HELP! Slow Leak >:0

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Twoapennything

Aquarium Advice Freak
Joined
Jan 18, 2010
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410
Location
Denver, Colorado
OMG, I found a very slow leak in my aquarium - I'm scared that the whole thing will give way and I'll have 40 gallons of water all over my living room floor and dead fish. The leak is super tiny - it's not even making a puddle. It's just a drop of water at the bottom rear of the tank. Should I get some of that glass goo that holds the aquarium together and go over the area with the leak? I'm really freaking out about this - it feels like if it's not one thing it's another :( I really am not a fan of this tank (Marineland Eclipse 3). If you have any suggestions, please let me know. It's 11 at night, so I can't do anything about it until tomorrow. What would you do?
 
i would stick a rag over the spot and not worry about it. If it is a small leak like that it shouldnt compromise the tanks intergrity. I would find a temporary home for the fish like a 10g, switch everything over COMPLETELY dry out the tank. Let it sit for a hour, then try to find the leak and re-silicone it over.

Below is a good guides to follow just on step 5 i would leave it a little longer then 24 hours, maybe a day and a half or 2 just to be safe. And since this is your first time and even if it is not i would suggest emptying the tank completely. But dont worry, if you leave it unchecked it will get worse but if you leave it for a night or 2 you will be fine.

How to Repair a Leaky Aquarium - wikiHow
Aquarium Repair For The Beginner
 
Agree that you can leave the leak for the night, but you will need to fix it pretty soon.

However, you might want to find the source of the leak before tearing everything down. Water has a way of moving around & where you see the water might not be the area of the leak. Sometimes the water can be coming from the top of the tank & eventually you see it at the bottom.

So, eliminate some of the simpler causes first:
1. Is the water splashing off the hood & then dripping down the outside?
2. Is it coming from your filter?
3. Is the water level pass your top trim - a loose top trim sometimes acts like a siphon & wicks water from the tank to the outside. <Happened to me before ... dropping the water level stops the leak ...>

If the leak is from the tank itself, you would need to find the area of the leak. I would place a dry paper towel over the seams & see where the water is coming from ..... IME, where you see the water is not usually where the leak is.... The Eclipse is an acrylic tank? Fixing an acrylic tank is quite different from fixing glass ....
 
Sorry to hear about the leak. You've had a **** of a time with that tank with the filters and now the leak.

Repairing a leak is not difficult it's just a pain in the backside due to breaking down the tank.
 
Just so we're clear, is this a glass or acrylic tank? I did a few searches and can't determine which you have. I will tell you that I have a 37 with an eclipse hood, and if you don't have it set right it drains water down the back of the tank because of the way the water flows through the hood. I had 2 or 3 gallons gone by the time I figured it out. I would check that first. I would be surprised if the tank was leaking, but it happens. I had 1/3 of a 37 drain onto the floor 2-3 months after I shifted it about 1/2" while the tank was about 1/2 full. That put enough strain on the seal to break it. Otherwise, it's pretty rare.

I have read a lot of threads where people blow out the bottom of their tank because they sit it on styrofoam or other padding, thinking that will level out the tank. Tanks are designed to be supported by the edges, not by the bottom panel.
 
However, you might want to find the source of the leak before tearing everything down. Water has a way of moving around & where you see the water might not be the area of the leak. Sometimes the water can be coming from the top of the tank & eventually you see it at the bottom.

So, eliminate some of the simpler causes first:
1. Is the water splashing off the hood & then dripping down the outside?
2. Is it coming from your filter?
3. Is the water level pass your top trim - a loose top trim sometimes acts like a siphon & wicks water from the tank to the outside. <Happened to me before ... dropping the water level stops the leak ...>

I took your advice and I think I've determined that the source of the leak is the filter. My aquarium has built in filtration (it's a glass aquarium, fwiw) and when the filter swells with water all the way, the water rises to the very top of the spillway. Then, when I close my tank lid, the water overflows down the back of the aquarium, funnels through the bottom plastic trim, and then appears to be a leak from the bottom corner of the tank itself. I've been monitoring it very carefully this morning and once I was able to get all the water soaked up with a paper towel, I have not noticed any further water collection in the area that I thought was leaking. Last night I wasn't able to get the little puddle to go away, so I thought it was leaking from the glass seams. Today, I looked behind the tank and I could see the trails where water has leaked down the back of the tank. I'm going to keep monitoring it just to ensure that it's not a leak from the glass. I woke up this morning fully thinking I was going to have to move all my fish to a 10 g emergency tank and then completely drain my 40 g to deal with leaky glass. If nothing else, this prompts me to wash out my emergency tank and have it ready to go at a moment's notice. Thank you for responding - I so appreciate it :)
 
Further evidence that Eclipse hoods suck. I tossed mine. Thankfully I got the tank & hood on Craigslist cheap.

I totally agree. They're nice looking setups, but I'm not pleased with the hood - not only for the built-in filtration in the hood, but because of the leaking problem. I'm not in the position to get a new setup right now, but when I do it won't be a Marineland Eclipse, that's for sure.
 
Glad you found the problem. Hope you fix it easily.

Etunes, I forgot to thank you for the links to the articles on how to fix a leaky aquarium - I read them both and they were very helpful. Right now I'm monitoring the tank to see if there is any other leak aside from the one coming from the filter at the top of the hood. Thanks again! :)
 
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