An unidentified worm seems to be eating my silicone?

[Bucs20fan]

I'm going to go against the grain here. how did the worm get in there in the first place - there is no defect. Right? This whole thing is a non-issue IMHO.

I agree with you, i think this went a little off the rails as far as a defect goes, but it should be more back to, hey holy moly, this worm is actually eating a silicone seal type thread.

 

[Dburr1014]

Non-issue until the tank springs a leak.... Again.

 

[Erasmus Crowley]

I'm going to go against the grain here. how did the worm get in there in the first place - there is no defect. Right? This whole thing is a non-issue IMHO.

I don't understand what you're trying to communicate. Would you be willing to word this in a different way to clarify your point of view?

 

[MnFish1]

I agree with you, i think this went a little off the rails as far as a defect goes, but it should be more back to, hey holy moly, this worm is actually eating a silicone seal type thread.

Yes - except - appearances are deceiving - I watched the video - I do not believe (I know a heretic) - that the worm is eating the silicone that quickly. if so - one would have multiple tanks leaking with worms eating silicone. This has nothing to do with redsea

 

[MnFish1]

I don't understand what you're trying to communicate. Would you be willing to word this in a different way to clarify your point of view?

Sure - there are a couple possibilities (I posted these a couple days ago). 1. The worm is burrowing into silicone. 2. The tank was separating and the worm found a home. 3. The Worm is 'eating silicone - this one I doubt.

 

[MnFish1]

I don't understand what you're trying to communicate. Would you be willing to word this in a different way to clarify your point of view?

PS - I said - I don't know how the worm got into the defect. I.e. Without prior damage. I do not think worms just delve into silicone - otherwise - there would be thousands of reports about tanks leaking

 

[Erasmus Crowley]

PS - I said - I don't know how the worm got into the defect. I.e. Without prior damage. I do not think worms just delve into silicone - otherwise - there would be thousands of reports about tanks leaking

It seems like this perspective would imply that all species of worm fall into one of two possible categories; either they are very common or completely nonexistant?

Isn't there a possibility for a very rare worm with unusual behavior that does still exist?

 

[Dburr1014]

Yes - except - appearances are deceiving - I watched the video - I do not believe (I know a heretic) - that the worm is eating the silicone that quickly. if so - one would have multiple tanks leaking with worms eating silicone. This has nothing to do with redsea

This is not a redsea tank.
He stated it was an IM.
Not sure when that got into the thread.
The video, to me, clearly shows the worm biting, pulling off a piece. More than once.
Very, very, strange, and creepy.

 

[Gtinnel]

1. The worm is burrowing into silicone.

I can agree that the worm may be burrowing into the silicone instead of eating it, it actually seems more likely IMO that it is just pulling off chunks of silicone and not actually eating it. However the end result is the same.
From watching the video it would seem hard to deny that the worm is damaging the silicone.

 

[shorty6049]

I saw this thread a few days ago and didn’t believe the worm was to blame, but that video made a believer out of me. That’s crazy.

I would be spending my time trying to get it out instead of videoing it destroy my tank.

Yeah... It was important enough that I felt it was worth spending a bit of time documenting it first, but that'll be the next step. Because we're looking at macro-level sizes here, its taking it forever to make any progress so I've kind of just decided a few days won't make much difference. Definitely not going to wait TOO long here though...

 

[Gtinnel]

Yeah... It was important enough that I felt it was worth spending a bit of time documenting it first, but that'll be the next step. Because we're looking at macro-level sizes here, its taking it forever to make any progress so I've kind of just decided a few days won't make much difference. Definitely not going to wait TOO long here though...

I’m glad you made the video, because I would’ve never believed it had I not seen it. That just wouldn’t have been my reaction.

 

[shorty6049]

PS - I said - I don't know how the worm got into the defect. I.e. Without prior damage. I do not think worms just delve into silicone - otherwise - there would be thousands of reports about tanks leaking

Yeah man, your guess is as good as mine on that front.... (Noticed the MN in your name btw. Have you been a member of TCMAS in the past? I used to be pretty active on their online forums a few years back. not sure if we've crossed paths before?)

I'm pretty hesitant to claim its eating the silicone considering I'm not sure we know of anything in nature currently that can do anything with silicone aside from passing it through its body unchanged, though from my inspection of the holes (I could try getting some photos of them ) they do seem freshly bored rather than pre-existing... Given this is the second tank I've owned from this manufacturer (who is well known and generally well regarded to my knowledge?) that this problem has arisen in , my inkling is that its less a seal issue and more a worm issue in the sense that they're doing -something- to fully functioning defect-free seals to cause this, but yeah.. I know it sounds crazy

 

[MnFish1]

The issue is, IMHO - are these worms a risk to the integrity of our tanks. My answer..... No. But - for everyone who wants to worry and discuss it - all good. I.e. The likelihood of this happening to the average tank is 1:1,000,000

 

[Travis Warren]

The issue is, IMHO - are these worms a risk to the integrity of our tanks. My answer..... No. But - for everyone who wants to worry and discuss it - all good. I.e. The likelihood of this happening to the average tank is 1:1,000,000

I am going to request my new build tank replacement doesnt not use black ssilicone.it sucks when 1 in a million is a 280 gallon tank that warranty replaces tank but not the replacement of fish and coral. Luckily I finished my 200 gallon frag tank and will move everything into it. Crazy, did not plan on replacing this tank for 20 to 30 years. 15 months is crazy.

 

[MnFish1]

I am going to request my new build tank replacement doesnt not use black ssilicone.it sucks when 1 in a million is a 280 gallon tank that warranty replaces tank but not the replacement of fish and coral. Luckily I finished my 200 gallon frag tank and will move everything into it. Crazy, did not plan on replacing this tank for 20 to 30 years. 15 months is crazy.

And the evidence that black silicone makes any difference? Oh - and who looks around their entire tank on a regular basis to 'try' to see if the side against the wall is getting a worm eating into it?

 

[Travis Warren]

And the evidence that black silicone makes any difference? Oh - and who looks around their entire tank on a regular basis to 'try' to see if the side against the wall is getting a worm eating into it?

Well I have 3 tanks with clear silicone and 1 tank with black. The black one is leaking and the others are not. In search on thread and others it seems the black is 100% as no one has reported clear. We could do a poll and look at data analytics and go from there but no one believed it was a work that did it till the video and picts. Fir me 15 months and the pain of moving everything on my first black sealant tank. I eill pay extra for clear and aquen as my preference. Data on my end equals clear sealant 6 years and still going. Black sealant 15 months and being replaced.

 

[Travis Warren]

Anyone with a leak on thier tank looks everywhere for the cause.

 

[MnFish1]

Well I have 3 tanks with clear silicone and 1 tank with black. The black one is leaking and the others are not. In search on thread and others it seems the black is 100% as no one has reported clear. We could do a poll and look at data analytics and go from there but no one believed it was a work that did it till the video and picts. Fir me 15 months and the pain of moving everything on my first black sealant tank. I eill pay extra for clear and aquen as my preference. Data on my end equals clear sealant 6 years and still going. Black sealant 15 months and being replaced.

So. In R2R there are xxxxxxx thousand members. xxxx tanks have had problems that were deemed due to worms. they were black sealed tanks. OK - My comment would be - before recommending that everyone avoid black silicone - instead - prove the initial hypothesis. that a worm is digging into the silicone - AND why black vs clear silicone would make any difference?

 

[Travis Warren]

So. In R2R there are xxxxxxx thousand members. xxxx tanks have had problems that were deemed due to worms. they were black sealed tanks. OK - My comment would be - before recommending that everyone avoid black silicone - instead - prove the initial hypothesis. that a worm is digging into the silicone - AND why black vs clear silicone would make any difference?

I don't have that much time and only shared what I am doing in my situation. I concur, hopefully more people are looking at this thread if thier tank starts to leak. (Hopefully never for everyone and every tank manufacturer). Also it would be nice to know the manufacturer of the silicone for clear or black.

 

[Purkey Pets]

Example of worms digging through clear silicone:

Silicone eating worm?

Hey everyone, I was feeding the the baby clownfish when my son came down into the basement and stepped in a wet spot next to the 75 gal. tank. We found a little hole below the level of the sand. It was a perfect hole that looked almost like it was drilled in it. We drained it and move the...

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