Tank leak

[LittleNami]

Yeah, yeah, another question from my mother ^^ She currently has a 55 gal tank, but wants to update to an already purchased 100 gal tank. One little problem, it has a leak somewhere along the front glass wall and she doesn't know what the best sealant would be for it. Any suggestions?

 

[SCFatz]

Borrowed from a post in the DIY forum:

The GE Number 1 (Important) silicone is exactly the same thing that other stores charge a fortune for "aquarium safe" silicone. Be sure not to use the number 2 variant though just number 1. The full size tubes that you use with a caulking gun are all you need and can be found regularly on sale for 2-3 dollars a tube

 

[pkillur]

Borrowed from a post in the DIY forum:

The GE Number 1 (Important) silicone is exactly the same thing that other stores charge a fortune for "aquarium safe" silicone. Be sure not to use the number 2 variant though just number 1. The full size tubes that you use with a caulking gun are all you need and can be found regularly on sale for 2-3 dollars a tube

Make sure you remove all of the silicone and reseal it. You don't want to end up with this (my disaster)

 

[imrandome1]

Wow, how did that happen? i hope everything was okay and not to wet lol.

 

[pkillur]

Wow, how did that happen? i hope everything was okay and not to wet lol.

A teeny tiny micro crack at the base of the unit spread one morning. I suspect it happened because I had an exposed part of my door jam(b?) that was blowing particularly cold air inside our house (The aquarium is the first thing you see when you go inside...). My 9 1/2 month pregnant wife got a 75 gallon surprise at exactly 4:32 AM a few months ago because the dramatic change in temperature caused the crack to spread.

I'm not too sad though, because a friend had pity on me and sold me his 72 gallon bowfront for a steal. Plus, the last one was a show tank, and my fish kept dropping off (probably because of the lack of flow, which I know about now...)

 

[imrandome1]

wow, sorry to hear, glad you got another tank though, makes you think how much you have to inspect you tank, its hard playing god in your house, all the health problems that the fish get etc it makes you think how a teeny tiny thing can turn into a huge thing! Glad it all worked out for you.

 

[LittleNami]

Thank you for your responses and sorry for my delay in replying, but I have a few other questions for this as well. How long do you let the silicone seal cure before being water proof and do you need to brace or wrap the tank for better adhesion at all?

Wow, pkillur, that is one nasty leak. Did you later empty and reseal the tank? And congrats on your baby as well even though its majorly delayed ^^

 

[LittleNami]

Um, no more opinions or is the topic too far from the first page now? ^^

 

[Guest]

Cant remember of the top of my head how long it takes silicone to fully cure. Generally all my projects I let sit overnight and they work just fine. However redoing a tank you will want to make sure the thing is fully sealed. So I would go by the manufacturers recommended cure time, but something that could possibly come apart like a tank I might even let it sit a little longer than the suggested cure time just to be sure. HTH

 

[joannde]

I know the aquarium safe silicone I bought said to cure for 48 hours before adding fish, I'm assuming it would be the same for any silicone.

 

[BillD]

The actual cure time will depend on the thickness of the bead, but it wouldn't hurt to err on the side of caution, and leave it an extra day. The vinegar smell should be gone.

 

[7Enigma]

A bit off topic, but how in the heck did you have time to snap a pic of the tank during that catastrophe!?! I know I would have been freaking out....