I think a better option is styro with 1/4" plywood over it. That way you get the benefit of taking up any little inconsistencies in the stand as the styro will deform around them but you'll still have a hard flat surface for the tank rim. In my opinion, styro does virtually nothing for leveling.
To Styro or Not to Styro?
- Thread starter Pharaoh
- Start date
I have it under one of my 125s. It's that warm fuzzy feeling that I think it's safer for some unknown reason. however my BIG tank has a 1"oak bottom attached to the tank. so a piece of foam would not only look bad but rasie the tank up that much more and would make care that much harder.
So in short I'll use it on my 125s but not my 585. if that makes sense
So in short I'll use it on my 125s but not my 585. if that makes sense
12 Volt Man;2289353; said:
I thought that this would be a good topic to discuss after having ready many, many post where peopla ask about leveling their tank and the common solution is "throw some foam under it". Which in reality, is mostly pointless.
What about on big glass tanks that the bottom rim is like maybe 1/16" or maybe 1/8" at the very most? Thats how my 240L from glass cages is and they say put foam under the tank. I always thought foam was for large tanks with no bottom trim to help support the glass (or acrylic) once full of water.
The foam is high density and doesn't compress much. I have 1/2" foam with a 2,300-2,400lbs tank that barely compressed 1/16". It should never reach the bottom of your tank from compression.12 Volt Man;2289214; said:
I doubt foam will help with leveling (side-side or twisting) but it will for small imperfctions that could damage the tank over time. For stands bought from the tank manufactor you're probably ok but for DIY it can't hurt for $10.
My tank was a 20 year warranty but only if on the manufactors stand, 90 days otherwise. That says a lot about how manufactors feel about stands. It's not about making the sale, it's about standing behind the quailty of the tank for two decades, they want stands that were designed for those tanks and go through a quality control check.
and this is a big problem I have with stands from Marineland and Aqueon (All-glass).
they are made of either compressed particle board (swells when wet - and begins to break down over time- - I have had to take down more than one of these stands from under big tanks at the LFS where I used to work because of this) or thin pine strips literally held together with nothing but staples and glue.
the tanks are great, the stands, don't seem to be as well made.
one thing that bothers me is that if you look at a pine stand for a 20 gallon, it is made exactly the same as a stand for a 210 gallon. no extra support, no wider wood strips, nothing. yet one stand supports 200 pounds, the other 2000 pounds...
makes me nervous....
I didn't read the choices close enough and voted for the last one "Foam actually makes a difference. I use it every time."
My choice would actuall be the second one "I might use foam in certain instances, but generally no." Since I only use it on large tanks (anything over 120). Small tanks I'm likely to have a store bought stand, the large ones I'm more likely to build it myself. If I buy a large tank that is used and comes with a stand I'd use it than as well.
My choice would actuall be the second one "I might use foam in certain instances, but generally no." Since I only use it on large tanks (anything over 120). Small tanks I'm likely to have a store bought stand, the large ones I'm more likely to build it myself. If I buy a large tank that is used and comes with a stand I'd use it than as well.
As Joey stated, I use it on a case by case basis. On my 150's I use it since they are notorius for poping seams, I feel it helps a little in the added support department. I have an old Oceanic tank with no trim on the bottom that I use it under but otherwise I trust the plastic frames that the manufacturer builds with. Almost all of my stands are DIY and I use 3/4" ply solid surface to set all of them on. If the stand is level and the top is flat, foam is just dressing to make you feel better, if the tank has no plastic, like an Acrylic, I would use it no matter what.
Mattyou;2293012; said:
I have a feeling you're talking about the 4' x 2' x 30" tall 150 g tanks? My brother set one up that broke overnight (no foam). I worry about mine that size all the time (do have foam). That's my biggest PITA tank because of the height. Never again.
Yes, the Cubed 150's. i have 2 of them. One is awaiting a silicone job (resealling this weekend) it sprung a leak on the bottom rear seam center. The other one is OK, both sitting on Perfecto Wood Stands. The LFS owner here wont even sell them because he says "He has never seen one that has not failed". I use the styro on these just because if I didnt and it failed i would wonder if the foam could have prevented the failure. The 150 I am re-sealing did not fail on me, I got it with the leak already in place.
