# cutting glass



## Ryan.Wilton (Dec 12, 2012)

So I found a (roughly) 5'x10" piece of glass in my garage about a 1/4" thick. I'm just wondering how I would cut this to make myself a small aquarium?

What tools would I need and how much would they be roughly?


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## randy (Jan 29, 2012)

Find a glass store that would cut it for you. They will charge you a bit but should still be cheaper than buying the tools for this once. And really, the professionals make it look easy but it's not if you haven't done it before.


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

and the pros can buff the edges so they aren't sharp


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## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

A glass cutter is under $5 at HD, in the paint dept.You should be able to build a 13" x 10" x 10" tank with that. Clearly, paying to have it cut makes absolutely no sense. If you want to try it, you will need a straight edge to guide the cutter, and some light oil or turpentine to lube the cutter; the sharp edges can be dulled with a piece of glass (or bottle or jar), by rubbing it. Run the glass along both sides of the edge until the sharpness is gone. A tube of silicone can be had from Home Hardware or Rona for about $4, that says "aquarium safe" on it. GE Silicone I for "Windows and Doors" can also be used. Cut the glass before buying the silicone. The other choice would be to cut the piece into 3 equal pieces and buy the two end pieces.It isn't really cost effective, but perhaps worth the effort just for the experience gained.


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## Fishfur (Mar 4, 2012)

If you really want to have an aquarium out of this glass, I'd get a pro to do it, simply because cutting glass, while not especially difficult a skill to learn, has a learning curve, just like any other skill. You will make mistakes and you don't have a lot of glass to practice on.

But if you want to try it, and not getting a little tank out of it is not going to be a real disappointment to you, then yeah, try it. Glass cutting is a useful thing to be able to do.


The main thing is that you can only cut each line one time. Once you've run the cutter wheel down the glass, you cannot do it over again. Really what you doing is scoring the glass, making a shallow cut to start with. So you need that straight edge BillD mentioned, preferably clamped in place. Start with the wheel just off the glass, press enough to hear it, then go smoothly, evenly, after running a bit of oil or whatever to lube the cut, 'til you run off the other side. Press firmly but not to hard, that's something you can only discover by doing it.

If you do it right, you'll hear a high pitched sort of whine as you go. Once the score is done, you need to snap or break the glass along the score, there's a couple of ways to do that. You can rest the main piece on a bench or table with the scored line just over the edge and lean on the end piece 'til it snaps. Or place a pencil or dowel under the scored line on a table and press down on both sides of it. Tapping gently along the scored line first using the end of the cutting tool, before trying to snap the glass, will help deepen the score, and hopefully make it break nice and clean. 

If the scored line is not straight or is uneven in pressure, you may end up either with an assortment of broken pieces or maybe just lumpy edges on your piece, like teeth. If the lumps are small you can sand them off, and to make a tank they need to be sanded flush with the main edge. You'll need an abrasive with a cloth back and a few grits to work through, the sort used for body work or metal, not wood. If you have to buy the abrasives, it will add a bit of cost and sanding down lumps is not as easy as just taking off the sharp edges. The pros can do it in seconds with their machines. There is also another type of tool for breaking glass and maybe tile too. I have forgotten the proper name for it, but it has flat gripping plates at the ends, and can be used to break off larger 'chunks' that may result from a wonky score line, or narrow pieces that you can't break the usual ways but then, you're investing that much more in tools you may never use again. If you get clean cuts, those snapping pliers are not needed.

But it's an interesting thing to do and with beginner's luck you may well end up with a tank for your effort. If you end up with most of the pieces right, buying one more to complete it won't be terribly costly. My local shop wants, I think it was $5.,for a piece of 5mm glass 7 X 8 inches in size. Your glass would cost a bit more, as it is thicker than 5mm.


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## Ryan.Wilton (Dec 12, 2012)

I'd rather not spend the money on professionals lol. My plan was to DIY this, and learn from the experience.

Glass cutting toll for about $5, silicone for $4. Sounds cheap enough to me and if I break the glass it's no big deal as it'd probably be used for cultivating earth worms this summer anyways.

I appreciate the advice guys, once I've got some tools (probably this coming Saturday) I'll begin my build thread  We'll see how it goes. 

Also, anybody know where I can get cheap acrylic paint for the backing?


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## tf_fish (Aug 5, 2008)

Hi Ryan don't be afraid to brake the glass that is the way you learn 
and you will find an old window around get the tolls use kerosene or cooking oil
use a straight edge to guide the cutter example a level will do it firm hands press against 
the glass and the edge guide do it at once the cut then lay under the glass the cutter little ball or knob in on end make sure the ball is in the middle the sore press it firm whit bought hands don't be scare like me wend I made my first cuts if don't press firm wend the glass snaps many times it dos not cut straight from one end to the other this was my frustration
before I figure it out


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## Ryan.Wilton (Dec 12, 2012)

I was going to ask if Kerosene would work, as I have a container of it lying around. I have plenty of cooking oil as well.

I'm not overly concerned about the glass breaking, it was a piece I found in my garage and have some extra pieces lying around anyways, so I may practice on them first.

Just wondering, would the glass cutting tool work on Acrylic as well? I have a sheet roughly the same size of flexible acrylic.


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## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

Glass cutter will not work on acrylic. However, a scratch awl or utility knife works nicely.


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## LTPGuy (Aug 8, 2012)

Ryan.Wilton said:


> So I found a (roughly) 5'x10" piece of glass in my garage about a 1/4" thick. I'm just wondering how I would cut this to make myself a small aquarium?
> 
> What tools would I need and how much would they be roughly?


Hi Ryan,

Did this piece of glass came from old windows? How long has it been sitting around in the garage?

The reason I asked is because I cut some glass plates a few months back with mix result. It was not my first time, but it was the first time using plates from windows, meaning that it's been weathered.

I did a lot of reading and youtube which were very helpful. I bought the cheap cutter from HD and used grape seed oil. I think you're suppose to use mineral oil but I didn't have any around, and forgot to purchase some.

My experience with cutting brand new plates is that it's very easy and cuts very cleanly. Much like the demos on youtube.

Old windows glass plate is a whole different story. Apparently, the weathering process, hot-cold cycles, creates micro fractures in the plate, and that makes it very difficult to have clean cuts. There is a technique for treating it prior to cutting, but you'll have to google it as it has been a while for me.

I would *highly recommend* that you wear safety goggle and gloves as there will be flying chips and sharp edges. Do it outside in the garage/workshop so that you can sweep the chips which can be quite small.

Again, used SAFETY GOGGLE AND GLOVES.

All in all, it will be a great learning experience, and rewarding also!

You can see the result of my tank here. The silicone work is sloppy as it was my first time, and I was concern about bonding strength and leaks. You'd be surprise how well silicone (GE I) holds the glass plates together!.

Good luck!


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## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

I believed that old glass was difficult to cut, until I was shown otherwise, on the same glass I was having difficulty with. I was told by another individual who has built hundreds of tanks and cut thousands of pieces of glass, that it makes no difference. Regardless, I still have difficulty with what is old glass, although I may be the problem. For very narrow pieces, I place the small bit into the jaws of a workmate and break off the large piece. I have also found that (at least for me) tapping the glass along the score makes for an uneven cut. Gloves and goggles are a good idea, especially on thicker glass. for small bumps, I have used a Dremel type tool, with a diamond bit to grind off the bump, as well as for taking off small amounts when a piece was a little too long. The diamond bit sets are often on sale at Princess Auto for a few dollars for 10. I think I also paid less than $15 for my tool which came in a kit with flexible shaft and accessories, also from PA. I don't think the quality is equal to an actual Dremel brand, but so far it has worked well and no longer owes me anything.


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## Ryan.Wilton (Dec 12, 2012)

No clue the age of the glass. It's been in the garage for as long as I've lived in the basement apartment (about 2 years) so who knows how old it really is lol.


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## LTPGuy (Aug 8, 2012)

BillD said:


> I believed that old glass was difficult to cut, until I was shown otherwise, on the same glass I was having difficulty with. I was told by another individual who has built hundreds of tanks and cut thousands of pieces of glass, that it makes no difference. Regardless, I still have difficulty with what is old glass, although I may be the problem. For very narrow pieces, I place the small bit into the jaws of a workmate and break off the large piece. I have also found that (at least for me) tapping the glass along the score makes for an uneven cut. Gloves and goggles are a good idea, especially on thicker glass. for small bumps, I have used a Dremel type tool, with a diamond bit to grind off the bump, as well as for taking off small amounts when a piece was a little too long. The diamond bit sets are often on sale at Princess Auto for a few dollars for 10. I think I also paid less than $15 for my tool which came in a kit with flexible shaft and accessories, also from PA. I don't think the quality is equal to an actual Dremel brand, but so far it has worked well and no longer owes me anything.


Hey Bill, did you use the cheap HD type glass cutter? Can you go into a little more details on what was shown to you that improved the cut. I still have quite a few windows that I like to cut up!

By old glass, I mean window glass that must have experienced 5+ years of Canadian weathering.

Thanks.


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## Ryan.Wilton (Dec 12, 2012)

Well, like I said, it sat in the garage for 2 years so far. Probably longer. It doesn't look like it's from any window frame that would be on my house due to the size of it. However there are 2 windows on either side of the door, similar size now that I think about it. And these have wavy glass, so maybe that was where it came from originally.


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