46 bowfront center brace ???s

jauringer

Member
well i guess i will try this question in reef tanks.
just bought a geisman(sp?) MH for my bow front. the center brace on my 46 bowfront creates a shadow. any sugestion on removing that brace? i was thinking of just cutting it out and replacing it with an acrylic brace. any other suggestions would be great.
 

shep

Member
Would definatly have to agree I would even drain it to put in the brace. Have never noticed that on any of my tanks before but I will now keep that in mind for high light corals. Is good thread and something we should all be aware of in the back of our minds.
 

jauringer

Member
FYI, I ended up buying some acrylic and cut two pieces the same size of my current center bracket. I glued them on both sides of my brace and let it cure for 24 hrs. (used 2000 PSI Epoxy). then i used a dremel and cut the center brace out. It worked perfect. it gives me even distribution from MH now and braces should be just as strong as it used to be.
 

birdy

Active Member
I have the same problem, it was suggested to me to use a parabolic reflector. I haven't had a chance to order one yet though. I am scared to replace the center brace with something clear, I am worried I will screw up the tank.
 

jauringer

Member
I was a little scared as well. After posting here and talking to many other people it can be done safe. I added two cross braces to be careful, and i feel really confidant about the job.
 

birdy

Active Member
I just talked to my husband about it and he seems to think he can replace the center brace without destroying the tank after I showed him your post, thanks for the idea!
 

jauringer

Member
the only other thing I should mention is, rough up the surface that you are going to apply epoxy too. i used a small peice of sand paper on the edges of the Acrylic and the lip of the tank, and like i said earlier that epoxy i used is 2000 psi, so once it has cured it ain't coming off! make sure the placement of that acrylic is def. where you want it. another option that was given to me, instead of using epoxy, you can use this stuff called "weldon #16"
instead of glue it acctualy melts the two surfaces and bonds them together. the only reason I didn't use it is because i did could not find it.
 
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