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Center brace has cracks in it anyone know how bad it is and what I can do about this?

brighamthatcher

By brighamthatcher,
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Dandy Pearl Community Regular

Dandy Pearl

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I'm not sure of the size of your tank, but if it is big enough to have a center support I'd say it's a good size.

I had a 72g bow front crack in exactly the same manner and shortly thereafter it broke entirely. Nothing catastrophic happened, but I did replace the tank within the week.

That center support is in there for a reason. It's not just there to support a top or light. I would replace the tank as absolutely as soon as you are able. The longer you wait the more you risk a major failure.

I have not heard of anyone successfully repairing something like this. Well, anything that is worth looking at. If you drill it for an added support brace, you create a stress concentration where it will fail. You could epoxy a piece of plastic over each crack with at least an inch over lap on each side of the crack. You will of course need to clean the area extremely well to ensure good adhesion. The problem is your lids will no longer fit unless you do this repair from the under side. 

It should go with out saying, but I'm going to say it any way, This type of repair will be horrible for fish if you perform it with fish in the tank. If you think soap is bad, how about fumes from epoxy xxxx for fish!!!

That's why I'd simply go with a new tank. Less risk of death or other catastrophe.

I wish you luck with your situation.

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brighamthatcher Enthusiast

brighamthatcher

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Thanks for the reply. I ended up wiping the area with an alcohol wipe and put some aquarium silicone on the entire area of the brace with any cracks and a bit on the underside. I have no idea how strong aquarium silicone is. If you were me, would you still buy another aquarium? 
 

its 50 gallons

On 12/14/2020 at 8:15 PM, Dandy Pearl said:

I'm not sure of the size of your tank, but if it is big enough to have a center support I'd say it's a good size.

I had a 72g bow front crack in exactly the same manner and shortly thereafter it broke entirely. Nothing catastrophic happened, but I did replace the tank within the week.

That center support is in there for a reason. It's not just there to support a top or light. I would replace the tank as absolutely as soon as you are able. The longer you wait the more you risk a major failure.

I have not heard of anyone successfully repairing something like this. Well, anything that is worth looking at. If you drill it for an added support brace, you create a stress concentration where it will fail. You could epoxy a piece of plastic over each crack with at least an inch over lap on each side of the crack. You will of course need to clean the area extremely well to ensure good adhesion. The problem is your lids will no longer fit unless you do this repair from the under side. 

It should go with out saying, but I'm going to say it any way, This type of repair will be horrible for fish if you perform it with fish in the tank. If you think soap is bad, how about fumes from epoxy xxxx for fish!!!

That's why I'd simply go with a new tank. Less risk of death or other catastrophe.

I wish you luck with your situation.

 

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Schwack Rising Star

Schwack

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A quick google says that aquarium silicon uses a different chemical to begin the curing process vs. other household silicon sealants. I don't have experience with aquarium silicon specifically, but my experience with household sealants says that it will not function as much of a glue, especially with several hundred pounds of water pushing the brace further apart.

If it were me, I'd be going crazy trying to replace the tank within a week, even if it meant downsizing temporarily.

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quikv6 Experienced

quikv6

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I don't believe silicone would add any significant tensile strength to resist the pressure from the water on the glass. I do believe JB Weld makes a plastic epoxy which may (keyword: may) be a very temporary solution, but then you are dealing with epoxy and any consequences from it. While JB Weld is a great product and has its merits and uses, I would really be hesitant to say an aquarium is one of them.

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Dandy Pearl Community Regular

Dandy Pearl

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@Schwack and @quikv6 are correct. Aquarium silicone is only good mechanically for long flat wide surfaces like joining the faces of the glass. It is not good for short, narrow plastic. Even if you use epoxy, I would not use it alone, I would use a reinforcement patch over the crack to give it extra mechanical strength. This could be a temp fix until you can afford a new tank. 

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d23perry Apprentice

d23perry

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Couple of years ago I accidentally damaged the center support brace on my 55g. Didn’t realize how important that was until I noticed the significant bowing days later.

Even worse, I was going away for a week and didn’t feel comfortable with leaving the tank for days knowing that a catastrophic fail was imminent.  

I ran to home depot and bought a clamp to provide the needed support.  It worked perfectly!

On the way home, I picked up a new 55g tank, which thankfully was conveniently timed with Petco’s dollar for gallon sale.

But I swear that the clamp could have held the tank indefinitely.  If you are in a pinch for cash, that will hold you for a good while  

https://www.homedepot.com/p/BESSEY-24-in-Clutch-Style-Bar-Clamp-with-Wood-Handle-and-2-1-2-in-Throat-Depth-GSCC2-524/204986197

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Schwack Rising Star

Schwack

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59 minutes ago, d23perry said:

Couple of years ago I accidentally damaged the center support brace on my 55g. Didn’t realize how important that was until I noticed the significant bowing days later.

Even worse, I was going away for a week and didn’t feel comfortable with leaving the tank for days knowing that a catastrophic fail was imminent.  

I ran to home depot and bought a clamp to provide the needed support.  It worked perfectly!

On the way home, I picked up a new 55g tank, which thankfully was conveniently timed with Petco’s dollar for gallon sale.

But I swear that the clamp could have held the tank indefinitely.  If you are in a pinch for cash, that will hold you for a good while  

https://www.homedepot.com/p/BESSEY-24-in-Clutch-Style-Bar-Clamp-with-Wood-Handle-and-2-1-2-in-Throat-Depth-GSCC2-524/204986197

Aesthetics aside, this seems like it might be a cheap solution for a while. So long as you don't go nuts tightening it up!

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StevesFishTanks Experienced

StevesFishTanks

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You could silicone in a piece of glass directly under the brace to both sides before it gets worse and the tank bows. once it dries it will be rock solid and the plastic will still hold up your lids. I reinforced one of my tanks this way. It had some damage to the brace from a really hot light melting it.

 

this can be done leaving the fish in the tank as long as the brace hasn't cracked fully and the glass is still being held where it's supposed to be. you can just drop the water level and glue it the nice thing is you can put a really thick layer of silicone on top of the glass and squish it all the way up to underneath the brace and tie all of it together as one big blob

16082694512284993197940752906049.jpg

Edited by s1_
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