Realistic Lifespan of glass aquariums?

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I have 120g Juwel aquarium that is pushing its first decade..plastic braces needed some extra silicone after years but still seems very solid (knocking on wood)

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I am aware of two big tank leaks, not personally owned, but owned by a LFS and a friend.

My friend has a 180 gal Oceanic tank purchased new, never moved, and sit at the same location for 16 years. One day it leaked on one one side with water shooting out like a water gun. Luckily he discovered it before it turned into a flooding disaster. About a month earlier the central glass brace fell off because he placed heavy objects on top. Even though he glued back the central brace, I believe it has already shifted the joints enough to develop a leak a month later.

Another incident happened in a LFS. The store set up a new 120 gal tall Marineland tank and filled with nice fish. In about 6 months, the tank leaked 80% water to the floor over night and made a mess. There was no impact accident, so it must be manufacturing defects or simply it is a tall tank. I heard that tanks that are 30" and taller are vulnerable leaker.
 
mudbuttjones said:
I've been digging around for some info on the subject. In the range of 125-180g tanks how long can I expect a brand new tank to last, assuming it's going to be continuously running and on an adequate stand?

I'm less than a year out on purchasing my first home. The wife and I are finally in the position to save some dough. We're stashing about a grand a month into the down payment fund. I'm so excited. ...Excited to have my very own basement! I've got my eye set on a 6ft tank that's still kind of manageable to move and will be setup as long as possible without having to move or replace it.

I've got a 40b I just retired that was from 1988 that was in rough shape. If it were a larger tank I don't believe it would have held.

So basically my dilemma is that I don't know whether to just buy a $500 petstore 125 or spend the cash on a custom built 200ish gallon tank for about a grand or so. I see people say large glass tanks are only good for about a decade, if so then I don't think it's worth buying a really expensive tank. The tank will probably be in an unfinished basement and if I can get close to 20 years out of the tank then I think a custom tank is a viable option.

Do any of you have any big glass tanks that are around 20 years old?

I'm still not really interested in acrylic at this time.

I'm considering welding up an angle iron trim piece with center supports to silicone over the factory top trim as I've read many large tank failures are from stressed or broken center supports.

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~$1000 tank is only $100/year over 10 years so seems worth it (not considering depreciation and future present value lol) :) Joking aside, I can't speak of first hands experience as I've not had my tank for very long (72 x 30 x 28). The company/guy that built my tank told me of some cases where the glass cross brace did come loose and fall off - not many but did admit it does happen on tall rimless tanks that he's done before. Since he does do top and bottom "euro-bracing" the tank bowed about 3/16" he said.

My brother in law had a large tank that the bracing fell off by the same company, I suspect that it was sitting around for awhile and was moved quite a bit (before he finally bought it). Anyway, he ended up putting on new cross braces on top of the euro-brace rather than on the facing edge. Only time will tell. It was a little nerve racking and not even my tank. He's had it filled for a few weeks now and feels better about the bracing. That did get me thinking about my own tank, but after speaking with the same builder decided to not mess with it. He admitted it does rarely happen, but he advised not to as what he did was really "overkill" for my tank already. I even offered to pay for additional cross brace but he turned it down. Only time will tell...
 
Coincidentally, the center brace just fell out in my Oceanic 140 yesterday. Luckily the whole thing didn't blow, but it was bowing noticeably. The sound of that half inch piece of glass hitting the floor of the tank along with all the other stuff on top brought me running... I got lucky that none of that damaged the tank any further. But based on the silicon failing for the center brace, I'll take that as a sign that the whole tank needs to be resealed. Its around 20 years old.
 
I just picked up a 240 that is 1/2" glass and probably from the early 90s... Simple as busting out a $5 stripper tool to rip out the outer silicon seals and a few hours later with some acetone, paint tape, and about $30 worth of momentive RTV 108... I had nice new silicon in the tank and I would expect this tank to last awhile. As long as you never disturb silicon in-between the glass and have a good waterproof barrier protecting it.... I can't imagine a tank just outright failing as long as you have a quality stand and keep an eye on the integrity of the outer seal and the braces.

Hearing people's center braces falling out does scare me, but I still think the key to long-lasting tank is keeping an eye on outer silicon and replacing it when you see it starting to degrade/fail/peel/discolor. I would second the notion that if you have an older tank and it sits empty for any amount of time, that you consider replacing the outer silicon before setting it back up so you don't have to lose sleep over it. The key to a good re-seal is very clean glass and a good tube of silicon... none of that HD / Lowes GE stuff :) I would also stay away from large tanks that don't have a center brace... but maybe some people are more trusting of other people's craftsmanship than others.
 
Just wonder what is "Euro Bracing." Some old tanks have no central brace, relying on thicker glass to compensate. I have a 30 year old Perfecto 75g that has no central brace, and the glass top is cut with a few mm wider in the center than the sides to allow for bowing when the tank is filled. They even made 125+ tanks with no central brace in the old days. I am wondering if glass central brace is inherently less safe as repeated filling and draining the tank in WC may weaken the joint.
 
I don't agree with that after what I just went through... for me the center brace was the "fusable link" that brought awareness of the failing structural integrity. I was thankful to have the chance to drain the tank and reseal it versus the possibility of a whole pane blowing out and winding on the floor along with the entire contents.
 
viejafish said:
Just wonder what is "Euro Bracing." Some old tanks have no central brace, relying on thicker glass to compensate. I have a 30 year old Perfecto 75g that has no central brace, and the glass top is cut with a few mm wider in the center than the sides to allow for bowing when the tank is filled. They even made 125+ tanks with no central brace in the old days. I am wondering if glass central brace is inherently less safe as repeated filling and draining the tank in WC may weaken the joint.
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"Euro Bracing" is what the (4") glass running on the top perimeter and bottom of tank (in attachment). The reason the builder added the cross braces was because my tank was on the taller side so wanted to add additional support (and I use them to put glass lids on top eventually). He has told me one of his clients purposely cut the braces off as he "didn't like the look" and was willing to live with the reduced strength. I think some tanks can go without but it would depend of the size and how tall the tank is too.
 

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