Broken brace on 55

[Mudfrog]

I acquired a nice 55 gallon with a decent cabinet style stand. Well I noticed on top the brace was broken.. not the crossbrace itself but at the end of the crossbrace the piece was split. I added some silicone but it didn't help as when I filled it full of water it still bowed a very slight amount and that caused the brace to pull some. I'm sure everyone is confused but I'm finding it hard to relay exactly what I'm talking about without showing a pic which I will take tonight.

Anyway, how important is the crossbrace on a 55? It's attached, it's just not fully doing it's job. Would my best bet be to make a matching canopy and have the frame of the canopy support the top where the brace is or is it just not that big of a deal on a 55?

 

[LemonHead]

This happened to a friend of mine, jizon82. What he did was removed the old brace
and got a plexiglass and cut it then silicone it & drilled into original frame.
Sort of hard to explain it in writing. But basically replacing the whole new brace.
Use stainless screws and aquarium safe silicone.

I would replace it, I mean it is there for a reason. As a precaution, you should do it
anyway. 55 gallons of water is a lot to be on the floor. It didn't take long to do, approximately
1-2 hour job including the time going to our local hardware store.

 

[Mudfrog]

I'm probably going to look into a canopy that would double as a brace as well.. I already have a lot of the lumber

 

[Mattyou]

You can epoxy the brace, it is plastic, so silicone wont work. Or you can get a wood clamp and just leave it on. I used plexiglass under a broken oceanic tank with a glass center and It worked fine. If your not worried the wood clamp is the esiest.

 

[gomezladdams]

For one I cut a piece of plexi to fit under the brace.Screwed it in place with 6 stainless steel machine screws and nuts.
I had one tank that I got for free that was repaired with a piece of wood and a bunch of sheetrock screws.Worked fine like that for years.
2 Years ago I fixed them both by buying new tank frames.The frames cost about $13 each at that time.

 

[BMcGlone]

I had my father fabricate a piece of steel 5/8 wide and the width of my tank. Bent it 90 degrees on both ends and sprayed it black. Siliconed it down for fun and viola. If you measure correctly it should be snug going on and not want to move once the tank is filled. I know not everyone can just go and fabricate steel but the brace over top of the broken brace works perfectly. Thanks pop!

 

[BMcGlone]

I just wanted to add that yes in a 55g the center braces plays a very important roll. Filling the tank is safe but it will begin to bow. Just fill your 55 and as the level rises you will notice the fracture in your brace become wider.

 

[cichlid savage]

You can replace the entire top frame of the 55 for around 15-20 bucks.