Tank broke, doubtful of continuing the hobby

[Athelda]

Hello fellow fish keepers.
My worst nightmare happened 2 months ago when my Juwel rio 180 started leaking from its side. Fast forward to present day, my apartment is still under repair and I had to give away my second 100L tank with all its stock. So currently I have no fish or tanks.

I'm still not sure what caused the leak, I woke up to a water dripping on a floor sound and noticed there was a spray of water coming from one of the corner (pictures below)
http://imgur.com/66iW5Q1
https://imgur.com/t0t7cHB

I moved with this tank in the summer and checked all the silicons were ok (well apparently they weren't :/ ). The tank is like, over 10 years old but I've always been careful with moving it and been looking for worn silicons or cracks.
I'm just really devastated about all of this. Losing my years of work, pets and have to pay for the repair (I have insurance but there's still some costs I need to pay myself).
Does anyone has a clue what caused this damage? Nothing has bumped into it and I don't have other animals that could've jumped on it etc.
Because of this I'm paranoid of all glass tanks and I'm desperately trying to figure out how to continue the hobby. I guess my only choice is go to plastic tanks with shrimps or then convince myself that accidents like this are rare and there's nothing to worry about.

Thank you in advance for all the answers

 

[rlederer]

That is a real bummer and leaking on a wood floor as well. My sympathies. I can't tell you what happened but the most likely cause is damage to the sealant. Either it was applied incorrectly or the sealant itself was faulty or the sealant got penetrated for some reason.

I am a big fan of acrylic tanks for that, and many other, reasons. Acrylic tanks are more expensive but well worth it. They are lighter in weight, brighter, and just nicer in appearance IMHO. And they do not leak or crack. Some people object to acrylic because it scratches more easily than glass, which it does, so you have to be careful cleaning the tank. But if you do scratch the tank, the scratch can be easily buffed out.

So, so sorry about your accident and hope you will consider acrylic and continue the hobby.

 

[coralbandit]

Wow , bum deal. Your tank looked so nice .
I would just get a new tank [and stand ].
Personally I have kept fish for over 30 years I have to say 'stuff happens'. I don't like the stand and lack of support on the corners . I am under the impression all weight goes to corners and have and have had 120g gallon tanks that were only supported under the corners.. A tank over hanging is causing stress on all seals IMO... Flexing the way the stand makes it pulls on the seals where as if supported on corners and it wants to flex it is braced by glass on glass being pressed together ???? I have at least 2 O'Dell tanks still in use ! See when they were last made.

 

[Angellove78]

I totally agree with bandit. I never liked those type of stands. They don't hold the weight in the right areas of the tank. I'd gut it, put everything in a tote, as if it were another tank and reseal that tank or get a new one, find a new stand, or make one. That's alot of work you've done with plants to just give up. There's always gonna be something that goes wrong in this hobby. Keep your head up. Nice set up by the way. Hope you don't give up. Looks like your good at it. [emoji6]

 

[CoreySheli]

A similar thing happened to my 60g about 3 years ago. I was devastated but put my fish in a giant rubber ware container for a couple of days with the filter and a bubbler and heater and went out and bought a new tank. Like they have said above me, stuff happens in the fishkeeping hobby. I know I would have regretted not getting back into it because of a mishap and your tank looks great

 

[V227]

My guess is the pedestal type stand slightly bowed at either end causing both ends of the tank to settle, which broke the silicone seal. Get back on that horse.

 

[Athelda]

OP here, for some odd reason my main account is giving me an error so I created a new one so I can answer you guys.

Thank you for the encouraging words, I really need those right now. I had to give both of my tanks away cause they have to do renovation to my whole living room where the tanks were (and I couldn't take them with me where I moved to live temporarily).
I never knew those stands were that bad, and I guess it was just a matter of time when one of the seals would break. I'm still super afraid of getting a new tank, cause this accident has caused me a lot of stress and troubles, and I'm afraid it will happen again. My landlord is not happy about it either, since it's a big repair in his apartment.

I should be able to return back to my place in few weeks when all the work is done and its going to be weird to life without fish. I guess I could take baby steps and get a nano I've always dreamt of, and therefore comfort myself not all tanks will break and cause 12k€ damage to the floor and building
Back on the saddle, as V227 said.

I miss my fish, I really do. Luckily I took many pictures of them so atleast I have golden memories. Here's one from both tanks:
Juwel rio 180 in action
100L of plants and fish

 

[kashif314]

Sorry to hear. Don't let this one incident discourage you. Such things can happen. Few months ago my small tank leaked without any damage or anything.

I understand it will cost you money but I suggest do not repair thd old tank. Its already 10 years old. You can save some money and buy a new tank. Cycle it and restart the hobby. Sometimes I had situations when I had lack of money so I took hobby as fun and challenging in those times. Saving money and plan purchases. Write down budget on paper for month and plan purchases accordingly.

You can do same but don't let this incident discourage you.

 

[Athelda]

That is a real bummer and leaking on a wood floor as well. My sympathies. I can't tell you what happened but the most likely cause is damage to the sealant. Either it was applied incorrectly or the sealant itself was faulty or the sealant got penetrated for some reason.

I am a big fan of acrylic tanks for that, and many other, reasons. Acrylic tanks are more expensive but well worth it. They are lighter in weight, brighter, and just nicer in appearance IMHO. And they do not leak or crack. Some people object to acrylic because it scratches more easily than glass, which it does, so you have to be careful cleaning the tank. But if you do scratch the tank, the scratch can be easily buffed out.

So, so sorry about your accident and hope you will consider acrylic and continue the hobby.

(OP with another account, my main one is having issues)
It truly looks like something sharp, like a needle, poked it. I did some research and acrylic tanks seem to be hard to find from where I live, need to order from the internet. But surely a worthy idea to consider Is there any other downsides than scratching and price?

 

[Athelda]

Wow , bum deal. Your tank looked so nice .
I would just get a new tank [and stand ].
Personally I have kept fish for over 30 years I have to say 'stuff happens'. I don't like the stand and lack of support on the corners . I am under the impression all weight goes to corners and have and have had 120g gallon tanks that were only supported under the corners.. A tank over hanging is causing stress on all seals IMO... Flexing the way the stand makes it pulls on the seals where as if supported on corners and it wants to flex it is braced by glass on glass being pressed together ???? I have at least 2 O'Dell tanks still in use ! See when they were last made.

(OP with another account, my main one is having issues)
I guess this is one of the unfortunate 'stuff happens' case. I never knew the stand was that bad tho, I'm really surprised to read that many people dislike stands like that. But it makes sense that it's not supporting the corners, and therefore putting pressure on them. Oh well, now I know I stay away from stands like this!

 

[Athelda]

I totally agree with bandit. I never liked those type of stands. They don't hold the weight in the right areas of the tank. I'd gut it, put everything in a tote, as if it were another tank and reseal that tank or get a new one, find a new stand, or make one. That's alot of work you've done with plants to just give up. There's always gonna be something that goes wrong in this hobby. Keep your head up. Nice set up by the way. Hope you don't give up. Looks like your good at it. [emoji6]

Thanks for the nice words Like you said, there's always going to be something that goes wrong in this hobby. I've had fish for a while now and this is my first leak, so I guess I've had it easy I had to make the decision and gave both my tanks away cause I couldn't fit them anywhere (I had to move elsewhere cause of the repairs ). So if I find my inner courage and get a new tank, its going to be fully a new project!

 

[Athelda]

A similar thing happened to my 60g about 3 years ago. I was devastated but put my fish in a giant rubber ware container for a couple of days with the filter and a bubbler and heater and went out and bought a new tank. Like they have said above me, stuff happens in the fishkeeping hobby. I know I would have regretted not getting back into it because of a mishap and your tank looks great

Oh man, I feel you. Hopefully you got it sorted out with your insurance and saved the fish. And thanks for your nice comment!

 

[Athelda]

My guess is the pedestal type stand slightly bowed at either end causing both ends of the tank to settle, which broke the silicone seal. Get back on that horse.

Yeah what I've read now I suspect that's the case. Plus I think moving it probably damaged the seal a bit which made it break easier, so probably would've happened in the future anyways.
I'm trying to convince myself to keep going, but it's just really hard right now. The repairs have been going on 2 months and I've been fighting with my insurance company I'm so afraid this will happen again in the future and I need to go through it.

 

[Athelda]

Sorry to hear. Don't let this one incident discourage you. Such things can happen. Few months ago my small tank leaked without any damage or anything.

I understand it will cost you money but I suggest do not repair thd old tank. Its already 10 years old. You can save some money and buy a new tank. Cycle it and restart the hobby. Sometimes I had situations when I had lack of money so I took hobby as fun and challenging in those times. Saving money and plan purchases. Write down budget on paper for month and plan purchases accordingly.

You can do same but don't let this incident discourage you.

Oh man, hearing your small tank started leaking just like that made my heart skip a beat I've spent the past week (I know that I can finally return back home in few weeks) thinking what to get, and I was wondering getting a nano tank I've always dreamt of. But just thinking that it could start dripping just like that is giving me shivers, eugh. Full plastic 30L tanks seem like a super safe choice, even tho they're ugly and scratch easily

 

[Angellove78]

Oh man, hearing your small tank started leaking just like that made my heart skip a beat I've spent the past week (I know that I can finally return back home in few weeks) thinking what to get, and I was wondering getting a nano tank I've always dreamt of. But just thinking that it could start dripping just like that is giving me shivers, eugh. Full plastic 30L tanks seem like a super safe choice, even tho they're ugly and scratch easily [emoji38]

Plastic is just as bad as glass, if not worse. I don't know how many time my daughter has went up to my tanks and hit them with something or full force ran and pushed on them. I would never get a plastic tank. I'd have to strap it to the ceiling in a bubble. Lol! Just saying!

 

[rlederer]

Aside from the possibility of scratching and the higher price, I don't see any disadvantages to acrylic, only advantages. I've had about 15 acrylic tanks for 5 years and one tank for 30 years with no problems at all. I don't know where you live but there are several sites on the internet to order acrylic tanks. I used MyFishTank - Product List [ Aquarium - Acrylic > Rectangular ] My Fish Tank.com and have been very happy with their products and service.

 

[Athelda]

Plastic is just as bad as glass, if not worse. I don't know how many time my daughter has went up to my tanks and hit them with something or full force ran and pushed on them. I would never get a plastic tank. I'd have to strap it to the ceiling in a bubble. Lol! Just saying!

Oh my, good to hear that. I honestly never knew plastic tanks were that fragile. I think I need to consider nano then Thank you for letting me know!

 

[Athelda]

Aside from the possibility of scratching and the higher price, I don't see any disadvantages to acrylic, only advantages. I've had about 15 acrylic tanks for 5 years and one tank for 30 years with no problems at all. I don't know where you live but there are several sites on the internet to order acrylic tanks. I used MyFishTank - Product List [ Aquarium - Acrylic > Rectangular ] My Fish Tank.com and have been very happy with their products and service.

I live in Finland, so I should eye the euro markets for acrylic tanks. I thought they were more pricey tho, definitely going to consider now!

 

[rlederer]

When I refer to acrylic tanks, I mean the thick, hard, clear, resistant kind of plastic, not the cheap thin plastic you get in Kmart tanks or wherever. The acrylic tanks I have are 3/8 " and will withstand stronger impacts than glass. I've whacked a tank or two inadvertently with a mop handle hard enough that a glass tank would have broken; not acrylic. They are not fragile. I've never dropped one but I'm betting that they would fare better than glass in that situation.

 

[Athelda]

I want to thank all of you for your answers. My friends and family has been in the spirit, but its totally different to share this with other hobbyists who love what they do. Thank you for your support people!

If you guys are interested, here are some last photos of my tanks

The infamous Juwel rio 180

My 100L jungle

Hopefully I get over with this soon and find the will to start again