Leak found!

[travis32]

Well, I was doing some work under my tank and "in my stand" since my sump is behind the stand and the only way I created to get to it (mainly to keep pets out of it) is through the stand.

I was checking things over in the sump and I don't know why, but decided to look at the sand from underneith....

That's when I found salt attached to the bottom (on the outside) of the tank. I thought. WTH? where's that comeing from. Then I tested the glass with my finger and sure enough, wet spots on the glass...

It appears to be around the black molding of the tank. It's tempered glass and I saw no cracks or any other signs of areas that it could leak.

So, how bad is this? None of the water appears to be leaking fast enough to actually drip off of it or anything like that. It appears to be drying as fast as it leaks and leaving behind salt residue.

How concerned should I be and what can I do? Can I use calking or silicone to seal the around the plastic braces of the tank on the outside? Just dry it really well then seal it?

It's a standard 4ft 55g tank.

 

[Tat2demon]

Personally I would look at getting a new tank or draining that one and rebuilding it. Even a small leak like that can turn bad fast. Once a leak starts that joint can open up like a zipper at any time. Had that happen to a 30g several years ago.

Sealing around the trim wont fix the leak, just make it come out somewhere else.

 

[outy]

first make sure it IS a leak and not spilt water walking around the trim.

monitor it for a bit and see what you have before making a rush decision

 

[wrott]

I would get a new tank, if it is leaking. There are stalactites growing off of one of my tanks due to clamp--but you can see that it starts at the top of the tank.
It could easily begin to leak faster at any time, you may want to upgrade to a 90g--almost same footprint.

 

[travis32]

Well, wife is not employed right now and living on one income for the moment, so basic maintenance is about it, until she finds something. Interview on Monday, hopefully it goes well. I'll try to dry it out really really well, and see if maybay it's just water spray coming from the top of the tank or something.

It does beg a good question.. Do I *assume* it's a leak if it's continuously damp after drying it off. Or do I somehow try to find a trail of water coming from top of the tank or somewhere?

I haven't checked it today. But, yeah, I'll definately check it daily from now on. Errg!

 

[mike_cmu04]

If it is for sure a leak get it empty quick before you have a disaster!!!

 

[on the spot]

How is your overflow plumbed? Also your return lines? any connection with a hose clamp is where I'd start. How high do you run the water in the display? Some tanks may not have adequate sealant at the top allowing water to wick through and down. You would usually see a salt trail, but I'd check that as well.

Good luck though...leaks can be difficult to find until the tank splits.

 

[tsiklauss]

Make sure its not just condensation from your sump. The bottom of my tank is often moist, but its only from the evaporation from my sump.

 

[travis32]

I don't want to overreact, nor do I want to have a disaster, nor do I want a leaky tank waiting to fall in half all over my living room...

Well, I'll describe it the best I can.

It's a siphon overflow, with 3/4" J-tube, the bottom of the overflow is plumbed with 3/4" PVC tube, and that opens up to a 1" tube (maybe larger) it's flexible hose. Not sure what type. That connects to the acryllic sump with O rings on both sides of the sump and a small piece of PVC that angles the water into the sump. (noise reduction and splash control. The sump is approximately 1 & 1/2 " - 2" from top for water level. The return hose I have attached to a ball valve in the event I need to control that more. (attached with threaded connectors and sealant tape. The flexible hose is 3/4" from the sump to the tank. I just use zip ties (about 10 of them) attached to the center brace to hold the return hose in place.

I was contemplating reduing this properly with PVC or something like that. But, this may change those plans.

Yeah the sump is behind the stand setting on the floor. Right behind the sump is 2 wall corners and then the tankstand. So it's a fairly closed area. I was wondering about condensation too, but if it is condensation, shouldn't be salt. unless it's salt creep. That just finds it's way everywhere.

The main reason I'm not overreacting, is that my entertain ment center is on one side of the tank, and the whole side of the entertainment center has drip spots and salt residue.. OBviously that came from somewhere other than a leak... even the glass door which only opens to the side of the tank, had salt water runs down the front of it..

So, my initial guess is something to do with condensation and etc. I'm really hoping!

I completely wiped the bottom of the tank dry tonight. I had my wife test it, because well, glass always feels wet to me, so I wanted to make sure, 100% no dampness. She said it felt the same as the sides of the tank. So, here's to hoping little or no moisture.

The tank has been up over since February. So, nearly 8 months. Our house does run at between 60 - 70 % humidity. I don't know what level and temp water condenses at. HOwever, if it's running closer to 80% at in the small area the tank is at, then the bottom could be since it's a fairly small area.

I wiped it dry, so we'll see what it's like tomorrow.

 

[Lynnmw1208]

you could try to put some sort of cover over your sump to see if it is condensation from the water. It sucks if it's leaking. I just had my 30g hex go a couple of days ago, lucky it was only FW. I couldn't tell how it was leaking from the bottom either. mine was definitely dripping though.

I just wish things like this would happen while the Petco $1 per gallon sale is still going on and not right after it's over! hopefully you'll get it sorted out.

 

[travis32]

I agree. Yeah, no dripping I'm aware of. If I start noticing drips at least I'd know there's an issue. I may keep my eye out for another tank in the mean time.

 

[dogstar74]

I have often gotten that salt crust out the bottom of the plastic liner. It comes from a little water spilled, then it dries and the salt crystalizes and pushes out a ways onto the glass. It's from trapped water droplets between the glass and the plastic trim.

The moisture could be because salt left to it's own devices does pull water out of the air, and will absorb it quite readily.

I wouldn't tear it down just yet. Just be more careful when your arm is in the tank, or watch out for those splashy fish that flip their tails at the surface. Dollars to Doughnuts, that's where your salt creep has come from.

Aaron

 

[travis32]

I agree Dog. I'm not going to overreact. I'm going to monitor the situation for a couple weeks and see if anything changes. I also left the doors of the stand open and ran the dehumidifier next to it over night. May cause more evap, but, should dry the area out more.

 

[travis32]

well, I noticed more salt build up around the areas that completely cleaned last night. can salt build up in 12 -15 hours?

Errg. I love this hobby. But, not sure I can afford to upgrade or move to a different tank. Found a drilled tank on craigs list a 150g for $400.

I'll continue to watch the leak. Kinda depressing though. Not sure if there's anything I can do to prevent the tank from crashing in my living room.

 

[travis32]

So, if it is truely leaking as it appears to be. The plastic molder is completely wet on one half of the tank. The other half the molding is completely dry. I checked it with a flashlight. I noticed water on or under every peace of plastic moldering on the right side, and left side of the length of the tank was completely dry. (after having dried it with a towel and waiting 12 hours to check again).

So, how long could I have before the tank falls apart? 1 day, a week, a month? It may have been this way for the last 8 months, I don't know for sure....

 

[crodger]

be sure it is not just leaking down from the top, when I had my water level too high it would leak under the trim at the top and then run down, but it seem as like it was leaking at the bottom at first

 

[dogstar74]

Well if you have that much water that you can see the water between the trim and the glass, then perhaps you do infact have a leak. Bummer. 55 Gallon tanks are not that expensive, you could order one online at walmart.com and have it shipped free to the store in your town. It's nothing glamorous, but it would keep you in the hobby at your current level. Remember, in aquariums, the glass is the cheapest part.

HTH
Aaron

 

[travis32]

I'm just weighing options. my wife is all for me to go bigger.. (Assuming she gets a job soon....................................)

I was hoping to have it go o.k. without breaking for a couple more months. I an area where I could put a 48" X 24" tank.

We had to put our cat down and the spot that a lot of the cat-tower, toys, litter box, etc, is the perfect dimension for a larger tank. But, I'm not willing to shell out extra cash until I know our economic situation improves. (I'm optimistic it will. I live in the lowest unemployment state.) If I have to, yes, another 55g would be fine from Walmart.
Not too expensive. I would like to go something "tang police" approved. LOL. (just opens up the world of types of fish one can have).

My biggest fear is that the tank just cracks down the center half and all the sand, saltwater, fish, corals, and live rock land on my electrical and burn the house down. .......

Has anyone had that ever happen to them. I'm not familiar with how tanks "break" in half...

 

[James77]

Look for used tanks locally off a reef forums, you can get some pretty good buys.

As for how long the tank will last with that leak depends on why it is leaking. If it is from cracked glass that you cannot see, then it can be pretty imminent. If it is from a faulty siliocne job, I doubt you'd have a sudden massive failure, more of a perpetual slow leak. Of course I have never dealt with a leaky tank. Although I did severely crack my sump at a bulkhead, siliconed it up, and it was fine for months until I replaced it .

 

[travis32]

Well, I noticed some silicone around the plastic molding in the middle of the tank. I'm wondering if it's just the silicone that's leaking. I scanned the glass on the bottom fairly closely and couldn't see any fractures, not to say I would catch it if I looked right at it.

Yeah, I found a 4ft X 3ft 150g with stand, 30g sump, new return pump, all plumbing, a basic t8 light (he's using it for cichlids at the moment) for $450.00. Includes 2 heaters as well. All local.

I'm almost scared to look at for fear of not knowing what's wrong with it for that price and I end up with another leaky tank. LOL.

One thing I'm wondering though. We live near a train track, and heavy freight trains go by the whole house will vibrate a little. 2nd floor is worse than the main floor. But, would the vibrations of a heavy freight train cause a tank to destabilize? My wife brought that up. WE're probably around 100 to 150 feet from the tracks, if that much.