Reefer front seal

Gatorbait01

Premium Member
This weekend I noticed my Reefer250's front seal has an air gap. Should I be concerned with this turning into a leak? I'm not sure if it's always been there or progressively formed. This tank is probably 4yrs old and wouldn't be covered by warranty. I marked it and will watch it.  I might just replace the tank so I don't have to worry about it. Does the club have any special relationship with "planet aquariums", as I think I want to get one of their tanks if I replace it.
https://flic.kr/p/2n2fUhC
https://flic.kr/p/2n2g1N1
 
Hi,
It is hard to tell from the pictures if the seal where the glass meets glass is starting to go. If you are seeing any deterioration of the seal between the glass panes I would have a professional take a look at it right away as you could be sitting on a wet time bomb.  Also note the location appears to be around the center of the tank.  I would check for level across that side of the tank as you may have a sag or pressure point in the center that is causing the stress on the joint. 
Per my construction knowledge with roofs, tubs, showers, and research on repairing fish tanks it all points to needing to drain and disassemble the tank to do a quality repair.  Patching the affected area may work in a pinch to stop an active leak but would only be a temporary fix.  I would have something like a flex seal that can cure underwater and is food grade safe on hand just incase it does start to leak and you need to buy a little time to get all the live stock out.
Good luck with the tank.  BTW, love your amazing coral pictures.  I definitely have to up my photography skills.  
BR Mike
 
@michael-vincent thanks for the feedback. I did mark the perimeter with a marker to better evaluate if it's worsening. I'm actually not sure how long it's been that way, and just happened to notice it this past weekend. I'm pretty it hasn't been that way the entire time as the tank has been up for a couple of years, but bought it used so the tank is likely 3-4 yrs old. I did level it when i set it up initially. I contacted red sea and they suggested dealing with it immediately and the tank is no longer under warranty since I'm not the original owner and it's probably too old anyways.  They offered to send me a replacement tank for $700, but would be responsible for shipping and he quoted btwn 200-450 for shipping. Waiting for clarification on what the actuall cost is and if the replacement would carry a warranty.  
 
Thanks for the complements on the photos. Photography used to be a hobby of mine before I had kid's. Now all my extra time fell into a time warp!
 
The tank may be level from corner to corner but if the stand it is resting on has sagged in the middle and is no longer providing support, then that would be causing a stress point on the tank.  It would also cause a stress point on the new tank if placed on the same stand.  The reason I think you may have a sag is in the picture I see your doors are binding at the top, which could just be the doors themselves sagging or it could be the whole structure is slightly leaning into the middle. You can use a 6 foot level or even pull a string tight from corner to corner and see if there is any gap.
 
Posted by: @michael-vincent The tank may be level from corner to corner but if the stand it is resting on has sagged in the middle and is no longer providing support said:
Ok.thanks for the info/ideas. I will verify this.
 
So my tank had become out of level. Side to side was ok, but front to back it was about 3/16" off. Maybe this was the cause. Although the tank was out of warranty,  Red Sea offered me a new tank for $700 plus shipping or credit for this tank system towards another system if I upgraded.  It might have been a dumb mistake,  but I ended up upgrading the system to a 425xl for $900 total.  Supposedly the new tanks are beefed up and the stand has levelers underneath. So that's were I'm at.
I was able to drain 3/4 of the water from my old tank, slide it over and refill. Then put in my new tank in the same spot. Old tank is still holding up and the seal has not progressed. Now I wonder if it has always been that way. Anyways, I marinated some media balls in my old setup for a month, and just filled my new tank w the balls and a few pieces of extra live rock I had. Every week I'm doing water changes from my old system and putting that water in my new system along with taking a portion the the substrate each week. In a couple weeks plan on un-plumbing my frag tank from my main system and plumbing it into the new setup and monitor my frag tank. If all is well after a week or 2, I plan on putting most of the water from the old tank into the new and then swapping out all the livestock. Hopefully my sps will make it. Have a lot of nice pieces I don't want to lose.
 
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