ugh so bummed....

[Vadim]

tried to start my sump and fuge today. got all the way to the point of starting my overflow. but next thing something told me to make sure everything is tight and nothing is leaking. Next thing i know i take a step to the left on the small rug, and it's wet. next thing i am panicking wondering why it's wet, next thing i notice is cracked glass near the hole drilled where the pipe is attached. boy i tell you. ever seen a big guy move? should've seen me. i think it was record time, unplugging everything. so does anyone on wamas know how to drill a tank? i

[treesprite]

So are you saying your display tank is cracked or the sump? Hopefully just the sump, 'cause I own the monopoly on breaking tanks around here. Lots of people here drill their own tanks, even me. It's not as hard as it is scary, there are just some basic but very important points to remember when doing it.

[Vadim]

it's the sump that went crackle pop. i just don't feel like taking it to the lfs and paying 90 bucks for the glass drilling and a little bit of piping.

[extreme_tooth_decay]

it's the sump that went crackle pop. i just don't feel like taking it to the lfs and paying 90 bucks for the glass drilling and a little bit of piping.

 

Yeah I know the feeling, it sucks.

 

I once set up a 40 BR ($90), drilled it, tightened bulkheads too tight, cracked it, and had to go buy another one ($90).

 

I still don't know what I did wrong. At first, I didn't tighten them much, but it was leaking...so I kept tightening to stop the leaks, but then it broke. I even had the rubber gasket on the non-nut side.

[Vadim]

i was going to use a 30 gallon sump on a 75 gallon main tank. I have a 10 gallon that i use for QT, i think i'll use that as a sump now and just get another 10 gallon as QT. I need to get this done asap. Before the weekend.

[Origami]

Sorry, Vadim. Do you think it cracked during drilling, or because of stresses placed on it after drilling?

[rocko918]

Something that i always do when putting on bulk heads is add a silicone bead to stop any leaks. Then you don't really have to worry about getting so tight that it will crack. I know a lot of people poo poo the idea but its pretty easy to break the seal of the silicone if you need to get it off. ALL my bulk heads are done this way. I never had or have leaks from them.

[Vadim]

I think it's stresses afterwards. I have a pretty big pump and i think the way it was positioned it caused lots of stress. BUT my girlfriend said she noticed a leak before there was a crack. Maybe there was a small crack and i just didn't see it. But i will say the guy that did the drilling he only put kaulk on the inside of the glass and not both sides of the glass.

[Integral9]

The vibrations from a large pump could have been the cause of the crack. I think you can reduce the vibrations and stress on the tank by using flex-pvc to connect the pump to the sump. I use it to connect my pump to my hard lines as it makes it easier to move the pump around in my sump.

[Vadim]

the guy who did for me put on hard pvc with ball valves. i wonder if the glass cutting hand tool will cut a hole that i need?

[Integral9]

hard PVC w/ ball valves is not uncommon. I see it all the time. you could have cracked the tank turning those valves also. Probably more likely I'd say. Also, the vibrations from a large pump could make any crack larger over time. Like a crack in your windshield that grows when you drive over a bumpy road.

 

To drill my tanks, I used a drill with a glass hole-saw bit. There are plenty of video on youtube showing how and how not to do it. If it's the kind of hand tool I'm thinking it is, I don't think the cutting tool will work as you use them for cutting straight lines. the hole-saw method actually just grinds the glass away instead a controlled crack that the tool allows for.

[Origami]

Here's a video on how to drill holes in non-tempered glass:

http://reefercentral.com/drilling.html

[Brian Ward]

Drilling tanks isn't hard. If you were using a 30 gal, that glass is pretty thin and you should definitely use at least some flex tube to cut down on vibration transmission. Any stress or flexing at all on the hole for that size tank will cause it to crack - another reason not to use hard plumbing all the way. Unless you're a master pipefitter, getting everything to align perfectly is nearly impossible. A 10 gal is even worse - incredibly difficult to drill without cracking since the glass is even thinner.

 

I have successfully patched a cracked tank - look around the internet, just place a piece of glass on the inside of the tank completely covering the crack, hole, etc. and use plenty of silicone. I would recommend this since it's a sump and stick with the 30 gal rather than going to a 10. You can get pieces of glass from Lowe's.

[Vadim]

i think im going to buy some polycarbonate sheets and build a sump. Any thoughts?

[Brian Ward]

i think im going to buy some polycarbonate sheets and build a sump. Any thoughts?

 

You'd be better off getting one from NAGA. If you aren't well-versed in acrylic fabrication, that can go horribly wrong.

[Vadim]

Home Depot carries the polycarbonate and they said they would cut it to the size i want (panels) But i would have to obviously get the clear kaulk and do that myself. That doesn't sound to hard to me? Unless im missing something. (which is entirely possible).

[extreme_tooth_decay]

Home Depot carries the polycarbonate and they said they would cut it to the size i want (panels) But i would have to obviously get the clear kaulk and do that myself. That doesn't sound to hard to me? Unless im missing something. (which is entirely possible).

 

You'd be best off just buying another glass aquarium. It isn't too hard.

 

You can't use caulk/silicone to build an acrylic tank, it will not work. You need to use a special solvent, and need the sides/edges to be very even/flat, which Lowe's will not do for you. You need them jointed.

Edited August 25, 2010 by extreme_tooth_decay

[Vadim]

ahhh ok, i got it now. thanks.

[Vadim]

Ok, i think i know what i have to do. Since im in a time crunch here. For now i'll put the 10 gallon in as a sump. I found a plastics company that sells cell cast acrylic, and pricing isn't that bad. So that'll be my new project is to build a sump with acrylic.

[Brian Ward]

The reason you can't use caulk or silicone with acrylic is because acrylic is actually oil. While it may hold in the short-term, it will not hold over the long term. What you actually have to do is create a chemical weld with a product like Weld-On #3 or Weld-On #4. In order for this to work, the joints must be perfect - no gaps anywhere. Melev's reef has some good DIY information on doing acrylic projects, but I definitely would not recommend that a sump be your first try. It's just asking for disaster.

 

http://www.melevsreef.com/allmysumps.html

[hypertech]

Why not just get a submersible pump? No holes, no cracks, no problems.

[Vadim]

i already spent a lot on the pump and other stuff. but can't i just run flexible tubing into the tank without drilling holes? Obviously i'd have to find something to attach the flexible tubing so it doesn't go everywhere, but that i think will be the easy part, maybe.

[hypertech]

By the time you build an acrylic sump and buy all that tubing, I bet you could make up teh difference between the value of your pump and a good submersible pump.

[Vadim]

success, sump has been running for 2 days without any problems. Refugium is going up tonight. So my temp setup is a 10 gallon sump with a mag12 submersible pump, I was able to fit a skimmer in there my heater and 2 socks but i need to by smaller socks or somehow hang the current socks on something taller.

[Origami]

Be careful about installing the socks too high up and over the top of your sump. If they clog, water overflows over the top of the sock. Make sure that, should this happen, the water overflows into your sump and not all over the floor.