Oh Dear My Tank Is Leaking...

[SallyT]

I have a very small tropical tank with heating & pump & just 4 Neons which I've had a couple of years or so. I think its an 18litre tank. It is a hexagonal one and one of the front panels is leaking quite badly from the seal. It has gone in two places so I am needing to top the tank up every day & have put tea towels all around it to catch the drips (its way to heavy to move).

The trouble is, I don't have a spare tank & I don't really want to buy another tank - ass I say, I only have the four neons & had decided once they go to the quarium in the sky, I won't get any more for a while. I do love the tank tho and if there is anyway I can fix it without too much expense or risk to the fish, then I'd like to try.

Tonight I considered giving the fish away but I am pretty attached to them...I could put them in a bowl with the heater overnight but...I don't really know what I'm doing.

Can you advise what you'd do please?

Thanks,

Sally

 

[Corleone]

Get a 5 gallon bucket (if you have one you use for the tank, that will be ok, otherwise get a new one so it doesn't have any soap or chemical residue on it), which is about the same size, and run the filter and other equipment on that - the fish will be ok in there for the time being (it's about the same size as the tank, so they'd probably be ok in there forever, it's just not fun to look at fish in a bucket). Dry the tank itself, and get some silicone aquarium sealant to fix the leak.

 

[SallyT]

Get a 5 gallon bucket (if you have one you use for the tank, that will be ok, otherwise get a new one so it doesn't have any soap or chemical residue on it), which is about the same size, and run the filter and other equipment on that - the fish will be ok in there for the time being (it's about the same size as the tank, so they'd probably be ok in there forever, it's just not fun to look at fish in a bucket). Dry the tank itself, and get some silicone aquarium sealant to fix the leak.

Thanks ever so much. That is reassuring. I was worried about the effects of putting them in a bucket (I do have one just for the aquarium so I can use that). Now my heater will be ok as it is on a seperate cable, but the pump sits in the water & plugs in to the top of the tank. I can put the heater in the bucket but not the filter.

Soooooo if I pop the fish with heater in said bucket, how long will they be ok for without the filter? (four neons, big bucket!). And once the tank has the water out, how long will it take to dry & put sealant on & dry that? Do you think I can get away with it?!

Thanks for your help so far

 

[Corleone]

Is the filter in the hood? Find some way of setting it on there if at all possible, even if you have to jury rig something. Possibly a couple strips of wood accross the bucket and setting it between them. Aquarium sealant takes 24 hours to set up. The neons will probably be ok in the bucket for that time (do a couple water changes and don't feed during that time to make sure), but I'd be more worried about the filter. If you keep the media wet at least, you'll probably lose a good chunk of the bacteria and have a mini-cycle. if it dries out, you'll lose nearly all of your bacteria overnight and have a full fish-in cycle on your hands.

 

[SallyT]

Is the filter in the hood? Find some way of setting it on there if at all possible, even if you have to jury rig something. Possibly a couple strips of wood accross the bucket and setting it between them. Aquarium sealant takes 24 hours to set up. The neons will probably be ok in the bucket for that time (do a couple water changes and don't feed during that time to make sure), but I'd be more worried about the filter. If you keep the media wet at least, you'll probably lose a good chunk of the bacteria and have a mini-cycle. if it dries out, you'll lose nearly all of your bacteria overnight and have a full fish-in cycle on your hands.

I'm a durrr I never thought of that - yes I can put the hood over the bucket & that will supply the pump. Now the filter itself is one of those sponges with little balls & that is built in to the tank its self...I can remove the filter cartridge & the balls & just pop them in the bucket with the fish. Does that sound like it would be ok? It would def dry out if I left it in the tank as the tank would be drying. the tank is very healthy so I'd like to keep it that way if possible

Does it sound like a plan that will work?

Thanks again!

 

[Corleone]

Sounds better than leaving it in the tank. Make sure to monitor your water stats for the first few days afterwards, hopefully it'll only mean a few extra water changes and not a full cycle.

 

[SallyT]

Ok I'm doing it as we speak! If I can get them in the bucket tonight & start drying the tank, I can hopefully get the silicon in tomorrow...I'll keep you posted thank you!

 

[rabbut]

Nice botch, is to but pond leak epoxy (milliput or "just fix it" are just two of many such products) over the leak from the inside in small tanks, plugs the leak and sets underwater. Works instantly. You can also get tank safe silicone that sets under water now, but at £30 a tube..... Both being designed for ponds are 100% fish-safe

Just a heads-up
Rabbut

 

[OldMan47]

The thing to worry about next is making sure the new silicone has cured properly before you refill the tank. If you stick your face in the tank and can still smell a vinegary odor, the silicone needs to cure more no matter what the label says about cure times. You do not want to put the new silicone over the old bead of silicone. Remove the old with a razor blade so that you are starting with not much more than the glass itself. There is no need to break the seam open but get all that you can off the surface before you start applying new silicone.

 

[SallyT]

Thanks very much for your advice. Unfortunately I was late home from work tonight & the pet shop was closed but I will go in the morning. The tank is drying out nicely & as it is only small, I have been able to put it in the airing cupboard!

Everything is working ok in the bucket and from what I can tell the fish are ok & stats normal. I haven't fed them for two days...hope that's ok as if I put the silicon in tomorrow it is going to be sat or sun before they can be re homed. They'll be ok that long without food? I don't have any live plants & the water is all fresh, tho they have their grtavel, filter and all the quarium bits in there.

Thanks again for your help and wish me luck resealing!

 

[Corleone]

It'll be fine as long as they've gotten daily feedings. Fish don't need that much food to survive - a week without is no problem, sometimes far longer than that.

 

[SallyT]

ok thanks

 

[SallyT]

Hiya,

Just to update you...

Very sadly, the repair of my tank didn't work...I did everything to the letter, but 48hrs later, it was leaking again, so I took myself off to the fish shop & bought a new tank. It is a bigger one, with a good pump etc. They advised me to rinse the tank out, put some of the aquarium water in it & all the gravel, ornaments & I'd be ok to put the fish straight in. I told them I was concerned at cycling, but they said with four neons and such a big tank, it won't be an issue.

So far so good...fish are looking very happy (can't believe their luck). I'd like to add some more, but I'll leave it a few weeks & make sure everythings ok

 

[OldMan47]

As long as you move your existing filter to the new tank, everything should be fine. You already know that your existing filter has enough of the right bacteria for the fish that you have. You could put all the water into the new tank and then fill it the rest of the way with tap water. It would be like doing a big water change and wouldn't bother the fish at all.