filled up my new "used" tank and noticed a gap between the stand and the tank in the middle. tank is a 125 long. I felt uncomfortable with this and drained it immediately. gap was pretty noticeable. I had a plan to get a very flat piece of 3/4" plywood and glue it to the top of the stand and hopefully the glue would fill the voids and even everything out. Then I planned to put a piece of 1/4" rubber flooring between the tank and the stand. I have the rubber available at work. Do you guys think that would fix the issue?
how to fix a stand that is not flat
- Thread starter brent245
- Start date
It depends how the stand is constructed. 3/4" ply is pretty rigid, but if there's inadequate support in the middle, you're still gonna have flexing. You may need to beef the stand up with some 2x4's. I'm not so sure about using rubber/foam underneath the tank. Some people say they use it on glass tanks, but I think it's more of an acrylic thing. It shouldn't be necessary if your stand is flat, and if it's not flat, I doubt it would help.
I would put one or two 1/2" exercise mats between the tank and stand.
The plywood is going to flex and offer limited support under the sagging area.
Styrofoam is too stiff; you will still have the gap in the center.
Closed cell exercise mats will redistribute the high-forces on the high spots (in your case the ends of the tank). The commercial for Tempur-Pedic shows a simulated picture of pressure points and how the foam reduces those. The exercise mat will do the same thing.
BTW - A 1" thick piece of Tempur-Pedic foam would be ideal under a large flat bottom acrylic tank. The bottom would have less than 2lbs of force per square inch and the foam would compress a small percent when the tank is filled.
The plywood is going to flex and offer limited support under the sagging area.
Styrofoam is too stiff; you will still have the gap in the center.
Closed cell exercise mats will redistribute the high-forces on the high spots (in your case the ends of the tank). The commercial for Tempur-Pedic shows a simulated picture of pressure points and how the foam reduces those. The exercise mat will do the same thing.
BTW - A 1" thick piece of Tempur-Pedic foam would be ideal under a large flat bottom acrylic tank. The bottom would have less than 2lbs of force per square inch and the foam would compress a small percent when the tank is filled.
Can you post a picture of what you are referring to as far as the gap? How big is the gap?
If the gap is in the center. Verify that the tank has the correct center bracing and if not add it. Assuming that this tank is a standard plastic trimmed 125 glass tank, it should be OK to have the gap. The tanks can successfully be supported on both ends without issue. Adding foam will eliminate the appearance of a gap and offer a minimal amount of support.
If the gap is in the center. Verify that the tank has the correct center bracing and if not add it. Assuming that this tank is a standard plastic trimmed 125 glass tank, it should be OK to have the gap. The tanks can successfully be supported on both ends without issue. Adding foam will eliminate the appearance of a gap and offer a minimal amount of support.
If its an acrylic tank the gap will close by itself over a little time. There was just a thread about this very topic with an acrylic tank. Someone way smarter than me said acrylic bows as it absorbs water, and then as it dries it contracts. That can sometimes cause the tank to get a little twist or hump.
kallmond;3686852; said:
It is true that acrylic bows after it has absorbed water, but I would not want my tank to bow on the bottom. If it is an acrylic tank, you should fix the stand before filling. IMO, there's no other way around it.
I was thinking that maybe the stand wasn't what was causing the gap, that the stand was level but maybe the acrylic had twisted a bit.