ladylouroll

ok some of you may have read i had a tank leak on me about a week ago and my fish were left in about 1inch of water. well i have just taken it outside filled it up with water and guess what... no leak, i was stirring the water up running my fingers on the silicone still no leak. any ideas?

Shawnie

did you have a bubble wand or stone in there? sometimes the hose will come loose off the wands and it will suck the water out...filters not hooked up right will also suck water out...but most times, its a air machine thats losts its connection on the machine, which in turn works in reverse if so

ladylouroll

so how should i go about testing it? my tank is outside so no power points. i can see a small area where the silicone looks like its come away could that be the suspect point?

Lucy

Maybe it's a slow leak, possibly leave it sit filled over night.

Shawnie

leave the tank outside and mark it with an erasable marker(on the outside of the tank) ..check it in a couple days..if it hasnt moved, it was something else....did you have bubble rocks/wands in the tank with an airation machine hooked to them?

ladylouroll

yeah i had a bubble stone in there. but this leak happened in no more than a couple of hours before? :S

10gallonmadness

Also did it have a lid? If it didn't could you have had any animals/kids that could have spilled it? I had an instance when I had my old betta tank a couple years ago my cat was licking and playing in the water... with the Betta in the tank. I though it was leaking untill I saw my cat trying to hit my Betta with it's paw while moving the water... poor fish.

ladylouroll

yes it did have a lid and no one was here person/animal when it happened. im still releaved it left my fish in about 1inch of water!

Shawnie

fill the tank and leave it for at least a day ....then go from there...if a hose is unhooked, or has a hole in it , the air pump running with the hoses can siphon out a tank fast...

ladylouroll

good point shawnie well i will check it in a few hours if not ill leave it until i go home from work 2moro

ladylouroll

ok, the tank has been filled for 2 1/2 days still no sign of a leak?

Shawnie

probably was a leaky hose or the air pump came undone from the air stone and sucked the water out of the tank ..that would be my guess

aquarist48

Hello Lady If by chance you have an air supply going into the tank, the pump would have to have been turned off or stopped running, and be below the tank for the water to siphon back out. You may have these already, if you're using air pumps, but just in case you don't Air Check Valves will prevent this from happening period. Below is a link to Drsfostersmith.com about the valve. I think it makes them a lot safer to use.
I hope you solve the problem soon!
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produc...m?pcatid=10109

ladylouroll

i shall check them out in the morning thanks again guys.

Tony G.

i once had a similar situation i filled my tank past the black frame (stupid i know) and it somehow leaked like 3 inches. ( ithe black from on the top wasnt sealed that wel so it leaked out some water) the stand got swollen from all the aer. you couc put a towel under the tank in the future so incase its a slow leak, you will notice it and have time to take care of it.

ladylouroll

well its fine if i was in but it just happened to happen when i was out sods law... lol. im thinking of selling it with a warning it has leaked before?

Tony G.

i would keep it just in case i was in need of a tank (hospital tank, unexpected purchases) so you wont have to go out and buy another one. You should buy some silicone to seal the tank over again, or take it somewhere whee they can seal it for you.

ladylouroll

but i cant find any leak hole at all there is no gap from the bit thats pealed off to the outside world :/. we have had some really wierd things happen in this house before, im starting to think it could be that!