How to Reseal an Aquarium

Did you ever come home one day and find your aquarium leaking? Did you find a great deal on a used aquarium because it leaks? Do you have an old tank sitting in storage that leaks? Or just one that you don’t think will hold water? This article will guide you in fixing this problem. I will go through the steps you must follow to reline a tank and show you how to do it. This whole process of relining will take roughly about 3 hours but then again it depends on your speeds. This article will strive to take a look at how easy resealing your aquarium really is (or can be). It may look like a daunting task at first but once you break it down, it’s quite simple really. In this guide, we break it down to you step-by-step on how to reseal an old aquarium tank.

How to Reseal an Aquarium – The Tank

A good sample to use for this guide is a 25 gallon tank resealed in several places with various materials including Mono caulking, and is definitely poorly done to say the least.
The Equipment
Here are the things you will need.
1. Razor knife or utility knife blades,
2. Windex
3. paper towel,
4. plastic scotch rite pad/sponge,
5. and depending on the size of the project either a squeeze tube or a caulking gun and a tube of aquarium safe silicone
6. And a vacuum for removing the debris.

How to reseal an aquarium – The Steps

1. First of all, you will want to clean the glass and remove any dirt etc. from the tank. After that you are ready to start removing the old silicone or whatever it is that was used. Place the edge of the blade against the glass at an angle and slide it under the silicone cutting toward the face that is butted against first. This will take several passes before you will reach the opposing glass.

2. Next, cut into the silicone from the other face; be careful not to cut into the joint between the two panels. When you have cut deep enough the silicone should come out in large lengths or pieces. If you make diagonal cuts in the bottom corners it is easier to clean them out. At this point, you should vacuum out the debris, clean the glass with glass cleaner (not the foaming spray as it leaves a residue), and you are ready to start taping.

3. Starting with the bottom, place pull tabs in each corner. Then place your tape approximately one quarter inch back from the joints all the way around. Note that the pull tabs in the corners should be made of masking tape.

4. Next, tape the sides. Start with the vertical runs first so that when you pull the tape it will lift the bottom run as you go.

5. After this is done trim out your corners. The tank is now ready for re-sealing

6. Now you are ready for the new silicone. Cut the tip of the nozzle at approximately forty five degrees with a quarter inch opening. I apologize that is hard to see in this photo.

7. Press it in and smooth it with your finger – working everything in until it is fairly even and smooth.

Note: It is very important to remove the tape immediately after smoothing. Otherwise you will have silicone taped to your glass and have difficulty removing it.

After you are done with the steps above, your aquarium is set and you must wait at least forty eight hours before filling.

One final note – if you accidentally get silicone on the glass, leave it to cure for twenty four hours and it will peel off easily by use of a razor blade.