retro tank rebuild

[darkfur]

has anyone ever fixed up an old metal frame tank?

I want to sort out the tank that belonged to my grandma, in construction it is a bit like this one:

but without whatever that is inside there!

So far I have cleaned up the stand and repainted and sealed it, taken the glass off the metal and cleaned off the putty, and cleaned the paint and rust off the metal. Was going to stick the tank back together with silicone. Any tips? The bottom panel of glass has a fine crack in it that has me worried, can I bog it up with silicone? That particular panel has wire grid running through it so it's not going to fall apart but it might leak if i don't get it right. PS tank is 60x30x30

[Aquatopia]

What a wonderful idea - keep us posted with pics along the way I would consider remaking the tank and replacing the panel thats broken. Make the tank in the modern way, place it inside the ally frame and then find a coloured filler suitable for use for this application to look like the putty ?

[darkfur]

thanks! it's a bit of a mission but it does have sentimental value.. the stand is really cool. I always remember it being at grandma's but she never had fish in it in my memory. She had this naff shell display lol but my mum remembers her keeping black moors in it. I can't get the bottom piece of glass out of the frame is my current problem, and the bottom one is the broken one. Anyone know how to loosen up the putty? I don't think i can smash it out on account of the wire reinforcing. I was thinking of taking the lid, which is just a rectangular piece the size of the frame and has no corners off it for air (no wonder grandmas fish died), and siliconing it to the underside of the frame in contact with the broken piece.

[HaNs]

Use a sharp blade

[darkfur]

can't get under it.. will give it another go though

[darkfur]

here's some pics. Hopefully you can see the crack. That putty on the bottom pane just don't wanna budge!

this is the stand, it turned out a *lot* different colour from what I was expecting of "off-white". Off-banana!

[Barrie]

the glass on the bottom is Wire Cast

The wires running through it rust if the get damp and as the wire swells which is why it normally breaks.

The putty that was used was called Butyl putty and is no longer available

[darkfur]

you reckon I should take it to the local glass blokes and have them make a new bottom pane? the putty is pretty darn retro I must say. It has been coming out in chunks on the other sides.

[darkfur]

just had a look... can't *see* any rust on the wire, it actually looks really shiny. Although I imagine it takes very little to cause a problem. On the other hand it could have been one of my uncles when they were small who cracked it!

[lmsmith]

Yeah, I think your best bet is taking it to a glass person or someone who knows that they're doing. On here, Barrie's our glass man, so he'll have the best ideas about getting it out.

[Barrie]

if you look at the top of the photo by the arrow you will see its started from where the wire is

There is no other glass in the tyank so what we would do is turn the tank upside down and use a hammer but be carefull not to hit the steel and cover your eyes. Put plenty of paper down as the shells (Chips) will fly all over the place

[darkfur]

yikes! ok!

I have just been reading online that putty softens up if heated, should I give it a blast with my hairdryer?

I guess I can't go too wrong, its already broken

[Aquatopia]

why not just smash the glass out and use an old wood chisel and hammer to clean the inside of the frame up from the putty ?

[lmsmith]

why not just smash the glass out and use an old wood chisel and hammer to clean the inside of the frame up from the putty ?

Pretty similar to what Barrie said; I don't think it'll smash that easily, Aquatopia, it's got that wire through it that will shop chunks break out of it.

[Aquatopia]

Pretty similar to what Barrie said; I don't think it'll smash that easily, Aquatopia, it's got that wire through it that will shop chunks break out of it.

I disagree. We used to have this glass in the windows between classrooms and corridors in my school and they would have been a similar age to this piece of glass. I had a battle from the inside with another kid on the outside, opening and closing the window - i shut it a bit too hard and ended up putting my fist through the pane and requiring 22 stitches in my hand. the wire itself is pretty thin, so once you smash the glass and its in pieces, even though it will still be attached to the wire you will be able to get a screwdriver and then pliers in to cut the wire - cut a square out of the bottom just leaving the edges attached to the putty and then get the rest off with the chisel and hammer as i described.

[Barrie]

the wire cast glass is used for a smoke stop glass. it has a 30minute rating. It is made to hang together.

Use a hammer around the edge and remove as much as possible in one piece while the wire is holding it together. Removing the middle of the glass gives less purchase and makes the job harder

Do not use wire when replacing the glass.

In remaking the tank you may think about bedding it in steel frame putty which will give you a proper bed then MASKING the inside about 5 to 10mm from the edges and using silicone to seal and waterproof the tank

I suggest a bed of STEEL frame putty (not wood sash) as these tanks were normally welded together at the corners. There probably wont be enough weight to break the glass but a bed of putty will make it look better... fill up any gaps in the steel frame putty so it looks neat

My 2cents worth from 42 years experiance

[kiwipete]

I would also look at where you are going to place the tank when full.

Reasoning is thus, the legs have a very small footing on the floor and there will be a considerable force applied to the flooring on each one.

just something to keep in mind IMHO.

You could use silicone chalking to bed the bottom layer of glass and sides into the metal frame, if you want a white finish that is.