Loaches Online Forum

This morning I woke up to the sound of running water. Running water like when I change out a third of water from my 125. Water was all over my carpet floor and tank was about half full.

Was able to drain some of the remaining water out the window and put the fish in a 36 gallon tub. Carried them to my local fish shop and she is holding them for me. Did loose a number of them though.

Petsmart is going to replace the tank. Right now not sure if I am going to put the new tank up or sell it. Glass did not crack. Looks like the bottom seal was broken. Do you think it could have been my stand. It is the one that came with the tank. (as a set) I have only had it about 10 months.

I know there are at least two other people who lost fish and had leaking tanks. It is NO FUN at all to try an clean up the mess. Carpet cleaning people are drying out the carpet with a big fan and treating the padding.

Thanks for reading about my troubles.

Oh, I'm so sorry to hear about your horrible incident. I actually always worry about my tank leaking or worse, the stand giving way. It's been up and running for about 7 years, knock on wood.

What a nightmare, and such a mess. Sorry for your fish loss too.

that's terrible man. are the splendida alright? check your pm's

So far I only know that I lost 4 roseline barbs. Will know more on Thursday.

Wow! What a rough day. I am sorry you lost fish in the process. Adding misery to the mess.

I hope you will be discussing this with wherever you purchased the tank and stand. This should never happen with a new tank and stand. Really terrible. Could there have been any uneveness with how the tank stood on the stand? Maybe there was a pressure spot that forced the leak. I use a level when I am setting up a stand and tank. I am sure oyu do the same, sinc eyou have so much more experience than I do.

I also worry that my tanks will break. I don't worry about the floor, but I worry about my fish.

What a bummer. Just shows that we all need a disaster recovery plan for our aquariums.

My five splendida made it okay. Lost total of 7 roseline barbs and two fish are just missing. Guess they got buried in the sand. One was a BN and the other was a black ghost knife. So much for having black sand.

All in all, I was really lucky. Petsmart did replace both the tank and stand. Think I am going to sell the stand and get a solid wood stand from the LFS.

My LFS: http://www.northwacotropicalfish.com/

I set up and host their website.

Wow, ...so sorry to here about the loss.
It is VERY terrible to wake up to the sound of sloshing water, only to find mayhem at your tank. I went through a similar thing with a 125 last Jan. I was luckier than you in that I did not have fish in there yet (still doing fishless cycling at that point).
I cannot imagine how distressing to lose fish that you have come to know, esp after 10 months, not to mention the biofilter, aquascape, plants,etc. After all, this is an expensive hobby!
My LFS replaced everything when my disaster happened, saying that it is HIGHLY unusual to have this occur when not associated with the initial setup ( hope that is some consolation, I was not reassured and only months later have come to feel it is safe to relax)
There must have been a fault in the tank that finally gave way after that long (mine also failed at the bottom seal - 0h what a bummer and a HUGE mess. )
Really, many tank failures have to do with improprer stands, and you did not make the stand itself, so WTF?
The mess was terrible ( I ended up replacing the carpet with hardwood and replacing the stand with one made by All-glass.
Just make sure your replacement stand is researched well. I learned the hard way that harder is not better and that support is really only needed around the margin of the tank.
Thank God you have a LFS willing to hold your fish while you get things reestablished.
Please keep us posted, and do not throw in the towel with your 125!!!!

I am so sorry for the loss of your fish! I actually found that if you can get our hands on gel padding (a sheet of gel) it really does help with any points of pressure. In relation to a stand I found that using the ones sold for aquariums really does not work. I am terrified of those stands because they either wabble of just do not seem sound. I would recommend going to a normal furniture store and looking at a solid stand. I actually have side table made of oak. I had to pay a fair amount as it is a beast of a thing but will never let me down.

Oooooo... I feel your pain! I am so sorry!

Where does one get large sheets of gel?

Hey Georgia,
What exactly are you referring to, when you mention gel pad. This really sounds better than the styrofoam I have used.
I am hoping to set up a fish room over the next year or two, so have some time to get the right stuff.
I think anyone reading this thread will appreciate another option for securing medium sized tanks.
Any info is greatly appreciated!

It is not something I have tried but in principle it should work better than anything else. I have not see the sheets in a long time but it was used for computers, shoes etc. I cannot think for the life of me how to find them. Gel would be able to adjust it's self to the pressure points and support the tank.
I wish I knew what it was trade named as or for, it used to be 1meter long and could just be bought in what ever length you want.

new 125 is up and with fish....

Hurray!!! I am sue that was a lot of hard work, but it paid off.

Beautiful, beautiful tank. Are these all your original loaches??? ...if so, I guess your LFS owner should get a nice dinner out somewhere (unless he charged you a lot to keep your fish. If so, he should just get his pay and a nice thank you for a job well done .

You have some really nice, unusually marked clowns. They are lovely.

Just curious,... is it gravel as the base? What made you change your substrate?

Thank you, Glenna.

Yes, it cost me for the LFS to keep my fish, but it was worth it. I did not loose a single clown. Did loose 14 fish though (10 roseline barbs).

I changed to regular gravel because was tired of getting the black sand in my all my filters (to some degree). I like the color of the black sand but liked the feel and size of the white pool sand.

My fish are 'flashing' right now, so don't know if I have ick on the build up or not. Can not see any white spots as yet.