240 gallon acrylic tank leaking HELP!!

[lapin]

Here is what "might" work. Drain the tank. Clean the seam from one end to the other. Do not use alcohol or vinegar. Water and a lot of scrubbing. Use a syringe bottle with the thin needle and try to fill the seam leak area with some solvent (weld-on #4 will work). Get a piece of square acrylic rod 2x thicker than the tank acrylic and weld it to the seam (weld-on # 4 will work). If you don't have experience with acrylic, have a professional do it.
If it was me I would get my money back.

 

[Matthew Frost]

Here is what "might" work. Drain the tank. Clean the seam from one end to the other. Do not use alcohol or vinegar. Water and a lot of scrubbing. Use a syringe bottle with the thin needle and try to fill the seam leak area with some solvent (weld-on #4 will work). Get a piece of square acrylic rod 2x thicker than the tank acrylic and weld it to the seam (weld-on # 4 will work). If you don't have experience with acrylic, have a professional do it.
If it was me I would get my money back.

+1. Your seem is going to be contaminated. You need to created a new seem. A piece of square "rod" double the size of the repair on either side. Thouroughly clean the surface, you can use rubbing alcohol if you are 100% positive the tank hasn't been flame polished. If it has NO ALCOHOL. Once the area is clean and dry use Weld On 40 to glue your "patch" in place when you done there should be no bubbles or "cloudiness" in the repair. Is done correctly the repair is stronger than the area around it.

 

[nashorn]

Looks to me like there are fish and corals in the tank so lets look at no draining the tank options.
If it was me I would use a 2 part marine Epoxy over the leak area.
Then reinforce the acrylic seam from the outside.
Better then nothing.

 

[Matthew Frost]

It's an old thread but I have promised you guys an update. Since november the tank still holds water and no leak at all. thank you all for your input and advice.

Wonderer, you have a ticking time bomb on your hands. If that tank was leaking from that seam it will start again. You really should effect a more permanent repair. I would hate to open a thread titled "My tank disaster" and have your name at the top.

 

[Butitor]

fixing acrylic tanks are way easy than glass tanks.
drain and dry it, use a hair dryer for faster drying.

1st apply IPS Weldon-On #3 Solvent Acrylic Plexiglass Glue /this is like water it will penitrates the crack.
2nd apply IPS Weldon-On #16 Solvent Acrylic Plexiglass Glue /like gel to add extra strength and fill up if theres some chips.

 

[MnFish1]

All of you realize that super glue works the same as weldon right? Though I dont agree with doing a repair with a full tank of water. I do think the best people to ask would be the manufacturers of the tank rather than the forum here. I personally would not be able to sleep with that tank unless ensured by the manufacturer that it is safe. Likewise, Im not sure its panic time either....

 

[palmer]

I had a acrylic sump that held like 25 gals that was leaking- it was leaking so much after a week I had to go into emergency mode and change it to a glass- I dont think there is anything you can do to repair that - acrylic is not like glass!
I will never go acrylic again

 

[paphater]

If/when it it fails again I'd get some square acrylic rods cut and weld those in, effectively making a new seam. Or run some weld on 40 to make at least a half inch fillet.

 

[Trickman2]

I had a acrylic sump that held like 25 gals that was leaking- it was leaking so much after a week I had to go into emergency mode and change it to a glass- I dont think there is anything you can do to repair that - acrylic is not like glass!
I will never go acrylic again

Acrylic is normally very strong and don't often hear of them failing at the seams. A quality seam is fused\melted together into one piece so for it to split would mean the maker didn't fuse it correctly. I would love to see a picture and hear a little more about where you found this gem of a sump. I would say the biggest issue with acrylic is scratching.

Good luck

 

[laverda]

There has been some good and some very bad advice given in this thread. While silicone might seal the leak in the short run it will not fix the structural integrity of the tank and it is not the proper way to do the job at all. Silicon does not create a strong bond with acrylic.
Acrylic is very easy to repair if done properly. As a few other people have mentioned the proper way is using “WeldOn”. It is specifically designed for acrylic. WeldOn comes in different viscosities. First the tank needs to be empty clean and dry. Use one of the thin ones to wick into the joint, then a fillet using a thicker one to add a little extra protection. Since the joint started to fail, my guess it was not done properly to begin with and may do the same elsewhere on the joint. I personally would add a small piece of triangular shaped acrylic to the inside corner instead of the fillet.

 

[Dragon52]

I'm not having a leak but my bottom seam has bubbles & what look like seam splitting. When I first got the tank & set it up it looked ok but withing a month I saw 1 or 2 areas ( contacted Biulder, was told not to worry) & now it looks like this. At I looking at trouble? I think I am.

 

[SanFernandoValleyAIOReef]

need help asap. I just bought a new tank and its used. I had this guys polished it and said he will reseal all the side but I guess he forgot. Is there anything I can buy to patch this thing up? Need help please

Hey is it still good after the fix?

 

[TCseh]

Hey is it still good after the fix?

Dude might have grown out of the tank for how old this post is my guy.

 

[techhnyne]

I might have a fix for you. Try getting a piece of 3m vinyl wrap and place it inside the tank where the leak iss and push out all the air this should stop the lead for a breif period. Use weldon 40 and insert it i to a syringe anduse a blow dryer to heat the area and dry out any water. Inject the weldon into the area. And should cure within an hour crystal clear

 

[techhnyne]

I might have a fix for you. Try getting a piece of 3m vinyl wrap and place it inside the tank where the leak iss and push out all the air this should stop the lead for a breif period. Use weldon 40 and insert it i to a syringe anduse a blow dryer to heat the area and dry out any water. Inject the weldon into the area. And should cure within an hour crystal clear. I know its old post but this fix can work if anyone searching reads this

 

[SanFernandoValleyAIOReef]

All of you realize that super glue works the same as weldon right? Though I dont agree with doing a repair with a full tank of water. I do think the best people to ask would be the manufacturers of the tank rather than the forum here. I personally would not be able to sleep with that tank unless ensured by the manufacturer that it is safe. Likewise, Im not sure its panic time either....

I have leak from my acrylic display to my overflow box can I just use superglue on the inside of overflow to fix?