EMERGENCY TANK FAILURE RED SEA REEFER

[SupraSaltyReefer]

Red Sea Aquarium Failure Incident Tracker

Trying to collect some data regarding Red Sea aquarium failures. If you unfortunately had a Red Sea tank leak on you I'd appreciate if you can answer these 10 questions. I will make the results public on 12/31/2024. Please feel free to share this survey if you know anyone that has been affected...

www.reef2reef.com

Results so far from 6 responses.....
Please pass the link to the survey around. We need more responses and data!

 

[Craigsin]

Well FWIW, I purchased the new S-700 G2+, in part because they addressed all of the problems that they would never admit to that were causing failures. It's euro-braced, uses thicker glass, has armored seams, aluminum stand with additional bracing, and there is actually a metal angle brace on the stand that supports the front glass now. I hope that this will all lead to a more reliable tank, but only time will tell. It's only had water in it for about 6 months or so.

I'm so sorry that you are having this problem. I hope you are able to get it satisfactorily resolved....

 

[Merge_595]

Red Sea just isn't the same. Happening way too often

 

[BeanAnimal]

Saw someone report before that their parrot fish (approx. 1 pound) was swimming into or near the glass which caused the silicone to separate on a RS Reefer. sometimes these tanks are too small in volume for larger fish causing the erratic water movements and force against the seals. Just trying to see if it is a common occurrence in these failures

There is simply no reasonable correlation to reality here. Of course there is always the "straw that broke the camels back" -- it could be a fish, the breath of a butterfly, a sneeze, a vibration... The GRAIN OF SAND that causes the seesaw to become unbalanced...

But large fish did not cause the failure by any stretch of the imagination or laws of physics.... even of the fish was pounding his head against the panel.

 

[dr_vinnie_boombatz]

Just bought a RS Max Nano G2
Their AIO product offerings are the best, head and shoulders above their competitors including the automatic roller, 5 year warranty, thicker glass, sump hiding panel, etc. They are the only ones I have seen innovation from in the AIO space

Will be using my existing oversized stand. I feel comfortable buying a RS tank, however, not their stands. WHEN they finally figure that out and make aluminum stands similar to Innovative Marine w/o an overhang it will be a game changer IMO

 

[BeanAnimal]

Lots of tanks have had problems. Red Sea sells the most tanks so they will have the most report. That said I would consider not buying a second one until they give you a great warranty or an explanation of what happened

I am sorry but this is illogical and not supported by any reasonable statistical model, no matter how deep you go.

Let's say you are correct. "Red Sea sells the most tanks so they will have the most report".

ALL OTHER BRANDS combined do not have anywhere close to the publicly reported failures COMBINED, but collectively account for far more sales than RS.

Moreover - In ~20 years of forums (RC and R2R) you can't find a combined number of reported failures that come ANYWHERE CLOSE to the number of Red Sea reported failures in ~3 year period. This "era" encompasses magnitudes more aquariums than Red Sea has ever sold.

 

[dr_vinnie_boombatz]

I'm happy that you were able to get through to Red Sea. Also, I am happy that they are doing what they should; replacing the tank.

I understand why you would be uneasy. I've been following this problem for a long time. It was suggested that they (Red Sea) received defective silicon from their supplier and the leaking lot of tanks comes from being assembled with the defective sealant.

If true, I would think that you can relax, as by now, the sealant issue has probably been corrected.

For added piece of mind, now you know what to look for where seam failures are concerned before they happen. Perhaps keep things on hand and ready to go if the replacement tank has the same problem.

I can't wrap my mind around people having 60g+ tanks with IKEA style stands
I would 100% spend the money getting a stand from AluFab if I ever had a tank this big.

 

[BeanAnimal]

I do not think this. Nor the theory that gyres pointed against
An opposite wall makes sense

Correct, gyres are not a problem... but a true standing wave sloshing back and forth can generate tremendous forces, even more if it is at a frequency were the stand becomes part of the inertial movement. This "rocking" motion can very easily exceed the safety factor of the silicone joints and weaken them over time.

Bio bricks during a tank transfer:

They're pretty rejecting of scum buildup so they're safe sitting there but they're designed to be in flowing water.

You repeat this often. Brandon, they have microbial life on them, they provide nitrifying bacteria. They will work just fine. They provide the very same function as "live rock".

A class action suit to me is a bridge too far. Take vehicles for example there are millions of recalls out there right now that more than likely will only affect less than 5% of the millions of recalls if not addressed. RS is a global company. They in all likelihood have thousands and thousands of tanks going at any given time.

You are comparing a highly regulated industry in the scale of millions of new cars (US) a year and tens of millions by the same OEMs globally to a non regulated hobby where thousands (at best) of aquariums are sold per year. Recalls happen in the auto industry due to both the regulatory compliance constraints (multi agency) and the overall cost of the purchases and legal precedent. With that in mind, I don't think anybody really wants government regulatory bodies overseeing aquarium sale and manufacture!

 

[Merge_595]

Quick update. I was able to use Gorilla tape to stop the leak but only after half of the 110g tank drained on our floors. Was able to catch some with a trash can.

I can’t find a contact number and had to submit to their online product support form. If anyone has a number, it would be appreciated.

[Name] Red Sea Fish
[Mobile] (281) 209-9828
Good luck getting through try every single option until you get someone which has been very rare last few years

 

[BeanAnimal]

The only similar situation was the Oceanic Bow Fronts that experienced a rash of failures in the very early 2000's.

The front glass was stress fracturing due to a manufacturing defect. Central Garden and Pet purchased the brand in (2004?) and Oceanic Bow Fronts were discontinued. If I recall, CGP and Aqueon did not formally recall the tanks, but on a case-by-case anybody that had one and reached out was offered a new tank, failed or not and warrantied or not. I am sure there were exceptions.

Even then, the number of reported failures was minuscule compared to what we are seeing with RS.

 

[Proud]

Very sad

 

[MnFish1]

I am sorry but this is illogical and not supported by any reasonable statistical model, no matter how deep you go.

Let's say you are correct. "Red Sea sells the most tanks so they will have the most report".

ALL OTHER BRANDS combined do not have anywhere close to the publicly reported failures COMBINED, but collectively account for far more sales than RS.

Moreover - In ~20 years of forums (RC and R2R) you can't find a combined number of reported failures that come ANYWHERE CLOSE to the number of Red Sea reported failures in ~3 year period. This "era" encompasses magnitudes more aquariums than Red Sea has ever sold.

From what I've read - all the other brands combined do not sell as many reef tanks as RedSea - so statistically it works. I've also talked to a couple maintenence companies, and they have said the failure rate is similar. (except perhaps the G1 Model). I'm not sure you can compare anything but rimless tanks. (i.e. not all tanks made for 20 years). I don't want to go down this rabbit hole again - If I were to buy another tank, and I was not able to get adequate insurance to ensure coverage of livestock, I would not buy RedSea because - though it may be overstated, they have made mistakes as a company IMHO - and any failure would not be worth it. I don't think they have earned the support of aquarium owners. I had 2 tanks both about 7 or so years old with no leaks or problems (Gen 1) - And IMHO, Redsea has not responded adequately to explain the issues publicly.

 

[VintageReefer]

From what I've read - all the other brands combined do not sell as many reef tanks as RedSea - so statistically it works.

Curious where did you read this? Do these companies publicly release annual sales numbers? Genuinely wondering

I would argue that if a company is drastically outselling the competition they should be the best at what they do - building tanks. They would have the most experience and should have materials and production methods ironed out and deliver a top tier product. And if they have a flaw discovered they should own it and make things right

 

[AydenLincoln]

I wonder, is a class-action is possible?

I posted about this before and the thread was removed but I still think it should happen. Companies/people have been sued for far less over the years. And seeing how many homes were damaged and fish/tank losses have occurred especially more recently is alarming and sad to me. Even if it was 0.1% it seems like a significant number and that more are going to happen in the future as time goes on. Not to mention what I think is a really poor response from Red Sea/blocking people. If not a lawsuit there’s recalls for things like this too. I can understand a few leaks here and there from different brands like Marineland and Aqueon but the amount Red Sea failures seem so significant to me in a short amount of time and it’s really sad. The fact that you don’t really hear or see it happen with other rimless brands like Waterbox, Cade, Planet Aquariums, etc. says a lot to me. But I personally don’t have firsthand experience with it and won’t ever as I won’t buy a Red Sea tank.

 

[AydenLincoln]

I am sorry you get to deal with this grief, it sucks bud.

Wow, another Red Sea with a seam failure issue, let me pretend to be surprised.

In the 18 months or so I have been a R2R user, I have seen these type posts at least every other week. I even started a thread about it a while back that maybe needs bumped again I dunno. Over 20 pages of Red Sea Fail with 25 threads per page is over 500 issues reported here alone? Yeah? maybe! I wonder if that could be considered a Preponderance of Evidence? Honestly I think all you Red Sea owners who have gone thru this, and then dealt with the customer service offering you a free tank,. should get a class action suit started to pay for your flooring and maybe something for your stress and time spent fixing, cleaning, recovering.

YES THIS^^^

 

[GARRIGA]

Considerations about lawsuits.

1. Make sure the company can't blame the problem on your stand.
2. Make sure you have the legal funds to fight them as they might be willing to overspend to keep the matter quiet.
3. Might be cheaper just buying another brand or if the tank is salvageable then have it stripped and rebuilt and euro braced and call it a day.
4. Not all battles need to be victorious to have won. Sometimes not losing best.
5. Bitter sweat victories rarely repay the anguish felt fighting them.
6. Might be enough to join others in detailing your journey and hope that other consumers effect change because the only way a company alters their approach is by hitting their bottom-line due to lagging sales and especially because reputation damaged.

Which brings into question why do LFS continue to carry that brand knowing they have issues other than to profit from consumers. Perhaps stop buying from those LFS assuming you've discussed it with them and they've confirmed they are aware of these issues or will make it right if the manufacturer won't.

All involved in the selling channel are culpable as well as the consumers who ultimately keep buying it.

 

[BeanAnimal]

From what I've read - all the other brands combined do not sell as many reef tanks as RedSea - so statistically it works

I don’t buy that for a microsecond today, let alone over the last 10 years combined, let further alone 20. RedSea is not sold in box stores or at every LFS and these tanks have only been around for a handful of years and are extremely expensive. There is not even a remote chance that RS sells more aquariums than all other manufacturers combined. Aqueon and JUWEL alone are monsters compared to RS.

As for your interviews with one or five maintenance companies, they are not remotely statistically relevant, even if there is no bias.

I don’t wish to rehash this same debate over and over. I simply think that your logic and analysis is deeply flawed.

These insanely frequent reports of failures are not a statistical anomaly and in the history of online anquarium information there is absolutely no parallel, or one that comes even remotely close. I will remind you that this site and traffic pale in comparison to RC at its peak. There was no Reddit, or FB or Insta, etc.

 

[west co reefer]

Saw someone report before that their parrot fish (approx. 1 pound) was swimming into or near the glass which caused the silicone to separate on a RS Reefer. sometimes these tanks are too small in volume for larger fish causing the erratic water movements and force against the seals. Just trying to see if it is a common occurrence in these failures

If you believe this..., if you ever get an email from a Nigerian prince, please ignore it. Just trust me.

 

[BeanAnimal]

I posted about this before and the thread was removed but I still think it should happen. Companies/people have been sued for far less over the years. And seeing how many homes were damaged and fish/tank losses have occurred especially more recently is alarming and sad to me. Even if it was 0.1% it seems like a significant number and that more are going to happen in the future as time goes on. Not to mention what I think is a really poor response from Red Sea/blocking people. If not a lawsuit there’s recalls for things like this too. I can understand a few leaks here and there from different brands like Marineland and Aqueon but the amount Red Sea failures seem so significant to me in a short amount of time and it’s really sad. The fact that you don’t really hear or see it happen with other rimless brands like Waterbox, Cade, Planet Aquariums, etc. says a lot to me. But I personally don’t have firsthand experience with it and won’t ever as I won’t buy a Red Sea tank.

Anybody can sue anybody for anything. Nobody is stopping any of these owners from filing. The issue is the time and effort involved compared to the loss vs chances of winning,

There will be no voluntary recall, doing so exposes RS. That simple. A forced recall is not likely unless there are lawsuits and enough of them to get a regulatory or advisory body like CPSC involved. That will take years at best.

This is what it is, unfortunately.

 

[Reefer2.0]

I’m so sorry! Can’t believe Red Sea are still selling these tanks and buyers have no idea!