Buying a used tank

[jharding08]

I am moving in a couple months and figure this is a good time to upgrade my tank size. It will also be easier to move if I have a new tank already cycled and established before I move my livestock.

I currently have a 120 gallon 4'x2'x2' glass tank that I had cut for bean animal and a coast to coast overflow last time I moved.

I have been looking for a 180-240 gallon tank for cheap on the internet. I know I probably am going to get what I pay for, but I cant justify spending more than $300-400 on a new setup to the wife.

What I am finding online are alot of glass tanks that either arent drilled for an overflow (I do have a siphon overflow with dual bulkheads, but I dont want to go back to that) or the stand is in rough condition or it is unsure whether or not it holds water.

I have been calling around to glass places but none of the would do a resealing of the tank, removing the old silicone and replacing with new.

When I go look at a tank, I am mostly concerned with:
-Quality of glass/acrylic (no scratches, thickness more than 1/2")
-Quality of the silicone seams (not coming off, solid bead, etc)
-Sturdyness of stand (wood good quality, not rotting, enough vertical supports, etc)
-Drilled holes are where I need them and I can work with it for return/drainage
-Stand big enough for sump.

What else should I look for when trying to gauge a used tank? There are alot out there, and I dont mind doing a little prep work on it, but I'd like to get one as close to ready to go as possible

 

[GimpyFin]

I think you definitely have your work cut out for you. The glass scratches and seams will likely be common issues. I'd also check for chips in the glass that could cause a crack under stress.

 

[jharding08]

I think you definitely have your work cut out for you. The glass scratches and seams will likely be common issues. I'd also check for chips in the glass that could cause a crack under stress.

Yes, for sure. That is why I am starting so early. If it is acrylic, I could buff out the scratches, but for glass, it needs to be pretty clean. Finding a glass tank with an overflow built in is the hardest part!

 

[jharding08]

Is it possible to get minor scratches out of glass?

What kind of company would reseal a glass tank?

This one I looked at had a really bad silicone job and some scratches on the front glass. Its a good price, but depends on how much work is needed to fix it

 

[bearpeidog]

It's an expensive hobby and I wouldn't skimp on the tank. Go new and save yourself a headache. Given the amount of money you are likely to spend in the hobby the tank ultimately won't be where you spend the most cash. Also you'll end up paying for silicone, hours of labor etc.

If things go sideways after you get it up and running you'll be wondering did they use copper medicines before I got the tank? You'll never be sure....

Scratches in glass can be removed. There are glass kits you can buy or in my case a new tank came with a couple scratches. Rather then send it back I allowed it to be buffed out by a pro and billed the custom tank builder. Wish I hadn't had to do that but it was all cleaned up. Took a couple hours and requires patience and the ability to monitor glass temperature etc.

 

[SeattleReefer]

patience is the key to a good craigslist purchase. Unfortunately you have a deadline. You will have to compromise somewhere - unless you get lucky and find exactly what you want in a short time span.

 

[jharding08]

I found a 4'x4'x2' cube that had center overflow and good glass. Might need to re-silicone some of the inner joints, but not alot of scratches and the bracing was even in pretty good shape.

It has three bulkheads in the overflow, two that are 3/4" it looks like and one 1". Right now the two 3'4" go to elbows in the overflow for returns, but not sure I'd like to have two return lines and only one drain line in a 240g.

I need to build a stand and decide on aquascaping, but for right now. I just want to clean it up and see how the seams look. I might clean them up and then water test it.

Previous owner had it up for three years with freshwater. He had a 3 foot alligator gar that swam in circles around the overflow.

I'll start a build thread once I get moving on this. I have all the dimensions, so first task is to draw it in sketchup and design the stand. Any references for sold stand design would be appreciated.

 

[anbosu]

Look for the rocketengineer thread for building a stand.

 

[jharding08]

Look for the rocketengineer thread for building a stand.

I saw that as well as this thread - http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2463568

I plan on doing the same torsion box top, but am wondering if I should do 4x4 legs instead of 2x4s. I plan on skinning it and having two doors on three sides

 

[anbosu]

I saw that as well as this thread - http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2463568

I plan on doing the same torsion box top, but am wondering if I should do 4x4 legs instead of 2x4s. I plan on skinning it and having two doors on three sides

I think the doubled up 2x4s on the corners will be more than sufficient, but if you feel better going with a 4x4 then it probably won't hurt anything.