Also building the aquarium looks like lots of fun I chickened out of doing it myself. Afraid of the possibility of a leak and a hundred liters of water seeping into the wooden floor I looked for someone else to do it for me. I got recommendations for a great aquarium builder and gave him a call. We discussed what I wanted (simple rimless tank, 8mm clear glass…) and he was very attentive and helpful but also insisted the glass should be 10mm thick, trusting his judgment I agreed to that and hoped it wont look too cumbersome. Once the cabinet was finished I had the dimensions ready for him, I asked for it to be 52cm by 51.8cm and 42cm high. The tank was ready within a few days but I had to wait for ten days for the silicon to cure.
The tank was built to the exact size and fits perfectly on the cabinet but there were a few things I didn't like. The biggest one is the issue of the green tint, although the glass doesn't look too thick the green coloring is very noticeable. I looked at many tanks since and I think I could have insisted on 8mm glass which would have been a little better. On the other hand the seams are very elegant and the amount of silicon is really minimal (as you can see in the pictures) thanks to the thickness of the glass.
On the outside the work isn't as clean and there is some access silicon that has to be removed, when I got the tank there was tape going all around it and when I removed it there was silicone underneath that has to be removed.
The builder also added supports at the bottom of the tank which I did not want.
He said it is the only proper way to prevent leaks.
I disagree but it is too late now, I will just have to wait and see what it looks like after I fill it in with substrate (in a regular tank the bottom is covered by skirting so one doesn't see the supports but I want to leave it bare)
I'm very pleased with this tank I tested it for leaks (no problems as expected) and now I can hardly wait till I get the rest of the things ready…
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