Hopeful Reefer
11/30/2006, 11:19 AM
Last evening, I went and picked up a 125g tank from a fellow reefer near me. He informed me up front that there were scratches on the glass, because the tank was previously used as a reptile tank by the person he got the tank from (he got a different tank a few days after getting this one and wanted that size instead.)
Here is the pic of the tank he had in his "for sale" thread...
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_PreSale.jpg
If you look close, you can see a slight haze on the front of the glass. These are the scratches. When I picked up the tank, the guy I got it from said he recently filled the tank with water and none of the scratches showed. Not sure if he had lights on when he did this, because I've heard that lights make those types of scratches show up again. Some are too deep to buff out, but much of the haze will come out once I buff it. I plan on buffing the least scratched side and that will be the front. The 2 sides and the back will then be painted blue.
Now...here comes my biggest dilema. When I woke up this morning and looked at the tank in the sun light, I was shocked. The scratches are more than I originally saw (guess lots of buffing for me :mad2: ) Whats worse, the silicone inside doesn't seem to be in good shape (not sure if this is because it was a reptile tank or not.)
Here are some shots of the silicone. These first 2 pics are of the corners. You can see how the silicone is discolored. It is very brittle in some spots. It is missing some chunks along the edges, but I haven't noticed any missing near the joint itself. Also, the outsides of the tank for all of the joints looks pristine.
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Corner1.jpg
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Corner2.jpg
These next two pictures show the corner joints at the bottom. You can see that the silicone for the most part on the bottom of the tank is in decent shape. going up from there though is what you saw in the previous 2 pics.
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Corner3.jpg
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Corner4.jpg
Now, in saying that the silicone along the bottom is in decent shape, there are a few areas that are starting to peel along the top edge of the silicone. I plan on having a DSB so this will cover the silicone on the bottom, so I'm not sure if this makes a different. It is hard to see in this picture, but this is the best I could get.
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Bottom.jpg
So, do I need to tear apart the tank and redo everything? I know I can't put new silicone over old (or can I :confused: ?) Do I need to get my money back? Can I just leave well enough alone? Like I said, I looked on the outside of the tank at the corner joints and the silicone looks pristine there. Anyone have any ideas? I am at a loss here, and I don't want my money to have been wasted.
Help!!
Here is the pic of the tank he had in his "for sale" thread...
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_PreSale.jpg
If you look close, you can see a slight haze on the front of the glass. These are the scratches. When I picked up the tank, the guy I got it from said he recently filled the tank with water and none of the scratches showed. Not sure if he had lights on when he did this, because I've heard that lights make those types of scratches show up again. Some are too deep to buff out, but much of the haze will come out once I buff it. I plan on buffing the least scratched side and that will be the front. The 2 sides and the back will then be painted blue.
Now...here comes my biggest dilema. When I woke up this morning and looked at the tank in the sun light, I was shocked. The scratches are more than I originally saw (guess lots of buffing for me :mad2: ) Whats worse, the silicone inside doesn't seem to be in good shape (not sure if this is because it was a reptile tank or not.)
Here are some shots of the silicone. These first 2 pics are of the corners. You can see how the silicone is discolored. It is very brittle in some spots. It is missing some chunks along the edges, but I haven't noticed any missing near the joint itself. Also, the outsides of the tank for all of the joints looks pristine.
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Corner1.jpg
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Corner2.jpg
These next two pictures show the corner joints at the bottom. You can see that the silicone for the most part on the bottom of the tank is in decent shape. going up from there though is what you saw in the previous 2 pics.
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Corner3.jpg
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Corner4.jpg
Now, in saying that the silicone along the bottom is in decent shape, there are a few areas that are starting to peel along the top edge of the silicone. I plan on having a DSB so this will cover the silicone on the bottom, so I'm not sure if this makes a different. It is hard to see in this picture, but this is the best I could get.
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p290/Hopeful_Reefer/125g%20Reef%20Tank/125g_Silicone_Bottom.jpg
So, do I need to tear apart the tank and redo everything? I know I can't put new silicone over old (or can I :confused: ?) Do I need to get my money back? Can I just leave well enough alone? Like I said, I looked on the outside of the tank at the corner joints and the silicone looks pristine there. Anyone have any ideas? I am at a loss here, and I don't want my money to have been wasted.
Help!!