really bad tank

[jiggerpolebill]

how far gone does a tank have to be before you write it off as a loss and trash it?

i came across a 55g tank thats in pretty bad shape. it appears to have housed some kind of critter because the sealant in the corners is gone halfway up and there's alot of scratches on the glass. the plastic frames at the top and bottom are broken and the outside corners are chipped up pretty bad.

but! it hold water and doesnt leak. what would you do? try and salvage it some way? its definately not show quality in anyway, but could it be used as some kind of grow out tank? or maybe i should just try to sell it as a critter holder.

[VoodooChild]

I have a 20L like this and I let it sit for a week before I trusted it. If it holds water now though it probably SHOULD be ok. And I think about 99% of all problems are in the first 6 months, which I suppose isn't too resassuring. If you're willing to take the risk, I'd say go for it. As long as whatever's claws (I'm guessing rodent, probably guinea pig) didn't get into the seams and it only trashed the excess stuff on the outside, you shouldn't have any problems.

[Hebdizzle]

you can always try resealing it with some aquarium silicon. Also I believe there are products that can help the scrates within the glass (I know there are for acrylic so you might as well look around)

hebdizzle

[Heady]

Definitely don't fill it up until you have resealed the corners with silicone. It may hold water for 5 minutes or 5 days but it WILL leak.

My sister has gerbils; they dig in the silicone neurotically all day, I don't know if they eat it or what, but they are not strong enough to actually scratch the glass.

Is the glass badly scratched on both sides? Personally I don't like to use any tank where I can't see the fish well. Even if you use it for a grow-out tank, can you see well enough to see symptoms of your fish being sick? Just a thought...