Tips on lifting 535 gallon acrylic onto stand?

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Yeah, im not one for foam under acrylics over here...most tank mfg. dont know any better these days either. alot of guys i help repair tanks...had them up on foam which leads to issues in the bottom seams seperating because there not properly supported... All foam is not created equal... if there is a warranty involved id go with the densest/hardest foam available. my main point is always that foam is not a building material. acrylics are best placed directly on plywood with shims under the ply as needed. Ur basically "free floating" acrylic placed on foam. it can actually throw ur tank off level over time from the tank weight crushing the foam. Foam is for plate bottom glass tanks only to prevent the bottoms from shattering due to any bumps in the stand... acrylic is much softer and will not crack/shatter under any pin point pressure like glass... does more harm than good IMO although so many people are confused these days it often strikes a debate.
 
Thank you wednesday13 wednesday13 .

The stand I had built is made with plywood on the top. Would you recommend I get a second piece of plywood so that I can shin underneath it? Also, how would I shim it if the imperfection were to be in the centers as opposed to the edges?
 
Men, men, and more men.
 
Thank you wednesday13 wednesday13 .

The stand I had built is made with plywood on the top. Would you recommend I get a second piece of plywood so that I can shin underneath it? Also, how would I shim it if the imperfection were to be in the centers as opposed to the edges?


2 pieces of ply is one way to do it...1 screwed down into the stand and shim under the 2nd free floating piece...

Another way a friend of mine just did was to shim from underneath the stand inbetween the ply and stand. worked very well and just used 1 sheet of ply.

The important thing to support/shim on an acrylic tank is the permitter seams. the bottoms can expand/contract a bit as the acrylic is soft. You can still shim just about any area of the tank you need to tho from up under the stand. Might have to leave the plywood unscrewed but it shouldnt move once the tanks up there anyway.
 
4 real men can lift it no problem. One on each corner. Put some 4x4s or furniture Dolly’s under it so you don’t have to struggle getting your hands under when your settIng up for the pick



That's how we moved my big glass tank. 1 man on each corner, 2 people waiting on the sidelines to take over in case someone tapped out, but that didn't happen .
 
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For my 260G made of 1/2" glass and top/bottom eurobrace we had 4 guys. We borrowed suctions from the tank builder. It indicates red when you start to lose suction. I thought it was easier to manuever from my truck with suctions vs our hands. Not sure how well they would work on acrylic.

I used r-tech 1/2" foam over 3/4" plywood and told it crushes better than thicker foam. I understand foam isnt advised for rimmed glass or acrylic tanks. But I do have my acrylic sump sitting on the same foam under my tank. Short of what your acrylic tank builder advises, I'd put directly on wood if that were me.
 
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