Sierra Bravo Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 I just discovered two chips on the front of my 120 gallon in-wall tank and I'm extremely concerned. They are about 3" above the sandbed and " apart from one another. They the beginning of stress fracture lines starting. Is there anything I can do to minimize the risk of this spreading until I can replace the tank??? I was wondering if a windshield repair kit epoxy would help? I can't believe I'm even writing about having to tear down and re-do this tank. Any advice or thoughts on how to go about this would be greatly appreciated. Chip 1 Chip 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Dogfish Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 Wow that sucks. I dont know much about glass repair. Sorry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShawnM Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 Are they on the inside or outside?Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sierra Bravo Posted March 10, 2019 Author Share Posted March 10, 2019 34 minutes ago, ShawnM said: Are they on the inside or outside? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Outside. I'm going to do a windshield repair epoxy to stabilize it (hopefully) and I've decided I really need to change the tank. With all my travel I just would not want to risk or worry about it spreading while I'm away. It's either a controlled disaster or will be an unpredictable disaster, but a disaster either way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jolt Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 Oh wow. I wish I had any kind of advice, but I have no ideas. But this really is a bummer for you 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 I wouldn't know what to do either. Just wanted to say that really sucks. I'm glad you noticed it though. Any idea how they got there? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sierra Bravo Posted March 10, 2019 Author Share Posted March 10, 2019 (edited) 1 hour ago, KimP said: I wouldn't know what to do either. Just wanted to say that really sucks. I'm glad you noticed it though. Any idea how they got there? If I were to guess, I would say someone was carrying something by the tank and it was smacked going by. The two chips are at the same level. Of course no one knows anything about how they got there. . . 🤐 Edited March 10, 2019 by Sierra Bravo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhart032 Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 Oh man that's bad news.. you can try to have it filled with resin and polished out, but man thats a real iffy situation. thats a big tank and a ton of weight on that front pane. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted March 11, 2019 Share Posted March 11, 2019 What a bummer! Beside the Windshield repair kit you could si;licone a 4" or 6" square of 1/4 or 3/8 plate glass over the chip. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sierra Bravo Posted March 11, 2019 Author Share Posted March 11, 2019 I've got the windshield repair kit going now, but I'm having trouble curing the resin without sunlight. I have a UV flashlight but so far it's not doing the job. I bought a stock tank from Tractor Supply, and have ordered a replacement tank (maybe) that should be here on Tuesday (maybe). Before starting the repair, I brought out a jeweler's loupe and re-examined the chip. It appears to be a surface chip only, and what I'm seeing as a lateral line may not be a crack but just the shape of the chip. I'll see how it looks if I get the resin to cure. There's a small chance that I leave it as is. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Dogfish Posted March 11, 2019 Share Posted March 11, 2019 Just like a pro. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sierra Bravo Posted March 11, 2019 Author Share Posted March 11, 2019 (edited) I am blown away by how well this resin worked once I got it cured. I can't even find where the chip was. I'm not ready to say I dodged a bullet yet though; I'm going to watch it a few days and see. BTW - to get it to cure it dawned on me I had two very powerful UV lights right under my nose. Well, right above my nose. 😋 I cranked the actinic channel up to 100% and with the boost it cured in no time. Before: After cure: After clean-up: Edited March 11, 2019 by Sierra Bravo 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted March 11, 2019 Share Posted March 11, 2019 I was wondering if the tank lights would work! That's amazing. It would be great if it did the trick. This is nightmare material for me. Over here I have 4 little boys running around my in wall tank that's mostly exposed on 4 sides 😬 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sierra Bravo Posted March 11, 2019 Author Share Posted March 11, 2019 2 minutes ago, KimP said: I was wondering if the tank lights would work! That's amazing. It would be great if it did the trick. This is nightmare material for me. Over here I have 4 little boys running around my in wall tank that's mostly exposed on 4 sides 😬 I still don't know how it happened. I tried the "Now, I'm not going to get mad. I just want to know how it happened so I can prevent it from happening again. If you know something, tell me. . .it's ok" Yeah, not happening. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhart032 Posted March 11, 2019 Share Posted March 11, 2019 They know better! I don't see ant runs in the chips from what I can tell. I sent the pics to.my glass guy and he asked how thick the front panel was. Said its not great, specially low iron glass (which I assume it was and told him it was) said better on the outside than on the inside. When they fix thicker window chips they have a device that does the work really. Pumps the resin in and cures it right away. But there isn't the same weight on regular 1/2-1" thick glass windows. He wouldn't trust it long term for sure. But.. he said the pane could be replaced and fixed pretty easily. But most won't warranty the rest of the tank but will the front pane. Might be less to fix then replace. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sierra Bravo Posted March 11, 2019 Author Share Posted March 11, 2019 21 minutes ago, mhart032 said: They know better! I don't see ant runs in the chips from what I can tell. I sent the pics to.my glass guy and he asked how thick the front panel was. Said its not great, specially low iron glass (which I assume it was and told him it was) said better on the outside than on the inside. When they fix thicker window chips they have a device that does the work really. Pumps the resin in and cures it right away. But there isn't the same weight on regular 1/2-1" thick glass windows. He wouldn't trust it long term for sure. But.. he said the pane could be replaced and fixed pretty easily. But most won't warranty the rest of the tank but will the front pane. Might be less to fix then replace. I appreciate you asking about it for me. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShawnM Posted March 11, 2019 Share Posted March 11, 2019 I think the resin would be a good fix. And looks good too nice job. I don’t think you have to get into a hurry to buy a new tank right away. I would definitely put it in the plans but don’t think you need to be in any hurrySent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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