Tank not touching stand?
- Thread starter Ohnoitstfloyd
- Start date
Okay so what is shimming? And why haven’t I ever heard of it
*upon further research, I do know what it is. I don’t even know if I’m going to find something thin enough to fit under there and actually make a difference
*upon further research, I do know what it is. I don’t even know if I’m going to find something thin enough to fit under there and actually make a difference
Shims are sold at hardware stores, Ace, Lowe's, Home Depot, etc. Ask for composite plastic Shims. They are not expensive.
Just slowly tap one under the stand at the troublesome corner. Watch to see if the corner of the tank and stand meet.
You will also need a "Level tool" to ensure the tank itself remains level. Once you get started it's really self explainitory.
I have a wavy, bumpy, flagstone rock floor. Leveling the stand was a nightmare. Pictured is a close-up shot of my shimmed corner. Yours probably won't be nearly so difficult.
Just slowly tap one under the stand at the troublesome corner. Watch to see if the corner of the tank and stand meet.
You will also need a "Level tool" to ensure the tank itself remains level. Once you get started it's really self explainitory.
I have a wavy, bumpy, flagstone rock floor. Leveling the stand was a nightmare. Pictured is a close-up shot of my shimmed corner. Yours probably won't be nearly so difficult.
Even those look way too thick. This is a baby gap. Like maybe 1/8th of an inch.
You just stick the shim under until the the corner is level. The thin part of the shim is what you will stick under the uneven corner and when the air bubble is centered in the level tool you can snap off the rest of the shim you don't need.
Btw you can rent a level tool from most hardware and DYI home improvement stores.
The use of foam between the stand and tank takes up irregularities in the stand. I use the 1" thick foam used to insulate walls from lowes sold in 8x4' sheets it's blue. I think it's polystyrene. Get the shims while you are there. Shims are wedges of wood really thin at one end, just tap them under the uneven part until its even, like said between floor and stand. Then no issues with tank breaking.
Hello; Please allow me to further complicate things. First is I like to shim a stand without a tank on it. This may not be possible for several reasons among them being the tank is too big and heavy for you to lift off. Another is not having a decent place to set the tank. But if possible I have found it slightly better to get the top of the stand level. Beware that moving a tank around has some inherent risk.
It can break for one thing. By the way always be sure there are not protrusions or objects where you plan to sit a glass bottom tank down. More moving around can also lead to leaks.
One advantage to this is it is a bit easier to get at the back side. This is also one reason I prefer a metal stand, but lets stick with what you have.
To get around the thinness issue I use metal shims which can be pretty much as thin as need be. In fact I use metal shims pretty much most of the time. Good and some bad with metal. Iron or ferrous metal can leave a rusty spot on the floor. Aluminum works well.
Hello; On a topic not related to your question. I forget the size of the tank but if it is say 75 gallons or larger there might be an issue with the total weight of the tank setup. Since you were not familiar with shimming this came to mind. I will stop at this unless you do have such a interest.
Good luck
Shim the stand at the floor. You can buy a pack of shims at The hardware store for very cheap. Then use the foam under the tank. This will allow for the foam to absorb some of the minor stress instead of the tank. It also serves as insulation for the tank bottom.
