crazing and bowing, risk of rupture?

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Rizzobitz

Rizzobitz

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Sep 18, 2015
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Does anyone have personal experience with a bowed tank? I wonder what is the risk of cracking or rupture?

We just got a used 480, 1" thick acrylic aquarium. It has over 1.25" bowing in the front mostly verticle but also horizontal and lots of crazing.

Picture shows a broom handle taped flush to the bottom of the aquarium and crazing on front and sides. The tank was built by Tenecor. I'm not sure how old it is.

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That's a lot of bowing 1.25"? My tenecor is 3/4" 30" tall and no bowing My other tank is 1/2" by 24" tall and it has a slight bow and some crazing but I did reglue all the seams and added a few extra braces
 
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jsodwi said:
That's a lot of bowing 1.25"? My tenecor is 3/4" 30" tall and no bowing My other tank is 1/2" by 24" tall and it has a slight bow and some crazing but I did reglue all the seams and added a few extra braces
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My husband was the one to notice right after we filled it. He held a big level in the middle and measured it.
 
They all bow...some worse than others. 1" is a little lax for 4' height. most tanks are underbuilt these days, not ur fault... i have crazing marks on a few of my acrylics like that also where the point of the bow would b on the front pane and also close to the seams same as yours. no way 2 remove that but its not that detrimental. just a sign of sress... Most all my acrylics are very old and this is typical to find on a 10-20+yr old tank. Your tank looks fairly new tho. Thing to keep an eye on or worry about is the calrity of the seams... anything unclear/milky/bubbles/ or white is where seam seperation is occuring. As long as your seams all look good and clear you should b fine. Some better shots straight on of the seams may help, but based on the pics the seams themselves look good. (atleast the one pictured) lol... just something 2 be aware of and keep an eye on. Its possible 2 reinforce those seams down the road if theres a problem... if it were me id flip that sucker or its back and make it a 8'x4'x2' lol...
 
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wednesday13 said:
They all bow...some worse than others. 1" is a little lax for 4' height. most tanks are underbuilt these days, not ur fault... i have crazing marks on a few of my acrylics like that also where the point of the bow would b on the front pane and also close to the seams same as yours. no way 2 remove that but its not that detrimental. just a sign of sress... Most all my acrylics are very old and this is typical to find on a 10-20+yr old tank. Your tank looks fairly new tho. Thing to keep an eye on or worry about is the calrity of the seams... anything unclear/milky/bubbles/ or white is where seam seperation is occuring. As long as your seams all look good and clear you should b fine. Some better shots straight on of the seams may help, but based on the pics the seams themselves look good. (atleast the one pictured) lol... just something 2 be aware of and keep an eye on. Its possible 2 reinforce those seams down the road if theres a problem... if it were me id flip that sucker or its back and make it a 8'x4'x2' lol...
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Thank you Wendesday13. I appreciate your observations and what to look out for. That was exactly what I was hoping to hear. The seams are clear so no worries for now. I love the tank, don't mind the bowing or crazing I just don't want it to explode. :)
 
Rizzobitz said:
Does anyone have personal experience with a bowed tank? I wonder what is the risk of cracking or rupture?

We just got a used 480, 1" thick acrylic aquarium. It has over 1.25" bowing in the front mostly verticle but also horizontal and lots of crazing.

Picture shows a broom handle taped flush to the bottom of the aquarium and crazing on front and sides. The tank was built by Tenecor. I'm not sure how old it is.

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Whoa...that is a LOT of bowing...I have seen it before, but not that dramatic. Could be the height...or it could be the material used. True cell cast acrylic is quite ridgid when properly sized. For a 480g 1" acrylic should be fine...and like was said earlier, the seams look okay. Keep an eye on it but really, if it fails it will be very spectacular and most likely without warning. Reinforcing the sides and bottom would bea fairly easy job and maybe something to consider down the road.
 
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