cracked bracing on my new cube

[jaygalindo]

So a few days ago when doing some cleaning on my new cube i noticed that there were 2 identical cracks on the top bracing in the rear corners, also the back wall has started to bow a little. I really like this footprint and the tank is really coming along. Is there anything I can do to repair this??? I really don't want to give up on this tank but I do have a 40b ready to go if there is no chance of saving...

 

[jezzeaepi]

Is this cube brand new? If so I would take it back and get a new one. That is not a good sign if its suffering from stress fractures all ready. The acrylic is either too thin, or of poor quality with a lot of "filler." Thats a disaster waiting to happen there. That being said, it can be "fixed" by clamping the tank with a brace, then welding a new piece of acrylic over the corners to strengthen the brace.

 

[JPG@CFI]

The proper fix for this tank is to cut the top off, and fab up a new one with stronger material, machined properly.
You can PM me if you would like more info. Jason

 

[TotalVapor]

i would ether get a new tank or do what JPC said but if u get some acrylic triangles u can silacone them on and that should help hold it tell u can get it fixed RIGHT

I would not use silicone on Acrylic. Best to follow Jason's advice and you should have strong tank for years to come.

 

[ac7av]

Man that sucks!
If that was my tank I would be putting a brace or clamp to hold that tank together until you get it empty. Cracks like that are nasty. It will keep going around the corner and go fast and at the exact time you don’t want it to.

 

[thatguy559]

+1 for jason and +1 for ac7

for temp purposes i would use the triangles with some weldon 16 and clamps until you figure out when you are going to do the perminent solution

 

[Myteemouse]

jay I got the same thing on my two tanks I think I got them from the same guy you did.
very thin acrylic and very weak..
We will be modding ours with baffles for sumps and what not..
the top should be one continuous piece not 4 different strips around the edges.

 

[jaygalindo]

yup. sucks cause i really like the size of this guy. I don't have any experience with acrylic so i think ill just break her down and move over to the 40b.

 

[returnofsid]

i would ether get a new tank or do what JPC said but if u get some acrylic triangles u can silacone them on and that should help hold it tell u can get it fixed RIGHT

Definitely do NOT use silicon, on acrylic. It won't adhere at all.

Jason would get you fixed right up. In the meantime, you could use Weldon, but you'd need to drain the tank, to make the proper repairs. Since you'd end up draining it, anyway, I'd suggest taking it to Jason and having it fixed the right way.