leaking tank

[Ray]

Hi Folks,

My tank has developed a leak. It appears to coming from around the bottom
seam.

Does anyone know the best way to find and repair the leak? The tank is a 55
gallon glass tank by Oceanic.

Thanks,

Ray

[Billy]

"Ray" > wrote in message
m...
> Hi Folks,
>
> My tank has developed a leak. It appears to coming from around the
> bottom seam.
>
> Does anyone know the best way to find and repair the leak? The
> tank is a 55 gallon glass tank by Oceanic.
>


I've become a strong advocate against repairing tanks. I no longer
feel it's worth the risk. To truly repair a tank that has lost the
seal, you would need to replace the silicone that is in between the
two pieces of glass. This cannot be accomplished without separating
the panes and re-bonding them, requiring the proper jigs and
accompanying patience.
As a stopgap, which again, I do not recommend, you can cut away
all excess silicone from the interior of the tank, and lay new beads.
This may seal the leak. It is not permanent, however, as the "excess"
silicone you see is not really doing the work, it's the wafer-thin
layer that resides in between the panes. As I stated to someone else
in these groups yesterday, the cost of a new tank is far less than
the costs you could incur in a tank failure. (BTDT)

billy

[Daniel Morrow]

"Billy" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Ray" > wrote in message
> m...
> > Hi Folks,
> >
> > My tank has developed a leak. It appears to coming from around the
> > bottom seam.
> >
> > Does anyone know the best way to find and repair the leak? The
> > tank is a 55 gallon glass tank by Oceanic.
> >
>
>
> I've become a strong advocate against repairing tanks. I no longer
> feel it's worth the risk. To truly repair a tank that has lost the
> seal, you would need to replace the silicone that is in between the
> two pieces of glass. This cannot be accomplished without separating
> the panes and re-bonding them, requiring the proper jigs and
> accompanying patience.
> As a stopgap, which again, I do not recommend, you can cut away
> all excess silicone from the interior of the tank, and lay new beads.
> This may seal the leak. It is not permanent, however, as the "excess"
> silicone you see is not really doing the work, it's the wafer-thin
> layer that resides in between the panes. As I stated to someone else
> in these groups yesterday, the cost of a new tank is far less than
> the costs you could incur in a tank failure. (BTDT)
>
> billy
>
>

Doesn't a type of silicone sealant exist that bonds, etc. while wet? I have
seen mention of this elsewhere. Because of this the leak should be totally
repairable if the original poster can get at the leak itself (i.e. if he/she
empties the tank (saving as much of the original water as possible) and
lifts the tank to get at the leak underneath if that's where the leak is) so
the leak should be totally fixable if possibly a little ugly. It all depends
if there exists a sealant that will work when wet though. Good luck original
poster, and later!

[Ray]

"Daniel Morrow" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Billy" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> "Ray" > wrote in message
>> m...
>> > Hi Folks,
>> >
>> > My tank has developed a leak. It appears to coming from around the
>> > bottom seam.
>> >
>> > Does anyone know the best way to find and repair the leak? The
>> > tank is a 55 gallon glass tank by Oceanic.
>> >
>>
>>
>> I've become a strong advocate against repairing tanks. I no longer
>> feel it's worth the risk. To truly repair a tank that has lost the
>> seal, you would need to replace the silicone that is in between the
>> two pieces of glass. This cannot be accomplished without separating
>> the panes and re-bonding them, requiring the proper jigs and
>> accompanying patience.
>> As a stopgap, which again, I do not recommend, you can cut away
>> all excess silicone from the interior of the tank, and lay new beads.
>> This may seal the leak. It is not permanent, however, as the "excess"
>> silicone you see is not really doing the work, it's the wafer-thin
>> layer that resides in between the panes. As I stated to someone else
>> in these groups yesterday, the cost of a new tank is far less than
>> the costs you could incur in a tank failure. (BTDT)
>>
>> billy
>>
>>
>
> Doesn't a type of silicone sealant exist that bonds, etc. while wet? I
> have
> seen mention of this elsewhere. Because of this the leak should be totally
> repairable if the original poster can get at the leak itself (i.e. if
> he/she
> empties the tank (saving as much of the original water as possible) and
> lifts the tank to get at the leak underneath if that's where the leak is)
> so
> the leak should be totally fixable if possibly a little ugly. It all
> depends
> if there exists a sealant that will work when wet though. Good luck
> original
> poster, and later!
>
>
Thanks for the responses.

The leak seems to be at the bottom. I have completely drained the tank and
sent the fish to a foster home. So I have complete access to the location of
the leak and can do any repairs on a dry tank. The problem is I can't figure
out where it actually leaking. I took the tank outside and filled it with
water, there is a puddle, but no clear location of where it getting out.

I was thinking of using food color to see if that would show the path.

Billy does seem to have some good points - the penalty for failure is pretty
high, and if the repair is temporary, that is no better than just replacing
the whole tank.

Are leaking tanks common? The tank is a 6 year old Oceanic - one year out of
warranty on a premium tank. We did move house last year, could that have
contributed to the problem - we boarded out the fish and moved the tank
empty.

Ray

[Billy]

"Daniel Morrow" > wrote in message
...
> Doesn't a type of silicone sealant exist that bonds, etc. while
> wet?

Pure silicone will cure wet, even underwater.

[NetMax]

"Billy" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Daniel Morrow" > wrote in message
> ...
>> Doesn't a type of silicone sealant exist that bonds, etc. while wet?
>
> Pure silicone will cure wet, even underwater.


But will it adhere? I've seen installers use a black silicone
underwater, but the tube markings were all in German. I've no idea if
there was anything special about it.

A 55g is about the threshold for fix or replace. I just did a 120g
(removed the front and re-sealed it into place), and it was probably more
trouble than it was worth. On the other hand, an Oceanic is a quality
piece of construction. Used on Oceanic stands, I thought they had a
lifetime warranty.
--
www.NetMax.tk

[GB]

On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 21:42:11 GMT, "Ray" > wrote:

>
>"Daniel Morrow" > wrote in message
...
>>
>> "Billy" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>>
>>> "Ray" > wrote in message
>>> m...
>>> > Hi Folks,
>>> >
>>> > My tank has developed a leak. It appears to coming from around the
>>> > bottom seam.
>>> >
>>> > Does anyone know the best way to find and repair the leak? The
>>> > tank is a 55 gallon glass tank by Oceanic.
>>> >
>>>
>>>
>>> I've become a strong advocate against repairing tanks. I no longer
>>> feel it's worth the risk. To truly repair a tank that has lost the
>>> seal, you would need to replace the silicone that is in between the
>>> two pieces of glass. This cannot be accomplished without separating
>>> the panes and re-bonding them, requiring the proper jigs and
>>> accompanying patience.
>>> As a stopgap, which again, I do not recommend, you can cut away
>>> all excess silicone from the interior of the tank, and lay new beads.
>>> This may seal the leak. It is not permanent, however, as the "excess"
>>> silicone you see is not really doing the work, it's the wafer-thin
>>> layer that resides in between the panes. As I stated to someone else
>>> in these groups yesterday, the cost of a new tank is far less than
>>> the costs you could incur in a tank failure. (BTDT)
>>>
>>> billy
>>>
>>>
>>
>> Doesn't a type of silicone sealant exist that bonds, etc. while wet? I
>> have
>> seen mention of this elsewhere. Because of this the leak should be totally
>> repairable if the original poster can get at the leak itself (i.e. if
>> he/she
>> empties the tank (saving as much of the original water as possible) and
>> lifts the tank to get at the leak underneath if that's where the leak is)
>> so
>> the leak should be totally fixable if possibly a little ugly. It all
>> depends
>> if there exists a sealant that will work when wet though. Good luck
>> original
>> poster, and later!
>>
>>
>Thanks for the responses.
>
>The leak seems to be at the bottom. I have completely drained the tank and
>sent the fish to a foster home. So I have complete access to the location of
>the leak and can do any repairs on a dry tank. The problem is I can't figure
>out where it actually leaking. I took the tank outside and filled it with
>water, there is a puddle, but no clear location of where it getting out.

Put newspaper sheets under before to fill it, you'll see the leek at
the first drop.
>
>I was thinking of using food color to see if that would show the path.
>
>Billy does seem to have some good points - the penalty for failure is pretty
>high, and if the repair is temporary, that is no better than just replacing
>the whole tank.
>
>Are leaking tanks common? The tank is a 6 year old Oceanic - one year out of
>warranty on a premium tank. We did move house last year, could that have
>contributed to the problem - we boarded out the fish and moved the tank
>empty.
>
>Ray
>



GB

[Daniel Morrow]

"Ray" > wrote in message > Thanks for the responses.
>
> The leak seems to be at the bottom. I have completely drained the tank and
> sent the fish to a foster home. So I have complete access to the location
of
> the leak and can do any repairs on a dry tank. The problem is I can't
figure
> out where it actually leaking. I took the tank outside and filled it with
> water, there is a puddle, but no clear location of where it getting out.
>
> I was thinking of using food color to see if that would show the path.
>
> Billy does seem to have some good points - the penalty for failure is
pretty
> high, and if the repair is temporary, that is no better than just
replacing
> the whole tank.
>
> Are leaking tanks common? The tank is a 6 year old Oceanic - one year out
of
> warranty on a premium tank. We did move house last year, could that have
> contributed to the problem - we boarded out the fish and moved the tank
> empty.
>
> Ray
>
>

From what you have said I see you having had done nothing wrong. It isn't
common for leaks to develop in acrylic or all glass aquariums (silicone
types) but it does happen. Moving shouldn't have caused it since you said
you emptied the tank and had the fish elsewhere so it looks to me like you
did nothing wrong - good luck and using newspaper to find the leak sounds
like a wonderful idea from the other user. Later.