Resealing tank question

[Steve]

Today after the auction my niece & sister and I went to the LFS and my Niece feel in love with an all white 12" Comet Obviously at this time of year you can't put him outside in the koi pond they have since he's use to the warmth of the LFS tank. When she thought she wasn't gonna get him she started looking sad and says in a sad little voice "Uncle Steve, do you have an empty tank I can keep him in till spring?"

 So long story short being the sucker for my Niece I am, I am stuck with a big 1 foot comet in a 20g long in my basement tonight which I had just yesterday set that tank up to temp home some new fish till my 265g is up soon.  So needless to say that 20g tank wont work for more than a few days for this size fish. So I have a 55g leaker that Pete gave me a few weeks ago I've been using as a winter home for my bonsai, so now I'm thinking I'll just reseal that 55g so her comet won't be so couped up for the next 6 months till spring.

Never resealed a tank before so have a few questions for those that have.

Do you just have to reseal the silicone on the inside of the tank? or do you have to pull the whole tank glass apart and redo the silicone that is between the panes of glass?

Any tips before I tackle it or anything to watch out for?

[Marty]

You shouldn't have to mess with the silicone between the panes. 

Make sure you remove ALL of the silicone off the inside with a razor blade or the new silicone won't adhere correctly.

[Steve]

Should I clean the seams with anything after removing the old silicone or just removing it with the razor good enough?

[danielratti]

Rubbing alcohol and steel wool works good

[Steve]

Thanks guys. I'll probably be tackling it in the next few days so I'll let ya know if my first reseal is a success or a whopping failure 

[danielratti]

I think its pretty easy I can do a tank in about 20 min depending if someone else resealed it before me. make sure there is a lot of ventilation in the room. being bent over in the tank with the smell of silicone can do a number on you

[Ron]

When removing the old, from one edge you can cut against the opposing glass panel, while from the other you've got to be careful to not cut too deep and damage the seal between the panes holding it all together. I find it easiest to cut the edge where I can cut against the opposing pane first. This will help create a line to carefully follow without cutting too deep when cutting the second edge.

I think its pretty easy I can do a tank in about 20 min depending if someone else resealed it before me. make sure there is a lot of ventilation in the room. being bent over in the tank with the smell of silicone can do a number on you

20 minutes, holy cow! I think I could do a 10 in close to that amount of time. Anything larger starts to take substantially longer for me.

[four_by_ken]

Clean and no old silicone is the key.

From experience,  150 gallon isn't the best to try out as a first shot.