Silicon Seals Gone Hard And White.

[rich05uk]

Hello All,

I've been given a tank but I'm a little worried about the silicon seals. I've filled it with water and it appears fine, I can't see any leaks. However some of the silicon along the edge of the front and bottom of the tank has gone white and is hard, in some places it looks like it's gone bubbly and appears to be a little flaky because if I rub my finger along it, bits break away. 2 of the corners appear to have the same problem too.

Shall I just leave it or does it need some work? As I said, it doesn't appear to be leaking and don't want to create a problem by attempting to repair it, plus I could do without creating additional work for myself if I can help it.

The expression "if it ain't broke don't fix it" comes to mind!

If it does need work, what do I need to do?

Thanks.

 

[fozziebear]

desnt sound good, silicone shouldnt be going hard an brittle, only thing i can think of is that its VERY old and been left dry for a LONG time, if it was me id wanna be safe, because you dont want a lake in your house, its only a matter of time before that thing gives, just reseal it, you dont need to take the whole tank apart, this article here explains how to repair tank seams, you need to use special aquaria silicone though, as its the only one thats safe for fish, and the tank needs to be dried for 48 hours before any water goes in. http/www.fishforums.net/content/Aquarium...ir-a-tank-seam/

regards, angus.

 

[Tolak]

This depends on where you plan on keeping the tank, and if a slight trickle of water in the future will cause any significant damage. I have more than a few used tanks with silicone like that in my fishroom, that have been running for years without any issues. This is in the basement, with a concrete floor & floor drain, if they leak I just have some mop work to do.

I have one tank upstairs, in the living room, which has carpeting & hardwood floors. If I had any questions at all with this tank I would not even bother with a reseal, new tank time. I would have a lot of work ahead of me with the living room if it started to leak, along with the drywall ceiling beneath.

Usually damage to seals along or near the bottom is caused by gravel & the maintenance it involves. If you use it as is, go easy with the gravel vac in the areas where the silicone is iffy.

 

[Colin_T]

If the silicon has air bubbles in it then that is a good indication the silicon is coming away from the glass. One or two small bubbles aren’t a problem but more bubbles means less adhesion between the remaining silicon and the glass.
White or opaque coloured silicon is usually on its way out. Bleach will also damage silicon and cause it to go white.

Unfortunately there is no way of saying whether the tank will hold together for another month or another 5 years. If the tank feels strudy when you lift it and the sides don't move or flex then it should be ok for a while.
Try pulling the silicon away from the glass. If it comes away then fix it.

The old saying of if it ain't broke don't fix it can be good for some things, but when there is several hundred litres of water waiting to wash the carpet, it's better to err on the side of fix it

 

[Rooster]

I agree with colin... if its white, then its seperated from the glass... I would strip it off totally-not just the didgy bits and redo the sealant.

 

[rich05uk]

Thanks all for your help. I am pleased to say I did decide to cut away all the silicon around the bottom of the tank and re-silicon it, which wasn't as hard as I first thought.

I had done a little silicon work in the bathroom last year and so it was easy once I had the old silicon off. The hardest bit was certainly making sure all the old silicon was removed, but a tip was included on the bottle of the aqua silicon I used which advised to use methylated spirits to remove any silicon which leaves a perfect grease free and perfectly clean surface for the new silicon to stick too, it worked really well and I'm very pleased with the results.

Time to fill it with water, fingers crossed it doesn't leak now....