Craigslist Truvu--how bad is the crazing?

[Dapper]

Hello everyone,

I bought a 125 high Truvu acrylic aquarium on Craigslist, and when I got home, I realized the crazing on the bottom was more than just scratches. I honestly just wanted the stand, and the tank came with it, so I am not going to loose any sleep if the tank is not safe for use as an aquarium. It would be slightly more volume than the current upgrade tank a friend gave me, and therefore better for my West African lungfish, so it would be nice to be able to set her up in it. Regardless, now I have a nice stand for either tank. Acknowledging the fact that I take full responsibility for the purchase and what I do with it, and that a photo isn't a whole lot to work off of, what do you seasoned large acrylic tank owners think of this defect? Is it risky? Is it fixable? I like to err on this side of caution and may give it to my rainbow boa and continue as planned with the other 100 gallon for my lungfish. Your thoughts and experience are appreciated. The tank is sitting empty in the garage in front of an old futon, so please ignore the background.

 

[millerkid519]

wednesday13

 

[Dieselhybrid]

The crazing can't be repaired. That looks like someone used alcohol or mineral spirits and that cause it in a centralized patch. The seams are what you need to look at. You want them clear hopefully without bubbles and without crazing. Minor crazing or bubbles is okay but if the seams look anything like that pane make it a herp tank for sure. Get pics of the seams. What are the dimensions and thickness?

If its only on the bottom in that patch I'm betting they used a harsh solvent to clean it. Which would make an ugly patch but would still have some integrity.

Wednesday (knows everything) or someone else will chime in soon but show us the seams and provide the dimensions. Also if thats the only patch that looks like that.

 

[wednesday13]

125 high... id guess 5'x18"x26" ish in...3/8" material? If the tank is standing up on end in the pic and thats the bottom u have pictured i personally wouldnt bat an eye at it and fill er up. Somewhat normal wear/tear IMO, but im cheap and run alot of old/used acrylics in the 25+yr range and anything that old is sure to show signs of aging. I agree with Dieselhybrid , Looks like someone used Acetone or another solvent to try and clean the tank, then quickly stopped. Possibly y they chose to test it on the bottom also. Only other thing that causes crazing like that is bowing. If it was on a poorly built stand i.e. one made for glass tanks with trim and no full top sheet of ply or supports every 2' minium thats very plausible also. Either way "crazing" is just micro fractures in the top layer/skin of the acrylic. Depending on how bad ive yet to really see it fracture all the way through a sheet. It can be removed in a large oven/kiln but we usually dont have that option at home. Best to just inspect it closely to see if its just on the top layer of the sheet and go from there. No biggie to throw a patch overtop but by the looks of it i dont think thats even needed. If ur stand has no supports or full sheet of ply on top id start there. As long as its supported properly it wont happen again or get worse. Im leaning towards a chemical cleaer tho since its only in one small area. Nothing to lose sleep over. I also agree the seams are the part to really inspect. Lets see some more pics