Following along. Just brought home a free, side of the road custom 135 gallon. My dream tank. I couldnt justify buying a new one in my budget. Thanks for the simple, budget friendly tutorial. I am no longer nervous that I am going to do something wrong and end up with a lake in my livivng room :)
Raymond Sloan sorry, I hit a snag in getting the acrylic for the tops, so the "insulating" video which was the next thing was super delayed. New sheets came in last week, so I should be able to continue these this week
Angelfish Unlimited, Awesome! I am in the middle if refurbishing four different tanks from 40 gallon pentagon, a 100, 120 and 150 curved corner. Three of the four need stand restoration as well!
I was just given a 75 gal Looks similar to yours. I filled it up and no leaks or anything. U think I'm good to go or should I cut out the old silicone and reseal ?
I reseal just because I like to know I won't have to do it later, you know? $12 and an hour or two of work to get a clean, new-ish looking tank that you know will last another decade. But I enjoy the whole process, personally
Haha, yeah, a lot of projects are super easy or really hard just depending on the tools you grab. The whole tank took me about 5 minutes to strip with the big metal scraper, and the one corner I did with a box knife + cheap scraper took longer than that by itself. I'm going to be moving my wild angels in for now, since my 2600 gallon tank is taking a lot longer than I had planned. After that, though, not sure. Maybe a bunch of pictus cats and boesemani or banded rainbows
Picked a 6ft long aquarium sitting in someones back yard in about 8 inches of rain water. Seems like its been there for years. Would you still just take off the silicone in the edges or would you completely take it apart and start from scratch? or leave it in tacked?
If the glass seems solid (no wobble when you pull at the edges) then I would just do the inside edges. I've personally had pretty bad luck with full tear downs if the silicone isn't completely shot, even with a cutting wire I've had panes crack while trying to cut the silicone to separate them. I'd definitely spend a could extra dollars on a high quality silicone, though, GE scs1200 or momentive rtv 108 are both way stronger than the GE silicone I that people often use. Being outside for awhile I'd feel like the extra $6-7 is definitely a good idea to know that you have something strong enough to hold even if the inside seals are rotten.
Is silicon bad for fish? Heating cracked glass till crack seals itself might be better in the long run I think. I'd try it atleast on some cheap glass as a experiment.
Heating tempered glass destroys the temper. Silicone is the sealant used to hold fish tanks together, it is inert. Cracked glass shouldn't be used, heating it will make cracks worse. This was a chip, which is different than a crack, and as a said in the video this one almost certainly happened in the factory, since it was covered by their silicone. Trying to melt glass to fix a crack will likely result in a got glass shattering and being flung everywhere, and I cannot recommend against it strongly enough
The dangers in silicones are in refilling the tank before they cure completely and anti-mildew agents (in theory). Silicone I (the kind that makes a vinegar smell) generally cures in 24-48 hours, as long as it's not too thick. Silicone II takes a lot longer, so it's better to be avoided. If you open a tube and it doesn't stink of vinegar then I wouldn't use it just to be safe. I know Loctite clear silicone is stated to be aquarium safe, it's part of the European Henkel brand from Germany so you might have that locally. In the US we generally look for things that don't claim to have anti-mildew agents, so you you'd want to try to find something without Schimmelbestendig on the label I think?
Bison looks like they make an aquarium silicone, if you want to make absolutely certain www.bison.nl/nl/tips/gebruik-siliconenkit-glas-voor-je-aquarium I assume that's fine, though with phrases like "fungicides are fungicides" in the description I feel like it might be overpriced to try to trick people who don't know what to look for. American companies pull that crap all the time, I assume they do everywhere else too
thanks. how did you even get to a dutch site? i have looked at the webshops of local stores and a tube of that silicone costs around 8€ (10 dollars) here. ( the cheapest i could find) how much tubes of silicone did you use on this tank? just one?
Google magic! Ok, not really, i just did a search for "aquarium siliconen site:.nl" That's not too bad a price, assuming it's the big one and not the tiny toothpaste tube size one. Gamma appears to have it on sale for 6.5€ until Sunday, if that's at all helpful. This would have only taken one 310ml tube, I probably used about 200-250ml. It looks like most silicone there is "Zuurvrij" which is generally considered unsafe (usually called "Silicone II" in american fish forums), so since I can't really find anything else I'd say definitely go bison glas
What brand is this tank I have one very similar size and with the glass insert in the center as well that we have had for over 20 yrs just curious as to the brand I think it’s ocean something
Johnny Phive the stuff that wasn't removable is hard water etching. Not even hydrochloric acid removes it (I tried). The rest of it comes off with basically anything, CLR is a bit stronger than lime juice, but lime juice is a good suggestion for hitting small spots. I'll be sure to bring that up in the kh video when I get around to it
There isn't one. I decided at the time that it was probably better to do a general video about insulation, etc. for tanks, and then ran out of time to work on stuff. The things that were done are in later videos, though, as examples.
Dude
That's a Oceanic tank, they are probably the best tank on the market. Nice find.😊
Following along. Just brought home a free, side of the road custom 135 gallon. My dream tank. I couldnt justify buying a new one in my budget.
Thanks for the simple, budget friendly tutorial. I am no longer nervous that I am going to do something wrong and end up with a lake in my livivng room :)
I can't wait to see how you insulate the tank!
I just picked up a 55 gallon tank for free from Craigslist, same fake wood rims, I'll restore it soon, thanks for the video👍👍
Someone at the factory made a mistake and was either afraid to admit it or their supervisor okayed it.
I always find stuff like that fasinating.
I like how you have different price options that’s snart
This is the best aquarium restoration video. In the beginning of one myself, and this was the best guide to follow. Cheerin.
Made by Oceanic, Dallas Texas
Sos pads work great makes the glass look new just keep it wet
Update?!
Hi can you explain cleaning the silicone in detail?
Great video, I am looking forward the the video on refurbishing the stand! How soon?
Raymond Sloan sorry, I hit a snag in getting the acrylic for the tops, so the "insulating" video which was the next thing was super delayed. New sheets came in last week, so I should be able to continue these this week
Angelfish Unlimited, Awesome! I am in the middle if refurbishing four different tanks from 40 gallon pentagon, a 100, 120 and 150 curved corner. Three of the four need stand restoration as well!
I was just given a 75 gal
Looks similar to yours. I filled it up and no leaks or anything. U think I'm good to go or should I cut out the old silicone and reseal ?
I reseal just because I like to know I won't have to do it later, you know?
$12 and an hour or two of work to get a clean, new-ish looking tank that you know will last another decade.
But I enjoy the whole process, personally
I’ve just done this with a 20 gallon. I wish you had made this 6 weeks ago. You make it look easy. Got any plans for livestock yet?
Haha, yeah, a lot of projects are super easy or really hard just depending on the tools you grab.
The whole tank took me about 5 minutes to strip with the big metal scraper, and the one corner I did with a box knife + cheap scraper took longer than that by itself.
I'm going to be moving my wild angels in for now, since my 2600 gallon tank is taking a lot longer than I had planned. After that, though, not sure. Maybe a bunch of pictus cats and boesemani or banded rainbows
what and awesome video!
Thanks Craig, welcome to the channel
Well do u know anyone in the west Texas that can help with a 911 on my 180gal. It sprang a leak in my home
Picked a 6ft long aquarium sitting in someones back yard in about 8 inches of rain water. Seems like its been there for years. Would you still just take off the silicone in the edges or would you completely take it apart and start from scratch? or leave it in tacked?
If the glass seems solid (no wobble when you pull at the edges) then I would just do the inside edges.
I've personally had pretty bad luck with full tear downs if the silicone isn't completely shot, even with a cutting wire I've had panes crack while trying to cut the silicone to separate them.
I'd definitely spend a could extra dollars on a high quality silicone, though, GE scs1200 or momentive rtv 108 are both way stronger than the GE silicone I that people often use. Being outside for awhile I'd feel like the extra $6-7 is definitely a good idea to know that you have something strong enough to hold even if the inside seals are rotten.
Is silicon bad for fish? Heating cracked glass till crack seals itself might be better in the long run I think. I'd try it atleast on some cheap glass as a experiment.
Heating tempered glass destroys the temper.
Silicone is the sealant used to hold fish tanks together, it is inert.
Cracked glass shouldn't be used, heating it will make cracks worse. This was a chip, which is different than a crack, and as a said in the video this one almost certainly happened in the factory, since it was covered by their silicone.
Trying to melt glass to fix a crack will likely result in a got glass shattering and being flung everywhere, and I cannot recommend against it strongly enough
i don't have the same brand of silicone in the netherlands. do you know what is consists of? and what silicone is poisonous to fish?
Erik-Jan Heida look for 100 percent silicone without mold resistance if your not sure ask or order silicone off of Amazon for aquariums
The dangers in silicones are in refilling the tank before they cure completely and anti-mildew agents (in theory). Silicone I (the kind that makes a vinegar smell) generally cures in 24-48 hours, as long as it's not too thick. Silicone II takes a lot longer, so it's better to be avoided.
If you open a tube and it doesn't stink of vinegar then I wouldn't use it just to be safe.
I know Loctite clear silicone is stated to be aquarium safe, it's part of the European Henkel brand from Germany so you might have that locally. In the US we generally look for things that don't claim to have anti-mildew agents, so you you'd want to try to find something without Schimmelbestendig on the label I think?
Bison looks like they make an aquarium silicone, if you want to make absolutely certain
www.bison.nl/nl/tips/gebruik-siliconenkit-glas-voor-je-aquarium
I assume that's fine, though with phrases like "fungicides are fungicides" in the description I feel like it might be overpriced to try to trick people who don't know what to look for. American companies pull that crap all the time, I assume they do everywhere else too
thanks.
how did you even get to a dutch site?
i have looked at the webshops of local stores and a tube of that silicone costs around 8€ (10 dollars) here. ( the cheapest i could find)
how much tubes of silicone did you use on this tank? just one?
Google magic! Ok, not really, i just did a search for "aquarium siliconen site:.nl"
That's not too bad a price, assuming it's the big one and not the tiny toothpaste tube size one. Gamma appears to have it on sale for 6.5€ until Sunday, if that's at all helpful.
This would have only taken one 310ml tube, I probably used about 200-250ml.
It looks like most silicone there is "Zuurvrij" which is generally considered unsafe (usually called "Silicone II" in american fish forums), so since I can't really find anything else I'd say definitely go bison glas
What brand is this tank I have one very similar size and with the glass insert in the center as well that we have had for over 20 yrs just curious as to the brand I think it’s ocean something
Oceanic
Use lime juice next time brother. The acid from the lime would eat the calcium deposit
Johnny Phive the stuff that wasn't removable is hard water etching. Not even hydrochloric acid removes it (I tried). The rest of it comes off with basically anything, CLR is a bit stronger than lime juice, but lime juice is a good suggestion for hitting small spots. I'll be sure to bring that up in the kh video when I get around to it
Went aren't all "how to" CZcams videos this detailed???
Also, thank you for convincing me to just not get sm old dried up fish tank
Where's part 2?
There isn't one. I decided at the time that it was probably better to do a general video about insulation, etc. for tanks, and then ran out of time to work on stuff.
The things that were done are in later videos, though, as examples.