acylic help

[Torpus]

i pulled a bulkhead off of my tank and this was underneath. this hole is for a 3/4" bulkhead so it is 1-1/2" i think of the top of my head... there are many more holes in the tank so i checked all of them and they are fine.


http://images1.fotki.com/v8/photos/8/876796/3392742/1-vi.jpg


http://images1.fotki.com/v5/photos/8/876796/3392742/2-vi.jpg


http://images1.fotki.com/v290/photos/8/876796/3392742/3-vi.jpg


I want to stop it as soon as possible so I can get water in the tank, is there anything I can put on it to stop the crack from spreading? Maybe something that will kind of go in the seam and dissolve the plastic back together?


I can barely feel the crack on the inside with my nail, and not at all on the outside. With the bulkhead on the crack is covered up completely. Does acrylic spider like glass or is this just a crack that will not spread?

[afishyonados]

That is scary! I'm no expert, but I don't think solvent will stop the cracks under pressure. The only way I could see to stop the cracks from running would be to drill holes at the end of the crack, breaking the probability of the run. Even if this worked, I would use a patch of acrylic glued on the inside, over the hole(s). I know you probably don't want to read this, but I would consider a new tank...

[starmanres]

Melev would be the expert on this. I would think that using LOCTITE 3030 on it would melt the acylic back together and seal it, but I wouldn't risk it without hearing from him.

Robert

[Torpus]

im thinking maybe drill the hole larger and use a larger bulkhead, i think i could prolly make that work.
im not sure what caused it, it wasnt like that when the bulkhead went on.
all the other holes are fine and dont even have the little chips that this hole has all the way around so i wonder if the drill bit was dulled by the time this hole was cut

[rich99rich]

The crack will spread. The top panel of my acrylic cracked, and it has been getting longer, so you should resolve the situation asap. I like your idea about a larger bulkhead, but I'm no expert. I decided not to chance it and bought a new tank, just picked it up today as a matter of fact.

[melev]

I can't see the picture.

[Torpus]

hmm, they were working, lemmie try reposting them

ah-ha, the photo server changed policies for their free accts...

well, http://public.fotki.com/Torpus/hole_crack/ should link to the pictures...

[melev]

Well, it isn't as bad as I feared, but you are getting some stress fractures. Using Weldon may cause them to get worse, as they may 'craze' the material.

Where is this hole located specifically?

[VonZep]

What has worked for me in the past is to glue another piece of acrylic below or above the hole and re drill the same size or larger. The bulkheads have enough treads to double or more the thickness at the problem area. Good luck.

[Torpus]

the hole is located about 5 inches from the top and about a foot from the end of a 4 foot tank,

so vonzep, can this be done on the outside of the tank so you cant see the extra pane of acrylic? how hard is it to glue a sheet of acrylic flat on another?

[melev]

If the back wall is clear, you'll see the bandaid piece through the panel. You can glue it on the inside rather than the outside, which I think would be better to be honest. As the water presses against it, it pressed the patch firmly against the back wall of the tank.

A few <u>drops</u> of Weld-On #3 on the cracks would probably be enough. Then install a new bulkhead and keep an eye on the spot. If it ends up spreading, you'll see it. You can drain the tank those 6 inches to mend the area, but there's a decent chance it'll be fine.

[Torpus]

thats what I like to hear, if the weld-on doesnt work i'll try patching the tank with a sheet of acrylic, thanks alot melev, and others...

[leeweber85]

Hey matt.. hope you can fix your problem alright.


BTW did you ever try fragging that large sarcophyton? It's getting pretty big and I don't know if I should risk trying to frag it or not.

[Torpus]

hey lee, no I never did, that thing is so friggin' sweet, before I sold it I was contimplating a small specimin display tank with that in like a 30gal cube