Need advice on chips found in front panel of established DT

[Sierra_Bravo]

I just discovered two chips on the front of my 120 gallon in-wall tank and I'm extremely concerned. They are about 3" above the sandbed and " apart from one another. They the beginning of stress fracture lines starting.

Is there anything I can do to minimize the risk of this spreading until I can replace the tank??? I was wondering if a windshield repair kit epoxy would help?

I can't believe I'm even writing about having to tear down and re-do this tank. Any advice or thoughts on how to go about this would be greatly appreciated.


Chip 1

Chip 2

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

Bump

 

[Slim64684]

Not much help but i had the same thing happen to my 20 long. I just replaced the tank asap. Not sure about using epoxy. Maybe talk to a glass shop and see what they say

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Are there actual cracks radiating from the chips? Can you fell the cracks with you finger nail on to outside surface?

 

[MTBake]

I'm not sure if the windshield epoxy would add strength to the area or not. It would be less visible for sure. I can't see it adding much structural support though. I'm not a glass expert by any means. Just my opinion.

Really sucks you have to deal with this. Hope the tank replacement goes smooth when that time comes.

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

Are there actual cracks radiating from the chips? Can you fell the cracks with you finger nail on to outside surface?

I'm not sure if the windshield epoxy would add strength to the area or not. It would be less visible for sure. I can't see it adding much structural support though. I'm not a glass expert by any means. Just my opinion.

Really sucks you have to deal with this. Hope the tank replacement goes smooth when that time comes.

I can feel the chip and see a lateral line of only about 1/8 of an inch going left-right. From what I'm being told, the presence of the line means it will eventually expand.

 

[Mastiffsrule]

You are correct. The crack can and will travel. The question is how much and how deep. The resin the glass companies use are designed to fill in the crack and chip to stop it from spreading. They use a vacuum to get the resin to seep into all the gaps. but that is for glass that is not under pressure. No way to be 100% sure the bond will hold or for how long.

I hate you have to go thru this. There is no telling how many micro cracks are in the area. Only 100% is to replace the tank, but that’s not like “hey I’m bored, let’s replace my tank today”.

Maybe someone else has a different take. I think it is 1/2 glass so maybe some angle I am not thinking of.

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

You are correct. The crack can and will travel. The question is how much and how deep. The resin the glass companies use are designed to fill in the crack and chip to stop it from spreading. They use a vacuum to get the resin to seep into all the gaps. but that is for glass that is not under pressure. No way to be 100% sure the bond will hold or for how long.

I hate you have to go thru this. There is no telling how many micro cracks are in the area. Only 100% is to replace the tank, but that’s not like “hey I’m bored, let’s replace my tank today”.

Maybe someone else has a different take. I think it is 1/2 glass so maybe some angle I am not thinking of.

Unfortunately I think it is 3/8". It doesn't matter - I know I have no choice but to replace it. At least I have a little ability to control the situation - it's not like I walked downstairs this morning to a wet floor. I'm working on making it happen this Wed/Thurs. What a pain in the *ss. :mad:

NEVER say "The tank looks the best it ever has" to anyone EVER. I just said it to someone this week. Murphy overheard me.

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Look at it this way. You did not get a chip in the tank. You got an opportunity to start another build thread

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

I got a hold of jewler's loupe and re-examined the chip. On closer inspection the chip really does look to be only on the surface, and the line that appeared to be a crack looks like it is just the shape of the chip.

I used a windshield repair kit on it. I am blown away by how well this resin worked once I got it cured. I can't even find where the chip was. I'm not ready to say I got away with not having to change the tank yet, however. I'm going to watch it a few days and see.

Before:

After cure:

After clean-up:

 

[jtl]

I got a hold of jewler's loupe and re-examined the chip. On closer inspection the chip really does look to be only on the surface, and the line that appeared to be a crack looks like it is just the shape of the chip.

I used a windshield repair kit on it. I am blown away by how well this resin worked once I got it cured. I can't even find where the chip was. I'm not ready to say I got away with not having to change the tank yet, however. I'm going to watch it a few days and see.

Before:

After cure:

After clean-up:

Did you use a UV light to cure it?

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

Did you use a UV light to cure it?

Yes. I bought a UV flashlight and cranked the actinics up in the tank. It was fully cured when I pulled the curing sheet.