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Old 16-11-2003, 03:32 PM
LeighMo
 
Posts: n/a
Default how long do fishtanks last?

I ask because I the seals on my 29 gallon planted tank seem to peeling at the
edges. I bought the tank new in 1989, and it has been up and running
continuously since. There are many algae-eating critters in the tank
(bristlenose pleco, various species of snails, an oto or three, etc.), and I
suspect one or more of them have been gnawing on the seals to get at the algae
growing on on them.

Is it time to buy a new tank, or am I being paranoid?


Leigh

http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/
  #2   Report Post  
Old 16-11-2003, 07:12 PM
NetMax
 
Posts: n/a
Default how long do fishtanks last?


"LeighMo" wrote in message
...
I ask because I the seals on my 29 gallon planted tank seem to peeling

at the
edges. I bought the tank new in 1989, and it has been up and running
continuously since. There are many algae-eating critters in the tank
(bristlenose pleco, various species of snails, an oto or three, etc.),

and I
suspect one or more of them have been gnawing on the seals to get at

the algae
growing on on them.

Is it time to buy a new tank, or am I being paranoid?


Leigh


Hi Leigh, AFAIK, the silicone sandwiched in between the glass panes
performs most of the structural integrity, while the extra bead run along
the inside is primarily to protect the sandwiched silicone from predators
(which you mentioned) and to provide a more uniform water-proofing
barrier. Essentially, your 29g could have no silicone bead along the
inside, (only the sandwiched silicone) and it would still be structurally
sound. If you have a lot of wear & tear on the bead, inspect the
sandwiched portion for bubbles (areas of weaker bonding and potential
water paths), and for any discoloration (water/humidity ingress with
algae growth or calcium deposits). If your sandwiched silicone is sound,
but the bead is very mangled, then your tank will just be incrementally
more vulnerable to a potential leak. If you ever observe the reverse,
where the bead is sound but the sandwiched silicone is in bad condition,
don't stand in front of that tank ;~)

I don't think age is a good indicator of tank condition. There are too
many chemical formulas for silicone and the surface preparation prior to
applying the silicone is very important. A properly prepared surface
with a high quality silicone operating within it's specifications will
probably outlive anyone old enough to be reading this.

JMO, I can't remember how I came to think that I know these things )

NetMax


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Old 17-11-2003, 02:04 AM
Ross Vandegrift
 
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Default how long do fishtanks last?

On 2003-11-16, NetMax wrote:
I don't think age is a good indicator of tank condition.


My relatively meager experience agrees - the 20gal tank I first put up two
years ago, was bought by my mother before she got married. I'm almost 22,
which says the tank is probably from the early-mid 1970's. It's in great
shape. The internal bead of silicone does show some wear and tear like
LeighMo mentions, but the internal seal looks good.

--
Ross Vandegrift


A Pope has a Water Cannon. It is a Water Cannon.
He fires Holy-Water from it. It is a Holy-Water Cannon.
He Blesses it. It is a Holy Holy-Water Cannon.
He Blesses the Hell out of it. It is a Wholly Holy Holy-Water Cannon.
He has it pierced. It is a Holey Wholly Holy Holy-Water Cannon.
He makes it official. It is a Canon Holey Wholly Holy Holy-Water Cannon.
Batman and Robin arrive. He shoots them.
  #4   Report Post  
Old 21-11-2003, 07:02 AM
Jim Morcombe
 
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Default how long do fishtanks last?

You never need to buy a new tank.

If it springs a leak, then it will be because the Silicone Sealant has gone.

Just use a sharp knife to cut off as much of the surface sealant as you can
and then buy some Silicone Sealant from the local hardware store and glue it
up again.

Of course, it takes a week or so for the silicone to cure, so you need
somewhere to put your fish while you do it. Perhaps you should buy a new
aquarioum to hold the fish while you fix the old one

Jim


LeighMo wrote in message
...
I ask because I the seals on my 29 gallon planted tank seem to peeling at

the
edges. I bought the tank new in 1989, and it has been up and running
continuously since. There are many algae-eating critters in the tank
(bristlenose pleco, various species of snails, an oto or three, etc.), and

I
suspect one or more of them have been gnawing on the seals to get at the

algae
growing on on them.

Is it time to buy a new tank, or am I being paranoid?


Leigh

http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/



  #5   Report Post  
Old 21-11-2003, 10:04 AM
Alex
 
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Default how long do fishtanks last?

"Jim Morcombe" wrote in
:

You never need to buy a new tank.

If it springs a leak, then it will be because the Silicone Sealant has
gone.

Just use a sharp knife to cut off as much of the surface sealant as
you can and then buy some Silicone Sealant from the local hardware
store and glue it up again.

Of course, it takes a week or so for the silicone to cure, so you need
somewhere to put your fish while you do it. Perhaps you should buy a
new aquarioum to hold the fish while you fix the old one

Jim


LeighMo wrote in message
...
I ask because I the seals on my 29 gallon planted tank seem to
peeling at

the
edges. I bought the tank new in 1989, and it has been up and running
continuously since. There are many algae-eating critters in the tank
(bristlenose pleco, various species of snails, an oto or three,
etc.), and

I
suspect one or more of them have been gnawing on the seals to get at
the

algae
growing on on them.

Is it time to buy a new tank, or am I being paranoid?


Leigh

http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/


Hello all,

First post to the group, here goes...

After reading this thread I took a look at my 75 gallon (Perfecto)
I bought from PetSmart back in March of this year.
I can see bubbles on the right side/edge of the tank, and there are
what appears to be channels on the left side almost from
top to bottom.

This has me a bit worried, is this normal?
What should I do with the tank if it's not safe?
There was a small piece of paper indicating that
the tank was assembled Jan. 2003.

I'm planning on taking a trip over to PetSmart to look at
some of the larger tanks there.

Here's a pic from the left side of the tank.
http://home.comcast.net/~harrisal74/...ss/Glass_L.jpg

Pic of the tank.
http://home.comcast.net/~harrisal74/...Glass/tank.jpg

Alex


  #6   Report Post  
Old 21-11-2003, 12:42 PM
LeighMo
 
Posts: n/a
Default how long do fishtanks last?

Hi Leigh, AFAIK, the silicone sandwiched in between the glass panes
performs most of the structural integrity, while the extra bead run along
the inside is primarily to protect the sandwiched silicone from predators
(which you mentioned) and to provide a more uniform water-proofing
barrier. Essentially, your 29g could have no silicone bead along the
inside, (only the sandwiched silicone) and it would still be structurally
sound. If you have a lot of wear & tear on the bead, inspect the
sandwiched portion for bubbles (areas of weaker bonding and potential
water paths), and for any discoloration (water/humidity ingress with
algae growth or calcium deposits). If your sandwiched silicone is sound,
but the bead is very mangled, then your tank will just be incrementally
more vulnerable to a potential leak. If you ever observe the reverse,
where the bead is sound but the sandwiched silicone is in bad condition,
don't stand in front of that tank ;~)


Thanks. I'm not sure if I'm reassured or not. :-) The silicone between the
glass seems to be the same as always, but it's kind of hard to tell. It feels
good, but it's kind of hard to see.

I oughta move that bristlenose to another tank. I think he's the one chewing
on the seals. Only I'm afraid he'll do the same thing, and it will be worse if
there's ever a failure, because the other tank's larger. =:-O The other tank
has more algae, though, so maybe he wouldn't be driven to nibbling on silicone.


Leigh

http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/
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Old 21-11-2003, 06:32 PM
Peter Gennaro
 
Posts: n/a
Default how long do fishtanks last?

Just use a sharp knife to cut off as much of the surface sealant as you
can
and then buy some Silicone Sealant from the local hardware store and glue

it
up again.


Of course the hardware store silicon would kill the fish, but they died
anyway when you took out them and laid them on the table to work on the
tank.


  #8   Report Post  
Old 26-11-2003, 01:32 AM
NetMax
 
Posts: n/a
Default how long do fishtanks last?

snip
Hello all,

First post to the group, here goes...

After reading this thread I took a look at my 75 gallon (Perfecto)
I bought from PetSmart back in March of this year.
I can see bubbles on the right side/edge of the tank, and there are
what appears to be channels on the left side almost from
top to bottom.

This has me a bit worried, is this normal?
What should I do with the tank if it's not safe?
There was a small piece of paper indicating that
the tank was assembled Jan. 2003.

I'm planning on taking a trip over to PetSmart to look at
some of the larger tanks there.

Here's a pic from the left side of the tank.
http://home.comcast.net/~harrisal74/...ss/Glass_L.jpg

Pic of the tank.
http://home.comcast.net/~harrisal74/...Glass/tank.jpg

Alex


Nice tank Alex. Sorry for the delay. I suggest you trim your pictures
down in size (or compress them). I'm not familiar with the Perfecto
tanks, so I can't say if that's what their siliconing normally looks
like. My normal tanks look better than that, and the one the blew looked
far worse. ymmv

Every bubble or air channel decreases the bonding strength, but how much
bubbling it takes for it to have any significance, I can't say. I don't
think you're in any immediate danger though. I'd just keep an eye on it
to see if it worsens. It's not unusual for properly constructed tanks to
last over 20 years.

NetMax


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Old 28-11-2003, 11:42 AM
Alex Harris
 
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Default how long do fishtanks last?

"NetMax" wrote in
:

snip
Nice tank Alex. Sorry for the delay. I suggest you trim your
pictures down in size (or compress them). I'm not familiar with the
Perfecto tanks, so I can't say if that's what their siliconing
normally looks like. My normal tanks look better than that, and the
one the blew looked far worse. ymmv

Every bubble or air channel decreases the bonding strength, but how
much bubbling it takes for it to have any significance, I can't say.
I don't think you're in any immediate danger though. I'd just keep an
eye on it to see if it worsens. It's not unusual for properly
constructed tanks to last over 20 years.

NetMax


Thanks Netmax,

I took a look at some of the larger perfecto tanks in the pet store and
they all looked the same as far as having bubbles/channels in there.
There were some 135 gallon tanks with thicker glass (black trim) that
were perfect in comparison to the perfecto tanks.

I'm keeping an eye on the channels on the left side to see if they are
moving.

I was testing out a friend's Canon Powershot G5 digital camera, very
nice camera. I forgot to clip the pics in a rush to upload them to the
page.

This is my first attempt at a large planted tank after putting my 20
gallon away about 10 years back.
http://home.comcast.net/~harrisal74/DeepEndTank.htm

Thanks again for your response, I feel a bit better, but I'll track it
for any changes to what's already there.

Alex
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