What is happening to my silicone seam!?

[reefdiculous]

Hey Everyone,

Just a quick question. So, yesterday I just noticed one of my silicone seams on my 90 gallon Marineland tank looked chipped or eaten away. No other seams look like this, just what you see in the attached picture. The tank is only about 6 years old (had it since new) and I am always very very careful not to nick the seams when I scrape algae. What could be happening?

Some thoughts come to mind:

1. Maybe a snail going after the Coralline algae is also taking a little silicone?
2. Maybe a fish is nipping at it?
3. Maybe natural aging?
4. Maybe the Coralline algae is causing it to chip somehow?

Does this look serious to you seasoned reef keepers? What should I do? Just keep an eye on it to see if it gets worse? Reseal right away?

[wrott]

The extra glue on the glass is not needed to hold the glass together.
You could scrape it off entirely without leaks.

[ROlympia]

Probably from whatever you use to scrape algae off the glass.

[reefdiculous]

Originally Posted by wrott

The extra glue on the glass is not needed to hold the glass together.
You could scrape it off entirely without leaks.

Interesting... I didn't know that the extra silicone wasn't crucial in holding the seam. That does put my fears to rest somewhat. It's still puzzling why it's chipping away from just that one seam in the upper right corner.

Originally Posted by ROlympia

Probably from whatever you use to scrape algae off the glass.

Nope! You're not going to believe me, but I have never hit a seam with an algae scraper. I've been super paranoid about it since the day I bought the tank.


So, I am getting the feeling that I shouldn't worry about it too much. When would I normally be up for a reseal anyways? 10 years?

[Timfish]

While I agree the silicone directly between the glass providing most of the strength to the joint the silicone in the corner is still needed for extending the life of the joint. Your situation is a perfect example, algae is working it's way in between the sili one and the glass. At some point it will get into the joint between the two sheets of glass and it may take 20 years but it can work it's way through the joint.

[reefdiculous]

Originally Posted by Timfish

While I agree the silicone directly between the glass providing most of the strength to the joint the silicone in the corner is still needed for extending the life of the joint. Your situation is a perfect example, algae is working it's way in between the sili one and the glass. At some point it will get into the joint between the two sheets of glass and it may take 20 years but it can work it's way through the joint.

Interesting... So, you're saying it's the coralline algae growth chipping away at it? Hmm.. maybe I should try to carefully remove it to stop erosion?

[robs.mark]

Originally Posted by Timfish

While I agree the silicone directly between the glass providing most of the strength to the joint the silicone in the corner is still needed for extending the life of the joint. Your situation is a perfect example, algae is working it's way in between the sili one and the glass. At some point it will get into the joint between the two sheets of glass and it may take 20 years but it can work it's way through the joint.

Many tanks are built without the seam now, I have one sitting in my living room!

[Timfish]

Originally Posted by robs.mark

Many tanks are built without the seam now, I have one sitting in my living room!

I have systems with out that bead also. Those joints will certainly outlast the manufacturer's warrenty. But after seeing algae work it's way through the joint on a system, albiet an old system, I frequently check all visible joints. Also having systems that are decades old I like to plan for the long run so when setting up a new system I prefer a tank with a silicone bead inside the joint. Easthetics often don't allow for this but I also prefer tanks that have a one piece molded frame around the top and bottom as that adds some additional strength which will extend the life of the tank. There's not much worse than seeing an empty tank with dead and dying animals you've had for years because steps weren't taken to monitor a tank and replace it when joints gave indications of deterioration.

[Timfish]

Originally Posted by reefdiculous

Interesting... So, you're saying it's the coralline algae growth chipping away at it? Hmm.. maybe I should try to carefully remove it to stop erosion?

You will need to be very careful. I learned the hard way trying to scrub the lagae out of the joint in the long run actually worked the algae into the joint more. If it was my tank I would just monitor it's progress and plan on someday needing to replace the tank. As pointed out above, it's the silicone between the 2 sheets of glass that provides the structural strength and you don't need to worry about planning on replacing the tank until the algae is working it's way through the joint.