Help restore a stainless steel framed aquarium w/slate bottom

I got these tanks awhile back, pretty much for free, and they are in need of restoration! I have a few ideas but would like everyone else's input too.


The 29g (3ft long) is going to be used for a fry/grow out tank for my Mbunas and I currently have one holding so it is time to get started on the tank! The 10g I want to use for a fry tank but it needs a whole panel of glass replaced so I will get to that one later. On to the tank!

They are real stainless steel with slate bottoms. The "tar" holding the metal to the glass is all brittle and crumbling. Someone tried to silicone the inside (AND OUTSIDE!) to repair the leaks but...silicone does not bond with slate. The one side piece of glass wiggles quite a bit once the inside silicone was removed.

1. Should I even mess with the "tar"? (I don't know what it actually is) OR should I just reseal it from the inside? OR strip it down completely to the metal and start over? if so what would I re-bond the metal to the glass with?

2. I read that some people used a piece of plexi-glass on the bottom, on top of the slate, to form a seal to the glass sides. Will plexi-glass bond permanently with silicone? I was thinking plexi-glass instead of glass for weight concerns, it is heavy enough with the slate. Plus I have enough in the shed!

3. I would also consider removing the slate completely and replacing it with glass but I am not sure how plausible that would be. The metal creates quite a lip over the inside of the glass so the slate may not be small enough to make it out. Any safe ideas on how to break the slate while inside the aquarium?

4. Anyone know of something that WILL bond to the slate & glass but still safe for aquariums?

I know this will be a big project and probably cost more then a new or gently used aquarium but I love these tanks!

Any other tips or suggestions very welcomed!! I look forward to building this with you guys!

Some photos of the tank's current state (well I removed some more silicone too)








Here is the stand I got with it too.


Bottom sanded, top not




What a pain!


It is finished and sitting in my room, WAY back in a corner, I will take pictures of it later.

That's what I thought, thanks for confirming! Like I said I read people did it...but who knows how long it lasted.

Cliff Mayes said:

The stand is good; a little bit of paint and rust removal makes it as good as new.

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Thanks! I just sanded it down no chemicals and painted it with ....I believe it was called "cracked" metal spray paint, to keep that antique look. It came out good.

Cliff Mayes said:

As you stated the tanks are probably not worth it but if you want to disassemble the tank and re silicone them it is easy enough but time consuming and aggravating. The asphalt that originally sealed the tanks is easy enough to remove but the silicone that was put on to "fix" the tanks is a real problem. Do not try to replace the asphalt, just toss it and replace with silicone.

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Excellent, I like that answer (replacing with silicone). Complete disassemble is definately an option now.

Cliff Mayes said:

Get a scraper (from a car repair place if you do not have one) and a package of blades to scrape off the silicone. Acetone which is a nasty chemical takes off the residue but be careful with this stuff. Black silicone is apparently now available as well as the clear stuff, just make sure that what you get is tank safe.

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I have resealed a tank before so I know what I am in for there. I just used rubbing alcohol to remove residue, although a NEW razor blade really does wonders. I would like black silicone, do you recall if it was aquarium silicone($$$$) or something like "GE Silicone I" (cheap but safe)?

Cliff Mayes said:

A lot of the Cory breeders used the older tanks because of the opaque, slate bottom so as not to alarm the fish, who evidently felt better about knowing where the bottom was, at least that was the hypothesis. A bare bottom was also used to facilitate feeding and cleaning up after the fry.

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Thanks for that info! I have heard of corys being popular in these tanks but never knew why, now I know!

Thanks for the BigAls heads up!

Sounds like an interesting project, what did you use to bond the Plexiglass together? This may be an option for my 10g.

Cliff Mayes said:

The last time I bought silicone was from Wal*Mart and was the clear stuff. Currently all of the packages say "not for aquarium use" but some of the material seems to be OK so there must be some legal reason for the disclaimer.

The black stuff might only be available from the Fish suppliers but I am not sure of that.

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I see, I would not use anything that I did not know for sure was safe. Many people have used the GE Silicone I in aquariums with no side effects, including myself.