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Main tank split open, 95% all fish dead... just devastated.


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#1 Rob-S

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 12:52 PM

Good people,

It took me a lil while standing there i mute silence staring at it before it really sort of sunk into my brain....

Yesterday, i think about an hour or two before i got home from work, my 6 foot baywindow tank split down the front right silicone seam and emptied itself onto my lounge room floor. 8O By the time i got home all that was left was drying puddles. i open the door and stepped into a puddle. Most of it had worked its way into the laundry and down the laundry floor drain. It was a secondhand tank, but not very old though.

Out of thousands of dollars of very hard to find fish, all that survived were 4 catfish, and 4 loaches. I had approx 100 fish in there. Amazingly, totally out of water, high n dry, these 8 fish were still alive. I quickly transferred them to my 2 foot quarrantine tank, and they were still alive this morning too when i checked on them.

ALL my barbs (a very hard to put together collection of large examples of many species) were dead - dry and stiff. ALL my large sharks, again really hard to find!...all dry n stiff, most of my loaches and most of my catfish, all DEAD..... all laid out in front of me as i stood there dumbstruck, car keys, wallet, mobile phone and bag of newly bought fish food in hand. There were no tears, but christ i was upset!!!! :cry:

I managed to save most of my plants before they totally dried out (heavily planted tank). I put them in what was at the time an empty 4 foot breeding tank. although i haven't checked, i pretty certain all my heaters, powerheads and filters will have fried from overheating.

I'm at a bit of a loss at the moment, i even dreamt about it last night. i'm gonna see what my insurance will cover (if any) ... dunno.

Well, there u have it... poor me, or more importantly, my poor fish. Bruce the big black shark, Ernie his marbled mate, Big George Foreman the clown loach, and all my other awesome critters died a horrible slow, moistureless death, flailing around on dry brown gravel. Depressing isn't it? :?

Gee i'm pissed at this. Oh well. i guess the bright side is this will probably speed up the process of me up grading to the 8 foot baywindow i'm always banging on about. I guess its "upwards and onwards fellow fish keeps...."

To my barbs, sharks, loaches and catfish... RIP u guys... u rocked! :!:

Rob

#2 Neakit

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 01:53 PM

sorry that happened mate, no one deserves that.

#3 nic

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 03:51 PM

wow that is hard.

my 4ft broke just as i walked in the door once!!! thank gppd. because i could save everything. just made a massive cost of replacing floorboards

loaches are good at survivnig without water.

nic

#4 Leevers

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 04:08 PM

Sorry to hear Rob. It's a fear that i think plays on all our minds when keeping large tanks, and it's a fear we soon overcome due to how amazing the tank looks once setup.
My thoughts are with you mate, as i can understand how hard it is losing just one expensive fish let alone the whole lot.

Kind Regards
Chris

#5 olympus

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 05:05 PM

how can you stop this sort of thing happening or cant you?

im scared now!

#6 Leevers

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 05:44 PM

i'd say it would of just happened given weight, aswell as possibly a bad sillicon join. it's very rare to happen, most cabinets huge the base and top of tanks, so for it to happen in a cabinet is extremely rare. on a stand however.... well its 1tonn of water on metal legs with no support on sillicon joins.... a risk is taken there alone. That being said though, it's just as rare for this to happen.

#7 Scat

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 05:50 PM

Sorry to hear about you loss Rob i feel for you mate.

Oh well. i guess the bright side is this will probably speed up the process of me up grading to the 8 foot baywindow


I nearly bought a bayfront tank as my first one but was talked out of it by a few experienced people as ive been told they tend to leak and fail more often than standard tanks (one of my workmates had a bayfront that leaked and caused $11,000 damage to his wooden floor).


Craig

#8 Den

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 06:27 PM

Sincerely very sorry to hear about your loss Rob, though I am glad you have taken a positive attitude, some people may be tempted to throw the towel in when they cop a big setback like that.

This is interesting though regarding bay front tanks, I wonder if this problem comes about because the front panel is curved and makes the side joining surfaces not completely flat against each other as with a normal box tank?

#9 Gavin

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 08:11 PM

I really feel for you Rob, that would be hard to bear.
On the subject of bayfront tanks, where did it fail?- on one of the 45 deg joins or on a regular 90 deg joint? If it was on a 45 I would be hesitant to go with another bayfront but if it was on a 90 then it could have happened to any style of tank and must have been a faulty join.

#10 jack

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 08:25 PM

unlucky mate i could just imagine what my dad would say if it happened to me and there'd probably be more watr on the floor when my dad finished

#11 tafz88

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 08:39 PM

sorry to hear that rob.. !!

#12 Mr_docfish

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 09:00 PM

(olympus)
how can you stop this sort of thing happening or cant you?


The more seams on the tank the more chance of one letting go - bay views are the worst (or should say have the worst record per tank).
Bay window tanks should have bevelled edges to the corner (bayview) panels at 45 degrees to make the glass fit as a but joint (glass to glass with a minimum of silicone to fill in the gap). Unfortunately anyone can make a tank without any experience and these people will normally make a bayview with non-bevelled glass because it is cheaper and easier to build. Fact is, all silicones (regardless of brand) will go hard with constant contact with water. When you rely on this stuff to hold onto the tank and seal it at the same time, you would want it to have as little contact with the water as possible. One method is to have a large fillet of silicone inside the tank to protect the silicone that holds the glass together (between the glass). This fillet will stop the water coming in direct contact with the silicone that does all the structural holding. To see this in action, look at an old aquarium with clear silicone (5 years old will do) and see how the algae and medications (green and blue dyes) get into and under the silicone.
If you are going to get a new tank made, have a look at the quality of the products that are being made locally and ask the manufacturer what makes their tank better than the rest. You will be shown a number of things that you may not have seen or considered before. After this enlightenment, you will see the difference between a tank and an aquarium. :wink:
Sorry to hear of your misfortune, I hear of it all too often. I hope one day there will be some sort of minimum standard of aquarium building for those holding more than 100 litres. Until then, there will be lots of mopping up to do.

#13 snk

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Posted 13 December 2007 - 09:11 PM

whats a bayview?

#14 Rob-S

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Posted 14 December 2007 - 10:34 AM

Thankyou guys for ur kind words. Its appreciated. I'm feeling more positive today....

To be honest, i think my tank would have to break about ten times though, before i ever gave up on the hobby. I've been facinated with aquariums since i was about 8... and will still have em when i'm 80.... and that a fact! biggrin.gif

I've made some enquiries about getting my tank fixed in the short term. No glass panels are broken thank god.

The reinforcing glass rib that runs along the top of the back of the tank has snapped and will have to be replaced. When it gave way, the back rib broke, the and the top RH corner of the front glass lent forward about 1 inch allowing the water to escape. The hood stopped it from collapsing completely/shattering.

I'm not sure if it was the RH 45degree silicone bead that caused it to fail, or if it was an issue with the glass reinforncing ribs at the top of the tank. Either way, its gonna be bullet-proof when i'm done with it let me tell u.

I'm going to strip it apart, clean off all the old silicone, and get it put back together.

Apparently i can get some 6mm diameter (or so) glass rod placed in the open 45 degree gap between the glass panels to reduce the silicone in the join. I will also get the top corners of all joins reinforced with glass plates. I might go a bit overboard in reinforcing this tank, but at least it'll make me feel safe again.

I've a really swish oak coloured wooden cabinet and hood for this tank, so its well worth fixing and keeping (even after i upgrade to the 8 footer).

i have always preferred bayview/baywindow (whatever its called) tanks, i think they look really classy. This hasn't put me off them, but its taught me a rather expensive/unforgettable lesson..... and that is....to reinforce the hell out of any baywindow tank i ever have again....

In regards to the rest of the stuff, my 2 cannister filters still work, and one of the two heaters is still ok. The powerhead and 1 heater are toast.

My lounge room floor boards will have to be replaced via insurance though, they are swelling... but unfortunately, the tank, and fish aren't covered by my policy.

My last platydorus and bristlenose shuffled off the mortal coil this morning ... their excursion to the terrestrial air filled world must have been a lil to much for them.... so now i'm down to 6. :?

Thanks again for ur support guys...

Rob

#15 keenas

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Posted 14 December 2007 - 10:47 AM

That must be hard to deal with. I have seen a friends tank split and the aftermath of what went on. Thanks for sharing, now I will be steering away from these type of tanks.

#16 Leevers

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Posted 14 December 2007 - 02:42 PM

i have a 4foot bayview tank (to answer a question asked above. a bayview tank is one with a curved front glass)
and i just hope i experience very little issue :S

Chris

#17 shortie

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Posted 14 December 2007 - 07:25 PM

i wouldnt get a bayview. they cost more, leak more and make the fish seem funny IMO

but sorry to hear about your loss

regards matt

#18 olympus

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Posted 14 December 2007 - 07:29 PM

wouldnt a tank with a curved front glass be stronger because theres less silicone joins?

#19 Neakit

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Posted 14 December 2007 - 08:00 PM

silicon is strong it just needs a good surface area to bond to

#20 cichlid4lyf

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Posted 15 December 2007 - 09:11 AM

geeeze im so sorry to hear that!
that thought has played through my head over and over again and know its like my worst fear!!
hope everything goes well from know
R.I.P your fish
cheers phillip




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