How Old Your Tank

[007_gaz]

it got me thinking as i heard that u are supose to replace your tank every few years. is that true? it seems most have their tank for 10 years ish then start to worry lol sure i heard these tanks of today can last a bit longer than say those back in the 70's. hey say if u had an old tank in the shed and has'nt been used in months, if u filled it up with water again is it true that where all that dry time that the silicone could come away causing tank to fall apart? some say tanks last longer if always wet.

 

[garyspence84]

That's crazy talk gaz, crazy talk.

Years ago I was given a 3foot fish tank, that was found in someones lock up. It hadn't been used for over 10 years! I cleaned it up, filled it with water and used it with absolutely no issues. And to this day that tank is in use.

I dare say that some tanks MAY loose there water holding ability if left for too long, but if thisis the case, you can get some tank safe silicone and go over all the seals yourself.

But if you have an old tank and are worried it might not be up to scratch. Fill it up and leave it (preferably outdoors, just in case), and see how it goes from there

 

[tribalbrit]

I replaced my tank a couple of years ago, the previous one being at least 20 years old, this was however re-sealed by myself 10 years ago. Both times the seals started leaking.

Silicone will break down and loose its elasticity over time, we also see this happen in the building trade so I would say just be cautious if re filling an old tank.

 

[007_gaz]

is it really just super heavy tanks that have risk of exploding due all that pressure of water. see i like to have a bit of piece of mind instead of worrying tank will go bang in the night lol i never heard of tanks under 100g crack its rare to hear of.

 

[tribalbrit]

The one I mentioned was 750 lt and only weeped on the seal when it went

 

[Mikey1]

i think it depends on the quality of the tank to begin with,

i have a hagen 75 gallon tank that i bought in the late 80's it was full of water until 2002....it sat empty from 2002 till 2010 when i put it back into use....since 2010 till this day it has been full....the tank has never leaked a drop in its life....

 

[nmonks]

I agree with this post 100%. Silicone is actually pretty durable, but it doesn't do well if the panes of glass get twisted, which mostly happens when people move empty tanks about. Otherwise, if an aquarium is in use and not moved about, it should last many, many years. Certainly 10+ years, and in many cases twice that. Re-sealing leaky tanks isn't hard, but better done in summer so you can do it outdoors.

Cheers, Neale

That's crazy talk gaz, crazy talk.

Years ago I was given a 3foot fish tank, that was found in someones lock up. It hadn't been used for over 10 years! I cleaned it up, filled it with water and used it with absolutely no issues. And to this day that tank is in use.

I dare say that some tanks MAY loose there water holding ability if left for too long, but if thisis the case, you can get some tank safe silicone and go over all the seals yourself.

But if you have an old tank and are worried it might not be up to scratch. Fill it up and leave it (preferably outdoors, just in case), and see how it goes from there

 

[Mikey1]

I agree with this post 100%. Silicone is actually pretty durable, but it doesn't do well if the panes of glass get twisted, which mostly happens when people move empty tanks about.

panes dont get twisted from moving empty tanks, they get twisted when you move tanks with water IN THEM!

panes can also twist if you fill a tank that is not evenly supported all around the entire perimeter

 

[fluttermoth]

I think the panes can get twisted both ways. I've known plenty of tanks that have started leaking only after they'd been moved.

On the whole it's not a problem. Most of my tanks are 20+ years old.

 

[nmonks]

Ah, you may well be quite right. But when you empty a tank there's always that temptation to carry it with the gravel in place or maybe even a bit of water so you don't have to take the fish and plants out! In any case, like Fluttermoth says, I've also seen really, really old tanks that were fine where they were, but when moved around a fish room or whatever, started leaking afterwards.

Cheers, Neale

panes dont get twisted from moving empty tanks, they get twisted when you move tanks with water IN THEM!