500g Acrylic Leveling Question

[Arnaldo24]

Hi all

Picked up a 500g (10’x3’x2.5’ high) acrylic tank recently. I have it in place and it’s off level but still sitting flat on the top of the stand. It’s off a little less than 1/2” over the 10’ span and 1/4” front to back.

The bottom of the stand is plywood that sits flat on the floor so if I shim the edges I can’t shim the plywood itself. I also cannot reach the back of the tank to shim.

Is this something that must be fixed or is the less tan 1/8” over a 1’ okay?

 

[csnmusic02]

Is the stand level like the ply wood and also I would go to Home Depot or Lowe’s and go buy bathtub foam they are sheets of styrofoam and I would place them between the tank and plywood

 

[csnmusic02]

 

[Fred A.]

Is the stand level like the ply wood and also I would go to Home Depot or Lowe’s and go buy bathtub foam they are sheets of styrofoam and I would place them between the tank and plywood

I have a 500g and agree it's a good idea to put a layer of styrofoam between the plywood and tank. It makes it easier to slide the tank around if need be, and, prevents slivers of plywood or even grains of sand or any other debris from pushing into the bottom of the aquarium. The styrofoam absorbs it instead of the tank.

 

[Arnaldo24]

Thanks for the advice.

The tank and stand are both tsunami brand and probably spent 7+ years in its previous (first) home. I imagine over that period of time the tank and stand both settled to meet the contours of their home floor (older home, uneven floors). All seams on the tank are solid and the stand is in great condition. I beefed up the support near the middle of the tank because the plywood had bowed a few 16ths of an inch downward.

The tank now sits on a concrete slab on the first floor with no basement or crawl space. I filled up the tank with a few inches of water to get a true level using the water line in all 4 corners.

The tank is sitting on an even plane, so the top of the manufactured stand is even, but the tank is off 10/16ths (0.625") over the 10' length of the tank (about 1/16" over 1') at both the front and back. Will this be a problem?

I'm reading mixed reviews on foam under a large tank, I'm not against it but it seems like half highly recommend and the other half are strongly against it.

 

[Snoopy 67]

I would absolutely use foam under that tank.
My 100 gallon came with similar material to place between the stand & tank.

 

[csnmusic02]

I have a 360 (6x4x2) and have a 360 8x3x30 and always have foam under it and never had problems for me I would honestly take the stand and just rebuild it if you have the abilities ? Most companies don’t warranty tanks sold to other personal so I would rebuild it so you know it’s level and than you can get away with 1/4 inch foam

 

[Arnaldo24]

The concrete floor itself slopes. What about building a base for this tank to sit on that compensates for the slope in the floor?

The stand itself is level and well built.

 

[FishPham]

maybe try adding some leveling feet instead? i see leveling casters recommended alot on here

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[Fred A.]

The concrete floor itself slopes. What about building a base for this tank to sit on that compensates for the slope in the floor?

The stand itself is level and well built.

Why don't you contact the aq. manufacturer and ask if the unevenness is a problem. One thing to consider are the overflows. If you have one in the right corner and one in the left then I guess you'd get more water pouring into the lower one, but that's not a big deal. If the mfg. doesn't think the slope adversely affects the reliability of the tank you might be overthinking the problem. If the stand and aquarium are level, and the mfg. thinks you're ok, then you're ok!

 

[Fred A.]

Also, I don't know anything about levelers, but, a gallon of water weighs approx 8.5 lbs. By 500 gallons that's over 4,000 lbs. plus the weight of the aq. itself, the stand, and any equipment in the stand. Can a leveler support that much weight year in and year out?

 

[FishPham]

there's different weight capacities depending on how heavy duty you want to go. i have no experience with these but have been researching for my upgrade so take my recommendation with a grain of salt. someone with more knowledge might be able to share their experience with you

FootMaster Casters & Wheels (224) - By Brand (1)

CasterDepot.com has a wide array of Footmaster caster and wheel products available for purchase.

www.casterdepot.com

 

[Arnaldo24]

I wrote to the manufacturer yesterday, but this morning decided regardless of the answer the slanted water line is going to bug me. I'm draining the tank now to shim the low side.

Does anyone see issues with cutting 36" shims out of plywood that will support the entire stand front to back? I'll cut them in different thicknesses (1/2" down to 1/8") and use them under all the load points in the stand. Has anyone used plywood to shim before?

I may still be off 1/8" over 10' at the end of the day, but as mentioned the overflows would function much better.

 

[Snoopy 67]

IF using plywood shims I would waterproof it before using.
I think plastic would be better.
Mc Master-Carr carries them.

 

[Arnaldo24]

My idea for full front to back strips of wood didn't pan out. I'm shimming all the way around with composite shims. I also have 16" cedar shims that I'm sliding under the plywood until tight so the sump and plywood don't sag.

I managed to get it to 1/4" off over 10' with no mentionable difference between the front and back. That makes me feel significantly more comfortable.

Let's just say thank you to my demolition bar that lifted the end of this beast with relative ease.

 

[Fred A.]

My idea for full front to back strips of wood didn't pan out. I'm shimming all the way around with composite shims. I also have 16" cedar shims that I'm sliding under the plywood until tight so the sump and plywood don't sag.

I managed to get it to 1/4" off over 10' with no mentionable difference between the front and back. That makes me feel significantly more comfortable.

Let's just say thank you to my demolition bar that lifted the end of this beast with relative ease.

My tank is perfectly level so I don't know for sure, but I don't think you're going to have a problem with the tank with such a small discrepancy. Like I said before, one overflow might take on more water than the other, but that's no big deal. You still might want to hear back from the manufacturer, or contact any acrylic manufacturer, but I wouldn't be surprised if half the tanks installed are not perfectly level.

 

[Arnaldo24]

Agreed. Still waiting for a response from the manufacturer, barring that being anything but agreement that 1/4" is okay, I'm going to leave it as is.