Will Prefilter Silence a Noisy HOB From Sucked-Up Bubbles?

[Kaskade10729]

Thanks Loach,

We actually have another quasi-emergency that's developed -- it seems my wife spotted what appears to be a slightly peeling area of the silicone (outside) on our Marineland aquarium, on the upper right hand front corner. There has always been a small chip in the glass in this area (you can feel it with your finger) but it never seemed to do anything in terms of leaking; when I just looked at the spot she pointed out, it seems the black silicone Marineland uses on these things is indeed a bit "broken" in this corner, with a flap of the sealant kind of "peeled away," yet there's no water coming out. I think it was like this when we first got the tank, so I didn't think this was an issue (we bought it new from Petsmart years ago; this is the second setup we're running with it).

Is there any way to maybe seal that little chip in the glass and that corner where the silicone seems to be peeling from the OUTSIDE without having to drain this tank and rehome the fish? We went though this years ago with our previous tank in this upstairs loft area, where the seals broke and the tank flooded our entire house, pretty much, causing us to need a renovation. It was a NIGHTMARE and I don't want to go through that again.

Can I use some silicone on the OUTSIDE of the tank in that area? I can take pictures if you need them....

 

[the loach]

Yes do post pictures. Of course you can silicone it from the outside, the question is if it will hold if it truly leaks on that spot from the inside. You could patch it up with a piece of glass but that doesn't look pretty.

 

[Kaskade10729]

Alright....let me get you a pic....thank you.

 

[Kaskade10729]

Working on the pics...

In the meantime, if I wanted to attempt to fortify that corner, how would I go about it from the outside...will any epoxy or silicone do? Just fill it into the little chip and up the edge?

 

[Kaskade10729]

 

[Kaskade10729]

You can really see the bacterial bloom we've been talking about in my other thread, LOL...

But now that I had more time to think about it and discuss it with my wife -- it seems that this corner of the tank has been like this from day one (the "stripped" looking seal and the tiny clamshell chip), after we recalled some memories of the day we got it. We brought the tank home like this, so do you think I can get away with just adding some silicone or epoxy in this spot?

What would be better?

 

[the loach]

I can't see the damage, you have to turn off the aquarium light and try again. Possibly you have to light the spot with a flashlight if there isn't much ambient light. Right now the camera is trying to focus on the inside of the tank and it is underexposed too. I do see an irregularity high up which would be a good sign as there isn't much pressure there.

 

[Kaskade10729]

I can't see the damage, you have to turn off the aquarium light and try again. Possibly you have to light the spot with a flashlight if there isn't much ambient light. Right now the camera is trying to focus on the inside of the tank and it is underexposed too. I do see an irregularity high up which would be a good sign as there isn't much pressure there.

That's the best I can do with the picture; yes, the area I'm referring to is high up in that right front corner...and it doesn't seem to extend down the seam of the tank on that side.

What can I use on the outside of the glass to maybe provide a bit more stability to the area -- can I add some silicone or epoxy?

 

[dudley]

I can't see the area clearly either. Try turning the aquarium light OFF and taking a pic of the area again.

Sometimes when the aquarium is built, there is some silicone that squeezes out between the panes on the outside of the tank so it shouldn't be a problem.

 

[Kaskade10729]

I can't see the area clearly either. Try turning the aquarium light OFF and taking a pic of the area again.

Sometimes when the aquarium is built, there is some silicone that squeezes out between the panes on the outside of the tank so it shouldn't be a problem.

I tried with the light off but the pic didn't seem to register that well in the phone -- I'll try again.

Thanks.