A crack and a chip..... Need some advice

GGuy · May 21, 2014

Looking for some opinions,

I recently bought a used Leemar 120 eurobraced off of another forum. I've had it out in my garage while working on cleaning it out. I haven't had a chance to work on it the last week because of the 100+ temperatures we've had in California recently. Well, today when I went to go work on it, I noticed that a crack had developed on the upper right side of the front pane.

There is not a gouge on the outside or inside as it may look like it the pictures.

There is also a chip on the bottom right of the front pane. It had been there when I bought it, but it was not significant, it seems to have climbed up slightly. It is not cracked.

I have been moving the tank around a bit and have had it up on it's side to work on it. I didn't hit it or bump into it at all, I'm thinking it may have been the temperature fluctuations that have made the crack appear.

My question is, is this something that I can or should repair? If not, how much would it be to get the front pane replaced?

Thanks

jasonp87 · May 21, 2014

Hard to tell for sure from the pics. Good thing is it's up at the top of the tank instead of at the bottom where there is more pressure. Leemar is pretty good about assessing this kind of stuff and letting you know if it's safe or not. They can also do an epoxy fill for you in some cases. The president of our local club had one of their tanks get a chip on it and they fixed it up for him. I don't think it was too expensive either.

GGuy · May 21, 2014

jasonp87 said:
Hard to tell for sure from the pics. Good thing is it's up at the top of the tank instead of at the bottom where there is more pressure. Leemar is pretty good about assessing this kind of stuff and letting you know if it's safe or not. They can also do an epoxy fill for you in some cases. The president of our local club had one of their tanks get a chip on it and they fixed it up for him. I don't think it was too expensive either.

I sent Leemar an email, waiting for a reply.

revhtree · May 21, 2014

Let us know what they say!

GGuy · May 22, 2014

Lee Mar never got back to me. I showed it to my LFS owner and he said that i should be fine with epoxying it. However, he also gave me a quote of $300 to replace it with a new starphire panel. I'm actually considering swapping it out, as there are some scratches on the panel. Also, for the price I paid for the tank initially, I still will be well under the price of a new tank.

revhtree · May 22, 2014

Man I don't know. Seems awful high to me.

GGuy · May 22, 2014

175 for the panel and 150 for the install

revhtree · May 22, 2014

Check this out for $799.

120 Gallon Long Starfire Center Overflow 48x24x24" 10mm - StarFire Glass Tanks

revhtree · May 22, 2014

I got this tank actually.

GGuy · May 22, 2014

Thanks, I'll keep it in mind

specvjeff · May 22, 2014

Hey I'm the one who had the problem. I worked for an LFS at the time so I was able to email my rep and get a response. Who were you trying to email at Leemar? Also, mine was a shell in the bottom corner between the side panel and the bottom panel. It was about 5/8ths of an inch wide. They said it had no impact on the structural integrity of the tank but I wasn't going to risk it. I had them fill the shell with silicone. I've since sold the tank and the new owner knows about it but hasn't had any issues. I will post pics of what mine looked like later for you to compare to.

GGuy · May 22, 2014

I had just emailed their customer service email. I hear they don't like to directly deal with people, so that's probably the issue. Im going to epoxy the chip on the bottom and use glass resin on the crack. If it looks ok, I won't swap out the panel. If its an eye sore, I'll get the new panel.

specvjeff · May 22, 2014

See if the store you ordered it from can reach out to their rep. That should do the trick. If not, I'll give you their number so you can rattle their cage a bit

specvjeff · May 22, 2014

specvjeff · May 22, 2014

The first two pictures do concern me a bit since the glass is actually cracked. The water pressure may cause it to spread. Might be worth it to just replace the panel.

specvjeff · May 22, 2014

I can tell you that Leemar was going to charge me $90 wholesale to replace a 20"x20" 1/2" non starphire panel. So $175 isn't too far off on the material cost. The installation cost is to cover his time. This will take some time. He should be removing all of the silicone and then re silicone the entire thing.

GGuy · May 23, 2014

specvjeff said:
I can tell you that Leemar was going to charge me $90 wholesale to replace a 20"x20" 1/2" non starphire panel. So $175 isn't too far off on the material cost. The installation cost is to cover his time. This will take some time. He should be removing all of the silicone and then re silicone the entire thing.

Thanks for the number. The quote that I got from my LFS seemed fair to me considering the labor of having to reseal the bottom on top of replacing the front panel. He's pretty well known in our local reef community and is not shady at all, Im sure he will do a good job on it.

The pic you posted above would've made me nervous too.

Today I epoxied the chip in the bottom corner, and it looks ok now. I tried to repair the crack using a cheap glass repair kit, the bridge injector worked for about a second and then it wore out, loosing the pressure needed to inject the resin into the crack. Some made it in, but i wasn't able to fill it in all the way. I need to get my hands on a professional grade bridge if i even want a chance at fixing it. Buying one would cost me almost as much as getting the glass replaced. As far as the crack itself, it is in the upper right corner near the eurobrace, my LFS guy told me that there isn't much pressure there, and if i was able to repair the crack, it should be ok. Im still on the fence as to where I should proceed from this point.