Fish Tank Leaking! Please Help.

[jonnyf84]

Hi all, my fish started leaking the other day, its not a bad leak but it is a constant drip and i'm sure it compramises the general sturdyness of the tank, its a 20 gallon, it had a small crack in one of the corners but now it stretches from one corner to the other, can somebody tell me what i can do to fix it?

Many thanks

Jonny

 

[Queen oF The Gravel]

Get a new tank, like soon. I dont think theres much you can do if its cracked.

 

[darknirvana217]

Nope it can't be fixed while there is water in the tnak. You will have to get either a new tank or a temporary tank while you repair the other one. To repair it you will have to drain it fully, remove all the substrate, and then let it dry. You would have to apply silicon into the crack, which is very difficult to do right. Your best bet is to just get a new tank and don't risk fixing it. Under the pressure, the crack could break open fully, which would be very bad for your fish and floors.

 

[Colin_T]

Drop the water level if you haven't already done so. The less water in the tank the less pressure on the glass and silicon. Set up a spare tank or plastic storage container with water from the tank. Add the fish, filter and heater.
Don't feed the fish while they are in the spare tank. They will be fine for a week without food.
Drain the remaining water out of the tank and remove the gravel.
Go to the chemist or LFS and get some single sided/edge razor blades. You can use these to scrape the old silicon off. Then dry the area and apply some new glass silicon.
If the silicon is old you might be better off cutting the side out and applying new silicon to the whole piece of glass. Then fit the glass back in and smear the silicon along the edges. Use some sticky tape to hold the glass in place while the silicon dries. A couple of days later you can refill the tank.
If you are not comfortable fixing the tank most petshops do tank repairs. Small tanks are sometimes cheaper to replace than repair.

 

[OldMan47]

I am assuming from your post that the crack is in the glass and not just a silicone problem. Your best bet is a new tank. If you get just the tank without hood, filter etc, they are pretty cheap to buy. If you really want to fix it, re-home your fish, drain and empty the tank, remove the glass using a putty knife to get the glass loose from the plastic frame. Clean everything well with a razor or other similar tool. Get a perfectly fitted piece of glass to replace the cracked piece. Use aquarium silicone sealant to glue the new piece back into the tank, add a bead of seal to the seams and let it cure a few days. When all odor is gone, fill it with water to check your repairs. If all is well, put the tank back in service.
I have never done a 20 but a 55 fixed this way has served me well for about 2 years.