fix acrylic sump with bonding agent?

BoomCorals · Feb 3, 2018

Hey you DIY folks, have a quick question for you. I recently purchased a SKIMZ sump to replace my existing unit for my QT tank system, and it arrived with the "ATO reservoir" end damaged/pushed in. (see pics) Now I wasn't planning on using the reservoir anyways, so the rest of the sump seems perfectly fine and usable as is - but if I wanted to fix this myself, how would I go about doing so? I took pics best I could to show you what happened. I contacted the vendor and I'm sure they'd send me a new one if I wanted it, but it's a hassle and I don't want to really make a fuss about it.

Thoughts?

This is the top/bottom of the cracked part. It basically makes a big C shape on this end.

Here you can see the acrylic pushes into the reservoir.

Crabs McJones · Feb 3, 2018

BoomCorals said:
Hey you DIY folks, have a quick question for you. I recently purchased a SKIMZ sump to replace my existing unit for my QT tank system, and it arrived with the "ATO reservoir" end damaged/pushed in. (see pics) Now I wasn't planning on using the reservoir anyways, so the rest of the sump seems perfectly fine and usable as is - but if I wanted to fix this myself, how would I go about doing so? I took pics best I could to show you what happened. I contacted the vendor and I'm sure they'd send me a new one if I wanted it, but it's a hassle and I don't want to really make a fuss about it.

Thoughts?

This is the top/bottom of the cracked part. It basically makes a big C shape on this end.

Here you can see the acrylic pushes into the reservoir.

So that whole edge pushes in underneath that crack?

BoomCorals · Feb 3, 2018

crabs_mcjones said:
So that whole edge pushes in underneath that crack?

Yes

Crabs McJones · Feb 3, 2018

BoomCorals said:
Yes

I almost wonder if you could use HYPO 25 acrylic cement to bond the two pieces back together..#reefsquad any ideas from the DIY'ers?

Smo · Feb 3, 2018

This is a varsity repair. Not knowing the details of this sumps design, my concern would be the damage end panel has compromised the structural integrity of this end of the sump regardless of whether you use the ATO tank. Better to send it back and get a new one.
If you were to attempt a repair...the damaged panel should be cut out and replaced. This would require some challenging edge treatment to ensure the edges the replacement panel will be solvent welded to are flat, square and in-plane. Not a quick fix.
Simply attempting to fill the crack with solvent or “glue” would not likely yield a reliable repair.

Matthew Frost · Feb 3, 2018

I know it's a hassle but ship it back and get a new one, for two reasons; one, if it took a hit like that it may be damaged somehow a lot less obvious. Two, if you ever want to resell it for any reason that sump is virtually worthless.