Bought an old Oceanic 120... Reseal or?

[Borsig]

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.

It does not leak. It's just an older Oceanic. The silicone ins't in terrible shape, just a little ragged on the edges and it sat for a couple years. If it leaked I'd just get rid of it

 

[Koh23]

Do what u want, you heard the safest and best way.....

 

[Borsig]

Do what u want, you heard the safest and best way.....

Ok so if it doesn't leak, what does that mean? Leave it alone? I'm not taking apart a 100.00 aquarium. Does that mean don't mess with it if it doesn't leak? Or that since it's old it needs to be disassembled and resealed?

 

[Chrisv.]

Ok so if it doesn't leak, what does that mean? Leave it alone? I'm not taking apart a 100.00 aquarium. Does that mean don't mess with it if it doesn't leak? Or that since it's old it needs to be disassembled and resealed?

Why are you going to put $5000 worth of equipment fish and coral into a beat up used $100 aquarium that may or may not fail. Even if you don't think you will spend $5k, if you do this for any period of time, you will. It's one thing to buy a used pump-- that may fail but will have little consequences if it does. Have you ever had an aquarium leak before? 120 gallons is a LOT of water. I'm not sure how long you have been in this hobby, but most people end up taking their reef tanks pretty seriously. The amount of dedication that goes into keeping a successful reef is substantial. For a reef tank to leak would be devastating and 120g of saltwater could cause catastrophic damage to your house.

Why cut this corner?

 

[Koh23]

Ok so if it doesn't leak, what does that mean? Leave it alone? I'm not taking apart a 100.00 aquarium. Does that mean don't mess with it if it doesn't leak? Or that since it's old it needs to be disassembled and resealed?

Impossible to say.

My point is simply that i would newer use tank that was used and then left to sit for years dry, before i dissasemble, clean and then reseal everything again.

Leak, no leak, theres no way to know how old is silicone in joints, or how much he degraded over time....

Leaking is easy fix, structural integrity of tank is something totaly different...

Yes, it maybe holds water for now, question really isnt will it hold water, but for how long it will hold it....

This is one afternoon job, slice it apart, clean and wash glass, put it together and let it dry few days..... Fill it, test for leaks and done.....

I'm not professional tank builder, or anything, but i buildt many tanks over the years, not a once i had leaks, or any problems.....

Clean glass, quality silicone, little time and patience is all u need to be safe long term.....

That is my opinion, i would newer trust used tank and simply put water in it...

 

[Chrisv.]

Ok so if it doesn't leak, what does that mean? Leave it alone? I'm not taking apart a 100.00 aquarium. Does that mean don't mess with it if it doesn't leak? Or that since it's old it needs to be disassembled and resealed?

Impossible to say.

My point is simply that i would newer use tank that was used and then left to sit for years dry, before i dissasemble, clean and then reseal everything again.

Leak, no leak, theres no way to know how old is silicone in joints, or how much he degraded over time....

Leaking is easy fix, structural integrity of tank is something totaly different...

Yes, it maybe holds water for now, question really isnt will it hold water, but for how long it will hold it....

This is one afternoon job, slice it apart, clean and wash glass, put it together and let it dry few days..... Fill it, test for leaks and done.....

I'm not professional tank builder, or anything, but i buildt many tanks over the years, not a once i had leaks, or any problems.....

Clean glass, quality silicone, little time and patience is all u need to be safe long term.....

That is my opinion, i would newer trust used tank and simply put water in it...

He said he is not willing to put a weekend into resealing this. It only cost $100. Pretty clear.

 

[edd59]

my 120 had a slow leak, i cant imagine blowing a seem. your tank is the heart of your reef if it fails drasticly. good chance you will loose your live stock not to mention the damage to the house.
its the heart of your reef and probably the least of your investmant over time. i would trash it.

 

[Borsig]

He said he is not willing to put a weekend into resealing this. It only cost $100. Pretty clear.

It's because it was an older tank and the glass is kind of scracthed.

It was supposed to be a starter. I've done rift lake for many years, and have a decades old 180 in my finished basement that runs fine with an eshopps HOB overflow and a 40 breeder sump. It's not my first rodeo but I've also never had a tank leak.

I wanted a 120. They are expensive new. I am sure I could easily sell this one for the 100 I have in it. The deal came up and I jumped on it.

 

[Koh23]

The glass itself on my current tank is 15 years old....

This is his 4-th reincarnation..... After each one, tank is dissasembled, cleaned, resealed.....

For this reincarnation i just bought new front glass, old was scratched...

Of course, if someone dont have will, time or anything, just buy new, dont play with it.....

 

[Screwgunner]

My 125 has been up down up down it is 13 years old I have cut most of the over lap silicone off the front from using razor blades to clean the glass. It is still up holding water. If it hold water use it.

 

[Borsig]

I'm guessing this one is 15-20? I dont know when Oceanic went out of biz. At least 10 years ago. Frame is grey.

 

[Orko]

HI I actually have that exact Oceanic 120 ... I got it from a good friend of mine he had it forever the silicone in the insode does not look the best however I set it up and ran it for years then went smaller for a while 2 yrs it sat dry then I set it back up again it is going on 6 yrs no issues ..Oceanic was the BEST most well mad tanks in the day and weigh a ton is like 1/2 inch glass .. most f the scratches will go away hen you put water in it .. (this is just my experience with that same 120 Oceanic)

 

[Borsig]

HI I actually have that exact Oceanic 120 ... I got it from a good friend of mine he had it forever the silicone in the insode does not look the best however I set it up and ran it for years then went smaller for a while 2 yrs it sat dry then I set it back up again it is going on 6 yrs no issues ..Oceanic was the BEST most well mad tanks in the day and weigh a ton is like 1/2 inch glass .. most f the scratches will go away hen you put water in it .. (this is just my experience with that same 120 Oceanic)

Im gonna see if it leaks and how it looks when the temps outside warm up.

I mean for 100, with a working eshopps skimmer and sump I think I did OK. Stand is there too but I don't trust it.

 

[Hallowhead]

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

tell me more about this, does this work on both glass and acrylic?

 

[Borsig]

tell me more about this, does this work on both glass and acrylic?

on glass? No way maybe if its hazy.

if you can feel the scratch with a finger nail it wont be coming out

 

[DCR]

Those old Oceanic tanks were virtually leak free. I never heard of one failing and I ran some for 40 years. They only failed on me during moves when I accidentally dropped them. The glass was thicker than current tanks and I believe they used a high quality silicone. I still look for used ones. I think they are still better quality than most new tanks today - certainly the mass produced units. I would not break the tank down unless it fails the leak test. Your re-silicone job will likely be less strong than the current system. If you want to put a fresh bead of silicone on the inside, it will not hurt anything but I think it is questionable if it really accomplishes anything. It does not add any strength. It may protect the silicone between the panes (at best) if that is even necessary.

 

[14 foot reef]

The most inexpensive part of this hobby is the tank. I would buy a new one. That's just me though. If any will hold up, it will be Oceanic though.

 

[Chrisv.]

I will agree that oceanic was the Cadillac of 90s-early 2000s reefing. Owned two back then myself.

 

[Borsig]

The most inexpensive part of this hobby is the tank. I would buy a new one. That's just me though. If any will hold up, it will be Oceanic though.

I see people say that but a new 120 is 1000.00 here

 

[14 foot reef]

I see people say that but a new 120 is 1000.00 here

lighting, skimmer, and wave pumps will individually cost more than that. Add sump, stand, plumbing, RODI, heaters, circulation pumps then............ Well, you get what I mean.