Bought a Leaking 125 Cheap

G

gone fishin

Guest
ok so i bought a 125 all glass aquarium tonight and the bottom 2 seals have imprefections in the silicone...i was told all i have to do is scrap the seals with a razor blade clean and reseal with aquarium safe silicone... as i have never done this before i was wondering if this will work or not any input or advice is much appreciated... thanks justin
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
If the tank actually leaks then your best bet is to pull the tank apart and re silicone it from scratch. Otherwise I don't think I'd ever trust it, personally. I resealed my 120g last year merely as a preventative since I had the tank down and I just wanted to reinforce it with more material than what the manufacturer used. So I did the scrape and reseal method with razor blades and rubbing alcohol. The trick is to keep going over the areas with the blade and alcohol to remove all traces of the old silicone in order to get a good bond with the new stuff. Even once you think you've got it all removed...go over it a couple of more times. It was actually a lot more work than I had anticipated. But so far I haven't had any leaks. Again though, the tank wasn't leaking in the first place so the silicone between the panes of glass was still intact. So that particular method may or may not work in your case. The way I see it, you're taking a bit of a gamble if that's all you intend to do.
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
Welcome to the site
I don't know that I would ever feel comfortable with a damaged tank....SW tanks hold a LOT of weight when you take into consideration the sand rock and water....
I would not want to wake up to 120Gallons of water in my living room :(
 
G

gone fishin

Guest
yea after more looking into it i am gonna take the tank apart and redo it from scratch.. only question i can seem to find an answer for is how do i get the frame work off without breaking it?
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Just remember, new silicone can't and won't stick to old silicone.
As 2Quills said, you'll need to completely remove the old silicone and start from scratch. It's a lot of work, but it's worth it for tanks 90g or more in my opinion.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
The frame work will come off with a little brute force. You can slide a small razor in between the frame and the glass, and it should cut the silicone pretty well so that you can pull it off.
 
G

gone fishin

Guest
well the tank is actually brand new the guy bought it to make a sump and filled it and it leaked and he emptied it an let it sit and i got it for 50 bucks so i figure ill do what i have to do to fix cuz the same tank is around 400 new..
 
travelerjp98

travelerjp98

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by gone fishin http:///t/388639/bought-a-leaking-125-cheap#post_3428620
schuylkill county
About an hour away from me. Cool.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SnakeBlitz33 http:///t/388639/bought-a-leaking-125-cheap#post_3428622
Just remember, new silicone can't and won't stick to old silicone.
As 2Quills said, you'll need to completely remove the old silicone and start from scratch. It's a lot of work, but it's worth it for tanks 90g or more in my opinion.
Yep, that´s a good tip. I also think it´s worth it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by gone fishin http:///t/388639/bought-a-leaking-125-cheap#post_3428616
yea after more looking into it i am gonna take the tank apart and redo it from scratch.. only question i can seem to find an answer for is how do i get the frame work off without breaking it?
Not sure about this. I would assume with heat???
 
G

gone fishin

Guest
i figured but i wanted to make sure before i have broken pieces ...
 
acrylic51

acrylic51

Active Member
I've never used heat on the silicone while taking a tank apart, but just as Corey described......Plenty of razor blades and rubbing alcohol......I also found a really thin putty knife worked as well for me....The silicone is going to be a lot tougher than what you anticipate, but with patience you'll be just fine taking it apart.
Going back together prep work is key!!!!! Welcome.....
 
travelerjp98

travelerjp98

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by acrylic51 http:///t/388639/bought-a-leaking-125-cheap#post_3428826
I've never used heat on the silicone while taking a tank apart, but just as Corey described......Plenty of razor blades and rubbing alcohol......I also found a really thin putty knife worked as well for me....The silicone is going to be a lot tougher than what you anticipate, but with patience you'll be just fine taking it apart.
Going back together prep work is key!!!!! Welcome.....
Oh yes; welcome to the site, gone fishin!
Shawn- he's an hour away from us!
 
acrylic51

acrylic51

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by gone fishin http:///t/388639/bought-a-leaking-125-cheap#post_3428898
i am right outside of pine grove....
LOL.....I blow through there all the time....I drive for UPS Freight and run 81 up through Pine Grove, and all the way up to 61 down through St Claire all the way down to 78 most days.....Pine Grove was hit pretty hard with the flooding....hope you made out well.
 
G

gone fishin

Guest
we did but many friends didnt and my work had 2 foot of water in it we spent a month cleaning and fixing everything twice in less then a month.... no fun at all
 
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