (except the back.. grrrr :-x), cleaned all the old silicon off and gave them each a good cleaning. I'm going to go to Home Depot Tuesday to see if they have some E channel for the front doors, and get a hold of some glass places and find out how much a new back piece will cost.
April 28th
I ordered some 6mm glass from a local window and door place here in Winnipeg to replace my broken back piece and I was finally able to start construction of the new Viv.
I started by laying the bottom piece on my workbench then putting packing tape on to each of the edges to help hold it together while the silicone sets.
I added a bead to the bottom of the first side then carefully put it in place. I gave it a small wiggle from side to side to make sure the silicone spreads out nicely, and flip the pieces of tape up to hold it in place. I also used a heavy weight to keep the side vertical while I get the other pieces ready.
While I was moving pieces of glass around I knocked over the 2nd side and broke the corner. I can't afford to get another piece right now and I also don't want to wait so I used the silicone adhesive and put the corner back together.
Once the corner was set I continued and put the side piece on. I now am getting an idea of the size the tank is going to be.
I continued on and put on the top let the silicone set for an hour then taped off the inside edges of the tank. With the tape their it helps keep the edges nice and clean. Once the silicone is on, I simply peal the tape off before it sets and I have a nice clean edge. Using my gloved finger I ran it along the edge to evenly spread the silicone and give it a nice seal.
Here is the tank with the E track also installed. Now to let it site for a couple of days and let the silicone completely cure.
Our poor little leopard gecko, Buffy is rapidly outgrowing her 10 gal tank that she currently calls home. After checking out many of the great viv's that other GU members have shared I figured that this would be a great project to do.
I recently acquired a old aquarium from a friend. He used to have a bearded dragon in it until about 4-5 years ago the power went out in his house during the winter and the temperature dropped to about 12 degrees in the house. The poor dragon got sick and died not long after.
He decided that he didn't want to get another and the tank has been unused since then. During a recent move the tank was damaged and put outside where it's been for the last 2 years.
It's a 90 gal (19.25w X 22h X 48L) which is REALLY HUGE for one little leo, but as you can see in the picture the one side is quite damaged. The bottom of the tank is about in the same shape with a spider web of cracks radiating from the center where the tank was resting on top of a stone. My plan is to cut the tank down to a 45 gal (19.25h X 22w X 24L) with a sliding doors in the front.
Using various methods I was able to dismantle the tank in about 3 hrs. I found that the best method was a thin scraper and a Olfa case cutter slowly working my way along the joints. After removing the good end and the two sides I disposed of the many pieces of broken glass from the bottom and broken end. Using a glass cutter I cut the two 48" sides in half, then cut one of the pieces down again to create a new end (19.25 x 22). When cutting the back piece I had a bad cut with the glass and it left a 5" long by 1 inch piece that didn't break off. When I saw it I new it meant trouble but I had to try and remove it. I carefully scored over the glass again to ensure I had the entire line marked, taped and clamped both sides of the score line to give each piece as much strength as possible. I then carefully began tapping along the scored area while applying pressure to the small problem area. Tap, tap tap.. CRACK. The entire back piece split in 3. Needless to say there was a great deal of swearing and I now have to order a new piece for the back.
NOTE: If you have never handled or cut glass before I would suggest taking the pieces to a professional to cut them for you. Working with glass can be tricky, especially thick aquarium glass like this. If you don't cut the glass properly you can end up ruining a piece (like I did) or in severe situations have it violently shattering with shards flying all over (and yes I've seen that happen as well). Always where safety glasses and gloves when you handle and cut glass. The glass can be replaced, your eyes and fingers can't. I have past experience working with glass from working in a frame shop and I was still nervous about cutting this 1/4 inch thick glass. I've recently gotten 14 staples put in my arm from a mishap with glass, and I got away lucky at that. No tendon damage, and no major arteries hit.
So I've gotten all the piece cut (except the back.. grrrr :-x), cleaned all the old silicon off and gave them each a good cleaning. I'm going to go to Home Depot Tuesday to see if they have some E channel for the front doors, and get a hold of some glass places and find out how much a new back piece will cost.
April 28th
I ordered some 6mm glass from a local window and door place here in Winnipeg to replace my broken back piece and I was finally able to start construction of the new Viv.
I started by laying the bottom piece on my workbench then putting packing tape on to each of the edges to help hold it together while the silicone sets.
I added a bead to the bottom of the first side then carefully put it in place. I gave it a small wiggle from side to side to make sure the silicone spreads out nicely, and flip the pieces of tape up to hold it in place. I also used a heavy weight to keep the side vertical while I get the other pieces ready.
While I was moving pieces of glass around I knocked over the 2nd side and broke the corner. I can't afford to get another piece right now and I also don't want to wait so I used the silicone adhesive and put the corner back together.
Once the corner was set I continued and put the side piece on. I now am getting an idea of the size the tank is going to be.
I continued on and put on the top let the silicone set for an hour then taped off the inside edges of the tank. With the tape their it helps keep the edges nice and clean. Once the silicone is on, I simply peal the tape off before it sets and I have a nice clean edge. Using my gloved finger I ran it along the edge to evenly spread the silicone and give it a nice seal.
Here is the tank with the E track also installed. Now to let it site for a couple of days and let the silicone completely cure.
Last edited:
