L8 2 RISE January 25, 2016 Share January 25, 2016 Doh! Was carrying my new IM 30 long and smashed the back on the corner of a dresser. The result is in the pic below. The back was completely shattered but it has a black plastic covering that held most of it together. I've decided I'm going to try to salvage the tank given that it is the back pane of glass, so the most supported and the least necessary to be clean. I found a glass store to make me a piece of 1/4 inch glass for only $14 and picked up this silicon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EZB2MDI?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00 (figured I'd spend the money and go with something I know is good). So hopefully this will turn out to only be a $30 mistake. Tonight I scraped off the rest of the glass and ended up with this: Tomorrow I will pick up the glass and use some rubbing alcohol and new razor blades to get as much of the old silicon as possible. My plan is to spread silicon along the edges of the tank and the baffles shown in the pic above, then hopefully have a couple friends lower the glass straight onto the silicon. I wont be able to reach my hands into the back to smooth out the silicon so we will have to make sure it goes straight down. A few questions: 1) Does anyone have any tricks to get the old silicon off the glass? I don't feel that I will be able to get 100% of it with the blades. I have an adhesive remover meant more for walls, but would that work? 2) Does my plan for lowering the glass onto the silicon on the tank sound ok? Any suggestions? Please share any advice or experiences! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveS January 25, 2016 Share January 25, 2016 Wow that sucks. At least it wasn't full! I'm thinking you will need to figure out a way to get down into the exterior seams (sides and bottom). Smooshing it is the only way I can think of to make sure the silicone is all where it needs to be and doesn't leak. The baffles are not a big deal but even a small leak on one of those 3 edges would be a deal breaker. Maybe see if you can get a rounded stick or something to do the smooshing for you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L8 2 RISE January 25, 2016 Author Share January 25, 2016 That's a good idea, was also thinking maybe I could smoosh in from the outside? I'll see how it goes. Also, does silicon bond to silicon ok? thinking about the already existing seams that already have dried silicon in them... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overklok January 25, 2016 Share January 25, 2016 You will need to completely clean the old silicone off the glass. 91 percent rubbing alcohol is what is usually recommended to prepare surfaces for silicone bonding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveS January 25, 2016 Share January 25, 2016 New si will not stick to old si. From what I have read, the main reason resealing old tanks doesn't work is because they didn't get rid of all the old silicone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite January 25, 2016 Share January 25, 2016 Razor blades and alcohol. You could use micro-fine sandpaper on the edges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mogurnda January 25, 2016 Share January 25, 2016 Dang! It's a sick feeling when you hear the crack. Razor blades and alcohol. You could use micro-fine sandpaper on the edges. What she said. Elbow grease and attention to detail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L8 2 RISE January 25, 2016 Author Share January 25, 2016 Razor blades and alcohol. You could use micro-fine sandpaper on the edges. Great idea on the sand paper! And yes, it was a horrible horrible feeling! I will definitely get all of the old silicon off the glass, but what I'm worried about is the bottom left and bottom right corners. There is already a silicon seem there that wont be removed unless I break down the entire tank. Should I just cake silicon into those corners? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mogurnda January 25, 2016 Share January 25, 2016 That's tricky. Hopefully, the seams will not have been damaged at those points. If it were me, I would cake silicone there. I would also test fill it for a few weeks after the silicone has set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L8 2 RISE January 25, 2016 Author Share January 25, 2016 That's tricky. Hopefully, the seams will not have been damaged at those points. If it were me, I would cake silicone there. I would also test fill it for a few weeks after the silicone has set. Heading out to get supplies now! Will absolutely be testing it over a floor drain for at least a week. Thanks for the advice everyone, will keep this thread updated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveS January 25, 2016 Share January 25, 2016 Maybe get smart on how you cut the old silicone in those corners. I bet either a perfect flush cut or probably an angled cut which maximizes the amount of new silicone touching the glass would make a difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 January 28, 2016 Share January 28, 2016 I have used Dow 795 to repair tanks. I know that we used this at the aquarium for a number of different things including creating terrariums/paladariums (coated foam with it and then mashed peat moss into it for the texture). It comes in multiple colors including black but check the elasticity for appropriateness for pressure situations. By the way, the advice above is good - you can't bond silicone to silicone and need the glass to be clean. Strip off as much as you can with a new razor blade, clean it up with alcohol, and then make sure that you give it time to bond. I cut away at the corners and removed all of the old silicone. I recommend putting a bead across it and then fit the glass to it. I know that in some situations they add small discs to space the glass and leave the silicone in between but an interior bead will help with that. Since it's all black and it's on the back, just add a bunch of extra silicone and do a wide bead on the glass before joining it. You may want to put some spacers where there is no silicone (cut some uniform blocks of wood so that you have just enough space between the glass that all of the silicone is not squeezed out (stab in the dark, maybe 1-2 mm) and then you can put weight on it. I would still make the effort to smooth the inside seams to avoid any rough edges and this will also spread the silicone across the glass surface a bit to seal up any potential gaps. You can clean up the outside with a razor blade once you are done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s2nhle January 28, 2016 Share January 28, 2016 Great advice. I have resealed 75g before. clean the glass real good with rubbing alcohol then apply silicon to it. Make sure you let it completely dry (3-4 days) and water test it. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prunfarm January 28, 2016 Share January 28, 2016 Maybe a plastic spoon on a stick, or a marble (ball bearing, pachinko ball) attached to a dowel will allow you to smooth the silicone inside after you drop the glass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L8 2 RISE January 30, 2016 Author Share January 30, 2016 Thanks for all the advice again everyone! Scraping all the old silicone took a solid 2 hours but the razor blades and especially sand paper were a great idea! Siliconed on the new glass last night. I really cached a bunch on there and it was much easier than expected. Since I didnt paint the glass yet, I could see into the back and work the silicone into where I needed it. Put a bunch of 2.5 lb weights on it so now I just have to wait a week. Fingers crossed please! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prunfarm January 30, 2016 Share January 30, 2016 Looks like a really good job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob A January 31, 2016 Share January 31, 2016 Crossing fingers for you!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerseller January 31, 2016 Share January 31, 2016 Nice work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 February 2, 2016 Share February 2, 2016 Sam, how are you going to do your bench presses when all of your weights are on the tank? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L8 2 RISE February 2, 2016 Author Share February 2, 2016 lol, takin an off week for the sake of the fish to come! Half way through the wait! Getting excited to test this out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L8 2 RISE February 6, 2016 Author Share February 6, 2016 Filled the tank up Friday! I went gradually through the day, filling chamber by chamber. So far so good, no leaks! I'll give it another 24-48 hours in the basement before I bring it up and set it up. Thanks everyone for the advice! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime February 6, 2016 Share February 6, 2016 Wow, you've got cahones. I'd be worried all the time. Looks like you did a great job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WheresTheReef February 7, 2016 Share February 7, 2016 Nice work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L8 2 RISE March 27, 2016 Author Share March 27, 2016 A little update, the tank and inhabitants today: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WheresTheReef March 27, 2016 Share March 27, 2016 Glad it worked out for you. Cute seahorse. What's the middle pic? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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