Leaking Tank

[holidayinn]

Hi

I have a leaking Rio 400. It was purchased second hand all setup and running with fish. Now 8 months or so later, I can feel moisture from the bottom and (just recently) top back corner.

First time I tried just cutting interior seal and resealing around that corner, still leaking. Second time, I tried to take more silicon out and reseal (again predominantly round the corner), still leaking. Now the tank is leaking more then it was originally (from the top corner also)!! I have emptied it out and preparing myself for one more, probably last attempt.

I’m planning on taking out all the interior seals (bottom and sides) and resealing the whole interior of the tank all in one go..Also thinking of sealing the interior plastic trim at the top of the tank..Can I seal the tank from the outside also? Focusing on the trim which is at the problematic corner?

Are there any tools to make this easier, apart from razor? How much of the sealant do I need to scrape off? The existing sealing is black, I have Aquarium Safe Clear sealant, is this suitable?

 

[greenbottle]

I bought a 2ft tank second hand as it was cheap. It leaked along the bottom at the back, i drained and dryed it and re-siliconed it. BUT i left the orig silicone in place and made sure my new silicone overlapped it, therefore meaning none of the old silicone would be exposed to the water.

Get what i mean?

works a charm!

 

[rabbut]

That will work a treat for a small tank, but not a big one The pressure involved will push under the new silicone and out, as silicone dosen't stick to old silicone very well. When it does work, IME, it can't realy be called a "neet" job

Have you re-seamed a tank before? 400l is a lot of water on the floor if you mess it up Is the structural silicone OK? You check that by pressing outwards on the side panes and seeing if the joints move. If they do, the strucural silicone has gone and it's a re-build job. Likewise if algea is under the seams If the panes don't move, cut out all the old silicone on the inside (ignore that between the pains, but try to avoid cutting into it) and scrape any residue off the glass. Whipe down with any alcohol cleaner (Methelated spirit, Jhonson's flea spray...) and then re-seam.

All the best
Rabbut

 

[holidayinn]

Thanks for the advice, Rabbut..

I worked out why the tank was leaking from the top, seems condensation was getting through the tank and its plastic trim. Fixed this and now the leak at the bottom is back to a pin-hole leak

I’ve never re-seamed a tank before. I have checked the structure like you advised and don’t see any problems. So last night I began the last effort to stop this tank leaking. I have stripped out all the interior silicone, am currently having some trouble clearing the residue out (quite sticky), will then sand of the edges, wipe down with methylated spirit, mask and then seal. If it doesn’t work after that I’ll have to dispose of the tank.