Question for everyone about possible cracking of biocubes

[Jreed983]

So my wife told me she wants to buy me a small aquarium for Christmas and asked me what I would want that was with the $300-$400 dollar range. I don't necessarily want something that is huge right now anyway as I have been without a tank for about 6 years and want to get back in slowly.

With that being said, I have always like the Biocubes and thought that could be a good option as the 32 gallon falls right in this range for the tank without a stand. I got to looking around last night and was reading some different reviews about them on different websites and noticed that there were a lot of reviews mentioning that out of nowhere the tnka were cracking along on of the front corners and they were often times cracked from top to bottom causing the entire tank to drain out. I saw people that said it happened to them anywhere from 2.5 months to 2 years after setup.

When it comes to things like this and wanting honest opinions from people that know what their doing and I feel like I can trust, R2R is the first place I go! So, does anyone here have any experience with this happening personally or know of it happening to others? I like the form factor of these systems but don't necessarily want to take a chance on one if this is a known issue or something that happens even somewhat regularly.

If this is an issue with these tanks, is there another setup that anyone could recommend that would meet the financial requirements she gave me? I'd love to be in the 30-40 gallon range if possible.

Thanks in advance everyone!

 

[ironman187]

I thought they had identified and fixed the issue with the random cracking a few years ago.

 

[User1]

I've not heard of Oceanic Bio Cubes having issues other than with the fans they used to use in the hoods. That was addressed years ago and was happy to replace for free. I ran 2 x 29 gallon Oceanic Bio Cubes - great little tanks with lots of things you can do to improve a already solid foundation.

 

[Jreed983]

I thought they had identified and fixed the issue with the random cracking a few years ago.

I honestly don't know. I hadn't ever really heard much about this issue until I started ready things last night. There were reviews that were only a few months old saying there tank was only a few months old when it cracked which is why I was somewhat concerned. There were quite a few reviews on Amazon about this issue. Now I Don tknow when these specific tanks were manufactured. Maybe with it being from Amazon they had been sitting for a long time and were still pre-fix of this issue.

 

[partlycloudy531]

Someone I know had their Coralife Biocube 32 randomly break at one of the curved corners just 2 days ago. 85% of the tank drained on the floor. He had bought the tank used so he has no idea how old it was or if it had been mistreated in anyway. I’m in a few Biocube groups and can remember a few times people have posted about cracks and leaks. They sell a ton of those tanks though so of course you are going to hear about problems. There probably isn’t a mass produced tank out there that you can’t find a story about it leaking. In the past month I’ve seen two posts about some Red Seas that split at the seams and leaked. If you really like the Biocube, then buy it new, and like all tanks, make sure it’s level. I wouldn’t worry about it leaking anymore than any other tank at that price range.

 

[Hemmdog]

My biocube 32 cracked on the bottom and leaked out, not a blow out but I had to replace it with a DIY 40b with a sump fairly quickly. The leak began only 10 months after purchase. I got it two years ago.

 

[Jreed983]

My biocube 32 cracked on the bottom and leaked out, not a blow out but I had to replace it with a DIY 40b with a sump fairly quickly. The leak began only 10 months after purchase. I got it two years ago.

Someone I know had their Coralife Biocube 32 randomly break at one of the curved corners just 2 days ago. 85% of the tank drained on the floor. He had bought the tank used so he has no idea how old it was or if it had been mistreated in anyway. I’m in a few Biocube groups and can remember a few times people have posted about cracks and leaks. They sell a ton of those tanks though so of course you are going to hear about problems. There probably isn’t a mass produced tank out there that you can’t find a story about it leaking. In the past month I’ve seen two posts about some Red Seas that split at the seams and leaked. If you really like the Biocube, then buy it new, and like all tanks, make sure it’s level. I wouldn’t worry about it leaking anymore than any other tank at that price range.

These both sound like what I was reading about. I know there are always those stories out there and that every product no matter how good will have problems at one point or another but seeing so many kinda out me off a little bit which is why I felt like I had to ask here!

So Hemmdog, what would your opinion be on buying one? I have an opportunity to buy a used Biocube 29 that the person said they just got about 2 months ago for $225 which includes the stand due to him having to move for work or I could just pay the extra for a brand new one. Or would you possibly have another suggestion?

I'd be willing to diy a setup but don't think the wife is up for all that right now on top of everything else going on in life right now (had one procedure on my back today, having another next Monday and likely having knee surgery in January)!!

Anyone else have any other brand suggestions?

 

[Hemmdog]

These both sound like what I was reading about. I know there are always those stories out there and that every product no matter how good will have problems at one point or another but seeing so many kinda out me off a little bit which is why I felt like I had to ask here!

So Hemmdog, what would your opinion be on buying one? I have an opportunity to buy a used Biocube 29 that the person said they just got about 2 months ago for $225 which includes the stand due to him having to move for work or I could just pay the extra for a brand new one. Or would you possibly have another suggestion?

I'd be willing to diy a setup but don't think the wife is up for all that right now on top of everything else going on in life right now (had one procedure on my back today, having another next Monday and likely having knee surgery in January)!!

Anyone else have any other brand suggestions?

I’m a big supporter of drilling 40 breeders during the dollar per gallon sale. Get a external overflow. The footprint is excellent on 40b’s and a sump allows you to run your tank with a lot more customization. I got a stand for mine from petco online for $50, it’s metal, no issues with it so far. So I’d do that if I could go back in time and skip my biocube setup.

 

[Treenk]

So my wife told me she wants to buy me a small aquarium for Christmas and asked me what I would want that was with the $300-$400 dollar range. I don't necessarily want something that is huge right now anyway as I have been without a tank for about 6 years and want to get back in slowly.

With that being said, I have always like the Biocubes and thought that could be a good option as the 32 gallon falls right in this range for the tank without a stand. I got to looking around last night and was reading some different reviews about them on different websites and noticed that there were a lot of reviews mentioning that out of nowhere the tnka were cracking along on of the front corners and they were often times cracked from top to bottom causing the entire tank to drain out. I saw people that said it happened to them anywhere from 2.5 months to 2 years after setup.

When it comes to things like this and wanting honest opinions from people that know what their doing and I feel like I can trust, R2R is the first place I go! So, does anyone here have any experience with this happening personally or know of it happening to others? I like the form factor of these systems but don't necessarily want to take a chance on one if this is a known issue or something that happens even somewhat regularly.

If this is an issue with these tanks, is there another setup that anyone could recommend that would meet the financial requirements she gave me? I'd love to be in the 30-40 gallon range if possible.

Thanks in advance everyone!

I did a lot of research on this exact thing and yes it happens, but any tank that has been moved around can do this. Many different types of tanks need to be resealed after moved around. Biocubes are one of the top tanks that have been left in a garage, or stored. Being one of the easiest and common all in one tanks out there a lot of people get them to try the hobby out. A lot of people dont have the patience or the willingness to learn, that this hobby takes. You also dont just throw a biocube with a stand away like you would a breeder tank. You found a deal on one, as did I and many other people for this reason. Take the time check the seals even recaulk if need be. Go through all the biocubes on this site there are a lot who love them and a few who have had problems. I am bias I do have one and this is just my opinion after doing the research I chose to do it. As a beginner I love this beginner tank and there are so many ways to mod it as you go.

 

[DanThom]

Just this morning at 0336 my biocube 32 cracked on the front left corner top to bottom. I heard a sound like the shower was on woke me up and I ran out to all my water draining out see video below. What can you do at that point but take a video lol. I siphoned out the water I could into jugs and put all my critters in there with a heater and Aqamai Wavemaker. Luckily this happened when I was home and not when I was at work cuz I was about to leave for work in an hour after this happened! Would’ve ruined all my hardware and killed everything most likely. Thankfully my fish store man Dave hooked me up and gave me a new one no charge with free water (Ocean’s Tropical Fish Mission Viejo, CA). Great guy if you live nearby go to Dave he takes care of people. It’s all set back up now.

It is 2020 now and this issue can still happen kind of risky feeling going with the 32 again but it’s that or buy a whole new tank which I can’t afford.