Resealing tank

[jusney]

Hi everyone, I am resealing tank a tank and it has gone well so far except that I wished that the silicone covered a wider area. So I wanted to know if I can wait about 3 days for the silicone to fully cure and them go over it with a second and coat of silicone that is wider. Please let me know if this is a good idea or not. By the way, the original joints were not pulled apart, just that the edges of the silicone were rough and I wanted to redo those parts so I cut out all the silicone on the inside, cleaned the glass with acetone and then resealed.

Thank you

 

[ivegotcrabs]

taggin along
same problem

 

[rbredding]

silicone WILL BOND to silicone..

but because you're not really bonding consistently to the glass, it wont' be as strong as if you used a single layer of silicone throughout the joint..

 

[lilrobb]

I thought silicone won't adhere to cured Silicone?

 

[rbredding]

I've done it before... it will adhere, but it wont be as strong of a bond..


(not unlike using silicone to seal an acrylic tank... it's fine for baffles, but you wouldn't want to use it to secure an end panel..)

I took it from the original post that the silicone reseal was good, he just wanted an aesthetic layer on top of the current joints to "thicken them up"..

 

[cr500_af]

I've heard (so take it for what it's worth) that wiping the first bead down with acetone right before applying the second will help the bond.

 

[jusney]

Thanks guys. I guess my next question would be this. The tank in question is a 75 gal. and I an using it as a sump, so it wont be filled all the way up. With that in mind and the fact that the tank was never disassembled, do you a 3/8" bead of silicone would be sufficiently strong. Also, with the purpose of the tank in mind, would it be worth it to add the extra silicone?

Thank you for al your help.

 

[myvwrock]

Hey Chris at fish scales build custom tanks so he is the go-to guy about this. Just tryin to help...
Chris c

 

[fish scales2]

Givin away trade secrets, shhhhh. JK

This will help the bond between the 2 layers of silicone but breaks down the original ever so slightly. I would cut out all 90's at a minimum and then go back with a 1/4" bead spread ou out lightly by a wet finger. If it is clean look you are looking for you might want to enlist the help of some tape.

cr500_af;648939 wrote: I've heard (so take it for what it's worth) that wiping the first bead down with acetone right before applying the second will help the bond.

 

[smallblock]

I used a cut piece of cardboard to get a nice even silicone joint.