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marks48 · 02-27-2008, 05:32 PM

Hi, I had some problems with my fish tank (the water has been very merky the past several months, no matter what I did I couldn’t get it to clear up. Water changes, filter cleanings, products that “clear water up”- nothing fixed it. Fed the fish the other day; (2 in the tank) and only 1 came to the top to eat. Found the other stuck to the filter L. Minutes later, I looked and the other fish was now on his side on the top. I knew he wouldn’t make it in the water, so I put him in another small tank, with new water and also some vitamins (I know it was not good to do that, but he had no chance in the other tank so worth a shot). Hours later he was swimming and looked much better- but when I woke up he was dead too LL
So I went to clean the tank out, as I picked it up I miscalculated and somehow bumped the glass on the tub. So now I have a broken panel.
Before when I did a water change, I didn’t have enough water so the tank was running low for a few days. Unfortunately within several days, I noticed mold / mildew on the glass (under the silicone- see pics below). So I was considering re siliconing it.
I called my local pet store; they said siliconing the crack however would hold maybe a month if im lucky. Now I can see why maybe a 100 gallon tank would not hold very long, however this is just a 10 gallon tank (still a good 80 bucks or so). So, I know 95% of the people who read this will say since its broken and has mildue under the silicone, just replace it….. however that is not what I want to do. My current options are 1. Replacing the panel, 2. Repairing the panel.
My dad sells windows and his company always replaces windows, so I can for sure get an old window and just cut the glass to the proper size, or even go to an art store and buy glass they use for stain glass windows (though I am not sure if that glass is made thinner then standard glass); but I am sure I can acquire a piece that works. My problem would be removing the top and bottom plastic frame without damaging other panels. For that reason, I was also considering just repairing the panel that’s broken.
The crack was luckily on the corner of the tank, so the chances of it spidering out are lower (if it was in the center I am sure the entire thing would have spider cracked) I also filled it up with water (to the top) to see if it will spider any more, and it did but it just was a continuation of the original crack which I figured would happen anyways. But I let it set a few hours- no further spidering (just leaking).
So, I was wondering if anyone had any advice? Repair or replace the glass? If replacing, any ideas how to get the frames off?
Also if I re silicone the mildew area, should I just scrape the silicone off the area above the mildew? Or should I just remove it all? Any advice would be appreciated!

02-27-2008, 05:32 PM	#1 (permalink)
marks48 Plankton Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 1 Karma: 1	broken glass (no fish left in tank) Hi, I had some problems with my fish tank (the water has been very merky the past several months, no matter what I did I couldn’t get it to clear up. Water changes, filter cleanings, products that “clear water up”- nothing fixed it. Fed the fish the other day; (2 in the tank) and only 1 came to the top to eat. Found the other stuck to the filter L. Minutes later, I looked and the other fish was now on his side on the top. I knew he wouldn’t make it in the water, so I put him in another small tank, with new water and also some vitamins (I know it was not good to do that, but he had no chance in the other tank so worth a shot). Hours later he was swimming and looked much better- but when I woke up he was dead too LL So I went to clean the tank out, as I picked it up I miscalculated and somehow bumped the glass on the tub. So now I have a broken panel. Before when I did a water change, I didn’t have enough water so the tank was running low for a few days. Unfortunately within several days, I noticed mold / mildew on the glass (under the silicone- see pics below). So I was considering re siliconing it. I called my local pet store; they said siliconing the crack however would hold maybe a month if im lucky. Now I can see why maybe a 100 gallon tank would not hold very long, however this is just a 10 gallon tank (still a good 80 bucks or so). So, I know 95% of the people who read this will say since its broken and has mildue under the silicone, just replace it….. however that is not what I want to do. My current options are 1. Replacing the panel, 2. Repairing the panel. My dad sells windows and his company always replaces windows, so I can for sure get an old window and just cut the glass to the proper size, or even go to an art store and buy glass they use for stain glass windows (though I am not sure if that glass is made thinner then standard glass); but I am sure I can acquire a piece that works. My problem would be removing the top and bottom plastic frame without damaging other panels. For that reason, I was also considering just repairing the panel that’s broken. The crack was luckily on the corner of the tank, so the chances of it spidering out are lower (if it was in the center I am sure the entire thing would have spider cracked) I also filled it up with water (to the top) to see if it will spider any more, and it did but it just was a continuation of the original crack which I figured would happen anyways. But I let it set a few hours- no further spidering (just leaking). So, I was wondering if anyone had any advice? Repair or replace the glass? If replacing, any ideas how to get the frames off? Also if I re silicone the mildew area, should I just scrape the silicone off the area above the mildew? Or should I just remove it all? Any advice would be appreciated!