using shimms
- Thread starter bathawk
- Start date
I used standard tapered wooden shims, such as are sold in lumber yards or Home Depots for use in window and door installation, for many years. Recently, I found synthetic versions of the same product and they seem to be working out well, but time will tell.
When you are using these tapered shims, make sure that once you get the stand level, you then insert a second shim into the same position but from the opposite side, so that the two shims overlap and create a solid support. This way the weight of the tank/stand rests on the entire bottom surface of the leg rather than just on the thickest end of a single shim.
When you are using these tapered shims, make sure that once you get the stand level, you then insert a second shim into the same position but from the opposite side, so that the two shims overlap and create a solid support. This way the weight of the tank/stand rests on the entire bottom surface of the leg rather than just on the thickest end of a single shim.
On warning re homemade stands and leveling. I have always used a level to get accuracy in the process. The problem comes when you check the level at different stages. As weight is added what was level may not still be so. Therefore it helps to do a series of checks. Better to spend more time and effort to get it right than the alternative.
Before you start understand how tanks are made. Basically tanks come in two forms, those with a rim around the top and bottom and those that are rimmless. The first onlt get supported under the bottom rim, the latter have full support under the bottom glass. There is a method one can use to help either type self level, For the rimless tanks one uses a piece of styro or something similar under the tank so the entire bottom is "supported.
For rimmed tanks I have come to use foam weather stripping. This is a foam with and adhesive backing on one side. It comes in a variety of widths and thicknesses. I make wood stands and the rim on which the tank frame sits is made from 2x4 studs on end. I run the weatherstripping around the entire surface so it sticks to the wood. The the tank is pace on the foan and the weight compresses the foam. Essentially, this self levels the tank to overcome any unevenness in the 2x4. For either type or task here is how I would proceed (and have for my rimmed tanks). The bigger/neaviier the tank, the wider and thicker the foam should be.
https://www.homedepot.com/b/Hardware-Weather-Stripping-Foam-Tapes/N-5yc1vZc3e3
When you check for level place the level along all 4 rims- front and back, left and right. I have a long level and try to check a variety of placements .
1. After you have the stand built and in place and before the tank goes on, you can check for level. And correct if it is not.
2. After you put the tank on the stand but before you add anything to it you can recheck. You may need to redo or change shimming.
3. Now add some water- say about 1/4 -1/3 of capacity. This will let you know early on if adding weight makes it get unlevel. You will need to empty out most of this water to proceed.
4. Starting with being level, add substrate and the decor you can without needing water, then begin to fill the tank. Check along the way.
5. Once you are happy with it all you should use a box cuter to score the exposed portions of any shims so you can snap them off. The idea is not to have protruding pieces of shim coming out the front or sides of the where you may walk. It also looks nicer.
Do not forget you should try to add shims from opposite sides as noted above. You can stack shims as well plus with a big enough gap, you can cut of some of the thinnest part of the shim.
Before you start understand how tanks are made. Basically tanks come in two forms, those with a rim around the top and bottom and those that are rimmless. The first onlt get supported under the bottom rim, the latter have full support under the bottom glass. There is a method one can use to help either type self level, For the rimless tanks one uses a piece of styro or something similar under the tank so the entire bottom is "supported.
For rimmed tanks I have come to use foam weather stripping. This is a foam with and adhesive backing on one side. It comes in a variety of widths and thicknesses. I make wood stands and the rim on which the tank frame sits is made from 2x4 studs on end. I run the weatherstripping around the entire surface so it sticks to the wood. The the tank is pace on the foan and the weight compresses the foam. Essentially, this self levels the tank to overcome any unevenness in the 2x4. For either type or task here is how I would proceed (and have for my rimmed tanks). The bigger/neaviier the tank, the wider and thicker the foam should be.
https://www.homedepot.com/b/Hardware-Weather-Stripping-Foam-Tapes/N-5yc1vZc3e3
When you check for level place the level along all 4 rims- front and back, left and right. I have a long level and try to check a variety of placements .
1. After you have the stand built and in place and before the tank goes on, you can check for level. And correct if it is not.
2. After you put the tank on the stand but before you add anything to it you can recheck. You may need to redo or change shimming.
3. Now add some water- say about 1/4 -1/3 of capacity. This will let you know early on if adding weight makes it get unlevel. You will need to empty out most of this water to proceed.
4. Starting with being level, add substrate and the decor you can without needing water, then begin to fill the tank. Check along the way.
5. Once you are happy with it all you should use a box cuter to score the exposed portions of any shims so you can snap them off. The idea is not to have protruding pieces of shim coming out the front or sides of the where you may walk. It also looks nicer.
Do not forget you should try to add shims from opposite sides as noted above. You can stack shims as well plus with a big enough gap, you can cut of some of the thinnest part of the shim.
I use the synthetic/plastic shims especially since my fish room floor is always wet. The other positive to synthetic/plastic shims is that they are stable and will not swell or shrink with temp/humidity.
Good advice. The only other piece to consider - Shim between floor and stand (as needed), never between stand and tank.
I never use shims personally, I just add black tape at top of tank to hide the water line on displays. Both the tank and stand (or cabinet ) typically have a 5X safety margin so the tank could have water 30cm higher on one side than the other and still be structurally fine.
If you have polystyrene under the tank and a wood stand, the weight will settle things out. Even light guage steel stands will move - bend.
In my fish rooms, I add 5mm higher polystyrene at the back than front to deliberately tilt all tanks forward. If a tank overflows, I want it to dribble down the front glass first.
If you have polystyrene under the tank and a wood stand, the weight will settle things out. Even light guage steel stands will move - bend.
In my fish rooms, I add 5mm higher polystyrene at the back than front to deliberately tilt all tanks forward. If a tank overflows, I want it to dribble down the front glass first.
Not if that difference runs corner to corner on the diagonal. X
I have seen enough tanks fail over the years from torsional twist to know that will often cause glass to crack, in some cases entire bottoms breaking out. All of my tanks lean to one side or the other, along the length of the tank, and have been that way for more years than I can recall - but on the diagonal, they are all spot on.
Yes, there's a big difference between sitting on a flat surface that may not be quite level...as opposed to being twisted by sitting on a surface that isn't flat.
When I started in the hobby, it was Common Wisdom that a tank had to be on a perfectly flat, level surface. Over the years it became evident that this isn't a big deal, although I think that the advent of silicone construction in all-glass tanks might have made it less critical than it had been during the bad old days of metal-framed aquariums sealed with brittle rock-hard asphaltum.
This is where OCD comes in. I have a sufficient case of it that I just cannot bear to look at a tank that doesn't appear level. Fortunately, my DIY plywood tanks are always filled up so that the water level is not visible; problem solved!
When I started in the hobby, it was Common Wisdom that a tank had to be on a perfectly flat, level surface. Over the years it became evident that this isn't a big deal, although I think that the advent of silicone construction in all-glass tanks might have made it less critical than it had been during the bad old days of metal-framed aquariums sealed with brittle rock-hard asphaltum.
This is where OCD comes in. I have a sufficient case of it that I just cannot bear to look at a tank that doesn't appear level. Fortunately, my DIY plywood tanks are always filled up so that the water level is not visible; problem solved!