How to tell if it's time to reseal

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MonsterFishCreeper

MonsterFishCreeper

Candiru
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Sep 30, 2015
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So I found a great deal on a 75 with a corner overflow but the guy says the tank has been sitting in his basement without water for 4-5 years. How can I tell if the silicone is shot besides the obvious leak test? I won't be able to leak check it until after I purchase it but I don't want to have to reseal it if necessary.
 
MonsterFishCreeper said:
So I found a great deal on a 75 with a corner overflow but the guy says the tank has been sitting in his basement without water for 4-5 years. How can I tell if the silicone is shot besides the obvious leak test? I won't be able to leak check it until after I purchase it but I don't want to have to reseal it if necessary.
Click to expand...


Check and see if any of the silicone peels easily, be gentle pulling though.:)
 
Hello; I do not pick at the silicone. I put a tank where a leak will not do any harm and fill it up. I let it sit for several days. Usually a leak will show up fairly quickly. How long for the test fill depends on your patience.
I do not reseal tanks that are not leaking.

Good luck
 
IMHO if the tank leaks, its to late for a reseal and needs a rebuild, resealing a 75g pretty easy as all you are doing is removing the silicone on the corners, NOT BETWEEN THE GLASS, to fix a tank that is leaking, the panes need to come apart and redone to fix properly. IMHO.
 
pops said:
IMHO if the tank leaks, its to late for a reseal and needs a rebuild, resealing a 75g pretty easy as all you are doing is removing the silicone on the corners, NOT BETWEEN THE GLASS, to fix a tank that is leaking, the panes need to come apart and redone to fix properly. IMHO.
Click to expand...

So your saying that if the tank is leaking it needs to come all the way apart and reseal all of the silicone but if its not leaking I could still go ahead and reseal it for the sake of starting with fresh silicone on the interior?
 
yup. the seal on the inside is to protect the seal between the glass pains from water, algae, other crap and hold the tank together. just doing a reseal on a leaking tank is just waiting for it to leak again. I would fill with water, if it does not leak and the silicone looks ragged, peaces missing, not stuck to the glass, bla bla bla, I would do a reseal. if it leaks I would not buy it unless you know what you are doing and do not mind doing the work to do a rebuild.
 
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pops pops , glad to see someone else who finally agrees with this method. Far too many people believe the silicone between the glass doesn't do much when in reality does all the work.

If the tank is leaking the strength of the tank is compromised and needs to be rebuilt. Smearing some silicone in the corners wont be enough.
 
Scored big time. I waited a day to tell them I wanted the tank just because I was busy and they emailed me saying its free come get it. The tank is in immaculate shape and silicone is soft and rubbery. I'm going to leak test it but I'm not worried at all. The black silicone and newer style overflow makes me think this is a newer tank. Free plumbing and stand too. Can't beat free!

 
Hello; A couple of suggestions for your consideration. First; I get transparent corner protectors and silicone them to the outside corners of my all glass tanks.
While I have not found stuff made for aquariums, there are such items made for outside corners of wallpaper jobs. These are clear plastic. They are a bit too wide so I take the time to trim off some of the width.
This will help prevent the chips that occur at the edges of the exposed glass.

The other suggestion is to cut a piece of plywood to go between the bottom of a tank and the metal stand. I have done this for several tanks for many years. I cut it the width of the tank and a few inches longer. On the smaller tanks this gives me a place to grasp when moving an empty tank around. This also is handy when cleaning a tank. Also helps prevent the dreaded issue of sitting a glass bottom tank down on top of a protrusion.
I paint the wood. It also becomes a narrow shelf at each end of the tank.

Good luck
 
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