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Post by babygeige on Jul 22, 2009 11:14:12 GMT -5
I've been having this odd issue with my 2.5 gallon tank lately. Water is trickling out near the top where the black trim comes down over the glass. As you can see, I've lowered the water level and it is still coming out. I thought maybe it is condensation coming out, but it seems like an awful lot and it's not like the water temp is THAT much higher than room temp. It's just one of those little hydor heaters that only raises the water temp a couple degrees above room temp. Any thoughts?
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Post by murdock6701 on Jul 22, 2009 11:36:07 GMT -5
looks like maybe a bad spot in where the blacl plastic top is siliconed to the tank...is the tank plexiglass? still weird that it would rise up there....is it near an airstone?
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Post by Carl on Jul 22, 2009 13:40:54 GMT -5
This is actually a very common occurrence (I had to fix this problem many times in my aquarium service business) This is a problem of water collecting along the trim (from air bubbles, condensation, etc.), then finding a weak spot under the trim to drip around. This is often a problem because although silicone adheres well to glass, it does not to oil based products such as plastic trim. This is best corrected by cutting out old silicone and then adding new silicone. Trim leaks generally can easily be fixed while the tank is still running. See this article which has a section that addresses this exact issue: Aquarium Repair, Silicone ApplicationsCarl
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Post by babygeige on Jul 22, 2009 14:40:38 GMT -5
Cool beans. Thanks Carl. I was trying to decide if it would be safe to try and reseal the top with the tank running. Now I know. Maybe I'll do it this weekend or on Friday. Would it be best to pull out the sealant all around the top, or just in that area?
The timing of this was really bizarre, because it started right after I put Peter in the tank. If it were possible, I'd almost think that he was somehow splashing up under there just to make a mess, lol. It's on the complete opposite side from the airstone, so it must be condensation. It just seems like it's condensing a lot!
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Post by corycatwoman on Jul 22, 2009 14:55:12 GMT -5
goodluck on the DIY tank repair. i believe not certain you should be able to take a puddy knife or large mud knife and scrape up the side of the tank under your black covering to bust it loose from the glass then its just a small wiggle and you can remove it and then you can decide how much damage there was/ you just made. and then start cutting out all the old silicone and replacing it with nice clean pretty beads and let it cure and then you should be able to glob a few spots on the top in key spots so only you know like all 4 corners and the center of each panel and place your black covering back on top press fairly hard and let it dry and i think youd have it done leak free.
if anyone else disagrees or knows what exactly to do please feel free to add to my simplisitic optomisitic directions.
i think someone with more of an exact experienced directions should reply![/color]
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Post by Carl on Jul 22, 2009 21:40:01 GMT -5
Would it be best to pull out the sealant all around the top, or just in that area? I would recommend the whole top, so that you can be sure that the water is not simply migrating to the area where the seepage is (this may not be the location where the water is coming under the trim). Cut away as much as possible of the old silicone and try and get the area real dry before the application of the new silicone (lowering the tank half way and leaving it open should do the trick for this) Carl
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Post by goldenpuon on Jul 23, 2009 15:16:02 GMT -5
Is there anything hanging out of the tank like a string, wire, etc. where the water is dripping from? I had a yarn string (it is safe for fish) hanging out of the side of my tank once. I used it to hold a container in place underwater. Anyway, when the string hung out over the side of the aquarium, just the tinyiest bit, water started dripping down the side of the tank. At first I thougth it was a leak until I realized it was the string. Just a thought.
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Post by babygeige on Jul 24, 2009 16:23:31 GMT -5
Thanks Renee. I wish it was just something hanging out, but it's not. It's definitely seeping out from under the black trim. It has actually stopped since I posted the picture. I guess the water level is low enough that the condensation or whatever doesn't get under the trim.
Tomorrow I will try to get this fixed. Or maybe this evening I will remove the old stuff and try to get it dry and then re-silicone it tomorrow.
Thanks for the tips, Corycat and Carl!
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Post by corycatwoman on Jul 25, 2009 20:17:35 GMT -5
no thanks needed i really have no experience in tank repair i was just sharing optimistic advise to keep you from getting over frustrated. but carl has built aquariums so im sure he has more than his share of experience in repairs aswell. all the thanks goes to him! but your welcome
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Post by babygeige on Jul 28, 2009 22:34:46 GMT -5
I fixed the tank on Sunday. I drained about half the water, then looked under the rim with a mirror. About half of it didn't even have sealant around the top, so I decided not to scrape out the old stuff, but to just go around and cover the empty spots and overlap a bit where the existing stuff it.
I filled it almost the whole way back to the top yesterday. So far so good! There hasn't been any water seeping out yet. There is about a half inch gap there now. Tomorrow I will add more water up to the point where the water line isn't visible from the front anymore. That will be the true test of my repair job! But as of now, I am pretty happy with how it turned out.
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Post by babygeige on Aug 8, 2009 9:55:40 GMT -5
So much for my repair job. I filled the tank back to normal levels last Saturday, but on Thursday, it started dripping again. I'm just going to buy a new tank, make sure it's sealed ok and if not, ask my dad to fix it for me. Then I'll move Pete over to it, dry out the old one, and ask my dad to fix it also. Then I'll just keep it as a spare. For all the more it'll cost (2.5 gal with the glass top included is $14 at Petsmart), it's worth it to me to stop hassling with this.
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Post by goldenpuon on Aug 8, 2009 11:14:00 GMT -5
Sorry to hear that it didn't work out. At least a new one isn't much money.
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Post by Suzie Q (Lori) on Aug 10, 2009 11:21:11 GMT -5
Did you just do around the outside of the tank or inside? Sorry the repair did not work...but at least you'll have a spare tank for an emergency
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Post by babygeige on Aug 10, 2009 20:44:50 GMT -5
I just went around on the inside. I don't think I'd like to see sealant on the outside of the tank.
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Post by murdock6701 on Aug 10, 2009 22:00:27 GMT -5
you did ythe right thing by putting the sealant on the insdie - sometimed it takes a day or 2 to cure......sorry for the problems my friend
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