40G Breeder sump Cracked - What can I do?

president89 · Mar 5, 2017

My sump cracked. Not leaking yet. I assume I cracked it when I was removing a baffle. It's still in use. Can I just cake some silicone on the exterior?

Kershaw · Mar 5, 2017

I would at least drain it. And silicon the inside

president89 · Mar 5, 2017

Kershaw said:
I would at least drain it. And silicon the inside

Silicone takes days to cure. I can't take the system offline for that long.

mcarroll · Mar 5, 2017

How long can you take the system offline if the seam gives out?

Why not buy a new 40B and use it as-is?

saltnewb · Mar 5, 2017

best bet would be to buy a new 40b to replace it with, just hope the $1/gallon sale is happening or find a replacement sump on craigslist or something. why were you taking the baffles out?

president89 · Mar 5, 2017

I have a beefy plastic tote for emergencies. The sump is not easy to remove - it's wedged in next to another sump for another system which is partially blocked by a utility sink.

I wouldn't expect 20 gallons of water to bust a cracked tank - even less when you take into account the pressure loss from the baffles. I'm just worried about a slow leak.

president89 · Mar 5, 2017

saltnewb said:
best bet would be to buy a new 40b to replace it with, just hope the $1/gallon sale is happening or find a replacement sump on craigslist or something. why were you taking the baffles out?

Someone put a baffle in the wrong place - made it impossible to install a sock filter...

saltnewb · Mar 5, 2017

bummer.

Kershaw · Mar 5, 2017

Well you can add silicon to the outside and hope for the best. Or you can replace or fix it. And not worrie about it. I have to tear my whole system down and set up in a shed so my house can get treated. It sucks but it's what I have to do

president89 · Mar 5, 2017

I think I'm going to try and find a 40G sump for a few days, and if not, I'll buy a 40G breeder and just re-home the baffles from the old and swap it out.