Bought an old Oceanic 120... Reseal or?

[Borsig]

Haven't had time to fill it in the garage yet- snowing.

The thign has sat a couple years in the guy's garage. Paid a hundred bucks for that a sump that's meh, and a eshopps skimmer.

Would you all reseal the seams.

Yes, the tank has scratches, hopefully they aren't too ugly, but it's my first reef tank, and it was cheap, and the size I wanted.

 

[Screwgunner]

Tooth paste and baking soda will take out small scratches. It the silicone looks good I would not worry about revealing it.

 

[Screwgunner]

Dumb spell check

 

[Borsig]

The silicone is crusty around the edges. Not smooth.

I'm reading a lot of things that say don't mess if it doesn't leak

 

[Koh23]

Dont trust silicone who was on dry for couple of years in garage....

 

[Borsig]

So what should I do? I'm reading some places that it won't bond to the silicone in between the glass and I'll ruin it

 

[Chrisv.]

So what should I do? I'm reading some places that it won't bond to the silicone in between the glass and I'll ruin it

This post is confusing. If you do reseal, understand that "reseal" means "remove all silicone from the tank-- down to bare glass, and add new silicone." There should be zero silicone left from the old seal.

 

[Borsig]

This post is confusing. If you do reseal, understand that "reseal" means "remove all silicone from the tank-- down to bare glass, and add new silicone." There should be zero silicone left from the old seal.

Some things I have read said that there is silicone holding the panels together, and that new silicone won't bond to that correctly. I've reads that messing with it is worse than not.

 

[Screwgunner]

I do not see the need to take the aquarium apart . Razor blade the corners and bottom . Get a good aquarium sealant put a 1/4 inch beads. Wet your finger and smooth it out.

 

[Chrisv.]

Some things I have read said that there is silicone holding the panels together, and that new silicone won't bond to that correctly. I've reads that messing with it is worse than not.

Yes, but if you reseal it you remove all of the silicone, not just the stuff smeared on the inside of the tank. You remove the stuff between the panes. To put this another way, when you are resealing a tank properly, you should have a stack of 5 sheets of glass that are perfectly clean with no residual silicone on them.

 

[Chrisv.]

I do not see the need to take the aquarium apart . Razor blade the corners and bottom . Get a good aquarium sealant put a 1/4 inch beads. Wet your finger and smooth it out.

I respectfully disagree. The silicone inside the joints is what holds the tank together. If it's decided that the silicone is in a state that it needs to be replaced, then one should replace the part that actually does the heavy lifting.

 

[Borsig]

If it doesn't leak, should I even mess with it? The stuff on the inside is just a a little ugly, and not fresh.

The glass is kind of scratched on it (its a 100.00 120g) so perfect appearance is kind of out the window

 

[edd59]

i had a 4 yr old 120 marineland leak, i broke it down and gave it away. if you dont do it right like chrisv mentioned above then i wouldnt be willing to possibly having a flood. the actual seal and strength is between the panels panels. it will probably work just putting new silicone on the inside but thats alot of water for my floor.

 

[Chrisv.]

If you have any more thoughts about a superficial reseal on just the inside, read this one: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/3...ension-leak-after-professional-reseal.876845/

 

[Koh23]

Notice two different things.....

Silicone between two piece if glass is what hold tank in place. Silicone in corners outside of joints is to prevent leaking, adds verry little to structural integrity.

Therminology aside, resealing, resiliconing, blah blah.....

If u scrape all silicone in corners, clean glass and then run bead along joints and smooth it, you will have bond on that two pieces if glass, but not between them.

If silicone is old, if he lost his properties amd strenght, this way will get you nowhere, just gives you false sense of security....

Proper way, someone will say only way, is to dissasemble tank, clean all of pieces of glass, then rebuild it again - silicone in glass joints for strenght, and seal in inner corners for leaking.

Maybe its the urban myth, but, people say that dry silicone have very long shelf life, but, if gets wet (running tank) and exposed to pressure, then dried for longer amount of time..... Its not good idea to use it "as is", its better to tear appart and build new.....

 

[DopamineKata]

To put this another way, when you are resealing a tank properly, you should have a stack of 5 sheets of glass that are perfectly clean with no residual silicone on them.

That's contrary to every other guide I've seen to resealing a tank.

 

[Chrisv.]

That's contrary to every other guide I've seen to resealing a tank.

Well, then by all means, have at it!

 

[Borsig]

wow this has become a debate.....

 

[Chrisv.]

wow this has become a debate.....

No debate here, it's your floor, your coral. Up to you. Most of my coral cost a lot and I also don't want my floor to be flooded. But everyone has a different risk tolerance. I'm from the "do it right, do it once" school of thought with most things, but for the less risk averse there are a multitude of corners that can be cut.

 

[SteveMM62Reef]

I would get a small tube of GE Brand Caulk. See if it will stick to a section of cut away caulk and go from there. Other option is to sell it on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace as a Terrarium** or a Serpentine Tank. Buy a better Aquarium off of one of the above. Meanwhile Refinish the Stand, and make it more water resistant. ** There seems to be a recent demand for Terrariums, MJ Growing?? For an Aquarium above 60 gallon I insist on an Internal Overflow. Lost an entire tank, due to a Syphon Failure over a vacation.