Plugging drilled holes?

[Kindafishy]

Hiya all,

I've been running an incredibly scratched 75 for many years. It's likely the main frustration I have with this hobby, as I could never afford a nicer tank.

So, I've been offered a 110 Gallon tall. It's the same length and width as my 75, but nearly 10 inches taller. With a stand and canopy for $350. (Great price!)

Issue is it has three holes in the bottom. If you were to spit the tank into sides, there's a hole in the center of each side. plus a third hole between the right side hole and the right rear corner.

I've thought a lot about this. I could just run a 90 deg, then PVC to the corners. With a deep sand bed. (fish always exposing the PVC). OR maybe I can plug these holes??? I know for a fact I DO NOT want two pipes sticking out of the sand in the center of my tank!

I'd far prefer to plug these holes. Then drill in a low sound overflow into the back wall. I'm just not sure plugging these holes will be as easy as I think.

Any help would be great, and Thanks!

 

[Cherub]

Sounds like more of a hassle then it's worth, hold out for something you don't have to invest that much effort into. There are deals on here all the time...

 

[Dr.DiSilicate]

Glass/silicone/pressure... Or bulkheads with a cap.

 

[tlsrcs]

is this a glass tank or acrylic?

 

[Kindafishy]

It's Glass!

I doubt I'll find a furniture grade stand canopy and tank for $350 anytime soon. Drilling a hole, or holes into the back is easy enough as well.

Hadn't thought of the highly siliconed glass puck. That could work! The bulkhead thing seems iffy to me. I've seen a few videos telling me NOT to thread extra stuff onto bulkheads (One of the BRS videos). So capping those would be doing just that! This makes me worry that the bulkheads may not be strong enough to handle the nearly 900 LBS it would have to take. I could be wrong though.

 

[Zooid]

I'm confused.
Plugging a bulkhead would not be threading extra stuff onto the bulkhead, it would be replacing
what is threaded into the bulkhead right now. And why would it have to handle 900lbs? The tank
should not be allowed to be supported with the bulkhead ever.
If the bulkheads are threaded, you can remove the pipe or adaptor from the bulkhead and install a plug.
I've run tanks with plugs on the bottom of the tank with no problems. I'm also running a tank right now
with plugs in the sides (from a closed loop).

 

[tlsrcs]

i would use silicon and glass. IDK about a glass plug. but a square piece slightly larger then the hole should work

 

[tlsrcs]

i think they dont want you to screw something on the outside threads of a bulk head. But the inside threads should be fair game.

 

[Haulin Oates]

Tlsrcs is right, it's the outer threads that shouldn't be used, the inner threads ( or if you prefer you can get slip fit bulkheads and use PVC cement) are perfectly fine to use

 

[Haulin Oates]

Then you go to home depot or other hardware store and buy the proper size plug (either threaded or slip fit)

 

[Kindafishy]

Sweet! Thanks Blazinjack. That is what I needed to hear. So they make plugs FOR bulkheads. I'd assume they would be rated to hold the weight in that case. Just a guess, but I'd assume the threaded are likely the safest as well.

Thanks!

 

[tlsrcs]

That sounds easier then silicon i think and if you ever for some reason need the holes you could be able to just pop out BH and use them....

 

[Haulin Oates]

The plug would just be a threaded PVC plug, if you went with a threaded bulkhead, and then yes, you could just take the plug out and get a threaded union if you ever wanted to put a pipe for a sump or something. Remember to use pipe thread tape on the plug to make it water tight...
On a side note, while your math was correct the weight you suggested would not be pushing down only on the bulkhead. The weight would be distributed evenly over the entire bottom and sides of the aquarium. It's called distribution of mass. So the actual weight in the bulkhead and plug is far less.

 

[CRW Reef]

I vote to use a bulk head with the threaded cap on the inside of the tank the bulkheads I can get are made by a septic system manufacturer, so I promise if they can be buried under tons of dirt and rock then they can handle any forces from our fish tanks. Just my $.02.

 

[skebo]

If I may, would it be possible to join 2 plates of glass over the holes? Ie one plate at the bottom of the tank inside and another outside all sealed up? I don't think this would be the easiest, or the cheapest, but if you want another option look into if this is even possible?

 

[tlsrcs]

Like put i piece of square glass on the bottom of the tank over the hole? if so i think it would cause the tank to be uneven as well as make a stress point for future tank failure.

 

[skebo]

I mean a plate of glass the entire size of the tank above and another below the existing glass bottom and seal it all up.
Since you have so many holes to plug, if you don't want a bulkhead, seal them all up with glass on top and bottom. I have not done this and don't know, but other than making the tank a bit heavier it too could be made to work. I don't know the details or hows, just thought you could use another idea. My perspective is there is usually 3 ways to do something, all with ups and downs.

 

[tlsrcs]

oh nice idea i didnt evenn think of that......could work

 

[KhensuRa]

It might be best to have a piece of glass the size of the bottom and then silicone that on top of the holes. In a sense there would be two plates of glass, that would make sure the tank would never leak. But I am pretty sure the bulk head caps would work as the tank is not pressurized and the total weight of the water would not cause it to leak.

 

[Kindafishy]

I've seen a 29 with a second sheet of glass on the inside bottom. It worked well! The only issue was the minimal loss of space in the tank (and it was ugly).

I'm still opting for the plugged bulkhead. I like to have an easy view of the underside of my tank. The second glass sheet could mess that up. If Zooid has found this reliable, I'll go that route. Leaving the holes if I ever DO want to use them.

My second choice would be the glass hunks glued to the inside. Because that would plug the hole while NOT making the entire bottom to thick to see through.

Third is the entire sheet!

Thanks for all the help everyone.