I just got a new glass 110 gallon aquarium, 60x18x24, and I just finished building the stand. I ran into a problem though once I put the aquarium on the stand, the plastic rim on the bottom of the tank sags/bows down in the middle. I contacted the manufacturer and they said not to use stryofoam, and they also said "Most likely this is due to excess silicone on the underside of the aquarium. It will probably settle and compress when the tank is filled with water." This kinda concerns me a little and I am not sure if I should just set it up or not. Anyone have any advice.
Plastim rim on aquarium bottom uneven?
- Thread starter BarroomHero
- Start date
Pharaoh;3301755; said:
Cant get pics right now, but here is a quick drawing, it is very exaggerated though.
Ya, they said not to use styrofoam because you have a plastic rim on the bottom so there is no need for styro in the first place. The plastic rim keeps the bottom glass off the stand it self. If it was me I would make sure I had a name of who I was talking with at the manufacture. And I would also take pictures of it before and after.
And I would move the tank to a more safer place for testing if I was worried about it, maybe out side or in the garage. Fill her up and check it out, If everything checked out then i would move it back in side.
Also if they said that,
"Most likely this is due to excess silicone on the underside of the aquarium.
Then i would ask, OK so what are the other reasons that can cause this then. Are there other likely reasons if so what are they. They should know what there talking about. They built it then they need to know.
It will probably settle and compress when the tank is filled with water."
And I would ask them ok, what if it doesn't compress when the tank is filled with water, then what. Again, they need to know,and should give some better advice.
Its hard to really say with out pics.
And I would move the tank to a more safer place for testing if I was worried about it, maybe out side or in the garage. Fill her up and check it out, If everything checked out then i would move it back in side.
Also if they said that,
"Most likely this is due to excess silicone on the underside of the aquarium.
Then i would ask, OK so what are the other reasons that can cause this then. Are there other likely reasons if so what are they. They should know what there talking about. They built it then they need to know.
It will probably settle and compress when the tank is filled with water."
And I would ask them ok, what if it doesn't compress when the tank is filled with water, then what. Again, they need to know,and should give some better advice.
Its hard to really say with out pics.
SuperDave;3301857; said:
It would be hard to even get pics that really show the issue. The plastic rim only really makes contact in the middle of the tank along the 2 long sides, everywhere else you can slide a business card between the stand and tank.
I dont know that getting the persons name would even matter, they only warranty the tank if I use one of their stands which I am not.
I had the same issue after i rebuilt the stand for my 150. I could see a gap between the tank and the stand, but only in the middle. None of the glass on the bottom touches the stand, but it still really bothers me when i dwell on it. I have had it running for about 2 months now. ( we also had to resilicone the bottom panel) It seems to be doing great.
Can you give us some detail about the stand… I have a picture in my mind (and on the screen 
)of what the tank is doing but understanding how the stand is built may help explain why…
If there is “excess silicone” built up between the tank and stand, this can cause in differential pressure on the bottom pane of glass which could in turn stress the seals. This also sounds like 100% poor manufacture ring. Everyone makes mistakes and it’s not the end of the world, but they should be willing to replace the faulty product…
As far as the LFS goes… you are not “returning an item” per the return policy… you are bringing them back something they sold you that is essentially broken… Be bold (yet polite) in your presentation that you need the tank replaced.
I wouldn’t say the manufacturer is being uncertain. Company representatives have to speak in terms to prevent accepting responsibility. I work for an Engineering firm and they actually ‘train’ us how to word things to do so. A lot of lawsuits are pushed one way or the other based on terminology.
So since they hold no liability due to the fact you are using a home made stand, they are definitely going to word things to keep it that way…
Just a note… have you ran a 4’ straight edge across the length of the stand to ensure the boards are perfectly flat? If the boards sag in the middle and the tank is perfectly flat… there should be a gap between the tank & stand.
Based on my understanding… Glass doesn’t “settle” well. It’s not meant to bend and that’s what “settling” means. It may not break as soon as it bends, but glass with even the slightest bends/twists becomes stressed and stressed glass is subject to cracking/shattering FAR easier than non stressed glass.
Note: I understand tempering is a process of “stressing” glass, but this is a very specific & controlled stress, not random stress such as a manufacturer defect.
)of what the tank is doing but understanding how the stand is built may help explain why…If there is “excess silicone” built up between the tank and stand, this can cause in differential pressure on the bottom pane of glass which could in turn stress the seals. This also sounds like 100% poor manufacture ring. Everyone makes mistakes and it’s not the end of the world, but they should be willing to replace the faulty product…
As far as the LFS goes… you are not “returning an item” per the return policy… you are bringing them back something they sold you that is essentially broken… Be bold (yet polite) in your presentation that you need the tank replaced.
I wouldn’t say the manufacturer is being uncertain. Company representatives have to speak in terms to prevent accepting responsibility. I work for an Engineering firm and they actually ‘train’ us how to word things to do so. A lot of lawsuits are pushed one way or the other based on terminology.
So since they hold no liability due to the fact you are using a home made stand, they are definitely going to word things to keep it that way…
Just a note… have you ran a 4’ straight edge across the length of the stand to ensure the boards are perfectly flat? If the boards sag in the middle and the tank is perfectly flat… there should be a gap between the tank & stand.
Based on my understanding… Glass doesn’t “settle” well. It’s not meant to bend and that’s what “settling” means. It may not break as soon as it bends, but glass with even the slightest bends/twists becomes stressed and stressed glass is subject to cracking/shattering FAR easier than non stressed glass.
Note: I understand tempering is a process of “stressing” glass, but this is a very specific & controlled stress, not random stress such as a manufacturer defect.