Score! Battered and abused tank

[Girl Got Mojo]

GoodMorning everyone. :22:

Not sure if this should be here or in DIY.

Heres the deal, a friend brought me what looks to be a pretty old, around
fifteen gallon tank. The the seal is all peeling away and is some sort of white
stuff that is probably silicone but it is flaking in places. I have been scraping it
off so that i can reseal it.

The second thing is that the rim on the top is a bulky metal thing and is loose
on one corner, it lifts up about 2 inches when i pull on it. I'm pretty sure i
want to take the whole thing off but i think this is going to be very difficult.
The three other corners seem to be very secure. Also It would make for less
support on this kind of shady tank. Though the glass is pretty thick for this
size tank. What would be some ways to try to remove this?

The third thing is that there is a chip on the outer corner edge of the back
glass, It is a little over the size of a quarter and kind of deep. i don't know if
this going to determine whether the tank is useable or not, i was hoping some
of you glass worker guys could give me some insight on this.


Any advice on getting this tank in working order is appreciated.

[rich311k]

If it is only 15 gallons it can not be worth the work. A new one is what 20 bucks?

[Northernguy]

I resealed my 135 in my journal. I used a flat razor to cut the silicone out of all the corners. Alcohol to clean the rest on the remnants of the silicone.
For a straight silicone job use masking tape as a guide.
I have pics of most of this and what to use as well here.
[Only Registered Users Can See Links.]

[Cristoff]

To be honest, 15 gallon tanks are quite inexpensive. I'm not sure how much you value your time, but it may take more time than it's worth to get it fixed up.

The chip would scare the crap out of me being on the outside of the tank. That really weakens the structure and you may just wind up with 15 gallons of water on the floor.

As far as the metal rim - you could try heating it up with a hair dryer or heat gun to make the silicone easier to manipulate.

Good luck!

[Girl Got Mojo]

If it is only 15 gallons it can not be worth the work. A new one is what 20 bucks?
They are cheap but this tank being a gift from this person it automatically has
sentimental value. Plus at the moment i am looking for a challenge i suppose.
If this doesn't work out i think i will turn it into a terrarium sort of thing. Dirt,
plants, light, no water lol. Also being proactive about getting yet another tank
wouldn't be very uuh considerate of my live-ins lol.


Thank you NG That thread is going to help me, i didn't know alcohol would
work for that.


That chip DOES scare me. Especially after looking at it a little closer. where
the thinnest part of the chip is is right where the silicone is over it, yikes! I will
try to dig up a blow dryer, that might loosen it then I'll just go all out on it
and brute force the sucker off. After that if it is still intact it will have dirt and
plants only.

Thanks You guys.

[rich311k]

I can understand that. Good luck getting it back in usable shape.

[Girl Got Mojo]

Thanks Rich! I think I've pretty much decided that it's not gonna hold fish and
water. The terrarium is gonna kick butt though lol. Hmm time to research what
live things i can keep in it......

[VoidParadigm]

Ooh, I wish I had your tank. I want a new hamster so badly. Haha. Good luck with whatever you decide'll go in there!