Is this bad?

**FreakyFishie** · 03-06-2013, 07:29 PM

I noticed something odd with the front of tank, there seems to be some cracks? I'm not exactly sure what they are, they are really hard to see unless you get on the floor and look straight up as if looking at the light. Should I be concerned about this? I've been keeping an eye on it and I think it might have spread a tiny bit since I re-set up my tank. I'm worried about a tank failure because when I was a teenager, my dad INSISTED on building me an aquarium stand and it was the worst thing in the world. It wasn't level and a third of my tank didn't even sit on the stand, but I wasn't allowed to not use the stand and my dad wouldn't let me make it level (he took me wanting to fix it as an insult) so I'm thinking that the damn stand might have broken my tank because the "cracks" are right about where there was a 1/4" gap between my tank and that stand. Here's the best picture I could get:

Is there a way to fix this? Is my tank doomed? It's an acrylic aquarium.

The stand I'm using now IS built for aquariums and is perfectly level.

**Sandz** · 03-06-2013, 08:52 PM

acrylic is easy as heck to scratch. Doesnt look to terrible now but I would wait a while and keep a very close eye on it.

**fishmommie** · 03-06-2013, 09:01 PM

okay - I'm going to ask a really stupid question. Is there any chance that the plastic protective sheet that covered the tank is still in place and you didn't realize it's still there and it's the plastic that's scratched, not the tank?

If not --- never mind

**Sandz** · 03-06-2013, 09:24 PM

Not a stupid question... +1...

**madagascariensis** · 03-06-2013, 10:01 PM

now what it looks like the most to me is hardwater residue. whenever I feed my fish or do anything to the tank, water drops run down the side and when they dry they leave trails just like described.
try wiping it with warm water.

**FreakyFishie** · 03-06-2013, 11:46 PM

Sandz: I know for a fact they are not scratches, they stem from the bottom of the tank and go up and there is nothing tactile about them inside the tank or out meaning they're forming in the middle of the acrylic pane because you can feel a scratch on an acrylic tank if you rub your fingernail over it and it catches.

fishmommie:
LOL no...I did still have the film on the very bottom on for awhile though because I didn't think to check there when I first got it which was funny finding 4yrs later.

madagascariensis: It's not residue, that's what I first though when I noticed it, they're fractures in the acrylic it seems...I'm just wondering if this means there will be a tank failure or if there's a way to repair it if it gets worse..I first noticed them when I set my tank back up and was cleaning it. They seem to have gotten a LITTLE worse over the last 3 mo which is why I'm worried about the tank failing.

**fishmommie** · 03-06-2013, 11:58 PM

I would check with the tank manufacture. Surely they would be able to help figure it out and perhaps there's a warranty if it is a crack or disintegration of some sort. Good luck and let us know if you figure it out.

**FreakyFishie** · 03-07-2013, 12:01 AM

The tank is 7 years old, I don't believe it's under warrantee anymore, but even if it was I didn't register it >_<

How do you repair cracks in an acrylic tank? Figure it'd be good to know if it gets worse, where would I maybe find that out?

**Loller** · 03-07-2013, 02:10 AM

I have accidentally scratched my 6 gallon, but it's not a crack. It happened while inserting a rock, it may be because you were inserting a rock yourself or hard driftwood. If it is 7 years old, it could have cracked, but make sure it wasn't an accident while putting something in, because it could just be a minor scratch.