# NEED YOUR HELP! (READ LAST PAGE) 55G - My Anniversary Present - Journal



## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Well, I was going to get my wifey here something like a necklace with diamonds or a new ring! But instead, she fell in love with a little puppy, so I asked her if she wanted it, that could be her anniversary present. As for me, I always wanted a 8 foot tank, but the regular standard dimensions were too huge to even get it into our place, so she asked if I wanted another 4 foot tank  And ofcourse, I wanted a 4 foot tank to set right next to my other 4 foot tank =) at least it'll look like an 8 foot!

Anyways, I didn't want her to spend a fortune for it, so I slowly picked up my equipment piece by piece, but she definitely like that fact of brand new instead! Anyways, this is my first time buying all the used equipment, I promised her it'll look good at the end even though they're used, but she doesn't quite believe me! But hey, I'm the type of people who's willing to spend as much money as I can on others rather than myself!

Used tank from MyKiss $70
(Thanks for shipping it over here and resealing it)
Rena XP3 + Fluval 203 + Fluval 303 $80 - I paid for this, as I told her someone didn't want it and gave it to me, don't want her spending!
(It was used in a salt water tank, need to clean it like crazy, is this too much of an overkill for a planted tank?)
Coralife T5 N/O Double Strip And Single Strip - Own it
(Was on my old tank, bought new lighting for it instead, been sitting around)
Stingray 48x12 Black $175 including shipping
(No one sells it local, so we made the purchase online instead)

All in total, she spent $245 =) Kinda glad!
I told her I don't need gravel or anything, but I'm actually heading to JLaquatics tomorrow so she doesn't have to buy it! And instead of her buying all the extra like drop checkers and everything, I've ordered a few things on eBay so she wouldn't know unti it arrives!

Anyways, here's HER present, and this is mine! It's in my car port, currently working on it as we speak! And my motorcycles in the back as a size reference! =) If anyone was wondering, she's only 21 i think, so this might make it more understanding why I rather spend my money instead of hers!


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## snow (Apr 21, 2010)

Looking really good so far, which dog is your new one in the picture?


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

snow said:


> Looking really good so far, which dog is your new one in the picture?


=) Thanks Snow!
The left little girl is the one! She's here to join my lonely Pomeranian!
But now it's alot of barking, growling and yapping everywhere! They play fight WAY too much, it's from morning to night!

=) Gonna give it another 30 minutes, and then I'm going outside to apply a few layers of clear coat to protect the paint!  can't wait till the stand arrives!


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

Nice start. And good choice to save some money on used stuff.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

2wheelsx2 said:


> Nice start. And good choice to save some money on used stuff.


=) Thanks Gary!

There's nothing wrong with used, just ALOT mroe work on cleaning them, and for the fluval 303, might have to find some parts! But not sure if I'm going to use all the filters! and if you're wondering, NOPE, not planning on added more fish! Basically at the moment, just planning on dividing the fish up in two tanks, dunno how long I can control myself, but I just want everyone to be fixed up, and grow my garden again! After that last disaster... and replanting... definitely not look the same nemore!

Btw.. I decided to pick up a new canister and milawuakee co2 system from Pat, how do make it so I can use CO2 for both? Just divide the lines? or do I need tat whole regulator divider?


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

You need a manifold and 2 needle valves. I have 2 spare Clippard valves you can have. PM me for them. Pat can hook you up with a manifold I'm sure.


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## onefishtwofish (Apr 21, 2010)

omg...what a cute puppy. congrats on your anniversary.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

=) Thanks Gary, will PM you in the morning! Had a long nite with a few beers... not in the right mind to reply! LOL

Thanks onefishtwofish, she's the fourth, and the only girl!
Shanauzzer is the older, 5yrs old
Husky is 2 yr old
Pomeranian brown is 1 yr old
She's the youngest, 11 weeks old!

Definitely adorable, but alot of training indeed! waking me up from my sleep i can tell you, but you definitely cant get mad at that face!


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## onefishtwofish (Apr 21, 2010)

good training for you when the kids start coming!


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## target (Apr 21, 2010)

Have fun with the setup. I am looking forward to seeing it come together. My wife has agreed to me getting a 6 footer so now I just need to find the cash. LOL


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## Claudia (Apr 21, 2010)

Happy aniversary  Love the puppy, so cute


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## Morainy (Apr 21, 2010)

Happy anniversary!

Wow, both of you gave some really amazing gifts -- A 55 gallon tank! And a new puppy! Both gifts that will give you lots of enjoyment for years to come, hopefully, unlike a bouquet of flowers.

Your puppy is adorable and the dogs look very happy with each other in the photo. I hope you'll post photos of your tank when it's set up next to the other one.


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Very nice start! Nothing wrong with used, I just look at it as recycling lol And definitely nothing wrong with saving money! Look forward to seeing it as it goes together. Looks like the one I just resealed which is getting up and going today, finally. Had to do some custom stuff for the stand. if you go to J&L Aquatics, make sure you go thru the fish room and check out the threadfins they have .They are some cool looking fish! Went there the other day for my substrate, went with the Flourite dark as it's super cheap there. Anyway, nice gifts , looks like it turned out to be a very Happy Anniversary


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## jkcichlid (Apr 21, 2010)

Happy Anniversary. Interesting. My wife got me started on fish tanks on our first anniversary cause she didn't know what else to get.

BTW, if your anniversary is today, it's on the same day as mine. 9 years today.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

HAHA~ Thanks guys!
It's actually on the 11th, LOL!
But since she's super busy with work lately, and there's possibly no way of hiding this stuff... especially a puppy in a box under the bed definitely won't work!

Well, Good morning to everyone, and thanks for the kind words, now it's time to add a few more clear coats on top of the paint, and then head to JLaquatics! =)


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Since I work so hard for everything already. I told the wifey I seriously have to treat myself for something!
Most of the times I can spend a fortune on my dog pack and her, but I rarely spend it on myself.
So I decided JLaquatics, I might as well see what I like and spend a little =) Not much, but hey, it's still ALOT to me!

Pimafix
Melafix
API Test Kit
API Kh/Gh Test Kit
3 Bags of 25lb gravel
Therometer for the new tank
And a HUGE jar of Tetra Color.. I bought the tetra color at petsmart, i just couldn't resist, just one INSANE price. I think it's a 7.2oz or something, dun remember, but it was only $16 bux~

And the last photo here is my tag on the wrist when registering at the ER.
Anyways, the tank will have to sit, since I still haven't got my stand yet.. and i won't be able to carry something 4 foot with one broken knee!


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Decided that I HATE the rim on the top and the bottom of the aquarium.. it just makes it look sooo old and scratched! So I took the tank out now, and gonna repaint the whole rim! And yes... I look like an idiot once again, now my neighbors all think I'm crazy HAHA!


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Finally got a friend that came in and moved my tank to the third floor for me! THANKS JOHN!

Anyways, This was a dirty used tank that Pat resealed and added glass brace aswell!

And Pat, if you're reading, yes, it looks new right?
That's because I completely cleaned it out! Didn't like the oak color trim on the rim, so I repainted the rims to black with about 8 coats of clearcoat on it to protect from scratches! And then I painted the background to black and added 3 layers of clearcoat incase any eletrical wires or hosing scratches the back!
Bought a few pieces of wood for about $25 bux in total! They'll be planted with anubias, and the left side.. those plants won't stay there, as it's only for helping cycle the tank! I'll be adding some different slow growers on the left!

This tank is going to be different than my main tank, as I'm going to put slow growing plants, more wood, and leave ALOT more swimming space for the guys to grow!
Most likely going to add a XP4 with control valves and going to pick up my CO2 tank from Pat as soon as my leg feels a little better!

Otherwise, everything's pretty much done! 
Will keep everyone updated.. if you're still reading!


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## target (Apr 21, 2010)

Looking good so far.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Thank you Thank you =) Very happy with it so far!


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

You're in the big time now with the 55.  You're going to want bigger and bigger tanks all the time now. Is this side by side with other tank? Let me know when you are ready for the CO2 stuff.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

2wheelsx2 said:


> You're in the big time now with the 55.  You're going to want bigger and bigger tanks all the time now. Is this side by side with other tank? Let me know when you are ready for the CO2 stuff.


Yah gary! They're side by side completely!
=) I talked to a framer before I was all set to call a friend over to get this done for me! He use to build houses for years, and he said it would be the biggest suprise for him if my house even collapse! So i called my friend came over and moved everything for me, so I seriously can't thank him enough!

Right now.. i think the tank's still cycling! But i can't tell you how happy I am! =)

And Gary, NO, i didn't buy more fish! at least not for now.. and to control myself, I can't really get to many places, and promised the wifey that I will not buy any fish at all for the next 30 days! and counting down.. right now 29 days left, HAHAHA~


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Bought a few plants, not sure what they are! But they were cheap and something that doesn't seem like they needed much light requirement, so I added them in =) replanted everything! Hope they do well~

Anyways, let me know what you think, as I'm not that good at planting!


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Coming along nicely!


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Thank you thank you! But i seriously got no clue what plant is what at the moment!
I just pick wutever's nice!


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## clintgv (May 6, 2010)

eternity302 said:


> Bought a few plants, not sure what they are! But they were cheap and something that doesn't seem like they needed much light requirement, so I added them in =) replanted everything! Hope they do well~
> 
> Anyways, let me know what you think, as I'm not that good at planting!


Not good at planting? Looks perfect to me


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

=) Thanks for the compliment! Glad i'm not wasting my anniversary present! LOL!
But i hate to say.. wow the water is cloudy!


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## clintgv (May 6, 2010)

eternity302 said:


> =) Thanks for the compliment! Glad i'm not wasting my anniversary present! LOL!
> But i hate to say.. wow the water is cloudy!


It's all good. It will clear out soon for you .


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

But the worst part is =( when i was transfering my senegalus over... he got ich.. it's been a week, he's all healed up and suddenly i came home today, and everyone's got ich!


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## halonine (Jun 7, 2010)

Looking good! I like those plants, nice and green 

Plans for a carpet of some sort?


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

halonine said:


> Looking good! I like those plants, nice and green
> 
> Plans for a carpet of some sort?


Thank you

I definitely did think about glosso! But if you look closely.. i have a crew of flagtails in there.. they were completely fine nipping on plants.. and finally today, i noticed the camboda has been nipped a little too much... LOL! I dun think any carpet will survive!


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## halonine (Jun 7, 2010)

Hehe, ya, I know what you mean. My german rams picked and pulled 90% of my glosso and HC when I had it 

Hours to plant, minutes to destroy lol

Since then, I've gone with dwarf hairgrass. Its been 2+ weeks, and not a single piece has been pulled up... Maybe try a small amount of that and see what happens?


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

I have my crew of flagtails that'll eat any vegetation.. it's already quite suprising that I can have em in a planted tank! Can't wait till they grow a little!
But seriously need to upgrade the lights!

I dose metricide, micros and macros, and with the light at only 1.5w/gallon... it's nt doing much.. a huge different compared to the tank next to it!


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## jobber (May 14, 2010)

tank is looking pretty nice. now i know why influence for me to upsize tanks! haha.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

jobber604 said:


> tank is looking pretty nice. now i know why influence for me to upsize tanks! haha.


Thanks!
And I have to say, with all honesty, bigger tanks might cost a little more for initial start up, but there are soooo much more things you can do! And there are sooooo much more room for errors!
Yes you're gonna use more water conditioner and it can get pricey if you have to treat the whole tank, but it's alot easier to care for! =)
It's a 55gallon only, but I rather have one, then to main 2x 10 gallon, 1x 5 gallon, and maybe 1x 25 gallon! =) I will never go small again~ Nothing against small tank, just too much limits to them!


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

For a small update.. no pictures though..!
The tank's been infested with ICH since the last 5 days! Been trying to fight it! No treatment except DAILY water changes!
The temp is at 81F and they've been on the New Life Spectrum Thera A since today, just bought them at Rogers Aquatic for a darn good price for $15 =)


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## tony1928 (Apr 22, 2010)

Good luck with your Ich treatment. Sounds like you've been through this before but I would be prepared to medicate (if possible) to save your fish. If Ich is severe, heat and salt usually isn't fast enough. I've been using Quick Cure for a while with good success.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

You need to start quarantining, Jackson if you're going to buy fish from LFS and put them in right away. I've not had good experience with any LFS without a quarantine of some sort.


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## halonine (Jun 7, 2010)

Hmm, I've never had a problem with fish from the LFS, I don't even have a quarantine tank.

My German blue ram had ich a little over a week ago and I did the same as you eternity, no medications, just water changed daily. It looked like it was getting a lot worse after the 2nd change, then the next day when the lights came on, it was almost completely gone. Did 3 more days of water changes and now he is healthy as can be.

Good luck to you and your fish though! Hope all the little guys pull through


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## tony1928 (Apr 22, 2010)

The only LFS that I've seen for myself that does quarantining and treat with meds is Fraser. Not saying that their stuff is any better than anyone elses, I just see them doing regular quarantining and treatment. Most LFS are too concerned about getting their new stock ready for sale and also most don't have the space to spare.

Just keep a close eye on the Ich. You don't want to end up with a full blown outbreak. I took the no med method before and I ended up losing most of my tank. Mild heat doesn't actually kill the Ich parasite, it just speeds up their life cycle. I've read that high heat (86F and up) may be able to actually kill Ich but may distress your fish.

A good read: Understanding and Treating Ich or White Spot


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

halonine said:


> Hmm, I've never had a problem with fish from the LFS, I don't even have a quarantine tank.


You just jinxed yourself.  I had never had an ich problem in the past, but when I came back to the hobby 5 years ago, through the various fish purchases, I have ich from every LFS I have bought at. Of course, if you keep your tank at 86 F like for discus tank, you'll never see ich either.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

Higher heat also doesn't kill the ich, but prevents them from reproducing, so once the adults run through their life cycle, there will be no more hatching. I've used the heat with good success, but it's hard on the plants and if your fish are weakened, they'll need more O2.


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## halonine (Jun 7, 2010)

I hope i haven't jinxed myself! lol. Oh well, I don't think i'll be buying any fish for quite some time, tanks are stocked just the way I want them now, thanks to a visit to Charles yesterday


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

halonine said:


> I hope i haven't jinxed myself! lol. Oh well, I don't think i'll be buying any fish for quite some time, tanks are stocked just the way I want them now, thanks to a visit to Charles yesterday


Loreto tetras?


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## halonine (Jun 7, 2010)

Nope, got 20 rummy noses. They look great in the tank. I wanted to see the loreto's, but someone purchase the whole lot of them before I got down there


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Haha~ Thanks guys! I seriously got no clue how the ich popped up!
It wuz during the transfer of the fish from one tank to another! and the addition of 3 miniature tinfoil barb as a small clean up crew... but the barbs dun have any ich.. but few of the fish does! Kinda odd~

Anyways, they're all looking better and eating strong! =) Dun think I need to worry much this time LOL~ Or as I hope!


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Updates!
Been very very stressed lately with everything going on!
Did my water change tuesdays again!
Thought I share... i pruned my plants from one tank and moved it to this one!


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

PH 7.4 or so
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 20

No fight marks, no torn fins.. nothing.. no illness in tank...! All i can think of is harassment from the others... great... a dead Semaprochilodus Flagtail.... there goes $50... sigh... =(


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## jobber (May 14, 2010)

tanks are looking great! love looking at your pictures.


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## neven (May 15, 2010)

nice man! are you planning on dropping the nitrates a bit (ie 15ppm), or you happy with 20?


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Thanks guys! Sigh... so upset one of my flagtails are dead! but oh wellz Can't do much now!

Anyways, Neven, i'm sticking with the 20ppm... it's extremely hard for me to get it down even when I'm not dosing nitrate!
My flagtails are such messy eaters that my nitrate at the highest wuz 80ppm... i'm already doing controlled feedings~


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## neven (May 15, 2010)

yea i hear you on that, i started feeding more to get more growth out of a couple fishies and next thing i know im fighting a massive nitrite spike that took forever to balance out :/ Ended up going back to my very limited feeding regime. 20ppm isn't bad though, i shoot between 15 to 20, trying to fine tune closer to 15 just so if i slightly over feed it doesn't make a mess of things.

It can get pretty easy to control the dosing so it averages out more evenly where you want it without a scale. Personally i recommend using a measuring spoon atleast half the size of what you'd try to use. ie. i use 1/8tsp increments when my kno3 is recommended at 1/4tsp. This allows me to use vary things slightly by making spoonfuls heaping, even or just short.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

ahhh... when my nitrates get that high, I don't even bother dosing at the moment! I have all the measuring spoons down to 1/64 for those reasons, especially on the nano planted tanks!

But I think I killed my fish myself... as there's no torn fins or bite marks or lost scales.. but when I did take him out, I noticed he was a little bloated.. im guessing i overfed as I'm trying to push these monsters to grow! I'm gonna leave 2 days without feeding and let them rest for now!
=(


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

If you're dosing EI, I wouldn't worry about it at all. The nitrate reading is going to increase during the week as you dose and be reset at the water change.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Sigh... Gary... I got them at 3.5"s or smaller.... sigh.... It's hard to bare this one death...

I'm not even sure what I did wrong now...


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

I NEED YOUR HELP

I bought this tank used and obviously know that you take a risk on anything used. Anyways, who cares who and where I got it from, long story short; center glass brace was added to the top black trim and siliconed when I purchased this, it was so I can put a canopy on if needed and it'll hold the trim together adding more support for the weight of the water. Anyways, few weeks ago I already noticed something seem to be wierd with the top black trim.. it's completely rounded out.. and today.. i noticed the glass leaned down in the water.. so I checked... and this is what I found, let me know what I should do... or should i even do anything?
It's completely bent outwards... not the glass (Im hoping).. i lined up my coralife strip light to give you an idea!

what should i do?


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

To me, it just looks like the trim is bowed and not the glass so I wouldn't worry about or do anything. Others with more experience with this sort of thing will likely have more constructive comments.


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

cant really tell if its the glass or just the trim, can you get a pic from a bit lower?


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

I'm pretty sure its just the trim, but should I be in panic?


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## gklaw (May 31, 2010)

Mmm. Looks like the original black centre brace had been cut out and your silicon is not holding. Try lowering the water and clean the class really well, resilicon and let cure for 1 week before loading it up again.

You can also get a steel or aluminum bar bent at both ends and hang on the top to act as a centre brace.

All my tanks Hagen bows about 1/4" - 1/2". They were designed without the centre brace. Cheaper tank these days rely on the blastic centre brace.


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## O.C.D Fishies (Apr 21, 2010)

Our tank is a 33 and in the center the tank bows to. I think from the weight of the water. Our tank has been like this for the past year and so far nothing has happened. Good luck and I hope its no cause for worry.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Thanks guys! Sorry for the late late reply! This have been givin me a headache!
Anyways, so I drained 80% of the water while doing a water change so I can check out how bad it is... when the tank is fully up, the glass can swing up and down easily now, it's completely dropped, and when there's only 20% of water left, I tried to see how the glass fits and how I can reseal it... guess what? The glass has to be pushed up against the glass to get back into position.. so if you understand what I mean, the tank is bowing outwards when water is full, so it's not just the black trim!

So now what should I do?
Ditch the tank and buy a new one or what?


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## 182 (Apr 21, 2010)

If the glass is visibly separating? ....I'd get a new tank. I think it'll be the cheaper solution in the long run. Besides, the real 'present' was that she allowed you to get another tank, amirite? 

And after you've got the new one up and running, you can fix this one up and sell it off to some other poor bastard.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Otter said:


> If the glass is visibly separating? ....I'd get a new tank. I think it'll be the cheaper solution in the long run. Besides, the real 'present' was that she allowed you to get another tank, amirite?
> 
> And after you've got the new one up and running, you can fix this one up and sell it off to some other poor bastard.


Ahh... I'm thinking of going acrylic for the new tank if I do purchase another one! Just much lighter and there's no trim around it! But I'm not sure when... dun wanna spend anymore!

As for selling it to some other person, I'm sure members that's dealt with me obviously know that I wouldn't do that... i hate being honest sometimes.. but I hate to put my frustration onto others!


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## 182 (Apr 21, 2010)

Yeah, I was just kidding.  

If you're in a pinch (IE, if the tank starts leaking) you can have an old 30 gallon tank I've got sitting in storage. It's not the prettiest thing, but it could tide you over. I got it free from a guy a while ago to use as a sump, but I didn't need it.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

eternity302 said:


> Ahh... I'm thinking of going acrylic for the new tank if I do purchase another one! Just much lighter and there's no trim around it! But I'm not sure when... dun wanna spend anymore!
> 
> As for selling it to some other person, I'm sure members that's dealt with me obviously know that I wouldn't do that... i hate being honest sometimes.. but I hate to put my frustration onto others!


It doesn't need to be acrylic for it to be trimless. You've seen my 100 gallon square tank thread? http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/tank-journals-16/100-gallon-square-tank-4338/

There are pics at the end now.

And if you are worried about bowing, acrylic tanks (especially bigger ones) will bow much more than glass, but that's more normal than for glass thanks.


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## eternity302 (Apr 22, 2010)

Ahhhh....
I dunno... I'm just so paranoid with leaks now... aready happened once and I can't allow it to happen again!
I'm now also paranoid at buying used!


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