Glass Rimless Tank Silicon Issue

[Nicmar]

I made my own 2ft rimless cube.
10mm glass

Here you can see what is happening when the tank is full.
When I empty the tank it goes away.
the tank wasn't level which may be part of the issue.

Do you think putting euro bracing on it will fix the problem or will I need to somehow pull it off and silicon it?

 

[toothybugs]

It doesn't look cured! Those are air voids you're seeing - I'd like to say give it a week and re-check it but with the bond disturbed I would tell you to re-do it and then let it set for at least a week to allow the silicone time to cure all the way through.

 

[dotkat77]

From my very short experience with building my own tanks. I think that there is not enough silicone in the joint, and when you fill it with water there is not enough silicone to flex and that is why you see this when water is in the tank. You have to aim for 1/16" between two pieces of glass.

 

[wolfblue]

So you put near 8 cubic feet of water in a not level 10mm aquarium. Uncle should be along shortly. Before then...

What is the actual planned water depth?

 

[uncleof6]

I suspect the OP knows what needs to be done, but is hoping someone will say what he wants to hear...

Bad luck,
Glass too thin,
Glass not clean enough,
Insufficient amount of silicone at application,
Inconsistent application of silicone,
Not applying the bead in a single pass,
Insufficient assembly pressure,
Too much assembly pressure,
Not using clamps,
Poor assembly techinque,
Vibration during cure period,
Insufficient cure time,

Just some of the things I can think of in a short period of time. Though it would be nice to pinpoint exactly what went wrong, it could be one, several, all, or none of the above. The result is the same: the panel moved under pressure, and the seam cannot be trusted. As far as that goes, it is safe to assume the rest of the seams are not quite up to par either.

A euro-brace is not going to fix it. So, I do hope you have better luck next go around. Information on the internet is sorely lacking concerning tank building, and, for the most part, is only covered superficially in order to make it seem easier than it really is. So for beginning builders, there is a great deal of luck involved.

Scolley's article is one of the better ones, but still does not cover all the bases: it really isn't possible to cover all the bases.

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=27814