Calling all perfecto/ marineland tank owners especially DD

[Drewl117]

I have a 210 aqueon tank,not a DD but it's been running for almost a year now. I have heard horror stories from my fish guy and lfs about the marine land tanks. Neither of them will stock or order them. The aqueon was only a few bucks more and the silicone looks to be perfect!

 

[ReefMaverick]

Engineering test results

Engineering test results

Just got the result back from Engineering firm mandated by the insurance company....

"Remarquons que l'examen antérieur d'aquariums du même type a révélé qu'un joint de silicone structurel était localisé entre la tranche des panneaux latéraux et la base, ce joint étant actuellement masqué par une bande de plastique localisée sur tout le pourtour de l'aquarium. Dans les dossiers comparatifs où nous avons procédé à des essais destructifs de l'aquarium ayant défailli, nous avons observé que l'adhérence des joints structurels pouvait être incomplète, pour diverses raisons. Dans de tels cas, le joint de finition apposé du côté interne (flèches - photographie 7) pouvait assurer l'étanchéité pendant un certain temps, mais finissait par céder dans la zone de faiblesse structurelle."

Sorry for the French but in clear the tank failed because on missing silicone between bottom panel and sidewall...resulting in lost of adherance and catastrophic failure. Finition joint will hold for some time but will gave up due to structural failure.

Marineland Tank have structural issues !

 

[madweazl]

I have a standard 75 and of note, the silicon is sloppy. Looks like they run their finger down the seam. On the warranty card it states you cant remove this excess silicon without voiding the warranty (drilled mine so it didnt really matter but I decided to leave it just in case there is a legitimate reason they do this). It is a relatively small thing but it still looks sloppy. I've had no issues with the tank but it is pretty small and standard so that is to be expected. I purchased it during the Blitz sale so the deal was hard to pass up.

 

[CrayolaViolence]

I think just about every large tank (currently up and running) I own is some brand of Marine land. I know my 180 is. I am very happy with it although their stand makes me a nervous wreck. I don't care what they say, they need to make the stands sturdier if for no other reason than mental comfort. They promised me the stand was for that tank (from marine land, even sent them a photo) and their engineers designed it to hold a 180 filled with rock, water, etc. So far it hasn't fallen in, but I can't help but get nervous every time I still my head in the sump.
My oldest marine land is probably a good 15-20 years old that I got second hand. So old that the glass is green. The brace at the top snapped long ago. It's a 55 gallon, but there is enough water to make the glass bow which makes me nervous, but my engineer significant other assures me it's fine. Come to think of it both my sumps are marine land too. Small, but sturdy. My 90 gallon is also a marine land. I bought it used. The black silicone looks like it's been chewed on by a hamster on the edges, but other than that, it's been great. My favorite tank because of the depth, but I outgrew it.
So there are my Marine land experiences. I had a lot of worries about my 180 and questioned the people at Marine Land in depth about it. Also talked with my local reef store ppl. Marineland apparently stands by their product but you MUST use THEIR equipment. Such as a stand and canopy, if you use a canopy. And you absolutely cannot make any changes to the stand, not re-enforce it, etc or make any changes to the tank (use different pipping etc) or you void your warranty. They have replaces tanks for such trivial things as bubbles in the silicone seams. Probably why they use black silicone now so you can't see it.

I am hoping to hear your about experiences with a marineland/ perfecto tank. Especially from those who have/ had a 300 DD, 250 DD, or 200 DD (but still would like to hear from anyone with a marineland tank).

I know that with everything made there can be problems, failures, etc, but I also know that I have seen tanks running perfectly upwards of 10, 20, 30 years. I am about to commit to a 300 DD and before doing so I really want to make sure I did as much research as possible.

The problems I have heard from 300 DD so far are leaks due to the silicone and one where the whole tank broke/ front went out. I have heard that perfecto is a great brand and just as well have heard it is not that great and "you get what you pay for." I also heard that several stores won't even order them due to the high failure rate of the 300 DD - I do not know if this is true, but regardless it makes me nervous.

Thank you everyone in advance

Also, if you would not get a 300 DD marineland/ perfecto please comment or message me why you wouldn't