Stigits Posted June 6, 2007 Share Posted June 6, 2007 Not for the faint of heart. A little long but I wanted to show the effort that was put into the process. So I have been saving for a long time to get a fish tank light. I finally get enough money to buy a 250 MH light and am pumped to finally be able to put together my new tank. Basically I was switching everything from a 55 Gallon tank to a 45 gallon Stretched Hex tank with overflows and a sump. ( I only used hang on the back filters for my 55. ) First things first fill a tub full of tank water and moved all the live rock into it. Next I move all the fish into my 20 gallon hospital tank along with a few plants that I did not want in the tub. (Except for a fish getting stuck in the net for a few minutes no Prob There) Next I separate my sand from my substrate and put them in separate buckets with tank water. (Again no prob) At this point my wife walks in and roles her eyes at me cause I’m wet the floor is wet and there are tubs, buckets, towels and tanks everywhere. I get the new light mounted and fired it up. It looks great. Wish it was a bit bluer but I will fix that in several months. My first problem I had to deal with was the new tank was a little deeper then the old one so I scabbed a few 2x4s to the stand and flushed them with the top of the stand. Check to make sure everything was level. Looked good After that I put the new tank of my stand and started measuring for my plumbing. I hard plumbed everything to the sump with out a problem. Everything fit nicely into the over flows. I test out my plumbing by running the return water straight into the overflow. Ran it that way for several hours not leaks. The next morning I got up early to finish my project. I check the plumbing that was still running. No leaks no problem. So I put the tank a little less then half full with about 10-12 gallons of tank water and 5 gallons of new water. Proceeded to put the sand in. Made sure it was reasonable even and then put the crushed coral on top. I was happy to see pods and bristle worms still moving around in there. I used the remainder of my good tank water left and 5 more gallons of new salt water to finish filling the tank. Moved the return to the main part of the tank and everything started running great. I let the tank run that way for a few hours to let everything settle and the sump to do its job. Everything looked great still no leaks. Next i put all the live rock back in the tank. this was the funnest part for me as I love to stack all the rocks. And there was a lot of stacking in this deep tank! All the rock was done and so was my Sunday. The next day after work I check all my levels everything read the same as the old tank perfect. So I put in all my precious fish and corals. The fish are swimming around looking for new hiding places the corals are all grumpy because from being moved and adjusting from PCs to the new MH light. I was very happy with everything. My wife who was a skeptic the whole time was also pleased. here comes the scary part. (Scary) Tuesday I get home from work. I was going to take a few pictures to post for everyone because the plants were looking better and all the fish were already out swimming around. I checked took a look at the sump to make sure everything was working right and then I saw it. A drip. I freaked. (nutty) I checked all my connection points and they were as dry as a bone. This stumped me. I was defiantly seeing a drip but after I wiped down the PVC I couldn't find it anywhere. I looked and looked and nothing. I check the back of the stand and I saw a wet streak going down it. So im thinking that I spilled some water down the back of the tank and it was dripping off or something. So I wiped everything down and waited a few minutes and watched the fish as they showed my their new homes and hiding spots. I looked back there again. More water. (scary) panic again. I wiped it all down and watched has water slowly collected again at the back of the tank. im thinking to myself "what the f is going on?" Can't figure it out keep wiping it down. Got my wife and asked her. She didn't know. After about 20 minutes of wiping it down and watching the water form again. She asked if their could be a leak in the tank. I rather she kicked me in the nutz. So after some serious thought and not being able to think of a reason better then hers. I moved everything back into tubs and buckets. cleaned up the bottom of the tank and there it was... A crack from the back of my tank arcing to the front of my tank. (sad) (sad) I took my level out and the backing that I had scabbed to the back of the tank was not longer level with the stand. I am guessing that was what happened. What dropped about 1/4 inch. I have no idea how, what, or why it happened. The next time I get some 1/2 ply board and cut it to shape of my tank and set it on that. For extra support So here I am at work with everything in buckets at home. I think I will set up the old tank and start saving again for a new one. Can anyone tell me is there a way to fix my new tank. Can I put a gallon of silicon on it or something to ensure that it wont leak. (sad) (sad) (sad) (sad) (sad) (sad) (sad) (sad) (sad) (sad) (sad) (sad) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsoz Posted June 6, 2007 Share Posted June 6, 2007 so sorry for your loss. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef165 Posted June 6, 2007 Share Posted June 6, 2007 sorry man!! sounds like weve got a bit of the same luck!! i wouldnt try to fix it, if it were me, id be so parinoid that it would start leaking again that i couldnt enjoy the tank. i would take the 55 over to Waves and see if he could drill it and you could put an external duroso standpipe on it, i beleave it would cost the same or posably cheaper than an overflow box and you wouldnt halfto wory abought the syphon ever breaking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted June 6, 2007 Share Posted June 6, 2007 Talk to James at Envision Acrylics. He is a sponsor here. I'm assuming the 45 is acrylic here though. If its glass just get another pane cut and install with silicon. I would also drill that 55 while you have it empty. Easy to do, or cheap if you have someone do it. That just sucks though. Sorry to hear about it. I know how frusterating this hobby can be sometimes. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stigits Posted June 6, 2007 Author Share Posted June 6, 2007 If its glass just get another pane cut and install with silicon. what would be the best way to do this. Where do I go. Est. dollar figure? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted June 6, 2007 Share Posted June 6, 2007 40 to 50 bucks probably? I'd measure it and break open the yellow pages, start calling local glass shops. You would just use a razor blade to remove the existing pane, clean off all existing silicon, and then silicon the new one in place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JManrow Posted June 7, 2007 Share Posted June 7, 2007 This article may be helpful. http://saltaquarium.about.com/cs/aquariumdiy/a/aa031302.htm After removing the broken glass and old silicon, prepping the surface is very important. If there is any remaining dirt or oils on glass surfaces to be joined, the silicon may not hold for long. Line 6. in the article mentions using acetone for cleaning. Naptha(Ronsonol lighter fluid) or vinegar will work just as well. Vinegar has always been my choice. I have repaired and built a few glass tanks over the years. Best to wait a full 48 hrs. to cure rather than 24 before filling tank IMO. Best of luck.(fingers) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stigits Posted June 7, 2007 Author Share Posted June 7, 2007 I talk to the our glass guys and they said that they would cut me a piece for nothin. (clap) I guess giving them a 400k contract has a perc or two. Thanks for the info and the link to the tank building. I will need to study up so I can put the pain back in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
180Brandy Posted June 7, 2007 Share Posted June 7, 2007 I had no idea you could replace glass in a tank. Pretty tricky. I would be (scary) . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted June 7, 2007 Share Posted June 7, 2007 I talk to the our glass guys and they said that they would cut me a piece for nothin. (clap) I guess giving them a 400k contract has a perc or two. Thanks for the info and the link to the tank building. I will need to study up so I can put the pain back in. Thats a sweet deal! Good luck. Let us know how it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsoz Posted June 7, 2007 Share Posted June 7, 2007 I had no idea you could replace glass in a tank. Pretty tricky. I would be (scary) . It is a little bit scary. I did it about 10 years ago on a 55g AGA. The worst part was breaking off all the trim on the top edge. I could not get it off in one piece. I had to order a new top trim piece. I don't remember how much it cost, but it wasn't much compared to the cost of a new tank. After that, it is not much more work than re-caulking all the silicone in a tank. Good luck. If you need help or advice it sounds like there are many people here that can help. Make sure that you smooth the edges of the new pane of glass if they are going to be exposed. This can be done with a diamond bit attachment on a dremmel. You could also use a glass grinder. I have one of these if you need to use it because one of my other hobbies is making stained glass windows. Replacing cracked tank parts is where the two hobbies overlap. dsoz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spectra Posted June 8, 2007 Share Posted June 8, 2007 Also when using the silicone use some tape. That way you get a nice clean edge with the silicone. I should have fixed my 29 with a new chunk of glass but just tossed it and bought another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stigits Posted June 8, 2007 Author Share Posted June 8, 2007 Dsoz post made me think a little more about what I was about to do. I think my final solution is this: I will not remove the broken peice of glass. Instead I will make a template of the peice that I need replace and when I get the new peice of glass cut I will simply put it ontop of the crack peice. I will silicone the crack as best i can before placeing the new glass. This should give me more stregth on the bottum of my tank and I wont have to worry about taking all the trim off to get it fixed. The less you have to remove trim the better it looks. and I was worried about the other seems in the tank flexing if the bottom peice is removed. With this solution I will only loose a tiny bit of never would be noticable space. The only thing that I can think of at this moment is that the overflow is on top of the glass and I would either have to remove it or cut my template around it and silcon it real well in that area. Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted June 8, 2007 Share Posted June 8, 2007 I guess that would work too. You gonna need that new piece slightly smaller than the existing one to get it to fit. Use lots of silcon under the new piece and around the edges. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsoz Posted June 8, 2007 Share Posted June 8, 2007 Are you thinking inside or outside? That does not sound so good. If there is any mistakes in your silicone job, water will leak in between the panes, and that could be a pain in the neck! Also If I was doing it, I would do it right. Remove the old pane and replace it. Otherwise you will have two panes in the back. That can look silly. Especially if condensation happens in betwen the two panes. Check LFS and see if they can order a new piece of top and bottom trim. Breaking the plastic is really easy. Silicone will hold it in place. If you are set on doing it, maybe paint the new piece on the side that will be inside the "sandwich" that may hide any condensation that forms. dsoz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted June 8, 2007 Share Posted June 8, 2007 It does increase room for error. But it could work. Removing the trim isn't hard. Just slide a new razor blade between it and the glass, all the way around on the inside and outside and it should pull right off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stigits Posted June 8, 2007 Author Share Posted June 8, 2007 Could you tell me what error it would increase? Chance of it leaking again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted June 8, 2007 Share Posted June 8, 2007 Yah, your just basically patching it. There is still a weak spot in the makeup of the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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