cutting a hole in glass?

[Pain Devine]

So I got my tank and I got 1.5" PVC

I want to drill a whole near the top of the tank and fit a PVC collar into it. The collar screws together and then I want to put a 90 degree elbow on both sides. This will make what I think you guys call a "standpipe" but the only thing visible in the tank will be that 90 degree elbow.

So... how would you guys go about cutting a 1.5" hole in glass? I got my ideas but I want to see what you would do first. I was going to draw the circle, then use a smaller carbide tip drill bit to make a pilot hole... then I'd widen the hole with a dremmel tool grinding stone. Oh yea... and then cauck the hell out of it.

Do I need to put a screen over the entrance to the standpipe to keep the fish and stuff from swimm'n up in there?

 

[reefrunner69]

So... how would you guys go about cutting a 1.5" hole in glass?

I would give a glass shop 20 bucks to do it If your determined...You'll need an appropriately sized hole saw with a diamond edged bit.

 

[fishfreek]

You could use a screw in strainer but you will have to keep an eye on it to make sure stuff does not get stuck over the strainer and restrict the flow to much. Another alternitive is to fit an overflow strainer box over the 90 elbow thats inside and then position the strianer box so the water level is where you want it. The strainer box will have little fingers routed into them to act as a particle strainer but will allow small particles thru that can clog a regular strainer.

I second the LFS or glass shop doing the drilling. You dont specify how large the tank is but you can expect the glass to be anywhere from 1/2" to 3/4" thick. Your dremel honestly is not going to be overly happy i dont think trying to go thru that. Not to mention the glass dust thats going to wind up everywhere. Unless you use water to keep the glass cool also you could risk cracking it because of the heat the bit is going to be putting into the glass.

 

[BillyZ]

not to mention the number of bit's he'll wear out in the process. And what you spend on those bits, you could buy a glass bit for your drill, and for nearly that same price, you could pay someone to do it for you. And if they break it, they pay for a new tank... here's a third vote for letting someone else do it for you

 

[Pain Devine]

It's a small 16 gallon bowfront. I chose a large pipe for safety reasons. If the pipe clogs I figure it can hold a gallon or two on it's own before my main tank over flows. By then, hopefully the pump will run out of water before the main tank overflows. Also, it'll be really hard for a pipe that size to clog.

As far as running out of dremmel bits... I have TONS of dremel bits. I do a lot of woodworking and non-woodworkers always seem to thing dremmel tool 'kits' are a good thing to give me for christmas and birthdays.

But, none the less... maybe I'll fork out the cash for the diamond drill bit.

 

[justDIY]

here's a 4th vote for having a glass shop do it

you can't do it with a dremel, that I know of

if you touch the glass at the wrong angle, it will fracture

if you get the glass too hot, it will fracture

if you push too hard, it will fracture

if you use the wrong speed, it will fracture

if you try to cut the glass with the wrong bit, it will skate all over the surface, scratching everything but not cutting

 

[BillyZ]

if you gonna go the DIY route use PLENTY of water, don't push hard, and back off the drill bit every once in a while for a few seconds while you pour even more water over it. When drilling glass you basically want to "sand" the glass away rather than shuv your way through as you would with wood.

 

[vega]

This sound dangerous....

 

[jerejohnson]

the fish store had a rubber ring that attached to the tank, that held a mixture of water and i would say lube? looked like milk but it kept liquid on it at all times and it keep the glass cool, wasnt hard but you need the right equipment, dimond tiped bit and a rubber ring to hold the liquid there. i would say give someone 20 bucks and let them take the chance. either way good luck, and if you decide to do it get the right tools, not a dremel, if you want to try the dremel get a small piece of glass and test it on that and see what happens..