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Tank repair
Generally speaking, epoxies don't bond worth a bucket of warm spit to most
plastics. Gluing glass with epoxies is also often an exercise in frustration.
:-(
You would probably have better luck fixing the mitered corner with a solvent
type glue, but you will have to do some "cut and try" experimenting to find
one that works. Or, you could use a combination of an "outside corner brace"
with screws or bolts to hold that mitered corner together. If you do this, be
sure to countersink the INSIDE bolt or screw heads so they don't stick out and
later "stress fracture" the glass. (Outside corner braces are plated steel or
brass, and you get them at the local Hardware Store. Same for the screws and
bolts. The metal brace may be unsightly, but you could paint it or turn the
tank so the repair is "at the back.")
If the tank is the "ordinary" glass kind, the manufacturers used RTV, or Room
Temperature Vulcanizing, or "Aquarium Cement," the kind that smells like
acetic acid as it cures. If you are replacing an entire side of a tank, it
would probably be most economical to go to Home Depot, or Lowes, or Menards,
etc., and get a caulking gun tube of the stuff. Read the labels carefully - be
sure it is listed as "OK" for aquarium repairs. Some kinds are worthless under
water, or have mold-inhibiting stuff that is toxic to fish.
Hope this will prove helpful.
Cheers!!
Jean Olson
JOlson8590 at AOL_com
PS. I once "fixed" a messed - up top frame by using a small cable, run all
around the top, and tightened with one of those little Hardware Store
turnbuckles. Again, it is kind of ugly, but if you hide the turnbuckle at the
back of the tank, it is one way to fix a broken or missing top frame.