Filter Leak - Help

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nzafi

Goliath Tigerfish
MFK Member
Mar 14, 2008
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I am running a 180g tank with 3 AC110s. I woke up this morning and found water "pooling" around the stand of the tank, but very little. I did as thorough of a search of the tank and stand but could find no leaking of the tank anywhere. If the tank was leaking I would expect to see marks on the stand itself as it is made of wood.

I did noticed that one of my AC110s was dripping though, so my theory is that is the cause and that the water was just moving along the stand. The tank/stand is sitting on a heavy duty mat used in gyms so the impression on the mat would allow the water to distribute around the stand.

I had to get to work, so I removed the assumed leaking AC110s and will try to get back home early to see if more water built up. My biggest concern right now is the impact on the stand. It is a wooden stand built by RJ. Do I need to break down the entire tank/stand or can I maybe assume the water will just dry and the wood should be safe?

To give you an idea of how much water, I used maybe 10 paper towels to wipe up all the water I could, so not a ton of water. I am more concerned about the water that squeezes between the mat and stand that I cannot get to.
 
As for the stand you should be fine. Make sure motor housing for impeller is fitted perfectly and tight, but if it still leaks check the filter may have a hairline crack.
 
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If you have a Dehumidifier put it next to the tank for a couple days. It will pull any moisture that may have worked its way into areas you couldnt get with the paper towels.
 
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I will try and figure out if I can fix the filter or not. If I didn't catch this, I could have had half the tank on the ground. Might consider just swapping out that AC110 for a canister instead.
 
I have dumped my bio media into the tank for that one filter so I should have time to resolve this.
 
A fan circulating the air should help dry out the stand in a few days.

Dirty media can cause the filter to overflow or if you don't have it tilted properly can cause water to leak over the rear/sides of the housing. It's happened to me a couple times.
 
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deeda said:
Dirty media can cause the filter to overflow or if you don't have it tilted properly can cause water to leak over the rear/sides of the housing. It's happened to me a couple times.
Click to expand...

I agree, I always try to check my filter media weekly during my water changes to make sure no leaves are in there or anything is causing an overflow. I had an accident with the whisper filter on my 20 gallon after not cleaning it for a while, I swear like half the tank leaked out (fishies were fine) and my dad was pissed since it got all over his wood floors and the wall. :mad:

Also if there is a small crack on the plastic filter box, maybe some sealant will help? If you can fix it easily might as well try. Maybe ducttape can be used on the outside too until you can get it fixed. Don't want to just get rid of an expensive filter haha.
 
If the filter has been running for sometime its possible like J joe jaskot stated could be the o-ring may be worn out, if this is the case take the old o-ring to hardware store and match it with a new one.
 
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The filter is about 1 year old. I recently cleaned the filter also. 2 AC110s running with the other media tank should be fine for a couple days. I will see if there is a crack or o-ring issue. Just glad I caught it before more water got out.
 
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