Red Sea Seam Issues - (please read before voting)
- Thread starter JNalley
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Which you are never going to get. The only party that has that data is RS and they are certainly not going to make it public.
OP
OP
JNalley
Valuable Member
The threads are full of noise, and I find it hard to sift through the conversations... Seeing hard numbers is better for me, and I assume lots of others... Agenda bias will happen anywhere, including independent studies... R2R has a large user base, and, if we can get most to vote, could provide a large enough sample size too be relevant.... I understand going into this that the odds of that outcome are slim, but it doesn't hurt to try
EliMelly
Well-Known Member
Hi Kris
MnFish1
10K Club member
I tend to agree with part of what you're saying. I do not believe that the absolute numbers will be helpful in determining the actual percent of aquaria that failed. But - in the end it will show IMHO that the vast majority of RedSea tanks have not had a problem. Another potential issue - I have 2 large RedSea tanks both Gen 1 - with no problems > 5 years. But there is only 1 vote.
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JNalley
Valuable Member
Aye, it's got a few problems, but I didn't think everyone would go to do a survey monkey survey either (where I could have gotten more detailed with questions and had compounded questions), so I'm left with the limitations of the forum unfortunately. I agree with you that failures are likely a low percentage by the way, but I would like to figure out how low... Because for me, a 1% failure rate is too high, whereas someone else might be comfortable with a 2 or 3 percent failure rate. At least with raw data everyone can figure out their own threshold.
MnFish1
10K Club member
From discussions from non-red sea LFS workers at a couple stores the comment was any rimless tank can have problems. They estimated about 2-3 percent. Whether this is right or wrong IDK.
Reefer 350 Gen 1 . 3.8 yrs and saw the damage last week. Red Sea offered me $800 towards new tank. Said No thanks .
Going with Cade 1500. As glass cages and planet aqua take about 12 weeks I didn't want to wait and go for it as it's a ticking time bomb
Going with Cade 1500. As glass cages and planet aqua take about 12 weeks I didn't want to wait and go for it as it's a ticking time bomb
I have a Max 500 also, about 8 years old. No issues, but these tanks are built like a tank, unlike my Reefer 250, which I have not had any issues, but completely bare bones build compared to my Max.
Finally today was the day of move and with local LFS help, moved the tank and livestock. Next is the equipment setup.
flashsmith
Valuable Member
No issues for me. A G2 625XXL going on 3 years and a max nano 26g peninsula. Just for reference I purchased my 625 at the height of the hysteria knowing I was buying what I felt to be a complete makeover. I took a chance and glad I did. I could have purchased any brand I wanted to. I've also owned several IM tanks. They are good but to me RS is on another level with glass clarity. As far as failures it is what it is and it can happen to any brand. They have more tanks out there than anyone else. As referenced here many were replaced that were out of warranty as goodwill. Some were even second and third owner tanks. Yes there was a problem but as a business owner myself it's the way the handled it that mattered to me. As far as the back forth it's been the same people beating that dead horse for the last 2 years. Some of the loudest have admitted they have never even owned an RS tank of any kind. Welcome to the internet.
Keep an eye though. Issue starts typically at 4 years mark.
I had a RS 750 Reefer V1 for 5 yrs before it started showing a bubble on the lower seam right at the middle. I caught it right before it busted and moved my stock to a couple of loaner tanks.
My new tank is a WB 330
My new tank is a WB 330
RedSea reefer 250 (V3 ATO reservoir/sump; front glass is 12mm and the sides/rear is 10mm thick). This was ordered new and set up in about 2 weeks after arriving at my LFS in July 2019. It sprung a leak Tuesday May 7th, 2024). So about 4 years and 10 months from start to failure.
Yes, the stand was leveled, and yes I confirmed the tank was (is) level. The back of the tank is just a few inches from a load bearing wall and sits on linoleum flooring (no carpeting). The tank has never been moved since first set-up. Flooring under the linoleum is 2 layers of 3/4" plywood on joists. This failure really did a number on my basement.
I am now able to insert a piece of paper (about 0.3mm or 0.012" thick) a few inches into a gap between the tank and the stand (roughly in the middle of the front glass panel) indicating the stand has drooped in the middle. I recall not being able to insert anything between the tank and the stand when new.
There are no visible bubbles/damage in the front or side seams or other indication of the leak source, The inside of the cabinet was/is dry. No leaks from the RedSea piping. The overflow box is still full! When I get the tank moved to the garage I'll water test it hoping to find out where it sprung the leak.
I'm replacing the tank and stand but intend to keep the sump, lights, etc. I've had aquariums since I was a kid. My first saltwater tank was a used 75 gallon tank back in the 1980's. Other previous tanks include a drilled 75 gal Oceanic (mixed reef that was up for 11 years before being taken down for a move) and a 29gal BioCube. In all these decades I've never had a tank fail. This sucks.
Anyone interested in a RS250 terrarium? Won't hold water but...
Yes, the stand was leveled, and yes I confirmed the tank was (is) level. The back of the tank is just a few inches from a load bearing wall and sits on linoleum flooring (no carpeting). The tank has never been moved since first set-up. Flooring under the linoleum is 2 layers of 3/4" plywood on joists. This failure really did a number on my basement.
I am now able to insert a piece of paper (about 0.3mm or 0.012" thick) a few inches into a gap between the tank and the stand (roughly in the middle of the front glass panel) indicating the stand has drooped in the middle. I recall not being able to insert anything between the tank and the stand when new.
There are no visible bubbles/damage in the front or side seams or other indication of the leak source, The inside of the cabinet was/is dry. No leaks from the RedSea piping. The overflow box is still full! When I get the tank moved to the garage I'll water test it hoping to find out where it sprung the leak.
I'm replacing the tank and stand but intend to keep the sump, lights, etc. I've had aquariums since I was a kid. My first saltwater tank was a used 75 gallon tank back in the 1980's. Other previous tanks include a drilled 75 gal Oceanic (mixed reef that was up for 11 years before being taken down for a move) and a 29gal BioCube. In all these decades I've never had a tank fail. This sucks.
Anyone interested in a RS250 terrarium? Won't hold water but...
A major floor in this sort of question is that its on a forum that you require people to visit.
Ive never owned a Red Sea tank myself. I know you said you didnt want it but......I do know of someone, personally, that the seams directly effected and i know it was so painful they left the hobby soon after....Hence they wouldnt be on a forum to cast their vote that states theyve had issues.
I big tank related disaster and some would stay sure but i think its fair to say a huge amount of us would leave the hobby if it was a life changing, house altering disaster......
Ive never owned a Red Sea tank myself. I know you said you didnt want it but......I do know of someone, personally, that the seams directly effected and i know it was so painful they left the hobby soon after....Hence they wouldnt be on a forum to cast their vote that states theyve had issues.
I big tank related disaster and some would stay sure but i think its fair to say a huge amount of us would leave the hobby if it was a life changing, house altering disaster......
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JNalley
Valuable Member
Thanks to everyone who has voted so far. It appears as though there seems to be close to 1/3 of Red Sea Ownership on this forum have had a seam issue (Note, this is not 1/3 of tanks sold, just 1/3 of people who own or have owned a Red Sea tank have had Seam problems). This seems quite high, but since the inception of this thread the votes have been hovering around 1/4-1/3, which is a pretty substantial number. Lets get more votes in, as a larger sample size is needed for the data to be reliable, but things don't look great for Red Sea at this point...
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