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tank repair
Posted: 25 Jan 2006, 04:23
by smiffertins
Anyone had any luck replacing a glass pane on a tank? Or, do you know what will dissolve silicone sealant???? I have, or rather had, two tanks with cracks...shattered one trying to take it apart. the bottom and top seal attached to the black plastic (you know, the standard glass tank rim and base) seem to be the toughest. Any ideas?
Posted: 25 Jan 2006, 10:13
by MatsP
From what I've been told elsewhere, DIY shops (B&Q, Wickes in England, Home Depot etc in the US) sell stuff called "Silicon sealant remover" [or someting along those lines].
Alternatively, using a sharp knife (scalpel, X-acto-knife, or similar) would be my suggestion.
Make sure you clean the glass with pure Acetone [NOT nailvarnish remover, as it's usually has oil in it] before trying to assemble it again.
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Mats
Posted: 25 Jan 2006, 17:00
by smiffertins
yeah the x-acto knife worked to a certain point... but I think silicone sealant remover is what I need. THANKS!!
Posted: 25 Jan 2006, 20:11
by bronzefry
Santa Cruz....lovely neck of the woods! Mats has given you good advice there. Good luck with the tanks.
Posted: 26 Jan 2006, 00:03
by smiffertins
yeah bronzefry santa cruz is great, Ive lived here my whole life. expensive, but beautiful. I see youre from Mass. My Dad and his side of the family is from New Bedford...
Posted: 27 Jan 2006, 13:44
by bronzefry
Wahoo! Welcome to Planet Catfish!
Posted: 27 Jan 2006, 14:36
by smiffertins
hahaha thanks! Its funny, it says I'm a "forum lurker" which is actually more true than it's probably meant to be! I'm on this web site at least 2-3 hours a day, but usually searching through forums (or should I say "lurking" through forums 
) so I dont ask a question thats been asked a million times. My boyfriend always walks in the room and says, "here she goes... planet kellysfish." HaHa
Anyways, back to the topic... How about a crack on the short side pane? I have a 'lil 10 gal with a crack across the side from one end to the other; if I smear some silicone across it will it hold or do you think the pressure would break through?
Posted: 27 Jan 2006, 15:07
by MatsP
I would think that a cracked pane would require complete replacement - there will be A LOT of stress on it from the water pressure.
Removing a broken piece of glass shouldn't be too much of a problem - you can BREAK it more to make it easier to remove, get a glass-cutting tool (diamond or steel "scoring" tool to "scratch" lines in the glass) and make a good cut so that the glass breaks properly. Once you've removed the piece, you need to find a replacement piece that is the exact same size within a few hundreds of an inch (tenths of a millimeter). Obviously, if you have a second tank from the same manufacturer with the same dimensions, that is also broken, you could use the corresponding piece from that tank - obviously cutting other pieces next to it to get it out in one piece.
Of course, I'm not sure if it's worth all this effort - if prices of small all-glass tanks are similar to here, you can probably find a new 10g tank for around $40 or so. Depends on how much you value your time versus cash...
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Mats
Posted: 27 Jan 2006, 23:11
by Rickzfish
If you want to remove the silicone, just use a single edge razor. To separate the panes use a fine guitar string and run it down the seam between the panes of glass. Acetone(cheap nail polish remover) will remove any film left after using the razor.
Posted: 28 Jan 2006, 00:52
by smiffertins
MatsP, unfortunately as far as time and money go~ one of them I have LOTS and LOTS of, and the other hardly any of... I'm sure you can guess which goes with which based on this topic. Actually, if I fix it, it'll just be used as a quarantine tank. I gave away 25+ koi(only about 1-2"/ea) that I had taking up a 55 gallon tank last night so I guess I can relax for a little while on fixing the 10 gal; at least until I can get to the hardware store for some silicone sealant remover. Now that I've off loaded the koi, I'm thinking of expanding my catfish tank to the 55 gal... hmmmmm, how to fit it in our room before my boyfriend gets home...? 