Need to fix cracked tank ASAP

[AstroworldFish]

Hello guys, I just text my got another tank and I need to get the glass fixed as soon as possible. If anyone knows where to get starfire glass and get it cut that would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Hitman]

Welcome to R2R!
Where are you located?

 

[Maritimer]

Welcome aboard, AstroworldFish!

If you've got a glass shop nearby (mirrors, plate-glass windows, etc...) they may know where to source some Starphire for you, and how to cut it - or they may know of someone who can.

~Bruce

 

[AstroworldFish]

Thanks for the responses already! I am located in Houston area so there should be many distributor I just am not quite sure which one is reputable. I’ll do some calling around to some glass shops.

 

[Hitman]

Here ya go!

 

[AstroworldFish]

Just ordered the custom new piece of starphire low iron glass! Should be ready by next Monday. Any advice on what would be the best sealant to purchase?
Keep reefin’

 

[Erica-Renee]

I just rebuilt a Large tank due to a Seam Like Momentive RTV Seems to be the BEST you can get . It has a Very short working time of 10 to 15 minutes

 

[MrsBugmaster]

Dow Corning RTV sealant is great to use. 832 in black or 732 is the clear.
I've found best prices here:
https://www.skygeek.com/dow-corning-rtv-832-sealant-multi-surface-blk-300.html

 

[AstroworldFish]

Has anyone used this sealant before? I just purchased it on amazon

 

[rockskimmerflow]

Has anyone used this sealant before? I just purchased it on amazon

It says translucent which to me would mean clear silicone, but your tank appeared to have black silicone seals currently. Might look a bit odd, but that's just me

 

[MrsBugmaster]

Momentive RTV 108 is aquarium safe. Momentive RTV 103 is balck

 

[AstroworldFish]

See I was thinking about doing clear on the front due to 2 reasons. First being the fact that I have never done this before and the black silicone will show more then the clear incase it isn’t absolutely perfect(even though I’m going to use masking tape to make sure it doesn’t look messy) plus the only part it will show black will be on the bottom and bac forming an L of Black on the sides. Hopefully it looks good. Haven’t seen any pictures of the idea I have. Opinions or pictures would be greatly appreciated!

 

[JoshH]

I would have thought you would have to reseal the whole tank anyways as new silicone won't bond to the old in the corners... but I may be missing something.

 

[SeaJay]

Not trying to hijack a thread, but I'm fairly new to the hobby and I've just been curious about the use of silicone in tank building. I've spent a lifetime in the autobody industry and the use of Silicone is completely taboo. Windshields, backglasses and other fixed glass is installed with a urethane adhesive, like 3m window weld. Those fixed panels are considered structural elements of a car and silicone would never meet the requirements for strength & pass crash tests. The urethane is extremely strong, it's fairly rigid, but flexible enough to resist cracking, shrinking and the expansion/contraction with temperature swings that cars are subject to. As a newb to the Aquarium hobby, it just seems like it would be a better choice for tank building. Just more curious than anything if this has been tried or addressed before?

If this is an inappropriate place to post this, feel free to point me in the right direction and I'll move it.

 

[MrsBugmaster]

@SeaJay I don't know if product would be reef and fish safe.

 

[SeaJay]

@SeaJay I don't know if product would be reef and fish safe.

I guess that's a possibility, but I believe most anything polyurethane based is pretty non toxic when fully cured. People use urethane casting resins to cast aquascapes.

I've spent way too much time googling this for no real reason. I see the question asked a few times, but no real answers. I doubt I'll ever build a tank, I'm just a tech guy in the finishes industry and very curious by nature. I guess I should just get back to work...

 

[lapin]

Not trying to hijack a thread, but I'm fairly new to the hobby and I've just been curious about the use of silicone in tank building. I've spent a lifetime in the autobody industry and the use of Silicone is completely taboo. Windshields, backglasses and other fixed glass is installed with a urethane adhesive, like 3m window weld. Those fixed panels are considered structural elements of a car and silicone would never meet the requirements for strength & pass crash tests. The urethane is extremely strong, it's fairly rigid, but flexible enough to resist cracking, shrinking and the expansion/contraction with temperature swings that cars are subject to. As a newb to the Aquarium hobby, it just seems like it would be a better choice for tank building. Just more curious than anything if this has been tried or addressed before?

If this is an inappropriate place to post this, feel free to point me in the right direction and I'll move it.

Professional tank builders use RTV 103 (Black) or RTV 108 (Clear) silicone.
Everyone always recommends GE I silicone for most applications but unfortunately its only good as a sealant rather than an adhesive.
103 and 108 adhesives are food grade and have no toxins or inhibitors in them, making it very safe for aquariums, in fact its what most aquariums are made with.
You could prob search out your 3m products and see what the USDA food safety ratings are.

 

[SeaJay]

Professional tank builders use RTV 103 (Black) or RTV 108 (Clear) silicone.
Everyone always recommends GE I silicone for most applications but unfortunately its only good as a sealant rather than an adhesive.
103 and 108 adhesives are food grade and have no toxins or inhibitors in them, making it very safe for aquariums, in fact its what most aquariums are made with.

Right, I see that they all use silicones, but still can't find a reason why not urethane. I know it's a stronger product and most urethanes are generally completely non-toxic once fully cured. Silicone is not used in automotive because 1) It's not strong enough to meet the structural requirements of a windshield and 2) The acids in the silicone destroy all automotive coatings which very quickly leads to rust. I've seen many people try to fix a leaky windshield problem with silicone only to speed up and exacerbate the failure exponentially. I figure that somewhere along those lines there must be some significant reason that the aquarium building industry has not taken advantage of the superior structural qualities of urethane glass adhesives like 3m windo-weld.

 

[Skep18]

My only guess is maybe you want some flex in the silicone as the glass will deflect when filled with water. A rigid sealant might be more prone to fail if any deflection overwhelms the rigid seam. This is only a guess though.

 

[SeaJay]

My only guess is maybe you want some flex in the silicone as the glass will deflect when filled with water. A rigid sealant might be more prone to fail if any deflection overwhelms the rigid seam. This is only a guess though.

I guess it could be more desirable to have a failure at a seam rather than the glass itself. Never thought about it that way.