Broken 55g Tank...

[ICEEGRL]

I had it sitting in the floor while I got the rocks situated and all. It was going to be a cichlid tank.
My husband was walking through and ran into it and broke it last night. The end piece is broken pretty badly. The rest is still fine.

I need to know how hard it is to replace the glass on one end of a 55g tank. Do you have to take it all apart and start over or can you cut the seal and just do the one end? Will the new sealant stick to the old? what about the frame? Will I have to take all that off? It is an all-glass aquarium with the black plastic frame on top and bottom.

I will try to get a pic on here as soon as I can figure out how.

I am just glad it wasn't full of water yet!

With it being this size... will it be safe to use if I try to replace the glass, or will it make it weaker?

How do I do this? ( So many questions...) I have never done anything like this.

I need help! I don't want to do it wrong and mess it up.

Thanks for helping!

 

[Underwurlde]

No reason why it can't be reapired...

Are you saying that the glass is cracked, or are you saying that some of the silicon sealant that holds the glass together is bust?

Andy

 

[ICEEGRL]

The glass is busted in 3 places.
I am ging to try to get a pic on here. I have to go to another site to do it though. It will take a little while.



I need instructions for a dummy! Like I said... I have no idea what I am doing.
I will be back in a little bit. I have to find a way to get a pic on here.

Thanks for helping!

 

[dave1987]

you can just replace the broken peice with a new sheet of aquarium glass you cut it off at the seal take all the sealant off the joint clean it then put new sealant on then clamp the glass on to it so its really tight and leave it for a couple of day 2 set properly thats how i would do it

 

[drewry]

I had it sitting in the floor while I got the rocks situated and all. It was going to be a cichlid tank.
My husband was walking through and ran into it and broke it last night. The end piece is broken pretty badly. The rest is still fine.

I need to know how hard it is to replace the glass on one end of a 55g tank. Do you have to take it all apart and start over or can you cut the seal and just do the one end? Will the new sealant stick to the old? what about the frame? Will I have to take all that off? It is an all-glass aquarium with the black plastic frame on top and bottom.

I will try to get a pic on here as soon as I can figure out how.

I am just glad it wasn't full of water yet!

With it being this size... will it be safe to use if I try to replace the glass, or will it make it weaker?

How do I do this? ( So many questions...) I have never done anything like this.

I need help! I don't want to do it wrong and mess it up.

Thanks for helping!

hi ICEEGRL

just found this site for you hope it helps

http/www.angelfire.com/in/AngelsCAFE/aquarep.html

 

[ICEEGRL]

ok... I got the pic on flickr. I just can't see how to get it from there to here.

 

[Underwurlde]

copy the image url location of the uploaded picture and paste it into a reply surrounded by these:

[ img] image_url_here [ /img]

NO SPACES in the[ img] bit

Andy

 

[ICEEGRL]

Ok. I am computer stupid! That looks like another language to me.
I didn't see a url. Where would it be?

 

[ICEEGRL]

http/www.flickr.com/photos/20120596@N02/1967121643/
will this work?

http/www.flickr.com/photos/20120596@N02/1967119029/

The first one worked... maybe this will too.

Thanks for helping!

 

[Underwurlde]

That worked great.

Photobucket is easier to use, but whatever...

Yeah, first thing I'd do would be to get my butt-cheeks down to my LFS and ask if they can cut me up a piece of glass to replace that which is broken....

If they do, also you might want to ask them if they could grind the edges after cutting, otherwise you'll be left with razor sharp edges...

Andy

 

[ICEEGRL]

I got it on sale at petsmart. That is almost 2 hours away. Do they do glass pieces... you think? I will check.
Will this be hard to fix?

 

[Tolak]

Nice links! Ouch tank.

The link drewry provided gives a good overview, I've found that removing the top & bottom frames can often be the toughest part. A skinny razor knife, like the snap off bladed box cutters works well for slicing between the frame & glass.

GE Silicone I is a commonly available aquarium safe silicone product, and is used by many people to reseal & repair tanks. Put "For Aquatics Use" on anything, and double the price. GE Silicone II is a no go, it is an ammonia based prouct, though I've heard of people using it, and letting it dry for a few weeks without any problems.

***Edit to add***

Any decent hardware store can cut glass for you, bring in a sample of the broken glass to get the proper thickness.

 

[Underwurlde]

I will be AMAZED if PetSmart had spare bits of glass lying about, but if you don't ask...

Try smaller independant LFS people, usually such places make tanks to order.

Andy

 

[ICEEGRL]

I can't get it at petsmart. I will have to check around. There is a glass place in the next town. I will check with them on Monday.
Between now and then I will try to get the old glass out. This tank is brand new with tags still on it!

from what it said in that link I will have to take off the frames (top and bottom) which may be a little difficult.
Then I can remove the broken piece.

What exactly does grinding the edges mean? Do I need them rounded or just smoothed so it isn't sharp?

It also didn't say how to put the frame back on. Do I just put the same silicone in there and put it back?

Thanks for helping! Sorry I freaked.
I didn't want to make him feel bad, but he knows how I am with my tanks. I wanted really badly to scream and cry, but I didn't. He feels bad enough as it is.

The up side is... When this is over I will know how to build a tank. I can then play around with it, and make more! I will just have to figure out how to make the frame...
I am trying very hard to find some good in this so I don't start to cry like a baby...

Thanks again for all the help! I appreciate it more than you all know.

 

[Tolak]

Grinding the edges removes the sharpness from freshly cut glass. I used to work with stained glass long ago, those edges are razor sharp at times, but grinding them creates a less smooth surface, which often maked adhesion more difficult. You could remove any sharp edges yourself with a pumice stone, Dr. Sholls foot smoothing stones come to mind.

You will need a little silicone bead to reattach the frames, this also seals the frame, keeping water from creeping out with higher water levels due to capillary action.

Often a rim made of strips of glass is siliconed around to act as a rim on home made tanks. The inside edge of this rim is something that you would want to grind nice & round, so you don't slash yourself when reaching into the tank.