Carlos & Siran Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 We've just started a water change on our 200 ltr and noticed the glass supports in the top middle have let go and the front glass has bowed out about 10mms, we've found several slivers of glass . It's safe to say I'm panicking, every vibration is putting me on edge, and now the kids think this is the perfect moment to start jumping around. We've only got two spare tanks right now, a 38ltr and 25 ltr and about 20 odd fish to transfer. Can we safely push the front plate back together and re-silicone it?, what can we do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 omg. that's terrible. needless to say you will have to drain and dry the tank, reseal it and make sure that central support is put back on and safely secured. If it is bowing out, id recommend adding another support along the sides as well using thicker glass - even if you have to have the new supports sitting along the top of the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkLB Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 I've had the same thing happen....first thing I did was to take out 50% of the water to ease the pressure. Then I used a clamp to bring the glass back to it's proper position and resiliconed the brace. The fish stayed in the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos & Siran Posted June 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 Thanks for that. What sort of silicone did you use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkLB Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 Selleys Clear Silicone Sealant. For windows and aquariums. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwiplymouth Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 I have had the same thing happen and fixed it the same way that Mark has suggested. I made up some wire brackets to hold the glass in place while I siliconed it and left them there until the silicone had cured. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 hmm. i had the same thing happen many years ago to a 3x1x1 tank and when it split I had to re silicone it, and not just redo the supports. maybe i did it wrong. :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 so long as no stress bubbles are showing where front pane joins end panes you should be alright if using a clamp may pay to put lengths of tinber and padding to spread the load front and back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos & Siran Posted June 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 Thanks heaps guys. The silicone on the tank is pealing away in all the corners and mouldy and raggedy looking, so we may as well re silicone the whole lot. Do you think one tube will be enough? And how do we peel the rest of the silicone off, do we use a knife? Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 craft knife blade Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 If you are redoing the entire tank then you will need to remove all the glass and redo the silicone in the joins as well, if the other silicone has expired then the whole lot has so your best to do it all. I have heard from people in the know that silicone only has an average life of 10yrs sure most of the time it lasts longer but depends on conditions etc.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos & Siran Posted June 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 oh man I'm not sure I could do that....might be a bit out of my depth, I'll see what I can do though. We've crammed everyone into the two smaller tanks(our redspot really doesn't look happy jammed into a wee AR380, but I think he'll be OK for a week or so) I've drained it and am just about to scoop the substrate out....crikey I didn't think I'd be doing this when I woke up this morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 if the joins look alright you can get away with just resiliconing the inside how deep is the tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos & Siran Posted June 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 400mm deep Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 That sounds horrible, glad you got it sorted though. I thought I heard my little tank flexing the other night, 50ltrs of water on the bed would not be nice What are the dimensions of the tank? I'm just getting a near 200ltr built. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos & Siran Posted June 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 4 ft x 400mm deep x 500 high Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k1w1y2k Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 Pm snookie, he lives not far from you. He may be able to help you out in some way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barrie Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 silicone giveing away is a sign that its past its best by date so take the thing apart! Its not too hard and if you want you could make it a how to do thing My PC is down so Ive been woking of my lap top (so I dont have easy access) but feel free to do and ask as it may be of use as a sticky in the DIY section? More than happy to advise if you need help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos & Siran Posted June 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 Pm snookie, he lives not far from you. He may be able to help you out in some way. We already have, Smidey as well, but nobody has looked in their inbox yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos & Siran Posted June 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 silicone giveing away is a sign that its past its best by date so take the thing apart! Its not too hard and if you want you could make it a how to do thing My PC is down so Ive been woking of my lap top (so I dont have easy access) but feel free to do and ask as it may be of use as a sticky in the DIY section? More than happy to advise if you need help? Would one tube of silicone be enough to do the job? We are going away for a week next friday evening, and we wanted to have it up and working again by then. Would that be enough time? We were going to redo the top and the corners on the inside, it still looks okay in between. We have started peeling away the stuff that has let go. We just don't want to have to leave the fish in their little tanks too long either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barrie Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 that will be fine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquila Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 Pick up a plastic 100L storage tub from the warehouse as a temporary home! Goodluck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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