EMERGENCY NEED HELP

My 4ft just blew out.
I need someone in the Riverina NSW who can re-silicone a tank ASAP.
I now have 25 neons & 15 bristlenoses (& eggs & fry) in a 2ft because my 3ft just blew out also :/

Both tanks at the same time? I hope you get it sorted soon.


Bristlenoses

What bad luck :,( If only you were in Florida I could have someone to fix those tanks in no time.

Just out of curiosity, what exactly do you mean by "blew out?" Did the bottoms fall out? I call that bottom fall-outage, lol. Or did the sides split??

Good luck...

Yep both tanks within minutes of eachother

The entire front panel blew off & is only still connected by the support panel across the top!

Why not DIY? Run to LFS, get aquatic silicone, take the tank apart, clean it extremely well with razor and acetone, so no old silicone is left on the glass. Apply the silicone on the edges, put together, clamp it, wipe excess with acetone. Next day do the silicone in the corners. If you don't have experience with working it, you can use painters tape to get straight lines. Let it dry for as long as they say on the tube.

Here is a link to how my guy does tank repairs. Maybe you can attempt it?

http://ftmyas.com/forum/index.php?topic=39.0

And join my forum if you like! It's a small forum for our local fish club

Wow you must have one heck of a mess !

Sure did a have mess & a half :/

Personally o do not have time to fix it myself, I am full time uni & 2 little kiddies :/

I will have to buy another one until this one gets fixed i think.. then maybe buy it another stand :P

damn!! that sucks!!

any half decent aquarium shop will do it, will charge like a wounded bull for it though. These days it prob is easier to get a new tank.

Awwwwwwwwwwww Things that happen whilst you are tank hunting!!

Hubby being the 'DIY-er" he is, has been watching youtube vids to make sure he fixed it right...He then realised it is 99% similar to what he does/uses at work...

So I came home to a fully re-sealed & drying 200ltr tank on my back patio!!! he even smoothed all of the edges & all

WOOP

Awesome!! Your hubby sounds great

He sure is

I think my jaw hit the floor :P
Couldn't believe it! He is definitely not a fishy person & had a full face mask on when I came home asking "how do i not notice the fishy water smell... " because you cant smell it when it is full :P and when it is empty 99% of the time you scrub it before you play with it LOL..

All back together & doing a water test as we speak!

Any idea of how long i should leave the water in? 24/48/72 hrs?

I have started tanks up the same day no problem but you really have to know what you're doing to get any kind of success. Even so I wouldn't try that method with babies.

Basically what I do is place whatever substrate I want in the tank plus a couple handfuls from a well established tank. I add as much water as I can spare from an established tank (usually fill new tank 3/4 with established aquarium water.) Then I add my water conditioner and top the rest off from whatever water source you'd normally use. Finally I squeeze as much filter media that's squeezable into the water. I wait about an hour or so for things to settle and add fish!

I have never lost any to day and have been doing is for years.

Hi,if you use established filters/filter media in the filters it will be much better.Also gravel etc from an established tank like Ktk05 said.If you are starting all from new and need to cycle it this will take a few weeks and needs to be done properly otherwise you will have a lot of problems.

If you can give info on what if anything you are using from an established tank or otherwise that will be a big help in helping you do it correctly.


Bristlenoses

Bristlenoses wrote:

Hi,if you use established filters/filter media in the filters it will be much better.Also gravel etc from an established tank like Ktk05 said.If you are starting all from new and need to cycle it this will take a few weeks and needs to be done properly otherwise you will have a lot of problems.

If you can give info on what if anything you are using from an established tank or otherwise that will be a big help in helping you do it correctly.


Bristlenoses

I'd more clear:
1. anything from the old tank that was kept wet. If dry-out no live bacteria on it or very few.
2. even more important - type of filter. If canister, even kept wet, but without oxygen, after a week, there are big chances that it's a poison there. The best/safest option: get the media from a RUNNING filter, same with water get as much as you can from friends or whoever.
3. "water conditioner" - what ktk05 probably meant nitrifying bacteria. Here's something I found helpful:
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/bottled_nitrifiers_pt1.php

A nitrifying bacterial additive is a good idea! What I meant was a dechlorinatoe/chloramine remover like prime, aquasafe, or stress coat.

ktk05 wrote:

A nitrifying bacterial additive is a good idea! What I meant was a dechlorinatoe/chloramine remover like prime, aquasafe, or stress coat.

Treating old water and topping with new confused me, sorry!

I dont add chemicals of any kind to my tanks

I currently have the filter still running in my 60L so that is not an issue, Most of the gravel plants etc were removed & dried so i only have a handful left in the 60L anyways, i think once i set the new tank up it will be 70% new fresh water & 30% old tank water... The best i can do unfortunately!!!
Will see how we go!

I am off to do it now!

Do you use water conditioner on your tap water before you add it to your tank? It removes chlorine and chloramine from tap water because chlorine and chloramine kill nitrifying bacteria so if you do not use water conditioner you're tank will never cycle as the chlorine will just keep killing the good bacteria.

Nope nothing at all. Never have & never had an issue, I also test my water every 2 days and never have a cycling issue either. The initial cycle takes about 6-8 weeks (2x as long) to have perfect parameters and When I do water changes i do a max 15%, and i only ever add 1-2 fishies at a time.

I have been 'fishing' all natural for over 4-5 years now.

The only chemicals I have ever used is the medication... other than that... Nothing!

My fish have also been happy enough to breed (BN's, Platy's, Guppies, Rosy-barbs, Swordtails) and 99% of babies survived

I always say stick to whatever works for you! If you have a good thing going, don't mess with it!

CountBryce wrote:

Do you use water conditioner on your tap water before you add it to your tank? It removes chlorine and chloramine from tap water because chlorine and chloramine kill nitrifying bacteria so if you do not use water conditioner you're tank will never cycle as the chlorine will just keep killing the good bacteria.

Water conditioners don't remove anything, they just bond (neutralize). So in my opinion, it's better to pour tap water into containers and season it for couple of days. If you're in rush, stick the airstone into it, or just boil for 20 min. That is, if you don't have lots of chloramine in your tap water. Chlorine evaporates easily.

kaban wrote:

CountBryce wrote:

Do you use water conditioner on your tap water before you add it to your tank? It removes chlorine and chloramine from tap water because chlorine and chloramine kill nitrifying bacteria so if you do not use water conditioner you're tank will never cycle as the chlorine will just keep killing the good bacteria.

Water conditioners don't remove anything, they just bond (neutralize). So in my opinion, it's better to pour tap water into containers and season it for couple of days. If you're in rush, stick the airstone into it, or just boil for 20 min. That is, if you don't have lots of chloramine in your tap water. Chlorine evaporates easily.

I know this haha I study chemistry at university. Was just trying to make it easier to understand.