Should I reseal? Used 75 - Aquarium Advice

cjldad · 10-08-2009, 10:04 PM

Hi, new to the site.. Love all the reading I've done here.. However, I need help..

I just got this home and am trying to determine what I should do.. The tank was up and running when I bought it from a guy.. So it is water tight.. However, as you can tell from the pics, the silicone has pealed back and allowed funk to build up.. I can wash it out, but would not like to worry about cleaning it out once my tank is up and running.. Can I tape a little outside of the current silicone and add on top of what's currently there? Can I cut the silicone where it has seperated so nothing can get stuck under it??

Thanks for helping out a rookie!!

mfdrookie516 · 10-09-2009, 01:39 AM

imo your best bet would be to remove the silicone and re-seal the whole thing. That looks pretty nasty. Aside from possibly leaking down the road, its an eye sore... Its pretty simple to re-seal a tank, and well worth it for the peace of mind down the road

JPKeenan · 10-09-2009, 04:00 AM

+1 for resealing it

**jsoong** · 10-09-2009, 05:50 PM

I vote for resealing. That is going to fail eventually, so may as well do that while the tank is empty.

No, you cannot add new silicone over old. It won't stick. So the best way is to cut away the old silicone, scrape it down to bare glass (don't cut the inner seal that hold the glass panes together) and redo the seam.

tlkng1 · 10-10-2009, 11:30 AM

Even though mine didn't leak, I did have some old algae buildup and some loose seems in the 75 I had for years. On my last move, while the tank was still empty, I took the time to clean it up, got rid of the old silicone and resealed it. I admit I was a tad paranoid and let the stuff cure for a full week before even doing a leak test and even then I let the tank sit full for 4 days.

The cleaning out of the old silicone and reseal took about 4 hours overall. It is VERY important to make sure the areas you are going to reseal are very clean before putting on the new silicone. I used a light vinegar/water solution on a paper towel to wipe everything down and to make sure it was dry before resealing.

This is the site I found with the instructions. I just used the small tube of sealant you can find in a fish store..I didn't have an use for a huge tube of the stuff

Resealing an Aquarium, by Nick Spinelli

You'll be happy with the result

dkpate · 10-10-2009, 11:47 AM

I resealed my used 75G also. It was not leaking, but the last thing I wanted was to have to clean up 75G of water in my house when it finally decided to burst! LOL!

mfdrookie516 · 10-10-2009, 01:27 PM

also, search the forums on here... I know of at least 2 threads where people have asked and shown how to reseal their tanks

cjldad · 10-11-2009, 02:48 AM

Thanks for all the replies! I however, found a new 75G on craigslist for a song.. It even has black silicone.. Looks sexy..

dkpate · 10-11-2009, 03:00 AM

LOL @ your sexy tank! That's awesome!