What's Worse Than a Leaking Tank????

[Nelson]

An empty one that was full:cry:   Came home tonight to find my brackish 42gal totally empty.  It's the one pictured in my avitar.  The amazing thing is that the floor was completely dry which really confused me :?   Then I realized that 40+ gallons of water travelled under the floor moulding to places unknown.  

My Monos, Knight Gobys, Silver Scat and Yellow Tail Damselfish were still wet but laying on their sides gasping.  They weren't dead, so I scooped them up and put them in my large brackish water change container.  I was going to put them in my 36 but that's home for the Stonefish who would have really "enjoyed" the company.  So far they seem OK but tomorrow will determine whether they suffered any permanent damage.  

I was also concerned about my filter bacteria colony so I'm running the filters on my 36gal brackish.  That's four filters on that tank..hope there's enough fish waste to go around

Now for a complete re-caulking job.

[CdnRednek]

My deepest sympathies.  I don't know what I would do if it happened to me.  I have 3 betta tanks, 3 main tanks, and 2 smaller tanks.  I would be devestated, especially if it was my cichlids.  I hope they all survive.

[aidensmomma2000]

:shock:  I hope you have house insurance!

[Nelson]

It was a horrible sinking feeling that's for sure.  Thank goodness I had a source of aerated and heated salt water to put the fish in.  I and the fish would have been in big trouble without it.

[Nelson]

:shock:  I hope you have house insurance!

Lots of it, but there's no obvious damage.  I imagine I should start seeing some signs of wall damage fairly soon though.

[BigDaddy]

I would definately call a contractor whose got experience with flooding.

You don't want to end up with a mold problem under your flooring or behind your walls.

[Nelson]

I'm going to have someone look at it.  Mold is definitely a concern.

[mseguin]

Sorry to hear that Nelson. How did it happen? Justa slow leak?

[redbelly]

my sympathy goes out to you.
this happened to my salt water tank in september, only i wasnt so lucky to find any surviving fish.

[yellowtang]

You know what is worse than a leaky tank?
a bigger leaky tank..LOL
So sorry you had such a big misfortune........
I always have that on the back of my mind, one day coming home and finding an empty tank.....
hope your fish make  it.....and there isn't very much damage to repair to your floor.

[RaceFaceR1]

Ouch...  Let us know where the water ended up...  

Sorry to hear about what happend though...


Marc

[darkdep]

As someone who had a tank flood in the recent past, I totally feel for you.

[Julie]

Nelson, sorry to hear, that's the pits.  
My basement flooded with about a foot of water when I was away on vacation one spring.  The sump pump quit.  
I never called anyone but I probably should have.  The drywall behind the baseboards got mouldy and I was able to rid the visible area of mould with javex.  
The basement dried out very quickly with a dehumidifier and wood stove.  Not sure how long it was wet initially.  There was no carpeting, just concrete floor and a wood foundation.
I'd recommend the contractor unless you are prepared to dissect your walls; especially since you have little children in the house.
Another recommendation is a uv sterilizer for molds which fits in the furnace duct.
You don't want to be blowing mold spores all over the house if the furnace draws fresh air from the basement.
I am allergic to molds and the effects can be lingering if not properly dealt with.

Julie

[Nelson]

Thank you all for your kind words.  Yes Julie, I'm calling a contractor this morning to give me an idea what's going to be required to  remove and replace the drywall and insulation.  I'm concerned about mold.  Not sure at this point if it will be worth an insurance claim or not.

The only good news is that the fish are still alive this morning.  

I've been giving some thought about what I'm going to do with the tank.  Although the tank and stand is a very nice piece of furniture, the front glass is pretty badly scratched, which has always bothered me, so rather than go to the trouble of re-caulking it, I may just scrap the tank and replace it.

[Julie]

Nelson, it doesn't look scratched in your pics.

We went through the insurance kfuffle this summer after lightening hit the house.   It depends on how much damage there is and what your deductible is, you know that but also it's a strike on your "insurance record" even when you are not at fault  because it's such a racket.

Julie

[Nelson]

You're absolutely right about insurance being a racket...we developed a footlong crack in our very large semi-circle picture window in the family room and we were told by our carrier that we would be better off to replace it ourselves rather than claim it :roll:  

What the hell is the point of having insurance if the claims they pay our are clawed back through increased premiums :x

[aidensmomma2000]

Ir if they wont renew you for it.  :roll:

[Julie]

Listen to that radio commercial for belair direct.
Our claims may lessen their pool of money.  
Insurance - legalized crime.
Oh well they're all hurting because of the hurricanes etc....unfortunately we'll all pay for it.

Julie

[Nelson]

I had a water damage company in this morning to break the bad news to me about locating and repairing the damage caused by the missing 40 gallons of saltwater.  He brought out a huge electronic moisture detector and couldn't find any, anywhere.  :shock:  Great news but very mysterious.  He speculates that because the leak was slow, as opposed to a major flow, the water had time to find its way, in a narrow stream, to the area where the floor slab meets the concrete wall.  Apparently they aren't joined tighly so the water can seep into the ground under the foundation.   He said I have nothing to worry about. Dodged a big bullet with this one :wink:

[darkdep]

WOW...congrats!  I think...:lol: