How long will a glass aquarium last?
 

I just realized I've had mine for almost 10 years. Is there anything to look for when they fail or do they just let go? whats' the lifespan of silicon? It doesn't look like there's much silicon on the inside of the tank anymore. Maybe from years of cleaning.

If it is filled and maintaied- indefinatly. I have tanks I care for that were started in the
60s- metalframe tanks even. I have a ten gallon I got in 70 that is still fine, and has been wet and dry dozens of times. Likely the older the tank- the likely stronger the build- at least pre late 80s. Silicone would have to be seen to be judged- and that can happen to a new tank with a razor scraper and a few beers.

A long, long time... My dad had a freshwater tank for 25 years. My reef has been setup for 16 years. It is as good as new except some annoying scratches that accumulate over time. No where near as bad as an acrylic tank but, they can't easily be buffed out. This is the reason/excuse for me starting to look to an upgrade.

my tank is 12 years old a fe scratches but nothing major....

Decades. But i'd keep an eye on any areas that show significant wear and tear.

PaulB has tank that just celebrated it's 40th year of continuous running.

if the tank is well glued, I think it will last another 10 year no problem.

I recently had a O'Dell 20L that was from the early 80's
...my cousin had a 55G w a Ebo Jaeger heater and Aquaclear filter from the late 70's

the 120 i use as a fuge on my 150 was ancient when I got it around 1990. my new tank was put in service in 1992.

I know of several people that have had multiple freshwater glass tanks for over 20 years with no problems at all (at least related to the tank itself).

2 55 tanks from '86.
O'Dell

One of the 55 is in my daughter's room no issue.

The other was my sump for a while and the Dell I don't use much because of the scratched glass but the silicone is sound.

I was just wondering this same thing today as my current reef is being revived. It's a 55 gal I got in middle school 30 years ago it's gone through 1 stand about 15 years ago. I'm trying to decide if I should replace it before I go any further. It's never been moved except once to replace the stand. It's been salt for 25 years and fresh for 5 before that. It's been in constant use since the day I bought it. Any suggestions?
If I upgrade I only have room for no more than 50 inches long and 16 to 18 wide. Height luckily isn't an issue.

I was comparing experiences a few years ago with a friend of mine who has managed a pet shop for over 38 years and we were guessing about a 10% failure rate at the 20 year mark with glass. They have one 200 display tank and a several 55s that were there when she started working there. But I have seen reputable tanks fail long before then. And like Srynx said the silicone would have to be seen to be judged. Certainly new air bubbles or changes in color would be reasons for concern. Algae working it's way into the joints between the glass would be keeping me up at night. Ironically, some of the cheaper tanks where the plastic trim around the top and bottom is used as a jig to hold the glass in place may hold up better as the plastic frame has to fail as well as the silicone joint to see a catastrophic spill.

Been a few years, but thought I would bring this back rather than start a new one. Do you guys feel aquariums being built now a days have a much higher fail rate? Is it do to Acrylic rather than glass? Or are people just struggling with applying/curing silicone?

Probably none of the above.

I doubt the failure rate is higher, but I imagine the user base is much larger now than in the past, and the ease of complaining/sharing your experience is DRAMATICALLY higher, especially if it was a bad outcome, everyone shares it which makes it seem much more likely than it is.

I don't think that acrylic tanks are worse long-term than glass tanks, and I think they've both been used for the last 30 years pretty consistently, proportionately (that's my impression, but I've only been reefing for ~14 years). Acrylic is always somewhat niche, and the majority of tanks have consistently been glass.

I don't think anyone is struggling with applying/curing silicone. Perhaps manufacturing has changed, or the volume of tanks being produced by tank builders have changed which might lead to lower quality than historically, or that they're not "overbuilding" as much as they used to, but I wouldn't attribute that explicitly to "struggling with applying/curing silicone".

The only massive tank failures I've seen or heard of were when the old JBJ nano cube 24 gallon tanks used to crack and leak because the glass was too frail in the beginning (I had one of those tanks, was the second owner, moved it around the southeast of USA in my back seat, sometimes 1/4 full of water, and never had a problem). There are a few threads of tanks leaking or bursting, but I only know one person who has had that experience, and his was a custom-built magnificent 375g, built by a very reputable builder who has been doing it for ~40 years, and somehow one of the side panels blew out about a year into having the tank. Giant disaster considering how advanced this hobbyist is, his stocking, and level of involvement in the hobby, but I guess it happens. I still think it's extremely infrequent.

I was on the verge of buying a 'back-up' display tank in anticipation to my current one failing. A local reefer had one fail, which got me curious how common it is. To my defense the last $1/gallon sale at Petco, I did see tanks that had air bubbles trapped in the silicone. Of all the tanks I have ever owned over the years, not a single one sprung a leak. They were all glass though. (Knock on wood)

I asked this same question here a bunch of years ago. The consensus then was at least 25 years if I am remembering correctly. My stock 150 made it to the 28 year mark before the bottom seam let go last fall. I had to drain the tank quickly because the leak was getting progressively worse. There was no event to trigger the failure, fortunately I was home when it started to leak.

Does anyone have any feedback on Marineland 180 gallon tanks, I have been looking at some used ones and was curious how their silicone holds up?

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Glass : several 10 years or hundred years
Silicon : 20 years
The followings will shorten the lifetime.
If you move the big tank many times,
If the tank is out of level seriously for an extended period,
If very strong surge waves are applied for an extended period,

My 135 gallon 6 foot tank was built in 1982 has the sticker under the top trim so its 37 years old probably one of the more older tanks on here.. i havent heard of many 40 year old tanks over 100 gallons lol . Bought it from the original owner 3 years ago. He was like in his late 60s or early 70s said he bought it in 84. And it was sitting in his basement empty for the last 10 years. The internal seals were spagettie strands. The seems are perfectly fine though. So i resealed it and its been running since. I had my fresh water discus in it. But i recently moved them to my 55g hexagon and moved my salt water to the 135.


I love this tank it has no center braces and the glass is half an inch thick.. You dont see that on modern 125-150 gallon tanks. They are thinner glass and have plastic braces


I wish i did the seals better.. my caulk gun broke midway through so i to manually push the silicone out by hand so it doesnt look perfect lol


Modern tanks are trash.... all those aqueon tanks are terrible.... i had to look through 16 of the 20 long tanks in 3 storea to find one that didnt have massive amount of bubbles.. splitting seams or no silicone in the seams... yea the seams on some of them had almost no silicone..

I returned one 20 long after 3 days because the glass was seperating turning white.. i could push the glass in and see it shifting lol... Ive also heard bad stories of the top fin 150 gallon tanks in petsmart... I read reviews where they leak after a year..... Look st those 150s the silicone seals are as thin as s 5 gallon tank.... Inside silicone needs to be as thick as the glass.

To answer the question... yes i wouldnt trust a new tank to last past 5 years by the internal silicone and seams ive seen on them in the stores

Fyi marineland is owned by perfecto and perfecto makes some of the best tanks out there.

I have been debating this, I have a 265g that is about 15 years old. There are small leaks in the overflows that I have noticed during the bigger water changes. I have seen this before on a 210g after ~8-10 years.

As someone else mentioned, I too think moving the larger tanks likely creates unusual stress that may shorten hurt the integrity of the seals.

I have a dry to slight moist salt creep underneath my 265. I first noticed it several months ago, priced a replacement & built a new stand. The creep does not seem to be getting any worse, I check it regularly and keep a couple water alarms underneath just in case.

I will likely spring for a new one in the very near future. I completely dread the time/inevitable loss/SPS breaks that come with moving everything but it will allow for an upgrade to sump, skimmer, return pumps which I could use.

My 125 is about 18 years old. When I installed it I added the wooden oak corner strips with lots of silicon underneath so at least I have no fear the sides will leak if I damage the inside silicone cleaning the glass over time. Plus if my kids hit the corner with something it is protected. I am assuming the bottom is pretty solid with the plastic frame and silicon oozing out the bottom. They don't make them like that today looking at my more recent breeder tanks.

The trim today is all black but i think its the same material.. problem today is tanks are made to be cheap... thinner glass.. so they all have braces that eventually do crack over time.. and they are cheap on the silicone thickness... thats what really bothers me... braces i csn deal with... its how thin the inner seals are that bugs me...

I have a metal fram tank I got from my grandma and it still holds water it has to be 60 years old or older