They do use silicone. ADA is referring to the usage of heat to temper the glass. What makes ADA aquariums stand out is the high quality control standards they use, not the materials.
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Side glass is floating
- Thread starter kirehajba
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sparkyweasel
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The "special" glass they are referring to is the same glass available to other quality aquariums. For several years, ADA used <Pilkington OptiWhite>, a low-iron glass with a high light transmission coefficient. This glass was a benchmark until
other manufacturers started producing alternatives to the original OptiWhite - this is the reason why "OptiWhite", which is a Pilkington trademark, is often used as a synonym of "extra-clear" glass. Amano himself selected a group of specialized builders in Germany that were already using this glass to produce the original Cube Gardens according to strict QC standards. ADA eventually moved production/sourcing from Germany to China to reduce costs and to cope with the higher volume of orders. At this point, they also upgraded the glass and the silicone work. . One can say that the original Cube Gardens made in Europe are somewhat "inferior" to the current version. If one compares an older Cube Garden with a newer Cube Garden, there are visible differences in the edges of the glass panes (the older ones using OptiWhite have a slight green tint). The current silicone seams are also thinner and less visible. But the materials available to ADA are also available to other "premium" builders - the big difference is the QC, as demonstrated in the original post of this thread 😉
As far as I can tell, there are two variants of the ADA Cube Garden.
The standard, and currently available ADA Cube Garden, is a standard construction low iron glass tank with silicon seams.
The ADA Cube Garden Superior doesn't seem to be available any longer, or certainly not with the UK or Europe AFAIKT (it may be a special order item), and uses some sort of heat applied method to fuse the glass panes together. Prices appear to have been in the region of £2k for the 60p, £1,500 for the 30cm cube, so not for the faint hearted!
The standard, and currently available ADA Cube Garden, is a standard construction low iron glass tank with silicon seams.
The ADA Cube Garden Superior doesn't seem to be available any longer, or certainly not with the UK or Europe AFAIKT (it may be a special order item), and uses some sort of heat applied method to fuse the glass panes together. Prices appear to have been in the region of £2k for the 60p, £1,500 for the 30cm cube, so not for the faint hearted!
You and @Rockfella are right regarding the Cube Superior! I was unaware of that model. Part of its history is explained in the <ADA website>. This model was designed in 1994 and was available up to a maximum width of 60cm. It was made of some kind of moulded/fused glass without any seams. See the photo below. Due to costs and size limitations, ADA replaced the Cube Garden Superior model with the "normal" Cube Garden featuring thin silicone seams. For a number of years, these models with silicone seams were made (at least) in Germany. ADA eventually moved production to Asia (I believe around 2010) and continued to upgrade their materials and building techniques, leading to the models available today that have almost invisible silicone seams.
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Hi all,
cheers Darrel
I've got lots of old glass chromatography tanks, I might reconsider what to do with them.
cheers Darrel
A few scattered small air bubbles are normal due to the way silicone is injected between the glass panes. Such bubbles are only a cause of concern if their number starts visibly increasing and air gaps start to form while the tank is in operation. However, the photos of the OP do not show the usual small bubbles but continuous areas, several cms wide (note that the glass thickness is 15mm), where the silicone has not adhered to the glass at all, possibly due to poorly cleaned surfaces, incorrect application of the silicone, and/or incorrect stabilization of the glass panes while the silicone was curing.
Yep. Looking at how one pane is 1/2 mm higher it seems like it was not even kept on a flat surface!
I imagine it probably was manufactured on a flat surface, but I suspect they knew the side pane was cut too short, so they would have had to jack it up with some shims to keep the top edge level.
Yep, instead of grinding/polishing the taller panes.
zozo
Member
This is relatively time-consuming and labor-intensive in machine/man-hours... A few years ago it did cost me €10 p/m. And I guess labor doesn't come cheaper as time passes. Anyway, then cutting a new correct panel would be quicker and cheaper.
sparkyweasel
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He's talking about the Cube Garden, Rockfella was referring to the Cube Garden Superior.
sparkyweasel
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That is what worries me. If they didn't clean the glass properly the rest of the silicone, even though it appears to be adhered to the glass, may not be attached with the required strength.
Hey guys... so the saga continues... I just found that one of the glasses is chipped from the edge towards inside (this photo is taken from above)
This is unbelievable... All the hopes that I had about this aquarium are down 🙁
Let's see what the aquarium company will say now! I guess this will be yet another, "it's normal" answer
This is unbelievable... All the hopes that I had about this aquarium are down 🙁
Let's see what the aquarium company will say now! I guess this will be yet another, "it's normal" answer
Paul Willi
Member
In the uk we have a free service called citizen advice which can give help regarding your rights with purchases, when things go wrong. Hopefully you have something similar in Holland, would definitely be to your advantage to find out where you stand before speaking to the seller. It’s not fit for purpose In my opinion. Sorry for your misfortune and good luck 👍
mort
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Unfortunately yes I wouldn't use this tank. It is full of lots of different issues that on there own would give you a reason to be very unhappy with the build quality but together gives a real warning sign as to this companies fabrication ability.
