What to do with this tank? Please help..

O3reefer

O3reefer

New member
I have been doing research on the hobby now for some time and found a tank in some local listings and finally took the dive. So I bought a 65-70 gallon tank, and its a 1/2" thick rimless cube 27.5"tall. The old owner had to move across country and needed to get rid of it. I brought it home and filled it with water and something popped its face out and I don't know how I feel about it.

After filling it the seams all started to turn "frosty" is how to best describe it. I have some pics one of each seam, I hope you can be able to tell. If I need better pics let me know. I don't know what to do. If I brace it around the top with euro or frame will it help?
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Thanks,
AJ
 
I think the "frosty" look of the seams is just what silicone rubber does when it's wet. I don't think I'd worry about it. I've never had any problems with mine. Just me though

Carl
 
What stand is the tank on?

Your not going to like it but...

I would cut the tank apart and re silicone it with a high strength aquarium silicone.

I have seen tanks like that last for a very long time but from what you are saying it started doing that when you filled it and not before you purchased it.

IMO something was out of level with the stand for that to happen quickly.
 
I thought it might be water too, so I drained it and looked at the inside seams and they look great still. I don't think its water and there are no leaks. Its on the cement garage floor on foam board to help support

AJ
 
I don't know exactly what I would do with that tank... but putting water in it -- and having it full of water in my house is defiantly not 1 of them. That tank is shot -- take it back and get a new one !!
 
So what would you do? I would really not like to take it apart. Its rimless, should put a brace on the top? If all else fails, it didn't cost that much so i guess I could go buy a new one.
 
The bracing won't help now. Like I said I have seen tanks like that last a long time.

If you don't want to re-seam it I would buy another. It really isn't that hard and will give you some sort of satisfaction knowing you rebuilt your tank.

I can promise you that what you put into the tank in livestock and the impact it would have on your floor should it burst is minuscule to purchasing a new tank.

Most garage floors are fairly flat. Does yours have any bow to it?
 
The problem with re-seaming it is that I dont have any experience doing that. How much silicone should be between the glass at the joints?
 
It is really easy. For that size tank you can essentially just put a bead down and sit the pane in place. You won't squeeze out too much. You do want to use masking tape and remove it after you have run your finger over the silicone to get a nice clean edge. You also have to remove 100% of the old silicone. Use a razor blade and steel wool to clean up the edges prior to the new silicone.

How are the bottom seams? If they are good you could just do the front and back panes 1 at a time. This would make it easier on you. After the panes are back on you will want to remove all of the silicone on the inside (not between the glass), mask off the seams. You then put on your final water seal in one shot so it is a single piece.

If the bottom seams are still good you could probably knock it out in 2 days with only a few hours of actual work.
 
So this is 1/2" glass for every pane including the bottom, with all the sides sandwiching the bottom (not sitting on the bottom). The bottom seals look fine just have some bubbles in them. This tank feels strong, but like I said is rimless. Its doesn't really move when I pull on it. Is taking the glass apart going to be hard. Like I said there is hardly any room between the glass seams? Thanks for the help.
 
It should be pretty easy using a razor blade. Browse youtube for some vids on how to do it. I was looking but have slower internet then normal due to traveling and I wasn't getting very far.

Since the bottom seams look good then you should only have to do two panes. Make sure to get good silicone. A rimless tank requires high strength silicone not the stuff you get at home depot.
 
I have 3 40 Breeders that have this exact same issue. I believe they were Marineland tanks. I took several pictures and sent to the manufacturer. They informed me it was silicone stretching and not an issue. FWIW, these have been in use now for over 3 yrs without an issue. However these were brand new tanks.
 
Have you tried to contact the previous owner to ask if they noticed the haze in the seams? It may be perfectly fine to use, I see bubbles and streeks in my silicon--but thats w/out water. I would buy a new tank ASAP if I had any doubts.
 
So I pulled off the back pane and am in the process of cleaning it. The seams between glass was very thin, I mean thin. I have read that there should be about 1mm thick of silicone for the structural seams(glass-to-glass), is this correct? My plan is to have the tank lay on it's front so all I have to do is lay the back pane on top with maybe a little weight on it for a week to cure then turn it over and do the same for the front. I will be using RTV108. How does that sound, any thoughts?
 
O3reefer said:
anymore thoughts about these seams from anyone?
Click to expand...

If the tank does not leak when completely full and the silicone that is actually between the panes of glass looks good with no bubbles or any signs of separation then I would set it up and not worry about it.
Silliscone other than what is between the panes is just window dressing. Literally.
1/2" glass with a good silicone seal is highly unlikely to leak or blow out.
I am not saying it is impossible but if I was in you shoes I wouldn't think twice.
 
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