Leaking Tank...

Yesterday, my daughter noticed that there was a bit of water at the base of the 60L tank in her bedroom. I couldn't decide whether it was caused by condensation or the tank leaking so I just mopped up the water with some towels.

This is a coldwater tank with a normal water temperature of 18C but due to the warm weather, the thermometer has been registering 22/23C. So I decided to mark the level of water with a felt tip pen and checked back several hours later but there was no more water visible and the water level was the same so I assumed it was just condensation that caused the water buildup.

However, this morning she woke me at 7:30 to say that there was water dripping down onto the hardwood floor. There was definitely more water on the base unit than yesterday but again, just a slow drip. I checked the water level, and to my horror, it showed that the tank had lost 3-4mm of water in the twelve hour period. I cleaned it up with a towel but it was far too early in the morning for me so I went back to bed...

I checked it again about an hour ago and again, no more water. So I marked the water level again. I'm not in a position this morning to sort out the tank but I will be back around 3 and, if the water level has dropped again, I suppose it's safe to assume that the base of the tank is leaking somehow and I should empty it out.

Luckily, I have a spare 60L tank that I was in the process of setting up as a turtle tank so I can rehome the fish in there for the time being. So...if it is a leak, how will I fix it? I didn't realize that tanks could just spontaneously leak like this so is it a case that one of the waterproof seals has failed or something?

I had something like this happen and discovered that the cause was I had set the filter too high and the ripples on the water were actually causing water to splash over the top rim of the tank.

If this is not the problem it could be that the silicone has perished, all you need is to empty, try and find out where the leak is and re-silicone, you need to let the silicone 'cure' for I think 24 hours (could be 48?)

If the base has cracked then you can repair with silicone and a small piece of glass, though if it is a small tank replecing it could be easier.

I checked the filter and that's ok. The water is actually coming from the bottom of the tank and seeping out from underneath. I checked the water level again a few minutes ago and there's been no more leakage since 7:30 this morning so I can't decide whether or not it's an actual leak...

But then again, condensation prob wouldn't cause a loss of 3-4mm I would've thought. The one thing I'm concerned about is that if there's a point of weakness, the tank might spontaneously rupture...

What do you think? Is it better to err on the side of caution and just empty the tank? Even though that'll be a right palaver...is it better to be safe than sorry?

Difficult choice. I think as this tank is upstairs I'd definitely be cautious.

If I were you Mary I would deffo empty it and have a look at the underneath seals. I have had a couple of leaks in my tropical tank but they have both been at the top seal so it's not too much of a problem. If its coming from underneath though then it might be a copntinuous drip, and its not until the amount pooled gets to a certain amount that it floods out.

I'd move the fish out, reseal everwhere, then refil and leave for a couple of days and see what happens.

24hrs for the sealant wil be suffice

Well I spent most of the afternoon transferring all the fish and decor to the spare tank. What a kerfuffle...took over two hours to do everything and then when I turned on the filter in the spare tank, it didn't work... ...so I had to use another filter which is a lot noisier so won't be suitable in the long run to have in the bedroom tank.

As the leaking tank is only ten months old, I've emailed the website that I purchased it from (Zooplus) so hopefully they'll replace it free of charge or at least give me a refund so that I can buy a new one. I have to say the fish look just as happy in the spare tank as they did in the original one so thank goodness that I had it.

Could you see where it was leaking from Mary - was it just the seal that had gone?

Well I'm trying to figure out how to remove the last few mm of water from the bottom of the tank. I suppose a large sponge would be the best method.

Even though I gravel clean thoroughly every fortnight, I was amazed at just how much gunk was under the gravel. Bleurgh!