A while back I had a 55 gallon sport a leak between the front panel and one of the side panels. Lacking the time and inclination to deal with it, I moved it to the garage and moved another 55 gallon I was goin' to put elsewhere in its place.

So finally decided to tackle this bad boy. A little background on the tank. It's a very old Metaframe tank, my first 55 gallon as a matter of fact, that I purchased used in 1988. It was old then. The plastic frame has always been on the rotten side and the center brace was missin' when I bought it, but it has never bowed. That said, the glass is slightly green but amazingly free of scratches. It is all 3/8" glass, rather than the 1/4" glass used for 55 gallon tanks nowadays.

So 'cuz the frame was so battered, it fell apart when I tried to remove it. Considerin' my experience with the tank, I decided I'd give ita go as a rimless, somethin' I wouldn't do with a newer tank with thinner glass.

First step was removin' the front piece. That was a PITA.



Nicked the side piece in the process.



Normally, I'd be worried 'bout this, it's more than halfway through the width of the glass. But in this case, not so much. Ya'll will see why later.

Scraped the old silicone offa the glass. This is imperative. Old silicone left on the glass can keep new silicone from adhering and potentially cause a faulty seal and subsequent leak.



The best way to ensure yer done scrapin' is to run yer finger over the glass. If it's smooth and yer finger runs without resistance, it's ready for the new silicone. If there is any resistance then there is still silicone residue. Small amounts of residue can easily be removed by vigorously rubbing with a finger as well as scraping.

So now that it's apart and scraped clean, I take a cloth dampened with vinegar and wipe away all loose silicone on the surfaces to be resealed.

Resealin' is fer tomorrow, though.

WYite

Looking forward to seeing the finished product. Keep us posted!

So, busy yesterday. I'm actually several days ahead of what I'm postin', so i ain't gonna run outta content any time soon.

So, to put the panel in place, put a good solid bead of silicone on all the way 'round the edge...



place the removed panel on, bein' careful to align the edges carefully, and apply pressure.

Now, applyin' enough pressure while the silicone is settin' is necessary to ensure no air bubbles fstay/form in the seal. Most people use clamps of some kind. I, however, lacked the foresight to get clamps that would work, and don't have a thing in the garage. Solution?

30 years of TFH and 'bout 50 lbs. of Mrs. WYite's Stephen King books.



While that dried over night, went and looked for some stuff, rummaging in the miscellaneous box in the garage. The miscellaneous box is one o' those boxes Mrs. Wyite sees as refuse to be disposed of... but I know the truth. It's full of good stuff! Like...

slate...



and driftwood...



and cork.



Ya can also see some rocks in the picture of the slate, and some miscellaneous stuff in the pic of the cork.

All for now, maybe later.

WYite

Alright, so the back plate is in place and I trimmed up all the excess silicone that was sandwiched out the side. Normally I'd tape her up and give the inside a good seal. But I have other things in mind...

This tank is gonna be the first thing ya see when ya walk in the fish room, so I want it to make an impression. It also needs to be viewable from both sides and one end.

So here's where it's gonna sit...



and a quick look down the fish room...



and finally a coupla shots of the tank in place...





Don't pay no mind to that bit o' finger on the bottom of the last pic there now...just got offa graveyards, so I'll post a bit more when I get up. But the fact is, now the fun part begins.

WYite

It looks awesome Wyite! Thanks for the update!

Wow, looking good bro. Nice updates!

More comin'. Been busy the past coupla weeks...

WYite