Doesnt look good...bubbles in seams 210g!

[Matt in Houston]

I bought this 210 gallon tank used from craigslist a week or so ago. The fellow was a super nice guy and said it had been sitting in his garage under a crate for protection for about a year and a half...He also said it had just been resealed by Oceanic (he dropped it off at a dealer) prior to its storage. The seals did look new and in good condition when I picked it up.

I just finished working all week scraping silicone off the top after I removed the trim to make it have the rimless look...and I was planning on painting my background this afternoon.

I first decided to fill the tank with water and it held with no leaks...but after I drained it, I noticed the seams had small little bubbles here and there. I did a quick google search and found that this can be very bad. They look worse when water is in the tank...some bubbles turn a cloudy white color when the tank is full.

So what now? Should I contact the seller? I cant see how that would make a difference...the tank looked good when I picked it up...

I dont know how to seal a tank....and honestly I would probably screw it up bad. I guess since it has a middle brace it could be done one corner at a time without needing additional bracing?

Does anyone want to make some money and seal this tank for me? Its too big to move back and forth...its already in my garage on its stand.

I'm a little sad now... Sorry for my rant but this sucks. Here are some pics of the seams.

FULL TANK


FRONT LEFT


FRONT RIGHT



BACK RIGHT



BACK LEFT

[geoff_tropheus]

I would contact the seller and see where he sent the tank. They may still warranty it.

I think on a personal level, it was a bad idea to remove the trim. The trim does give added strength to the setup, and they may void the warranty because of that. BUT...I am not sure, and I would still try it regardless.

Are you sure the bubbles were not there when you made the purchase? How full did you take the water level? how long did you keep water in it?

The bubbles could be a issue if over time they start to get bigger. I have had a bubble in one of my tanks silicone beads for 5 years and it has not caused a leak or gotten bigger.

I know people at Aqua Zoo, will reseal tanks, and on a tank this size you'd be best off with experienced people in my opinion doing this repair if needed.

Best of luck!

[Matt in Houston]

Thanks...Ill look up Aqua Zoo and get a quote...

I am not sure about the trim adding structural strength though...This tank has a huge glass center brace. The trim pieces are made of plastic I could snap in half with my bare hands, but more importantly they are 4 individual pieces just siliconed to the top of each side.

Who knows, but I'm sure they will think thats a good reason to void a warranty.

I did some searching and found it is bad for the seals to have a tank sit unused for a very long period of time....I have no idea if this is true or not...after all I imagine many pet stores have stock that has been on the floor a while before its sold...but maybe a year and a half under a crate in a garage just too much.

[russ]

Thanks...Ill look up Aqua Zoo and get a quote...

I am not sure about the trim adding structural strength though...This tank has a huge glass center brace. The trim pieces are made of plastic I could snap in half with my bare hands, but more importantly they are 4 individual pieces just siliconed to the top of each side.

Who knows, but I'm sure they will think thats a good reason to void a warranty.

I did some searching and found it is bad for the seals to have a tank sit unused for a very long period of time....I have no idea if this is true or not...after all I imagine many pet stores have stock that has been on the floor a while before its sold...but maybe a year and a half under a crate in a garage just too much.

i've heard many times that what causes the silicone to go bad is not sitting but temperature changes.i'm not positive but its just what i've heard.

[mhx]

You could always install a drain in your family room in case she busts..

Better add flood insurance too :-)

j/k...

I wonder how much it will cost you to SILLY CONE it.

[fshfrk]

Don't look that bad. Go for it.

[Matt in Houston]

I filled it up again tonight and let it sit for a little while....

The bubbles multiply slowly...there are many more when the tank has water then the pics posted above show.

I guess I will just have to suck it up and drop it off somewhere...problem is I never have time. Is there any other place near the northside of town that can reseal it?

[mark razmandi]

I filled it up again tonight and let it sit for a little while....

The bubbles multiply slowly...there are many more when the tank has water then the pics posted above show.

I guess I will just have to suck it up and drop it off somewhere...problem is I never have time. Is there any other place near the northside of town that can reseal it?

wow man thats horrible to hear...i feel for you...best of luck and keep us updated

[Matt in Houston]

Yeah well I'm probably making it sound worse than it is...but better safe than sorry when your talking about 210 gallons.

As of now the tank doesnt leak and I have read that some bubbles in the seam are normal....but how many is some? I should just reseal it since its not even setup yet. Of course my other choice is to take a loss and sell the tank to someone who is a DIY'er and has more time....I could then keep my stand and just buy a new tank.

Or I could attempt to do this myself...since it has a center brace I could easily do one seam at a time with no worry of alignment issues.

I guess I'll sleep on it tonight and figure it out later.

[Zulaab]

I have a tank that has the same style bubbles on it and its been up and running now late last year / early this year (cannot remember when I got it home) this was a BRAND NEW tank from Deep Sea Aquatics.. I promise you it has not leaked on bit.
I would let it sit for a week, if its still not leaking it will not leak for many years to come.

[billansor]

Hi

Several things that may help you feel a bit better about your aquarium and purchase...

#1 The fact the bubbles are in the joint placement of the glass means just simply that when they pressed the two glass pieces together, they did not slide or wiggle the pieces to press the air out.

The tank is actually sealed two ways... first the butt seals and then the joint seal or what I call the bathtub caulking type seal.

The silicone glue that they use to form the butt seals are extremely strong and if you had a whole section that was bubbled from top to bottom in one continuous stretch... then that would be a problem...

#2 I think your going to be fine in the fact that if the joint seals were rotten, then I would be sealing (bathtub caulk type)... I think that is what the individual had done in the re sealing.....

#3 Most tanks have those types of bubbles if the glass pieces were not slide up and down or wiggled... Interestingly enough, you do not have this type of problem too often with acrylics because in order to have the pieces joined together, you do have to slide them up and down to make that perfect fit.

Your cool... No worries or problems!! fill it up and enjoy!!

Bill

[Rico]

Of course my other choice is to take a loss and sell the tank to someone who is a DIY'er and has more time....I could then keep my stand and just buy a new tank.

that would be me. pm me if you decide to do this.

[Matt in Houston]

I sent you a PM Rico...

I am going to fill her up and let it sit for a week in the garage....hopefully she holds!

[FIREFISH]

Your saying that the bubbles get bigger when you fill it up, it is under alot of psi. The bubbles are getting bigger because it sounds like the glass is not entirly intact with the other glass. If the bubbles stayed the same size then I would not be worried. I would do as Geoff stated. But I would put the trim back on first. Just my 2 cents.

Good Luck with what you decide to do.

FF

[russ]

i had a 125 set up for 6 months before i sold it.
the silicone looked alot worse than yours does.it had a lot of bubbles in the silicone and also was fraying,never leaked a drop,and the guy that bought it still has it set up with no issues!
it still is a good idea to set it up for a couple weeks in your garage just to be on the safe side!