Should this stand have a solid top?

[SandJ]

Plan on purchasing this 125 gallon tank this weekend. I was just looking at the photos, and noticed the black tank frame/rim does not sit on the stand all the way around (does not touch the stand inside the red boxes).
Is this an issue?
And does this stand look like it is strong enough to support the tank? Or does it need a vertical support in the center?

 

[sbash]

If I follow properly, no.

Rimmed tanks just need supports on, well, the rims... So as long as the framing you show in your photo makes contact with the base rim, it should be fine...

 

[SandJ]

If I follow properly, no.

Rimmed tanks just need supports on, well, the rims... So as long as the framing you show in your photo makes contact with the base rim, it should be fine...

The part of the rim outlined in red in the first picture is not making contact with the stand.

 

[sbash]

The part of the rim outlined in red in the first picture is not making contact with the stand.

Ah that fits with your original description. I couldn't tell, lol...

Anyway, yes, I would fix that...

As for the centre supports, I would have put them in when building the stand, but I have seen all sorts of pre-fab stands that would keep me up at night, yet they seem perfectly fine...

 

[SandJ]

Ah that fits with your original description. I couldn't tell, lol...

Anyway, yes, I would fix that...

As for the centre supports, I would have put them in when building the stand, but I have seen all sorts of pre-fab stands that would keep me up at night, yet they seem perfectly fine...

Thanks for the help!

Do you think it not touching the stand has caused any harm/stress on the tank?

Would I fix it by just adding a solid plywood top onto the stand? That way the stand would be completely supported all the way around.

I agree, some stands scare the heck out of me lol No idea how they do not fail.

So, I need to figure out how to add in the center supports. Ugh, now I am questioning whether the tank is worth the hassle :(

 

[sbash]

Yeah, unfortunately, it probably is causing some stress... Assuming it is full of water...

If you cant fix the frame, I would put some plywood on it, and styrofoam under the tank. The styrofoam will compress slightly, but evenly distribute the weight. You can then level the tank using shims under the plywood.

If you are pulling the tank off to add the plywood, adding the centre supports should be easy enough. Just use some 2x4 and either get some 2x4 hanging brackets or just toenail the boards into place. It's hard to advise without seeing the whole stand.

 

[JoshH]

If you cant fix the frame, I would put some plywood on it, and styrofoam under the tank

+1 on adding a plywood top IF you can't fill in the spaces outlined. But I don't see that being an issue, I would highly advise to not add Styrofoam under a rimmed tank. Definitely under a non rimmed but if it has a rim, no foam belongs under it.

 

[theMeat]

Take a picture of the whole stand from the front. Looks like standard tank stand, hard to tell for sure from the limited inside photo you provided. If it is a Marineland stand, that center cross brace is dado’d in so the entire rim should’ve making contact and supported, unless there’s some stress or warping issue going on