# Toughened glass: save yourself money by reusing double glazed windows



## Sucuri (Feb 17, 2009)

Building a viv, looking for glass door?

I don't know about you...but I was given a quote for two new panes of toughened glass 30 by 36 inch: over £80

Since I love my DIY and happy to reuse/recycle stuff, I went to my local Recycling centre and got a double glazed window of suitable size (already taken out of its plastic frame) for £2! 

Its very easy to separate the two panes with a good sharp Stanley knife or similar, then scrape off sticky bits with it and perhaps clean up the leftovers with white spirit.











The toughened/ safety glass is recognized by a Kitemark, usually in the corner










There is several layers you want to cut/scrape off - tape, mesh, silicone (?). The top layers peel off reasonably easily










Get that Stanley knife nice and tight right next to the glass and between the rubbery stuff and slice it off. Once you are in there it can cut through quite easily. I found I was able to actually just tear it off once I had a good grip on the rubbery filler : victory:










:no1: Pretty much done - now separate the panes of glass, clean it all up with Stanley knife and white spirit. Who needs to pay £80 what a waste of money!!!!!!!!!! :crazy:











ENJOY BUILDING YOUR VIV!


----------



## ch4dg (Jul 24, 2008)

thats great : victory:


----------



## ale36 (Dec 1, 2010)

I came across this idea a while back but wasn't sure where it would work. Got to give you credit for trying let us know how well the sealant cleaned up!


----------



## Sucuri (Feb 17, 2009)

ale36 said:


> I came across this idea a while back but wasn't sure where it would work. Got to give you credit for trying let us know how well the sealant cleaned up!


Yes I know people mentioned this before in passing but I havent seen any posts discussing it in detail. Since I just tried it today I thought Id pass it on - I really don't like wasting money for no reason. Ok some people prefer sparkling clean new vivs but I know that many would be quite happy with trying this out if they were more aware of its simplicity. I can't see anything wrong with this glass... will post a photo later when I have finished the big tank I am working on.

Good luck to everybody :2thumb:


----------



## Skeet (Nov 25, 2010)

Great tip there.

Only word of caution I would add, is that if you do this, you will need to build your viv around the glass you can get, rather than try an acquire glass of the exact size required.

Reason being...you can't trim toughened glass.


----------



## Sucuri (Feb 17, 2009)

Skeet said:


> Great tip there.
> 
> Only word of caution I would add, is that if you do this, you will need to build your viv around the glass you can get, rather than try an acquire glass of the exact size required.
> 
> Reason being...you can't trim toughened glass.


Yes, you are right, it cannot be cut anymore after its been toughened. Thanks for this important reminder. :thumb:


----------

