Heart Stopping Moment

[HarpyFishLover]

Just because I like you and want you to have a good nights sleep.
 
 

That's incredible. Now you have me worrying... I noticed stretched glue on either side of the stand my dad put together... not that I don't trust him or the stand, but it's honestly probably not supposed to be that way.

 

[Akasha72]

one spirit level coming out of the cupboard right now!

okay, tank is very slightly down at the back and slightly down to the left. 
 
Now, none of the floors in this flat are level, none of the walls are square either. The tank is on it's original stand that it came with and is stood on a carpeted floor. I would suspect that it's the floor that's not level and there's not much I can do about that!
 
Still a little concerned but I've accepted that there's very little I can do right here right now. I don't know for certain that what I actually heard came from the tank (although it came from that area) and I'm 95% certain that the mark I can see is a scratch and nothing more.
 
To find out for certain I would have to catch all the fish and empty the tank, pull the tank away from the wall and pull the background off 

 

[Chad]

You can't level the floor, but you can still use shims to level the tank. I did that with my 210 gallon (795 liter) tank. The floor wasn't level but the tank had to be...at 3000 pounds (1361kilos) it had to be! 
 
You still haven't figured out 100% if it's cracked so not a time to panic. It might be possible to slide a camera behind the tank with it taking video then see if that video shows you anything better. 
 
Even though you can't exactly DO anything about it right now, I do really think it's worth being certain about. This is a case of better safe than sorry. As much as you care about your fish I know it would devastate you to have something happen to them all at once. 

 

[Akasha72]

okay, Dad has called and I told him what you'd said about the tank being level and that mine wasn't. He asked for my spirit level and said 'where did you put it' so I plonked it on the lid and showed him ... he tutted (why do Dad's do that?!) and said 'you don't measure it there' he then put it on top of the fixed trim in the middle of the front - perfectly level. He then went to the side and put it on the fixed trim again to measure back to front and it's almost perfect level there - if it's out it's by a millimetre no more.
 
We then took a few minutes to go over the glass of this tank and we are now 100% certain that the mark on the back is indeed a scratch. When we've looked closely there are tons of them. They cover every pane of this tank. The reason the one on the back resembles a crack is because of the black background. We spotted one nearer the side that looked the same and peeled the background away and when you do that you can tell it's a scratch.
 
I'm hoping the panic is over now. I am going to get myself a water alarm though - one that goes inside the tank that will alert me if the water drops below a certain level and if I can get one that will also tell me if this tank is getting too warm or too cold then that's an extra benefit. 
 
I spotted the same day that the temp on the tank had reached 28 degree's - far too warm for my cories. I have a Hydor external heater on this tank, it came as part of the deal with the tank. Again, I have no clue of it's age and it has done this once before (suddenly got the tank too warm) and I've had to fiddle with the dial. I've stuck sticky tape over the dial so it can't move if knocked now

 

[Chad]

Sounds like you can rest easy. It's level, and it's a scratch. But it gave us a good chance to talk about level tanks and water alarms! I'm glad it wasn't anything major. Could the sound have been related to the tank's heater?

 

[HarpyFishLover]

This also reminded me of when one time I went to get cold milk out of the fridge. We had just pulled the glasses out of the dishwasher, and they were still warm. Well, when I poured it, the glass cracked, and that was an instance where I was just standing there, not wanting to do anything... lol... it certainly was terrifying.

 

[Akasha72]

Sounds like you can rest easy. It's level, and it's a scratch. But it gave us a good chance to talk about level tanks and water alarms! I'm glad it wasn't anything major. Could the sound have been related to the tank's heater?

 
I don't know. Either side of the tank are two large bookcases and my CD towers too. Above the tank is a mirror. At the time it was easy to jump to the conclusion that the sound came from the tank but looking back now (now I'm calm) it could have been from anything in that area. I've still to check all the photograph frames on my bookcase - it could even be from one of those.
 
I'm sure the mystery will solve itself eventually. I'm just glad that the tank appears to be okay

 

[Chad]

Yes, it's good it's okay!

 

[Akasha72]

heart stopping moment number two this morning.
 
Fish all huddled in corners ... hmm, somethings wrong - eyes swivvle to angels "what did you do in the night?" .... then I feel guilty when I feed them and my fingers dip in the water ... ooh that's warm ... checks thermometer 
 
 
35 degrees!!!!!! 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
My heater has had it. And of course now I'm wondering if that was what we heard. Could it be that the noise was the element cracking in the heater? It's a Hydor external.
 
I've just ordered a new one online ... that's 50 quid I won't see again. Keep fish they said .... Nice relaxing hobby they said ... 

 

[Far_King]

I had heard about this with Hydor externals but I thought it was a rarity like anything that can go wrong.  I certainly didn't expect anyone here to have that same issue.
 
I have a Hydor external heater on one of mine....making me a bit paranoid now

 

[Akasha72]

I suspect it's very old Far_King. I've had this tank nearly 3 years and it was second hand then ... the heater came with it so I can't say for certain how old it is. I've ordered a new one anyway. As kit goes, I like it. I don't want to look at an ugly heater in my tank plus all the things that can go wrong with them - such as fish burning themselves or them smashing and scattering glass everywhere.

I've now finished my weekly water change and I used cooler water. I've got the temp down to 27 ... hopefully within a couple of hours we'll be back down to the normal 25 degrees. 
 
It was just lucky that today was water change day ... if I'd done it yesterday instead they'd be sat in it a lot longer

 

[Chad]

 Could the sound have been related to the tank's heater?

I wondered about that. Good thing you were noticing their behavior! 

 

[Far_King]

I wish it had occurred to me to mention it.  I've had heaters "pop" on me before when they've cracked and of course if it was internal you'd potentially be at risk of electrocution.
 
One for us all to chalk up and remember for future reference I think. 

 

[Akasha72]

yes, one to chalk up. If we hear anything that sounds like cracking glass and the actual tank seems to be okay - check the heater and keep a close watch on the temperature.
 
I'm now going to buy a temperature alarm ... I dread to think what would have happened by now if I hadn't of noticed ... cooked fish I guess

 

[PepperjacksMama]

Glad it was something less major than the tank. Although ouch on the replacement cost.
Also glad no cooked fish.
I am with Far_King. I remember hearing about problems with older Hydor heaters. Though I understand the issue is fixed.