# 55g without center brace



## TNprogrammer (Jul 28, 2008)

I was given a used 55g by a friend. I noticed that it has no top center brace. The top plastic rim looks to be in fine shape and it doesn't look like it ever had a center brace as nothing looks to have been "broken off". I'm not sure what brand the tank is. I might be able to find a label inside the light fixture later. Do any of you have a 55g that was built without a top center brace?


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## gnomemagi (Jun 13, 2009)

My 55G at home has no center-brace. It was built in the 70's and still holds water.


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## non_compliance (Dec 4, 2008)

Some tanks never had a center brace. If it has thick glass, and there is no place that something broke off, it probably doesn't need one.


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## GaFishMan1181 (Dec 17, 2008)

if it is a standard size tank you can get a new top piece with a center brace and replace it.


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## TNprogrammer (Jul 28, 2008)

The top plastic frame does have a small indention in the center(which you can tell it was built with), but I can definitely tell that nothing is "broken". Plus, the glass seems a little thick for a 55g. Maybe it WAS built without a center brace. I may still order a new top or create some sort of center brace for it, simply for peace of mind.


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## Toby_H (Apr 15, 2005)

I've got a 55 gal that was built with no center brace... Other than I couldn't find any standard tops to fit it, I like it 

The glass is considerably thicker than the stadard el cheapo 55 gals we see all over these days... I feel a lot more comfortable with mine w/o a center brace than the one with... I trust thicker glass mroe than a little piece of plastic...


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## ben1988 (May 2, 2009)

my 55 has two pieces of glass that look to be a center brace but they are sepperated in the middle. there is no cracks or silicone residue so i dont know if it was ever connected or not...


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## TNprogrammer (Jul 28, 2008)

I checked when I got home tonight. My glass is 3/8" thick. Are the 55s with a center brace using 1/4'?


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## mncherie1 (Mar 27, 2009)

you could get a piece of plexiglass cut by lowes/home depot and silicone it in place, where the center brace should be. Glasscages in Dickson sells top and bottom frames, might want to order a new one.


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## Toby_H (Apr 15, 2005)

If the tank was designed with no center brace... there is no reason to add one...


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## TNprogrammer (Jul 28, 2008)

A new top rim would only cost ~15, but the pain to remove the old one is what I'm trying to avoid. The tank is in pretty darned good shape, so I hate to start trying to modify it. I have two questions:

1. Do tanks that usually have a middle brace on the top also have one built on the bottom rim?
2. What thickness is the glass on 55g tanks that DO have a center brace? Mine is 3/8" without a brace.


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## Toby_H (Apr 15, 2005)

My 55 gal w/ center brace... 1/4" glass... center brace top and bottom...

My 55 gal w/o center brace... 3/8" glass... no center brace on top or bottom...


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## TNprogrammer (Jul 28, 2008)

Thanks for answering my question toby. Obviously, my 55g with 3/8" glass does not need a center brace. Now...on to building my undergravel jet system


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## TNprogrammer (Jul 28, 2008)

Toby, one other question. How old is your 55g w/o the center brace. I figure the one my friend gave me must be ~15 years old.


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## BillD (May 17, 2005)

mncherie1 said:


> you could get a piece of plexiglass cut by lowes/home depot and silicone it in place, where the center brace should be.


This is very bad advice. Silicone does not grip plexiglas well enough to make a centre brace. It, in fact does a poor job of holding plexiglas. There arwe some applications where it can used, but there needs to be no pressure.


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## Natedawg63 (Sep 13, 2008)

One little tidbit of advice... may seem trivial, but may save a headache later. Take the tank outside, carport, garage... somewhere you can set it level and be dry for a good 24 hours. Fill it with water... test it for leaks. Truest method is to spread some cardboard, place the tank on top, fill it with water w/o getting the cardboard soaked. Let it set for 24 hours, come back now and again and see if any of the cardboard is wet, indicating a leak. Better to do this now than have to tear it down later inside the house. Inspect all the silicone seams - make sure there are no major separations, water exerts alot of force once full, do not want to chance a major leak... if it has a leak... a re-silicone job is called for.


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## TNprogrammer (Jul 28, 2008)

This is exactly what I did this weekend. I have the tank in the garage. I put down a sheet of foam with plywood on top and set the tank on it, making sure everything was level. I also made two plexiglass center braces, securing them with epoxy to the plastic frame. The tank performed perfectly all weekend. I'll empty it tomorrow after I get home from work.


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## cichlidpastor (Jun 20, 2009)

TNprogrammer said:


> This is exactly what I did this weekend. I have the tank in the garage. I put down a sheet of foam with plywood on top and set the tank on it, making sure everything was level. I also made two plexiglass center braces, securing them with epoxy to the plastic frame. The tank performed perfectly all weekend. I'll empty it tomorrow after I get home from work.


So you just put epoxy on the inside lip of the top frame and then pressed the plexiglass into it? And it stayed put?

Where did you get the epoxy? What was a it called?


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## TNprogrammer (Jul 28, 2008)

I used two part loctite epoxy. I roughed up the plastic frame and the plexiglass where the contact would be with sandpaper. I bought the epoxy at Home Depot. It's in the paint isle. It's a side-by-side two part tube. When you squirt it out the two parts come out together and you just mix them a little and apply it wherever you want. I'll try to take a couple of pics. The bond is very solid.


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## cichlidpastor (Jun 20, 2009)

do you think I could do it with water and fish in the tank? I can't really take mine down at this point, but would like to try what you suggest


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## Toby_H (Apr 15, 2005)

TNprogrammer said:


> Toby, one other question. How old is your 55g w/o the center brace. I figure the one my friend gave me must be ~15 years old.


I got it a couple of years ago from a friend who had it for quite a while who got it from his father...

So it is likely the tank is 15+ years old as well...


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## pyromattox (Aug 11, 2009)

FYI on center frame issues from my experience..... One of the 55's I have was a craigslist deal. I got it home, set everything up but I failed to notice at the purchase time that the center was busted in half!

So I cut the cracked support out checked the seams took all the measurments and filled and repeated (yes without the center plastic brace in the middle). Stupid maybe but I paid 100 bucks and always wanted to know how much a 3/8 inch glass tank would hold before it cracked or blew a seem .......

I was pretty amazed! I filled it all the way to the top of the tank and had a slight bow. Didn't break, not sure I would trust it unless it was on perfectly level concrete slab and no fish. I epoxied a piece of plexiglass 1.5 inches wide and 11 and 7/8 long. Has held just fine. I think you will be all right with your fix.


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## TNprogrammer (Jul 28, 2008)

Preacher,
here is what I did for mine:
Notice that there are some tabs along the black trim. I sat the plexi on the tabs so that it had more area to adhere to.


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