Do your walls need protection from your saltwater tank?

[Spieg]

No - Euro Brace tank with a couple of inches space behind the tank keeps any splashing to a minimum. I know some people who go overboard with aiming powerhead at the water surface and this can splash a lot of water, but I don't really do that either (its a fish tank, not a fountain LOL).

 

[Dana Riddle]

I saw damage to walls, metal vents, etc. at a LFS, so when I built the lab in the day basement, I installed a dehumidifier, 'green' drywall (for humid environments), painted it with Kilz and finally with a coat of paint. Metal vents were sprayed with a coating similar to truck bed liners. Ceiling is suspended, and 'industrial' tiles were used - these are recommended for humid environments as well, but between the AC unit and the dehumidifier, the relative humidity rarely exceeds 50%. Three and a half years, and zero problems with the finish.

 

[Rmfgator]

Saltwater can be a destructive force when it comes to your home. Floors, metals and other materials don't mix well with salt creep and saltwater. We know how to protect our floors but what about our walls? Salt creep will find it's way to your wall that's for sure! I've had my share of wall damage and I wanted to hear from you all today and find out how you mitigate or eliminate wall damage! Let's talk about it!

1. Have you ever had to repaint, resurface or re-drywall a wall because of your saltwater tank?

2. How do you protect your walls from saltwater damage?

Just took done an existing tank and set up a new one and salt water did a lot of damage to the walls and tile, actually chewed tough the baseboard tile. We had to sand down the wall and spackle to repair. My LFS helped me set up the new tank and he suggested to place some pieces of plexiglass around the inside of the cabinet to protect it from splashes and salt creep. Perhaps it would be a good idea to attach some plexiglass to the wall behind the tank to protect it. after covid there should be plenty of cheap plexiglass around.

 

[Griepp06]

have not been in the hobby long enough to have my tank destroy my wall. but in a few years planning on moving to the forever home and i will probably just replace the drywall with cement board right behind the tank

 

[moulton1853]

Yes. At the time I had hob everything. Lot of splashing from the equipment. Since adding a sump no more problems except I will have to fix the wall eventually.

 

[Susan Edwards]

RO/DI overflowing is the reason we replaced our hardwood floors with vinyl laminate. My wife nor any of our friends can tell the difference.

Best part, vinyl plank is waterproof!

We did the same thing. We have concrete slab, and did the floor planks ourselves, so super cheap and if ruined, we can replace!

 

[lapin]

Sunk floor in tank room. Epoxy coated
Walls are coated with 4 coats of outdoor gloss paint. FRP board on any walls that might get wet.
Air vent in tank room.
4 years and a little wear and tear but no water damage no matter how many times I spill and over flow stuff

 

[Susan Edwards]

I'll be setting up a new tank end of september and am getting ready to paint my office before, so this thread very timely! Planned to use semi-gloss paint and now will also use the clear acrylic mentioned above!

 

[rusty hannon]

I said no but to b honest I don't look at the wall n now I'll have to make a point not to. Lol

 

[Epic Aquaculture]

Semi gloss paint on drywall. Tank sat in the same spot for about 10 years. Tore it down to have floors replaced, not a single issue with the wall besides some salt creep that just wiped away.

 

[Goaway]

My fish splash all the time. I have a canopy on my tank. It helps keeps water from getting on the walls. Unfortunately, it doesn't protect me during feeding time.

 

[fishbulb]

Now you have me curious, how do you protect your floors? I have hardwood and tanks are ROUGH on them.

FB

 

[steakncheese]

Yes, but only because I had a leak and the water drained through the floor into the drywall of the ceiling below. Thankfully we own the floor below.

That’s my current situation due to my freshwater tank. My home theatre downstairs now needs a new ceiling

 

[Treefer32]

I have a strange question. So, my 340 gallon tank is an in wall build. I've got wall on three sides of the tank. I kinda messed up the design and shouldn't have closed the glass in as much as I have, because it's hard to scrape algae off the ends of the tank and clean the outsides of splashed water drips.

So, my question is I've had a few floods over the last 3 years of salt water. Skimmer overflowing and flooding my concrete furnace room floor, small drips and things from water dripping off my arms as I do maintenance, etc. Enough salt water has gotten under the studes and 2x4s of my walls surrounding the three sides of the tank to cause me to worry about mold. . I pulled up some soaked carpet that had been soaked with salt water and grime from salt water for 1-2 years. We replaced the carpet and pad with a hard surfaced flooring right in front of the tank.

One thing I noticed though is in that time the carpet should have been generating mold. It didn't smell moldy at all. It was grimy, but I expect that from evaporated salt water.

Will salt water (at our salinity levels) cause mold to grow under walls and under flooring? Or is there too much salt to actually inhibit the growth of mold and mildew?

 

[Grallster]

No, however I keep a thin piece of plexiglass behind the tank to protect the wall.

 

[Aardvark1134]

Put a lid on your tank all better

 

[Franq]

I have salt stains on my Prego floor. Any suggestions to fix?

 

[Franq]

I have salt stains on my Pergo floor. Any suggestion on how to remove?

 

[N.Sreefer]

My 75 gal burst a seam on the 2nd floor of my stepfathers place years back and he called me at work saying theres a waterfall in the living room. Thought he was being overdramatic but the water spread and saturated a 10x15 area of drywall on the ceiling in the living room. The whole seal gave on one corner so all 75 gallons ended up in the livingroom on the first floor. Ruined half the drywall on the walls and all the drywall on the ceiling wasn't cheap.

 

[LA Reef Addict]

I get enough salt creep on the walls to grow corals lol