Questions about plugging holes and resealing a tank

[ProfsChimpo]

A few years ago I bought a 72 bow with a corner overflow and two pre-drilled holes on the tank bottom for a great deal off CL (around $50 w/ stand). I was very new to the hobby and trusted the person that sold it to me, so despite the silicon looking worn out and beat up, I went home, filled it with water, cycled the tank and eventually setup a really nice tank. I had it running for about a year before I moved the fish into a bigger tank and luckily never had a leak. After emptying it I moved the tank into my garage and kind of forgot about it.

My fiance now wants to setup a turtle tank (one or two Texas map turtles, most likely) so I've been tasked with fixing and cleaning that old tank. The cleaning part is simple and I've watched a ton of videos about how to reseal, but I've got questions about the rest.

First - How do I remove the top border around the tank? I've read online to go around it with a knife to break any silicon holding it in place, but this didn't seem to work no matter how many times I tried doing it. I'd rather not break it so that I can reuse it.

Second - Should I plug the holes at the bottom of the tank? I've removed the overflow since it was filthy and beat up, not worth saving. I've never done a turtle tank, so I'm not sure if it would be possible to use these holes for filtration or not.

And finally - If I should plug the holes, what is the best way? I've read to either use bulkheads or glass + silicone. I have some glass that is bigger than the holes that I could use, but I'm not sure if thin glass will hold.

Thanks in advance!

[jennandjuicetm]

We just resealed our first tank, a 75 gallon. We couldnt get the frame off either sobwe b just made sure to seal each corner up to the frame. I fugured we wouldn't fill it to the tippy top anyway so ir wasn't a huge deal.

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[jetajockey]

I agree, leave the frame on it and get as much silicone out of the corners as you can.

I've covered many bottom drilled holes with a piece of double strength glass and silicone. Capping off bulkheads works also if you have them already and have space for them, but glass/silicone tends to be a cheaper route.

You could use the holes for a turtle tank, it might actually be a better idea to if you wanted to run canister filtration or a sump. You just need to set the overflow pipe height at whatever height you'll have the tank filled to.

[ProfsChimpo]

Thanks for the replies! I tried a few times after posting to get the frame off and was unable to do so. After seeing both of you suggesting to just leave it on I went ahead, I cleaned as much silicone as I could and left it on. Whoever attached that did not want it do come off

For covering the bottom drilled holes with glass and silicone, you said you've used double strength glass. Where would I go about finding some? I'd assume local hardware stores?

If I do decide to use the drilled holes, how would I even start to set those up to be used? I'm a bit of a novice when it comes to plumbing and filtration. I've only used one HOB (for my smaller tank) and a couple of canisters for my others. And for the canisters I've either used the overflow/pipes that were already there or just hung them around the back of the tank with included pipes/hoses so I didn't have to do any real plumbing work. I'm not opposed to doing the work, I just have no idea how to!

Thanks again!