I just needed a 20L. I had given one away a while back and for this summer I put up an extra small stand that has the new 20L on top and a 10 under it. But i am heading in the directions of getting rid of almost all my fish and tanks. So It is too late for any new tanks coming my way. Reef tanks tend to have a lot more weight on the bottom. So it would make sense to got for extra protection. But the African keepers often use egg crate under the substrate to protect the bottom glasd and spread out the weight on the glass some.
Display tanks, which are really what Custom Aquariums makes, look nicer with black silicone especially for tanks on stands as opposed to inwall. And their prices are though the roof. Nobody has lots of tanks which are not display tanks, would never buy tanks from this place. I have almost 100% Aqueon tanks and always have, I have as many dollars of rare fw fish as many reef keepers have. But that is partially because many if the were born in my tanks.
I would need some sort of evidence and explanation why black silicone is stronger than clear. However. I did find this site with silicone info and here is the heart of it.
Best silicones for building or resealing glass aquariums
If you are building or resealing an aquarium, then you want the strongest, most durable and most reliable silicone around. After all, if the silicone used to glue the joints of your aquarium fails, tens or even hundreds of gallons of water are going to flood your home – killing your fish and leaving you with one heck of a mess to clean up.
And when it comes to reliability, two silicones stand out. These silicones are used for their adhesive properties – gluing together tank glass.
If you speak to a professional aquarium builder, chances are that they use one of these two silicones. (I deleted the pictures.)
1. Momentive RTV100 Series
Most professional fish tank builders I spoke with swear by this product, and if there is anyone who relies on a strong silicone seal, it’s these guys. After all, if you build aquariums for other people, then your reputation is on the line. You want to be confident that the silicone used is going to hold strong for years on the glass surface.[1]
Last year, I made the switch to Momentive for my last reseal, and it’s still holding up well.
Note: If you want this silicone in black, then grab the Momentive RTV103.
2. GE SCS1200
On paper, SCS1200 is the stronger and more durable silicone of the two.[1] Despite this, based on the aquarium suppliers I spoke to, Momentive appears to be the more popular silicone.
This is the silicone that I previously used when building glass tanks before deciding to see what all the fuss was about with Momentive. Based on my experience, both seal well for your typical tank build – you will do no wrong with either.
While I wouldn’t go past these two silicones for building aquariums, they are probably overkill for gluing anything that goes inside your tank.
The above article goes on to suggest the silicones to use for gluing inside a tank. You can read the entire article here https://fishlab.com/aquarium-safe-silicone/
Display tanks, which are really what Custom Aquariums makes, look nicer with black silicone especially for tanks on stands as opposed to inwall. And their prices are though the roof. Nobody has lots of tanks which are not display tanks, would never buy tanks from this place. I have almost 100% Aqueon tanks and always have, I have as many dollars of rare fw fish as many reef keepers have. But that is partially because many if the were born in my tanks.
I would need some sort of evidence and explanation why black silicone is stronger than clear. However. I did find this site with silicone info and here is the heart of it.
Best silicones for building or resealing glass aquariums
If you are building or resealing an aquarium, then you want the strongest, most durable and most reliable silicone around. After all, if the silicone used to glue the joints of your aquarium fails, tens or even hundreds of gallons of water are going to flood your home – killing your fish and leaving you with one heck of a mess to clean up.
And when it comes to reliability, two silicones stand out. These silicones are used for their adhesive properties – gluing together tank glass.
If you speak to a professional aquarium builder, chances are that they use one of these two silicones. (I deleted the pictures.)
1. Momentive RTV100 Series
Most professional fish tank builders I spoke with swear by this product, and if there is anyone who relies on a strong silicone seal, it’s these guys. After all, if you build aquariums for other people, then your reputation is on the line. You want to be confident that the silicone used is going to hold strong for years on the glass surface.[1]
Last year, I made the switch to Momentive for my last reseal, and it’s still holding up well.
Note: If you want this silicone in black, then grab the Momentive RTV103.
2. GE SCS1200
On paper, SCS1200 is the stronger and more durable silicone of the two.[1] Despite this, based on the aquarium suppliers I spoke to, Momentive appears to be the more popular silicone.
This is the silicone that I previously used when building glass tanks before deciding to see what all the fuss was about with Momentive. Based on my experience, both seal well for your typical tank build – you will do no wrong with either.
While I wouldn’t go past these two silicones for building aquariums, they are probably overkill for gluing anything that goes inside your tank.
The above article goes on to suggest the silicones to use for gluing inside a tank. You can read the entire article here https://fishlab.com/aquarium-safe-silicone/
