Tragedy, Glass Tank catastrophic failure     10/25/12
Hello WWM Crew,
<Eddie>
Tonight I had a terrible tragedy.  I awoke at 1 AM to a loud crash and the sound of pouring water.  I ran into the room with my FOLWR tank to find that the bottom had busted out and water was pouring down the stand.
<Yeeikes!>
  The tank completely drained in a matter of about 10 to 15 minutes.  I managed to catch enough water in a five gallon bucket to save my five fish, my cleaner shrimp, starfish and some of my snails.  Other snails and hermit crabs I couldn’t find.  They are all now in the QT with some of the live rock.  They have all survived (for now).  Tomorrow I will take them all to the LFS.  I do not have the funds to replace the tank right now, and my wife and I would be afraid this would happen again.
<I'd be investigating the cause of this failure... Was the stand or floor too uneven for instance>
  I have enjoyed this hobby, though I have made a number of mistakes.  Could have avoided a lot of them by reading hear <here> first!  I might come back to it some day, but if I do I would be afraid of this happening again.  The tank was a glass 55 gallon made by Marineland (I think).
<Usually a good brand>
 I bought it new and have had it for about 2 and 1/2 years.  I have moved it once (over 300 miles).  I do not know why this happened.  I haven’t even looked at the bottom yet because it is still the middle of the night and it is too heavy for my wife and I to move it with all the sand.  My theories for now:
1.  It was damaged in the move (not likely since I have had it set up here for 14 months).
<Mmm, maybe, but not likely. If so damaged it would likely fail immediately>
2.  It had a flaw in it’s construction (again not likely since I have used it for 2 and 1/2 years).
<This too...>
3.  I had been building a DSB in it.  I had over the last three months added about 2 inches of sand (I had another inch to go).  I’m wondering if the tank couldn’t handle the additional weight. 
<May be a contributing cause... or a large rock "touching" the bottom glass...>
Have you all heard of relatively new glass tanks blowing out the bottom like this?  Does this happen fairly often? 
<Does not happen (thankfully) very often w/ commercially built tanks. We/WWM doesn't even have a catastrophic failure FAQs file for glass tanks (will now though)>
Despite the tragedy, I do love this hobby.  I can see myself doing it again in the future.  But I wanted to submit this to you all for two reasons.  One, to find out if I didn’t have the right kind of tank to handle the weight of 55 gallons of water 50 or so lbs. of rock
<Support this w/ PVC or other material to have it not touch the bottom directly>
 and a sand bed of over 3 inches.
<Well, a glass tank, well supported, on a planar, level stand should be able to do this... Acrylic even more so>
 Two, to warn others who might have done the same as I , and have a ticking time bomb in their living room.
Thank you for your site, and all your help.
Eddie
<Thank you for your note. Am glad no one was hurt. Bob Fenner>
Tragedy – Catastrophic Tank Failure (is this the norm?) /Eric  – 10/25/12
Hello WWM Crew,
<<Hiya Eddie>>
Tonight I had a terrible tragedy.
<<Oh?!>>
I awoke at 1 AM to a loud crash and the sound of pouring water.
<<Uh oh…know where this is going…>>
I ran into the room with my FOLWR tank to find that the bottom had busted out and water was pouring down the stand.
<<Yowza! Not a good way to come awake>>
The tank completely drained in a matter of about 10 to 15 minutes. I managed to catch enough water in a five gallon bucket to save my five fish, my cleaner shrimp, starfish and some of my snails.
<<Ah good>>
Other snails and hermit crabs I couldn’t find. They are all now in the QT with some of the live rock. They have all survived (for now).
<<You acted quickly…did what you could>>
Tomorrow I will take them all to the LFS. I do not have the funds to replace the tank right now, and my wife and I would be afraid this would happen again.
<<Mmm, understandable…but perhaps an overreaction>>
I have enjoyed this hobby, though I have made a number of mistakes.
<<Me too! ...and still do>>
Could have avoided a lot of them by reading here first!
<<Researching…also something you have “learned”>>
I might come back to it someday,
<<I do hope so>>
but if I do I would be afraid of this happening again.
<<I feel your pain, truly…about 10 years ago I had an 80 gallon in-wall tank burst the bottom seal and drain completely>>
The tank was a glass 55 gallon made by Marineland (I think). I bought it new and have had it for about 2 and 1/2 years. I have moved it once (over 300 miles). I do not know why this happened.
<<A couple possibilities come to mind>>
I haven’t even looked at the bottom yet because it is still the middle of the night and it is too heavy for my wife and I to move it with all the sand. My theories for now:
1. It was damaged in the move (not likely since I have had it set up here for 14 months).
<<I tend to agree>>
2. It had a flaw in its construction (again not likely since I have used it for 2 and 1/2 years).
<<Again, agreed>>
3. I had been building a DSB in it. I had over the last three months added about 2 inches of sand (I had another inch to go). I’m wondering if the tank couldn’t handle the additional weight.
<<I don’t think this to be a likely scenario either… I suppose it’s possible something might have made a pressure-point which resulted in the failure of the glass bottom (I’m surprised it wasn’t tempered), such as a small rock in the sand trapped under larger rock/s. Perhaps your inspection of the bottom glass will provide clues>>
Have you all heard of relatively new glass tanks blowing out the bottom like this?
<<Not generally without extenuating circumstances…more to follow>>
Does this happen fairly often?
<<Fortunately no…not in my experience/estimation. In my case, a well constructed 13 year old tank failed because the “cheap” stand beneath “sagged” from years of moisture exposure and created a gap in support. The resulting uneven pressure/loss of support at the gap under the tank eventually pulled the silicone seal apart…in no way a fault of the tank construction/manufacturer. With a better stand, I have no doubt that tank would still be in service>>
Despite the tragedy, I do love this hobby. I can see myself doing it again in the future. But I wanted to submit this to you all for two reasons. One, to find out if I didn’t have the right kind of tank to handle the weight of 55 gallons of water 50 or so pounds of rock and a sand bed of over 3 inches.
<<None of this should be/have been a factor in the failure of the tank bottom…I assure you there are many, many such tanks as this in service>>
Two, to warn others who might have done the same as I, and have a ticking time bomb in their living room.
<<I know you are disheartened at the moment, but what happened to you/your tank is not the norm. Obviously it’s difficult for me to provide a true answer without an on-site inspection. But I think it likely the failure of the tank is either due to the stand it was on failing/sagging/being out of planar…and/or the same with the floor beneath the stand (those ‘extenuating circumstances’ I mentioned). It may well have only been off “a little bit,” which resulted in the delayed failure of the tank over months of strain. Or maybe was something that “has been developing” slowly over time and recently reached a critical point. And adding the sand, though not the reason I feel for the tank failure, may just have been the “final straw” on an already strained camel’s back. While a glass tank doesn’t have to be perfectly level, it is important the tank is supported by a flat and planar stand to prevent twist/torque of the panels. None of this is rocket science, so don’t let it scare you off. I don’t know what you did previous, but do your research on tank/stand installation with the next setup>>
Thank you for your site, and all your help.
Eddie
<<Quite happy to share, Eddie...I hope we see you back in the hobby soon. Eric Russell>>
Re: Tragedy 10/25/12
Hello Bob and Eric (same response to both),
<Have sent a copy to Eric>
First the good news.  I have taken all livestock to the LFS, and all was still living when I left it there.  I also learned never to stop looking for your inverts.  It was almost an hour after the tank had totally drained before I found the cleaner shrimp.   He had crawled under a rock.  I thought he was dead, but he was still living.  I put him in the QT with the fish, and he perked up and seemed to be doing fine.  The next morning (after seven hours out of the water) I was still finding live hermit crabs and putting them in the QT.  As far as I know they all survived too.
<Good news>
Now the not so good news.  For some reason the entire bottom of this tank blew out at once.  I had to take out all the rock and dig out all the sand to discover what had happened.  As you know a four foot 55 gallon tank has a plastic support that runs through the middle under the glass.  The glass had shattered on BOTH sides of the plastic support.  Basically the entire bottom piece of glass shattered and was punched down to the top of the stand.
<Mmmm>
 Only the support bar held up the glass in the middle.  The sand slowed the water draining out somewhat.  I said last night it took 10 to 15 minutes, but thinking back it was more like 5 (it seemed to take longer because I was moving so fast).  I had time to run for a bucket and catch about a gallon and a half before it was empty.
In regard to your responses.  There was no rock resting on the glass (nor had there been).  I had always had a layer of live sand under the rock, and because I was building the DSB, I had been periodically moving the rock up as the sand bed grew deeper.  As for the stand, I have not yet had the chance to check it, but I will and I will get back to you.  It is a homemade stand that I have been using for 11 years (both fresh and saltwater).  I had used it for saltwater with this and a previous tank for six years.  I had never had a problem with it previously.  The floor underneath was not entirely level, but I had shimmed the tank to level before filling it.  The stand was also bracketed to studs in the wall to hold it in place and give it added stability.
<Good>
 It is possible that the top (a 3/4 inch piece of
hardwood plywood) has gotten warped over the years.  I'll check it and get back to you.
<Please do so. BobF>
Thanks,
Eddie
Re: Tragedy 10/25/12
Hello Bob and Eric,
<Mmm, Bob here>
I have been going over the stand with a pair of levels and a carpenter's square.  If it has gotten warped it is not much so.  It does appear to have a 1/16 to 1/8 of an inch dip along the front edge from the front right corner to nearly the front left.
<An eighth of an inch is possibly too much... could be a mite more w/ the weight of the tank on it>
  That's pretty much it though.  This does
not seem to be from water/moisture damage as much as perhaps over-sanding when I made it.  If so, then it has been that way for 11 years.  Of course, building the DSB would have meant more weight than the aquarium/stand combo had held in the past.  Could this have been enough to cause the massive collapse of the whole bottom panel?  Or is it just "one of those things?"
Thanks again,
Eddie
<Can't say w/ the data presented... B>
Re3: Tragedy – 10/26/12
Hello Bob and Eric,
<<Hey Eddie, Eric here this morning…I have seen your/Bob’s other exchanges>>
I have been going over the stand with a pair of levels and a carpenter's square. If it has gotten warped it is not much so. It does appear to have a 1/16 to 1/8 of an inch dip along the front edge from the front right corner to nearly the front left.
<<Hmm…this “twist” in the frame could well be the causal factor>>
That's pretty much it though.
<<Might have been “enough”>>
This does not seem to be from water/moisture damage as much as perhaps over-sanding when I made it.
<<Or possibly even just the ‘natural movement’ of the wood over time and/or exposure to differing climes>>
If so, then it has been that way for 11 years. Of course, building the DSB would have meant more weight than the aquarium/stand combo had held in the past. Could this have been enough to cause the massive collapse of the whole bottom panel?
<<I’m skeptical, but…maybe…combined with other factors, known or otherwise>>
Or is it just "one of those things?"
<<Maybe that too>>
Thanks again,
Eddie
<<Anytime, mate… EricR>>