reeftopia
Supporting Member
rimless are easier to hold frag racks, While Ive had both I prefer with the rim, stronger and easier to install tops, Water doesnt splash as easy.
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Pros/cons of rimless tanks (1 Viewer)
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@PicassoClown
"You already brought up the issue of the light mount so I won’t go over that, but I’m sure it was a pain in the butt to modify your mount"
I ended up using legos. They are the perfect height to glue to the inside mounting leg and fill the gap below the aquarium rim lip. Good thing I never got rid of the toys I had for my nieces when they were little! Lol.
"You already brought up the issue of the light mount so I won’t go over that, but I’m sure it was a pain in the butt to modify your mount"
I ended up using legos. They are the perfect height to glue to the inside mounting leg and fill the gap below the aquarium rim lip. Good thing I never got rid of the toys I had for my nieces when they were little! Lol.
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What do you mean they are stronger?
I have never understood the appeal of the rimless tank, but then again I like canopies on tanks. I just don't like the light glaring in my eyes when looking at the tank.
My, how far we've come to even be having this discussion. When I was a kid getting into the hobby, all tanks had stainless steel frames - not just top and bottom, but up all the corners as well. I remember when the first non-steel-frame tanks came out, with the plastic rims that we have today. They were called "all-glass" tanks. lol We were pretty nervous about the idea - how can you hold a whopping 20 gallons of water without a steel frame?
My, how far we've come to even be having this discussion. When I was a kid getting into the hobby, all tanks had stainless steel frames - not just top and bottom, but up all the corners as well. I remember when the first non-steel-frame tanks came out, with the plastic rims that we have today. They were called "all-glass" tanks. lol We were pretty nervous about the idea - how can you hold a whopping 20 gallons of water without a steel frame?
It seems like the only shallow tanks around are rimless - that’s the main reason I’m looking at rimless. I do like the look, but I also like the look of regular trim. I don’t prefer the sleek, modern look and will have a dark wood stand (or wood wrapped aluminum stand). My current tank has a dark brown trim that almost matches my stand, so it fits in well. Other than the light mounting issue, I wouldn’t even think twice about getting a shallow tank with traditional trim - I just haven’t see any.
I have debated adding a canopy to my current tank, but want easy access to the tank. I WILL need to come up with a good way to limit the glare on my next setup though... maybe a floating canopy on a tv mount that I can move out of the way?
Let’s just be honest. What has that curb appeal? 
Once you go rimless, you’ll never go back.
Don’t forget to add corner seam protectors if you go with Planet Aquariums. They need to be added into the build. Excellent feature and prevents the silicone from getting destroyed by the algae scrapers.
Once you go rimless, you’ll never go back.Don’t forget to add corner seam protectors if you go with Planet Aquariums. They need to be added into the build. Excellent feature and prevents the silicone from getting destroyed by the algae scrapers.
+1..lol
H-D-Fatboy-16
Guest
How big can you go rimless??
H-D-Fatboy-16
Guest
Id like to do a 225 rimless, is that to big
You’ll need to research some of the aquarium manufacturers‘ websites. I didn’t look at anything that large so I’m not sure. Planet Aquarium, Red Sea, Innovative Marine, Neptunium, etc should have pics or descriptions of what a larger tank would need as far as bracing.
Ultimately, you can probably go custom and use thick enough glass to build just about anything... weight becomes a major factor though.
This is what you need - a tank built to withstand a war lol. This is only about a 7 gallon tank, but has the full steel frame and a slate bottom. It was made in the 1960's or early '70's. We only did freshwater back then, so I don't know how this would do with saltwater.
The pros and cons of Rimless Aquariums vs Traditional Braced Aquariums | Reef Builders | The Reef and Saltwater Aquarium Blog
What type of aquarium should you buy? Rimless aquariums or a traditional braced aquariums? Let’s discuss the pros and cons of a rimless aquarium versus a traditional braced aquarium.
reefbuilders.com
If you go rimless and longer than 48” or taller than 21” they’ll use thicker glass to prevent bowing. There is a limit to length and height before they eurobrace the bottom or top. Or add a center brace.
This is a great read before you consider buying a new aquarium:
Ep.6 - Big Tanks, what’s the right size & shape for an epic multi-hundred gallon reef tank? | BRS360
After 6 months of contemplating the size and shape of his new tank, Ryan is ready to share the entire form factor he came up with for the BRS360. One thing to keep in mind when choosing the right size tank is to avoid things you might regret, think through every decision and
www.bulkreefsupply.com
I think they could pull it off with 3/4” glass and keeping it under a certain height.
Lessons from BRS:
A few things were realized after building the 120-gallon rimless Clownfish Harem Tank. First, the tank was made of ?” glass which is too thin for a rimless tank of this size so it ended up with a pretty serious bow on the front pane of glass. It continued to be a safety concern inside the BRS studios which was largely the reason it was taken down and turned into a waterless terrarium.
Using thicker glass, shorter dimension or even a euro brace are all suitable ways to cure the bow. In hindsight, a six-foot long 180-gallon tank would have been more ideal, even with the additional costs involved. Just because it would give more travel area for the fish community and even better management of community aggression.
A similar lesson was learned with the BRS160. Felix at Reef Savvy is what I would call a more conservative tank maker, bowing panels and nonsense like that is off the table. Part of having standards means honest feedback even if the customer doesn't want to hear it. In this case, he warned us that with this glass thickness and size, we should only go 20” tall if wanted to avoid the bowing without euro bracing.
A few things were realized after building the 120-gallon rimless Clownfish Harem Tank. First, the tank was made of ?” glass which is too thin for a rimless tank of this size so it ended up with a pretty serious bow on the front pane of glass. It continued to be a safety concern inside the BRS studios which was largely the reason it was taken down and turned into a waterless terrarium.
Using thicker glass, shorter dimension or even a euro brace are all suitable ways to cure the bow. In hindsight, a six-foot long 180-gallon tank would have been more ideal, even with the additional costs involved. Just because it would give more travel area for the fish community and even better management of community aggression.
A similar lesson was learned with the BRS160. Felix at Reef Savvy is what I would call a more conservative tank maker, bowing panels and nonsense like that is off the table. Part of having standards means honest feedback even if the customer doesn't want to hear it. In this case, he warned us that with this glass thickness and size, we should only go 20” tall if wanted to avoid the bowing without euro bracing.
If you have to Euro-brace the top. It doesn’t like near as bad as trim and IMO it looks pretty good. Especially if they use clear silicone to blend the panels. Then black on the other seams.
