Drilling tempered Glass?

[Zeezorm]

Drilling?
So my local LFS store told me not to even think about such a feat and to just buy a custom tank... Yeah right 900 bucks later I think not... I found a drill guide for a portable drill to drill 90 degree angels like this:
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=2405&cookietest=1
I'm also planning on buying diamond glass hole saw's like:
http://glass-holes.com/category.sc?categoryId=7
I was just wondering what you in the DYI section of Reef Central thought's were on the subject???

[pixelpixi]

If it's tempered, you won't be able to drill it. The glass will almost certainly shatter.

[mfinn]

It will shatter.

[doubleduece]

DITTO

The drill guide is not necessary........:)

[tb_bucs]

DONT DO IT BAAAD

[lflint]

If you decide to drill it make sure you videotape it and put it on YouTube. I love to watch tempered glass explode into a million, worthless pieces.

See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvRgklsm6so

[a1amap]

+1 You can't drill tempered glass. You can drill plate glass

[crsswift70]

If you want a thrill though, go ahead and drill it. I drilled a 10 gallon tank and when it popped... it was like a loud concussion wave. Scared the mess out of me because i wasn't expecting it to be tempered.

[SeaHorseTim]

if you get a good, clean break you will have a fine excuse to buy a new pane of glass that is drilled before it's tempered. It isn't all _that_ much work to replace the bottom of a tank, as long as you have a good workbench, a lot of patience, and a wife who won't shoot at you while you are trying to do it.

[lflint]

That drill guide is precisely what I use to start the holes. It is awesome! I clamp it to the face of the tank with those rubber coated quick clamps so it doesn't move then start the hole. The bit doesn't dance around like if you're doing it free hand. I get the hole started that way and then do it free hand from there. Makes for a neat hole with no stray marks that not only look bad but compromise the integrity of the face of the glass.

BTW, I drill my tanks outside where I can use a garden hose with a slow water flow to continually remove debris and cool the bit/glass. There's no better, cleaner, neater way to do it IMHO.

[sfsuphysics]

If you manage to drill the glass without destroying it then it wasn't tempered. What makes glass "Tempered" is that the whole glass under the top "layer" is under quite a bit of tension, once you crack/nick/ding that top layer there's nothing holding that tension back and WAMMO millions of pieces, it has NOTHING to do with how square the drill head is to the glass, how slow, cool or anything else, you damage that top layer and the whole glass will explode.

[phk36]

all holes are drilled in glass before they temper it

[phk36]

it will break

[firebirdude]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13261232#post13261232 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sfsuphysics
If you manage to drill the glass without destroying it then it wasn't tempered. What makes glass "Tempered" is that the whole glass under the top "layer" is under quite a bit of tension, once you crack/nick/ding that top layer there's nothing holding that tension back and WAMMO millions of pieces, it has NOTHING to do with how square the drill head is to the glass, how slow, cool or anything else, you damage that top layer and the whole glass will explode. QFT.

Please do it will a full tank and video tape it.... PLEASE?

[Zeezorm]

Ok, Ok so don't try it or if I do video tape it and share it with all of you got cha...

[OceansCoral]

Haha try it and make sure you video tape it. A million bucks says it shatters.

[limitdown]

It'll break into a million pieces.

[cnaegler]

Has anyone pointed out that it'll shatter? LOL!

[OceansCoral]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uigdnhUsns&feature=related

[firebirdude]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uigdnhUsns&feature=related

AND

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lK_B_nhRVU&feature=related

BWAHAHAHA

[dsquared]

Is there a way to tell if it's tempered or plate glass?
Dave

[pixelpixi]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13266759#post13266759 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dsquared
Is there a way to tell if it's tempered or plate glass?
Dave

Well, you could try drilling it... :D

Seriously, though, if you look at it through polarized sunglasses you can sometimes tell. I don't know if that's always true, though.

edited to add:

da google tells me that tempered glass alters the polarization of light passing through it, so I think you need to be looking through tempered glass with polarized sunglasses AT a polarized light source to see the pattern. Or a polarization filter on both sides of the glass would probably work too...

[hllywd]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13266759#post13266759 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dsquared
Is there a way to tell if it's tempered or plate glass?
Dave

Use 2 polarized camera filters or sunglasses. Sunglasses make this more difficult due to their tint. Place 1 on each side of the pane then rotate them untill most of the light you're using is blocked. I prefer a cloudless blue sky as my light source. Move the filters/lenes simultaneously across the glass looking for light and dark splotches/patterns. If the glass look uniform its not tempered, if it has the light and dark areas it is.
Try it on the side window of a car first, side and rear windows are tempered and you'll be able to see the effect. I you don't see it there you're probably doing it wrong...

Tim:cool:

[saveafish]

Just a FIY When it is tempered it is heated up very hot than cooled fast. this causes it to make a very hard shell on it. The middle becomes very brittle. Depending how long it is heated and how fast it is cooled depends on how thick the outer shell is. Thoug neverless the middle is still brittle. It forms a melucture structer that when disturbed decentrgrits when disturbed. The outer shell can be drilled or cut BUT as soon as the middle it touched(disturbed by drilling hitting or scratch)) POW it will blow. just like in the youtube listed above.